Madam, – Minister for Education and Skills Mary Coughlan may feel that an emphasis on mathematics by the introduction of bonus points is a fair method of encouraging students taking honours maths, but she fails to realise it will also disadvantage students who do not have a natural aptitude for mathematics from entering their chosen courses in third-level education.
Physiotherapy in the University of Limerick (UL) has had consistently higher points requirements than the other colleges which offer the course, and I believe that the policy in UL to offer bonus points for higher level maths is one of the main reasons for this. Higher level maths is not a requirement, yet, UL’s policy has made it very difficult for anyone not taking it to receive a place there unless the person reaches near perfect results in all of their other subjects.
How does this do anything other than preclude those who are excellent students overall but for whom maths is difficult? The one great thing about the CAO points system is that it is a great leveller. Is it not mathematics that teaches us that 1 = 1? Then let us follow the spirit of that and make one Leaving Cert honours subject equals another. For 100 does not equal 140. – Yours, etc,