Transition Year

Transition Year can be considered to be a time for maturity and development. Activities such as work experience and mini-companies encourage growth and teamwork within the student body. New life skills can be learned such as first aid, cooking, self-defence and budgeting. A report from the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment found that students who partake in Transition Year generally have higher Leaving Certificate results. It can give students previously unknown confidence in themselves. ==Criticism==

In 2007, the Department of Education and Skills asserted that most teachers and principals are not really challenging students in Transition Year, based on official figures from a WSE report: "There was evidence that the content of certain subject areas lacked substance and that students were not being sufficiently challenged. It is strongly recommended that a root and branch review of the programme be undertaken." In 2009, businessman Bill Cullen dismissed Transition Year as a “doss year” (an Irish slang expression meaning a school year in which little work is done). In 2011, independent councillor Richard Finn said Transition Year was a doss year and costs parents a fortune. In 2012, Dermot Kirwan of Friends of the Elderly criticized Transition Year for being a "self-indulgent luxury that we cannot afford" and was not "fit for purpose" given the current economic crisis. ==Participation==

A study conducted by Transition Year Ireland based on figures obtained from the CSO showed that the uptake of Transition Year increased from 38.42% in 2001 to 63.55% in 2013. Percentages were calculated by comparing the number 4th (Transition) year students in any given year to the number of 3rd year students in the preceding year (nationally). Uptake in other years were 38.35% in 2002, 39.57% in 2003, 41.33% in 2004, 45.41% in 2005, 47.43% in 2006, 48.86% in 2007, 50.44% in 2008, 52.75% in 2009, 54.34% in 2010, 57.94% in 2011, and 61.53% in 2012. Mark English — described by Jerry Kiernan as Ireland's "greatest talent" ever in middle-distance running — first turned seriously to athletics during his Transition Year. ==References==