Leaving Cert: engineering: Students and teachers have welcomed yesterday's higher-level Leaving Cert engineering paper, describing it as fair.
The ordinary-level paper, however, was described as slightly more difficult than that of previous years.
Some 5,000 students sat yesterday's exam. Dr Lawrence Smyth, an ASTI spokesman on engineering, said the higher paper was set with a positive style and a clever use of graphics that appealed to students' visual intelligence.
Section B of the higher-level paper related to compressors in a refrigeration system, and while the questions were difficult, according to students and teachers, it related to a students' practical project they had completed earlier in the year.
Some teachers felt the compression question was challenging for students as it involved complex issues like changes in state and pressure.
The ordinary-level paper was slightly more challenging than previous years, according to teachers, and students felt the exam was quite difficult and long.
Mr Kenny Donagher, an ASTI spokesman, said the exam was a hard day's work for students on the last day of their Leaving Cert.