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Leaving Cert Spanish oral tests clash with teen sleep patterns

Concerns raised over early exam timing coinciding with daylight saving changes

Letters to the Editor. Illustration: Paul Scott
The Irish Times - Letters to the Editor.
Tue Mar 31 2026 - 06:00 • 1 MIN READ

Sir, – It strikes me as particularly cruel to set the Spanish Leaving Cert oral test at 9.15am on the first Sunday of the Easter holidays.

And to have it on the day the hour springs forward is at least ill-advised. I wonder how many teens might oversleep?

Teenagers’ circadian rhythms are different from ours; they need a bit of a lie-in, and their body clocks will still be the old time. – Yours, etc,

CAOIMHE BUCKLEY,

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Clonskeagh,

Dublin 14.