LC Economics
ISSU Commentary (Higher Level)
Students in exam centres across the country sat the Leaving Cert Higher Level Economics paper this morning. The paper got off to a reasonable start with some very topical short questions that would have required students to adapt knowledge from the course.Section B began with a nice long question on demand and supply covering price equilibrium and price elasticity of demand. However question 2 on the markets will have been not so nice for many students who will have been surprised that Oligopoly “did a Boland” by not bothering to show its face on the paper. It was substituted instead by monopoly which would have been a lovely question for those that had prepared it rather than over-relying on the oligopoly prediction.Labour (as a factor of production), taxation, the nationalisation of Irish banks and the International Monetary Fund appeared, among other topics, on the following questions alongside a particularly pleasant National Income question that students will have been delighted with if they had studied the topic well.Like the rest of the paper, the final long question was extremely topical with the performance of the Irish economy over the past year, the effects on the economy of our ageing population, the economic consequences of the recent increase in emigration as well as the factors influencing and the economic effects on the economy of the increase in the rate of savings in Ireland over the past year up for discussion.Overall, it was a fair paper that would have tested students’ knowledge of the course thought the lack of many straightforward "define" questions may have thrown students. Instead the paper required students to think independently and have a strong knowledge of the current economic climate.
ISSU Commentary (Ordinary Level)
Like the Higher Level paper, there were some very topical short questions in Section A of this morning’s Ordinary Level paper with the rise in unemployment and economic effects on the Irish economy of cross-border shopping.Monopoly also appeared in the markets question on the Ordinary Level paper with students asked to label a diagram of a monopoly in equilibrium as well as explaining barriers to entering the market followed by a part (c) based on the example of An Post as a monopoly.Question 2 on demand and supply featured marginal utility, the economic reasons for, effect of and measures to combat the recent decrease in demand for hotel accommodation in Ireland as well as the demand and supply for Rihanna’s recent concert at the O2… nothing to cause too much “Disturbia” for students here!The circular flow of income, the rise in emigration, the canons of taxation, the regulation of commercial banks, the European Central Bank, the recent increase in savings within the Irish economy and the rise in value of the euro against the British pound were among the topics that appeared on the following long questions.On a whole, there were no major surprises on the Ordinary Level paper with many of the same topics appearing on both the Higher and Ordinary Level papers. Students that knew the course well will have been happy with the paper.
LC Accounting
Ailbhe (Higher Level)
Ah the last exam has come and gone.I have never been so happy in my entire life!And to make matters even better accounting went surprisingly well! :D I spent my weekend alternating at a ratio of 90:1 sun to study.By the time I woke up this morning, I cared so little about the exam that I even pressed the snooze button on my alarm. (What a rebel, I know!) Waiting outside the exam hall, the small class that is accounting was awash with relaxation. This tranquilising atmosphere hedonised by the 25 degree heat was diluted when someone voiced their concern- "OMG IMAGINE IF INCOMPLETE CAME UP!!!" Suddenly, the nonchalant sun worshippers were in heated debates about predicitions "No way man, not farm""If marginal costing doesn't make a show, I can kiss my first choice goodbye""Tab couldn't come up. Could it?" Thankfully once the exam paper sailed onto my desk all calm was restored. That was until we flicked to questions 8 and 9. Where was marginal? Cash Budgeting? What is this? Fortunately I had myself covered should this situation arise, unfortunately some of my friends weren't so lucky. Cash Flow Depreciation and Control made up the first section. I answered all questions. I wasn't too keen on the Depreciation as it used the lesser practiced reducing balance method which I wasn't too familair with. My Suspense and Service questions from section 2 both balanced after some probing and prodding of figures. Hopefully this means I got them correct. However in the mocks my Suspense question deceptively still balanced even though I got it wrong. I found the theory slightly difficult. It was new and deviated from previous questions. This, coupled with the fact that I immensely dislike the world of business and understand none of its mumbo jumbo jargon, left me slightly worried. But hey, I dont have to think about it until the 18th of August. Thanks for reading!Ailbhe! :D
Examiners Need to Go Back to the Classroom
Irish Second-Level Students’ UnionPRESS STATEMENT *FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*
Examiners Need to Go Back to the Classroom 21/06/’10
The Irish Second-Level Students’ Union is appalled at the errors with today’s Leaving Cert Accounting paper. It is completely unacceptable that misprinted papers be distributed to students particularly after the errors encountered with last week’s Junior Certificate Business Studies paper. Standard security procedures were breached when the State Examinations Commission had to resort to emailing the correct version of the paper in question to schools which had received the misprinted papers.The State Examinations Commission released the information that there was an “editing error” on today’s Higher Level Accounting Paper last week and rumours of this circulating through the media had been unnerving students over the weekend – Higher Level students sat down to their paper expecting to be alerted to an error on the paper but then only Ordinary Level students were informed of an error on their paper causing confusion and uncertainty among Higher Level students who had been left in suspense for days about an error on their paper…. an error that really didn’t add up!Incidents such as these undermine confidence in our examinations system and cause unnecessary additional stress and anxiety for students under already demanding and challenging exam conditions. The ISSU calls on the State Examinations Commission to ensure that stricter proof-reading procedures and are put in place and that each batch of exam papers be checked after printing to ensure that errors such as these do not go undetected with exam papers in future years. The ISSU implores the State Examinations Commission to take the discrepancies with today’s paper into account when considering the marking-scheme of the paper. Carelessness by students is frowned upon; carelessness by those that set the exam is unacceptable and easily avoided.__ENDS__Notes to Editor:ISSU is the national umbrella body for school Student Councils, aiming to represent and connect Irish second-level students the length and breadth of the country, ensuring that the voice of the Irish second-level student is heard and striving for innovation and democracy within the education system. ISSU is a not-for profit student rights organisation.At ISSU we believe that young people are not merely citizens in waiting - we deserve better, we deserve to be heard. We can and will contribute positively to society. It is so important that our voices, views and opinions are (i) heard (ii) listened to (iii) and most importantly respected. This is what ISSU is all about. We’re here for you.Our main aims include:
- To provide training and development of second-level school Student Councils, in conjunction with relevant bodies.
- To develop policies on issues affecting Irish second-level students and bring the needs and rights of students to the attention of the relevant authorities.
- To provide a transparent, democratic and reliable organisation.
- To work in collaboration with other educational institutions and bodies both in Ireland and Europe.
- To work closely with educational curriculum policy makers and teachers’ unions to continually develop a transparent, fair and modern education system.
- And most importantly, to give students a structured platform through which the voice of the Irish second-level student will be heard.
ISSU represents students at a national level and is affiliated to; the WHEEL, NYCI, Anna Lindh Foundation, Stand up for Education Alliance, Children’s Mental Health Coalition and the Children’s Rights Alliance. On an international level, ISSU works closely with OBESSU. ISSU also works with curriculum development teams and various advisory bodies.Contact:www.issu.ie, email info@issu.ie or call 01 443 4461.
JC Materials Technology (Wood)
James (Higher Level)
In the afternoon I had my final exam, Materials Technology (Wood). I like Materials Technology (Wood) and I enjoyed the exam as I didn't find it too difficult and the paper consisted of some nice questions. The exam was two hours long and I completed all required questions. I was in great form coming out of school today.I felt the Junior Certificate went well for me and I enjoyed it. I have worked hard for the last three years and believe that made all the difference. I will start my Transition Year in September. I'm looking forward to the experience and the activities that will be held outside the school and beyond. I will celebrate the end of my exams with family and friends. This probably will not last too long however, as I'm back to work full time at the stud next week. I'm looking forward to the summer and with this weather it will have to be great! Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank my family, my friends, my principal, my teachers and my superintendent for helping me complete the Junior Cert.The summer is eventually here, lets make it a good one! So that’s my lot lads. All the best, James
JC Technical Graphics
Roisin (Higher Level)
Today I had tech graph, my last exam! I felt it went well too, and it was a nice way to end the exams. I was able too answer the ten required short questions without too much trouble, and the four required long questions. For the long questions I picked question 1, 3, 5 and 6. I didn't run into any problems with them, except for the tangent in question six, which I'm not sure if I did the right way. All together I think the paper went well, and it feels great to be finally finished!I'm really glad to be finished, and I don't think it was as bad as I thought it was going to be! I think it is made out to be far worse and a bigger deal than it actually was, really it was just like summer exams. I think maybe if there wasn't so much build-up about it by schools, then it wouldn't be as big a deal for students going into it. I didn't find the exams as stressful as I thought I would, and I think it was because of the long breaks in between, where I was able to revise with my friends, and some days even in the sunshine! I think throughout the year, particularly at the beginning, I could have done more consistent revision, instead of just taking out the books for an hour on a Sunday afternoon so I didn't feel guilty! It might have saved me some late nights of frantically trying to revise an entire subject in one go!I think that the Junior Cycle could use a level in between higher and ordinary. I know lots of people that feel that they can't tackle subjects at higher level but find ordinary level too easy and frustrating, or don't want to do ordinary level but struggle with the higher level course. I think the only paper that should be changed is the maths papers. I think there should be a choice within the paper instead of having six set questions, I think it would make the paper less daunting for students. Other than that, I don't think there was much else that needs to be changed!My friends and I are officially starting summer today because we all finished today or yesterday so we are going to Eddie Rockets to celebrate our freedom! It feels great to be finished and I really enjoyed doing this blog!Happy Holidays!Roisin
James (Higher Level)
Today was the final day of my Junior Certificate Examinations. This morning I had my Technical Graphics exam. This exam was three hours long and consisted of short answer questions and four long answer questions. I felt that this was a tough exam and that the final long answer question (Q6) was particularly difficult. However, I answered every question and think all my answers were decent and relevant.
LC German
ISSU Commentary (Higher Level)
Glück appears to have been on the side of Leaving Cert Higher Level Deutsch students this morning as they sat down to their aural and written papers. The majority of students will have been happy with the aural element of the exam which some have declared as being one of the easiest tapes in years.The written paper got off to a good start with a fairly straightforward first reading comprehension although the second comprehension on solar powered cinemas may have proved tricky for some in parts. However, overall, the comprehension section was approachable with a nice "Angewandte Grammatik" exercise with a particularly straighforward question on rewriting a section in the Präsens (present tense).The written compostion section was also very manageable, however, the final point of the letter option which required students to refer to dance lessons many have been difficult for some to expand on.On a whole, it was a very fair paper which well prepared students will have been delighted with - let's just hope this isn't reflected too much in the marking scheme.