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Ask Dex: free Irish politics help for students
Ask Dex to explain Irish politics, quiz you on CSPE or Politics and Society, and link the official Oireachtas record. Free to start, no login needed.
Junior Cycle
CSPE revision, strand by strand.
CSPE is about being an active citizen: knowing your rights, understanding how decisions get made, and doing something about it. Here is how the course fits together and where to find the real record behind it.
Practise CSPE with Dex
Updated
CSPE at a glance
- Civic, Social and Political Education is a Junior Cycle short course of about 100 hours.
- It has three strands: Rights and responsibilities, Global citizenship, and Exploring democracy.
- Students carry out at least three citizenship actions, with at least one from each strand.
- One action becomes the Classroom-Based Assessment: the Citizenship Action Record, completed in second or third year.
- Group actions are allowed, but each student completes their own record.
The three strands
Rights and responsibilities is the foundation. It looks at what it means to live with rights and duties, and at the main human-rights instruments that protect people. Global citizenship covers poverty, inequality and sustainable development, and how change happens. Exploring democracy looks at how democratic systems work and the role of the media.
The strands are meant to be taught together rather than separately, and many schools spread them across the three years. Follow your teacher's order.
The Citizenship Action Record, step by step
- Choose an actionPick something specific that you can finish, with a clear link to a strand. Small and finished beats big and unfinished.
- Plan and researchFind out who is responsible and what the facts are. Use official sources and keep a note of each page you used and the date you opened it.
- Take actionWrite the letter, run the campaign, organise the class count. Keep evidence as you go: replies, photos, drafts, numbers.
- ReflectKeep a reflection journal throughout. What worked, what did not, what would you do differently, and what did you learn about being a citizen?
- Present your recordYour school will tell you the format. The record can be written, digital, visual or audio, and should show the whole process, not just the result.
Using Dex without cutting corners
Dex can explain a term you do not understand, quiz you on a strand, or help you find the right official page. The action and the record must be your own work. Check your school's rules on AI use.
Free guides to read next
Plain-English background with links to the official sources.
Try these with Dex
Each prompt opens Dex with the question filled in. Dex explains and points to sources. Your own work should stay in your own words.
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Dex Study · For teachers
Class practice papers for CSPE and Politics
Teachers can build a practice paper from a guide or their own sources, share a six-character class code and see class results. Pupils need no account.
Dex Study · Revise
Flashcards with spaced repetition for students
Dex Study builds revision cards from your notes and missed questions, then schedules reviews with spaced repetition so you revise what you are about to forget.
Leaving Cert
Leaving Cert Politics and Society notes & guides
Leaving Cert Politics and Society: the four strands, how the exam and citizenship project are weighted, free guides and ways to use the Dáil record.
Official sources
Frequently asked questions
CSPE is a Junior Cycle short course. It is assessed through the Classroom-Based Assessment, the Citizenship Action Record, and reported in the Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement. There is no written State exam. Check with your school for how it handles reporting.
It is the CSPE Classroom-Based Assessment: a record of one citizenship action, covering what you planned, researched, did and learned. It can be written, digital, visual or audio.
In second or third year. Your school decides which.
Yes, but each student completes their own Citizenship Action Record.
Writing to your TD about a local issue, following one Bill through a single stage, running a mock PR-STV count and mapping who is responsible for a local problem all work well. Our action ideas guide explains each with official sources.
DáilDex is independent and is not affiliated with the Department of Education, the State Examinations Commission, the NCCA or the Houses of the Oireachtas. Check your school’s or college’s current requirements before you rely on any summary.