Sir, – Prof Pat O'Connor rightly points out that the process this year of awarding estimated Leaving Certificate grades may contain some built-in biases ("Leaving Cert calculated grades open to danger of gender bias", Opinion & Analysis, July 1st).
She points out that female students may be at a disadvantage. This may well be the case (although I hope not).
However, the available evidence – such as it is – suggests that the bias may run the other way, and that male students may be at a disadvantage.
In a recent summary document outlining the possible biases associated with estimating A-level grades, the Royal Statistical Society in the UK has highlighted some evidence that boys do better in exams than in coursework and that this may affect predicted grades.
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The society expressed similar concerns regarding students from ethnic-minority groups.
For this reason, it is important for the Department of Education to put in place robust, evidence-based statistical models to screen for such biases. – Yours, etc,
Dr LENNON
Ó NÁRAIGH,
School of Mathematics
and Statistics,
University College Dublin,
Belfield,
Dublin 4.