A County Tyrone school is calling for a pause to changes in GCSE Maths examinations that will restrict November sittings to re-sits only from 2027.

At Dean Maguirc College in Carrickmore, pupils currently sit parts of their Maths GCSE in November and summer of Year 11, then can improve their grade by taking further exams in Year 12. Under the new arrangements, the November series will be available only to students who have completed the qualification and want to re-sit it.

Máire McGinn, head of maths at the college, said the staggered approach had worked well for students, with the proportion achieving grades A* to C well above the Northern Ireland average for non-grammar schools. She said the change was "pulling the rug out from under pupils who need those structured manageable steps to succeed" and called on CCEA to pause the decision and consult with teachers.

The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) and the Department of Education (DE) made the decision. A DE spokesperson said CCEA had advised the department that the change followed consideration of a range of educational factors, including the impact of assessment arrangements on pupils' learning and on teaching time. The spokesperson added that the Maths GCSE would continue to be a modular qualification, with pupils able to sit modules at the end of Year 11 and Year 12, and that the November series would remain for those wishing to improve their grade after completing the course.

Students at the college expressed concern. Fifteen-year-old Maeve said spreading exams out gave more time to revise for other GCSEs in the summer and that having everything crammed together was difficult. She described the decision as "not fair". Fifteen-year-old Cara said getting half the exam done in November eased pressure and allowed her to focus on the rest in June. She had achieved a C* by the end of Year 11 and hoped to improve her grade in Year 12.

Seventeen-year-old Liam, now studying A-levels, said the staggered approach had helped him secure a B grade despite struggling with maths when he was younger. He reported feeling that CCEA was "pulling down a ladder that helped students like me climb higher", because not all students can do it in one go.

McGinn added that many other maths teachers across Northern Ireland also felt the policy change was not in pupils' best interests.