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Integrated colleges: transfer without testing

Wednesday, 9 September 2009

A leaflet has been produced to provide information for parents on how their children can transfer to an integrated school after their primary education.

The Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education (NICIE) is reminding parents that children can move to integrated schools without sitting entrance tests.

However, two of the 20 independent colleges — Slemish Integrated College in Ballymena and Lagan College in Belfast — are accepting a proportion of their first year students based on entrance tests results.

The bilateral schools have a grammar stream and select around 35% of their pupils each year based on their academic ability.

These two schools have signed up with the GL Assessment tests — which are being offered mainly by schools within the Catholic maintained sector.

Noreen Campbell, the new Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education (NICIE), said: “Transfer can be an uncertain time for parents and children and I want to let every parent of a P7 pupil know that there are 20 integrated post-primary colleges, serving all geographical areas in Northern Ireland.

“These colleges have established a reputation for educational excellence in a positive learning environment.

“Students in these colleges benefit not only from the highest academic standards but also from the privilege of learning together with pupils from other backgrounds.

“Transfer to an integrated college is a simple process which does not involve testing and thus makes the transition more enjoyable for all and sets a sound foundation for a successful education for your son or daughter.”

NICIE’s advice leaflet can be accessed through the NICIE website, www.nicie.org, from your local integrated primary school or by phoning the NICIE offices on 028 90236200.

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LW | 12.09.09, 23:57
While I am all for Protestant and Roman Catholic children being taught in the one school your experience of non testing up to Year 11, at Oakgrove Integrated Derry, does not mirror that of other Integrated schools I know.
As a former Secondary teacher my experience of all ability classes is that they certainly do not work perfectly well! The weak inevitably get left behind and the bright child inevitable becomes bored waiting for the weaker ones to catch up. All ability classes with a wide spectrum of abilities, put a great and totally unnecessary strain on the classroom teacher, unless of course you have small class sizes, numerous classroom assistants to help and a generous dollop of finances up and above that received by a state sector child to buy in extra help.

Posted by T J McClean | 15.09.09, 08:42 GMT

T J McClean- I went to Oakgrove Integrated College in Derry and no we did not have streaming tests when entering 1st year- in fact not until 4th year when you start your gcses, and that's only to cater for those taking the different levels within the maths, english, science and language gcses. Also, yes they are all ability classes and they work perfectly well.

PACE - Integrated schools are independant, look it up! Clearly, integrated education brings something new to the education system in NI or they would never have been set up. It's just a pity there are so many narrow-minded people like yourself in NI.

Posted by LW | 12.09.09, 23:57 GMT

Slemish and Lagan are nothing more than middle class comprehensive schools. Note how Integrated schools are classed as independent whenever difficult issues such as "how can you be anti-selection and against the 11-plus and still apply to the DENI to use selection and the results of tests to determine entry" raise their inconvenient heads.

The penultimate paragraph of this article must represent the most mind-numbing inane statement from the Integrated sector since they first claimed to offer some unique contribution to the Northern Ireland education landscape. Integrated schools are wholly dependent upon a sectarian headcount not unlike the operation of the main political parties, Sinn Fein and the DUP, at Stormont. Soon Integrated schools will impose the same death-like grip on children's lives in much the same way the impasse called D'Hondt has crippled bread and butter politics for the majority in Northern Ireland. It's what the voters signed up to.

Posted by Parental Alliance for Choice in Education | 10.09.09, 21:26 GMT