TBH:WHY ON earth are 50,000 students sitting down to written exams this week? What kind of backward education system do we have? This is so far removed from the realities of life and work it makes me laugh. Unless all of these students end up working as calligraphers, this is no preparation for anything.

People are now accustomed to easy and quick self-editing as they write. It is the nature of written communication in the 21st century. This week students will face the ridiculous scenario of having to use Tippex or cross out text when they make a spelling mistake or wish to reword something. For a subject like English or history, where writing style is as important as context, this actively works against stronger students who, when using a computer, can finesse and perfect their work as they go along.

I would go as far as to say that writing by hand and writing using a computer involve two different modes of thinking, the first of which is now a rarefied skill.

This mode of examination is an example of just how out of touch our education system has become. All this bunk about fairness and accountability is irrelevant. The Leaving Cert is an anachronism.

From the examiner’s point of view, there is simply no way that each and every word handwritten by each and every student will be legible. If even one word cannot be read by an examiner then the system is inherently unfair. Students with neat handwriting (usually girls) have an advantage.

And what about all those children with various levels of learning disorder? Dyslexia? Dyscalculia? Some are granted accommodations in the exams but many more on the milder end of the spectrum are not. They must struggle with this archaic practice when it’s not only unnecessary, it’s actually counterintuitive.

The word processing skills required to produce a well laid-out exam are inherently valuable. What employer will value the ability to hand-write for two hours?

I hear the counter-argument – we can’t afford laptops. Laughable. When the world started using books did schools stick with tablets of stone? Are we teaching kids for the real world or not? Take the money from somewhere else – computers are now fundamental to learning.

This week my daughter will head off to take her exams and I will watch her with a heavy heart. We put kids through the onerous Leaving Cert knowing that the whole process is a museum piece. Thousands of mini-monks off to scribe their personal Books of Kells while the rest of the world enjoys backspace and spellcheck. Absurd.

This column is designed to give a voice to those within the education system who wish to speak out anonymously. Contributions are welcome. E-mail sflynn@irishtimes.com