The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has said it is willing to consider proposals to reduce the pressure faced by Leaving Cert students who have to sit "high-volume" examinations in core subjects such as Irish, English and maths at the start of the examination period.
Responding to calls from the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) for the three core subjects to be "staggered" throughout the Leaving Cert exam period, it said it "values the observations of the TUI on exam-related matters", and would consider proposals in this regard.
However, it said any suggested changes would have to meet the "dual challenge" of ensuring candidates, parents and others received their exam results in sufficient time to facilitate the college-entry process.
As thousands of Leaving Cert students around the country prepare for their State exams this week, the commission defended the current timetable. It said it took account of a "number of priorities", the most important of which was its ability to issue exam results within a tight timeframe.
"The deadline for the issue of the Leaving Certificate results is 7½ weeks from the end of the examinations in June," it said. "To meet the results deadline it is necessary to hold the more popular subjects at the start of the examination schedule.
"Any change to the current scheduling would impact on the ability of the SEC to issue results by the expected date."
It said the existing timetable also allowed for the best possible subject choice within the examination period, and ensured that most students complete their exams at or before the end of the second week of the exam period.
However, it acknowledged the exam schedule also had to take account of budgetary considerations, and it ensured exam superintendents were not contracted for longer than necessary.
Earlier, the TUI claimed too much stress was placed on students by asking them to undertake the three core subjects, which each have two papers, within the opening days of the exam.
"We are calling for a staggering of the core subjects of maths, English and Irish over the exam period as a fairer alternative to the current system. As it stands, all three subjects require considerable effort over the course of the opening examination days," said Jim Dorney, TUI general secretary.
Meanwhile, the TUI welcomed the commission's decision to timetable the music and engineering exams separately this year. Both ran concurrently in previous years, meaning students taking both had to be "quarantined" before taking the exam.