Analysis: There's no doubt that bonus points are driving the uptake of Higher Level maths, but the initiative has had unintended consequences
This article is now available above as a Brainstorm podcast. You can subscribe to the Brainstorm podcast through Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
By Niamh O'Meara, University of Limerick; Páraic Treacy, MIC Limerick and Mark Prendergast, UCC
In Ireland, the proportion of students opting to complete their Leaving Certificate mathematics examinations at Higher Level (HL) has increased by 130% in 13 years. Such growth would suggest that significant progress is being made in mathematics education in Ireland, but research into the reasons behind this surge may temper such optimism.
Increasing participation in Higher Level mathematics at Senior Cycle has been a key aim for Irish policymakers over the past 15 years. The Bonus Points Initiative (BPI) was introduced in 2012 with the aim of increasing the uptake of Higher mathematics and the long term goal of improving students’ mathematical capabilities.
Bonus points mean that students who opt to study Higher Level maths and who obtain a score greater than or equal to 40% in their Leaving Certificate examination are awarded an additional 25 'bonus’ points. Based on the current CAO system, this means that a student who obtains 40% at Higher Level would receive more points (71) than a student who achieved 90-100% in the Ordinary Level paper (56).
From RTÉ Brainstorm, have Leaving Cert maths' questions got harder or easier over 100 years?
Maths is the only subject for which bonus points are available, thus giving the subject a special status in our education system. Despite assurances that bonus points would initially be rolled out on a four-year trial basis, it has now been in place for 12 years with no formal evaluation of the initiative conducted.
As part of an independent research project, we have carried out several studies investigating the impact of bonus poinys on the profile of students in the Higher Level mathematics classroom; students’ motivations to study Higher Level maths; teachers’ perspectives on bonus points and the impact on students’ performance in the subject. The findings from these studies will highlight some of the unintended consequences of attributing such a special status to mathematics.
As mentioned at the outset, between 2011 and 2024 there has been a 130% (from 15.8% to 36.3%) increase in the proportion of students taking Leaving Cert maths at Higher Level. As such, bonus points have been successful in achieving its primary aim of increasing the number of students opting for higher maths. In 2019, we conducted a study with 911 Senior Cycle students who were taking Higher maths and asked them what factors motivated them to study the subject at this level. From a list of 19 factors, the two factors that most students selected were "I wanted to get bonus points" (91.2% in agreement) and "I will get good CAO points from it" (80.3%).
These findings leave us in no doubt that the Bonus Point Initiative is driving the uptake of Higher Level matsh and Irish students are now primarily extrinsically motivated to study the subject at this level. However, research has also found that extrinsic motivational factors can lead to diminished intrinsic motivation among students. Therefore, the central role that the BPI is currently playing in motivating students to study higher maths may have longer term negative effects on students’ affective reaction to the subject.
The surge in the number of students opting for Higher Level maths and the motivation behind this has also led to a change in the profile of students taking the subject. A research study with 266 Senior Cycle HL maths teachers found that bonus points often resulted in students not suited to HL mathematics persevering with it. This large number of less able students has resulted in a much wider range of abilities than would have been the case prior to 2012. Many of these students are also less ambitious and have lower expectations of themselves, often aiming to just reach, rather than exceed, the score required to be awarded bonus points.
These findings present teachers with a series of challenges to contend with, most notably in terms of catering for much higher levels of diversity in the mathematics classroom. It is therefore unsurprising that the majority of teachers in our study would like to see the BPI retained but adjusted (56%) or discontinued and not replaced (23%).
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
From RTÉ Radio 1's Today With Claire Byrne, why do so many adults struggle with everyday maths?
As well as having implications for teachers, the BPI may also be impacting the grades being awarded to students. Between 2008 and 2024, the profile of students studying HL maths has changed considerably. A figure which has remained consistent in this time is the combined proportion of students opting to complete their Leaving Certificate maths examinations at either HL or OL (ranging from 87.9% to 94.1%). Given that the maths capabilities of the combined HL and OL cohorts are unlikely to have varied too much from year to year, one would expect that the proportion of students achieving at the upper end of the HL grading spectrum would remain consistent.
However, we found this was not the case. When comparing Leaving Cert maths'; results from 2008 to 2019, there is a 44% increase in the proportion of all HL and OL students achieving a score of 70% (H3 or above in current grading system) or better in the HL examination. When 2008 is compared to 2024, there is a 116% increase in this proportion. While some of this inflation can likely be attributed to the impact of the predicted grades policy in 2020 and 2021, this trend of grade inflation was already in evidence prior to 2020.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
From RTÉ Radio 1's News At One in 2018, Prof Lisa Looney on the effect on CAO bonus points on higher level maths
Given teachers' concerns about the profile of students now opting for HL maths, it is highly unlikely that this increase can be attributed to a better calibre of student studying HL mathematics as a result of the BPI. Grade inflation of this nature can lead to a loss of confidence amongst stakeholders regarding the capacity for Leaving Certificate grades to provide valid and reliable information about students. This can lead to students being admitted to third-level courses for which they are not sufficiently mathematically prepared, an issue which has been highlighted in Ireland recently.
Overall, these research studies offer the first comprehensive evaluation of the BPI. While it is clear that the primary objective of the BPI has been achieved, there have certainly been some unintended consequences. Assigning mathematics a special status has impacted on students’ motivations for pursuing Higher Level maths. This has led to a need for different teaching practices in classrooms; and raised concerns about the competencies of students graduating from second level. If the bonus points initiative is to continue, these implications need to be considered to ensure we develop students with the required mathematical competencies to guarantee a knowledge economy.
Dr Niamh O'Meara is an Associate Professor in Mathematics Education at University of Limerick. She is the Deputy Director of EPI∙STEM, the national centre for STEM Education. Dr Páraic Treacy is a Lecturer in Mathematics in the School of Education at Mary Immaculate College, Thurles. Dr Mark Prendergast is a Senior Lecturer in Mathematics Education in the School of Education at UCC. He is a Research Ireland awardee.
Follow RTÉ Brainstorm on WhatsApp and Instagram for more stories and updates
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
