No problems with materials

With two-thirds of their exam already behind them, students of materials technology (wood) had few problems with the written paper.

The bulk of the marks for this subject are allotted to practical projects. Yesterday's written exam accounted for one-third of the total marks.

Charlie Lyons, a teacher in St Killian's Community School, Bray, Co Wicklow, said the higher-level paper was well constructed and held "no major surprises".

Students were required to answer 16 questions out of 20 in section A of the paper, most of which were straightforward, he said.

However, Lyons said, not all students would have been familiar with the tool in question 11 or the component in question 15, and he was disappointed with the graphics used in question 20, which were "too small and indistinct".

Section B of this paper covered drawing, design, conversions of timber, applied finishes, wood turning and tools. "Question 5 on tools was probably the least favoured question," Lyons said. "But they were all reasonable and fair."

The ordinary-level paper follows the same format as the higher-level one and was well received by the Bray students, Lyons said.