TY TALK: St Brigids Secondary School, Killarney, Co Kerry1 Danielle O Sullivan (17), 2 Fiona Murphy (17) 3 Aine O Leary (16) 4 Heather O Donoghue (16)
ON GLEE
Fiona Murphy:"This show is great. You can really identify with and relate to some of the characters on the show, and the music is really appealing. I particularly like the mash-up of Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves with Halo by Beyonce."
ON EUROSCOLA
Danielle O'Sullivan:"Our school has been chosen to spend a day in Strasbourg debating topical issues with other students from around the EU. We'll be focusing on poverty and social exclusion, while other schools will look at issues such as climate change and unemployment."
ON VOLCANOES
Heather O'Donoghue:"The volcano caused so many problems for travellers, but it also shows up our dependence on flying. It looks like it has cost over €1 billion to date – we just hope it isn't erupting when we go to Strasbourg!"
ON THE POINTS SYSTEM
Aine O'Leary:"There's too much pressure on young people to achieve high points. I think regular assessment and interviews should be considered as an alternative."
ON ROWING
HOD:"Rowing is a great way to experience the lakes of Killarney and the stunning scenic views. Killarney is even home to a few Olympic rowers, I'd love to qualify myself one day."
ON TAE KWON DO
DOS:"I've been involved in Tae kwon do since I was nine, competing nationally and internationally and reaching black belt level. It's quite male-dominated, although more women are coming through."
ON HEAD SHOPS
FM:"There are over 70 head shops in Ireland, including one in the middle of Killarney. I don't know anyone silly enough to take legal highs. There is a view that selling drugs legally is taking business out of the hands of drug dealers, but the drugs can still cause enormous harm."
ON CIVIC LINK
AOL:"Civic Link is a TY project whereby we identify a community problem and research causes and possible solutions. We've been focusing on the lack of medical facilities in our community – we have no AE unit and the nearest hospital is 32km away. We carried out questionnaires and interviews with gardaí and paramedics and they expressed grave concerns."
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