"The Class of 2020": the experience of Leaving Certificate students during COVID-19 in Ireland

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to widespread school closures in the Republic of Ireland. Furthermore, due to public health concerns, the traditional-style Leaving Certificate (LC) examinations have been replaced by a system of calculated (or predicted) grades, with the option to sit the traditional examinations later in the year. This has clearly led to considerable uncertainty amongst young people, parents and teachers, but to date, we know very little about the experiences and views of LC students or how they have been faring during the pandemic in terms of their overall health and wellbeing. The principal aims of this study were to: (1) elicit the views and perceptions of LC students in relation to the first ever 'alternative Leaving Cert'; (2) investigate the extent to which the current pandemic has impacted their health and wellbeing; and (3) undertake a brief comparison with part of a previous health and wellbeing survey of secondary school students undertaken in Ireland in 2015. The study involved an anonymous online survey distributed in June 2020 and open to all LC students aged 18 or older. Students were invited to answer a range of questions about their views on the changes to, and potential impact of, the 'alternative LC', as well as completing a number of measures designed to assess aspects of their overall health and wellbeing (including their coping/resilience). A total of 959 students took part in the study, most of whom were female (74%), of white ethnicity (95%) and from Secondary Schools (67%) located mainly in Leinster or Munster (86%). The report details the findings and implications for research and practice