Irish `history' causes dismay

There was concern and annoyance over the "considerable differences" between the English and Irish versions of the higher-level Junior Cert history exam yesterday. Three clear discrepancies between the two versions of the exam were uncovered by students sitting their history paper through Irish yesterday afternoon. In a question about the second World War, students who were asked to explain the meaning of two out of four terms, found the English version included the term Luftwaffe and the Irish version had "lanmhuchadh" (blackout), in the list.

In another question where students who choose to write about the "experience of the nationalist minority" in the English version, would have been writing about "the Catholic minority" in the Irish version. The Irish phrase is "an chaoi ar caitheadh leis an mhionlach chaitliceach". In a third question, the English version listed four terms - court carn, torc, fulacht and souterrain, from which students were asked to explain the meaning of two. In the Irish version students were only given three terms and asked to explain two.

Mr Gearoid O Ciarain, principal of Colaiste Raith in in Bray, Co Wicklow, said students, who get the English version with the Irish version, were anxious. "It's slightly disconcerting and shows that they (those who set the papers) don't seem to bother with being meticulous in the proof-reading. It's fairly slapdash," he said. A spokesman for the Department of Education and Science said these mistakes will be brought to the attention of the markers at the marking conferences. With regard to the question about the Catholic/nationalist minority, he said "the widest possible interpretation will be accepted". With regard to the other questions, students, will be marked on their explanation of the two terms they choose from whatever version they were answering.

As for the question containing the term Luftwaffe in English and "blackout" in the Irish version, the list of terms in the Irish version and the English version "were not intended to be a translation". Otherwise, the higher- and ordinary-level papers were generally greeted with approval by students and teachers alike. Mr John O'Sullivan, ASTI subject representative and history teacher at Templeogue College, Dublin, said the higher-level paper was "pretty fair".

The paper was "almost like a work of art" in its lay-out with "lovely coloured pictures" as well as illustrations and maps