Leaving Cert Irish paper 2: No show for predicted prose

Students playing the dangerous game of predicting exam questions will have been left disappointed by Leaving Cert Irish paper two, after some widely expected topics were left off.

The new curriculum, introduced in 2012, includes five poems and five works of literature; the other four had all appeared in previous years.

Oisín Mac Eoin, Irish teacher and vice-principal at Benildus College in Stillorgan, said that while higher level students might have expected the poetry and prose that had never appeared, it was only fair that the State Examinations Commission did not make such a predictable choice.

Clare Grealy, Irish teacher at the Institute of Education, said that there were many suprises for students on the higher level paper.

“A number of topics that were not anticipated appeared. Nevertheless the questions that did appear were very student-friendly,” he said.

“ If students had held their nerve they would have been okay, as the questions asked were, while surprising, straightforward and fair. This paper shows that the entire course has to be studied in preparation for this exam.”

Students were asked to tackle comprehensions on the Olympic Games and on climate change.

The story of Oisín i dTír na nÓg would have suprised students who had been expecting An Gnáthrud, the only story not to be examined to date.

In the poetry section, students would have been expecting Géibheann, the only poem not to have appeared to date on the paper, but An tEarrach Thiar cropped up instead.

The ordinary level paper was tricky in parts, said John Gavin of LeavingCertIrish.com, and this would have challenged a lot of less capable students.

However, the prose section did feature the widely predicted topics, which will have been a releif to students.

"The poem An Spailpín Fánach is always a challenge at ordinary level, but the questions were broken down well and should have been accessible to students who prepared well," he said.

"The questions on the poem Géibheann were pretty much perfect."