New syllabus sets out to give a wider view

Leaving Certificate HistoryThe exam on the new history syllabus got a mixed response on its first outing yesterday, writes Louise Holden

There was a mixed response to yesterday's first examination of the new Leaving Certificate history syllabus. While some teachers and students felt the new higher-level paper was more manageable than its predecessor, others believed the expanded subject matter had increased the workload.

"Many of my students emerged ashen-faced from the exam after a very onerous day of writing," said Institute of Education teacher Susan Cashell. "Today's paper was very challenging for the first examination of a new syllabus. There was also an unequal treatment of the case studies from question to question."

The new syllabus, which offers students greater choice of subject matter including sections on culture, science and social history, is largely delivered through close study of individual case studies. Some sections offered greater marks for relating their case studies than others, said Ms Cashell.

Sections on nation states and international tensions and the Irish pursuit of sovereignty were also considered to be particularly tough. She added: "This course is still immensely long and students who are banking on particular case studies to come up can find themselves in trouble if there is any variation."

ASTI subject convenor Michael Stokes felt the paper was an improvement on previous years in terms of workload, but said that many questions on the paper were similar to the old syllabus. "Lovers of militaristic history are still well catered for," he said.

More than 11,000 students took yesterday's exam, a slight increase on last year. Students were required to answer three essay questions and one documentary question. Twenty per cent of the overall marks went on a project completed earlier in the year.

The objective of the new paper, to offer students a wider view of history than the military-political view, has been hampered by the paucity of materials available, according to commentators. Much of the old syllabus is still given priority in textbooks and classrooms.

Mr Stokes said few students would have chosen questions relating to the arts, women in history or American cultural history because they would not have been covered in class.

The issue of publishers dictating the shape of the syllabus is a perennial problem for curricularists hoping to open up the teaching and learning experience.

The new document section, which required students to answer a series of short questions on two historical documents, was broadly welcomed. The section featured an edited transcript of part of W. E. Gladstone's speech introducing the first Home Rule Bill to the House of Commons and a 1886 Judy, an anti-Home Rule magazine.

The ordinary-level paper was considered to be more difficult than in recent years, with fewer choices and more challenging questions. Former Taoiseach Charles Haughey, who died on Tuesday, featured on yesterday's ordinary level paper.