Some second-level schools are going ahead with ‘mock’ exams for Leaving Cert students despite strong advice from the Department of Education not to run them. The ‘mocks’ are not prohibited, but schools cannot use them as a basis for estimated marks to be awarded to students under the accredited grades process. Official guidance recommends that teachers conduct no more than three one-hour assessments – much shorter than a typical mock paper and spread between now and the middle of May – to gather evidence for estimated marks. Apart from not wanting to subject students to over-assessment, with exam candidates only back in the classroom this week for the first time since Christmas, schools have been told to focus on teaching and learning.