Latest news with #JuniorCertificate
BreakingNews.ie
12-06-2025
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Leaving Cert business papers 'nice' while Junior Cert German was 'approachable exam'
The higher and ordinary Leaving Certificate business papers were "nice", while the Junior Certificate German paper was an "approachable exam", according to teachers. Commenting, Studyclix subject expert and business teacher, Claire O'Brien of Colaiste Muire, Crosshaven, Cork, said: 'Overall, the Higher Level paper looked to be a nice paper; students in our school said that they were happy with the paper but found some of the short questions tough. Advertisement "There were a lot of short questions focused on units 6 and 7, including questions on Inflation, Taxation, European Union, Global Business and International Trade. This highlights that global current topics are always related to the Business course and exam. 'The Applied Business Question this year was on units 2, 3 and 4, so there was no surprise that part A asked about entrepreneurial skills and characteristics. "Part B asked about the management activity of control, asking students to evaluate, meaning they need to share their opinions with relevant business knowledge. Some students can find this difficult. "Part C was about the functions of Human Resource Management, which is a nice question, but students would have had to be careful to relate the functions to the text about Inis Bia." Advertisement O'Brien said in the long questions there was, again, a link to current affairs, with the European Union and International Trade being reflected on. "This question brought in Global Marketing, which allowed students to connect between units and highlight their global knowledge, again linking to the real world," she said. "There was a nice mix of the units throughout the long questions that helped students to have more choices on the paper. Questions from Contract Law, Employment Equality, Government's effects on businesses, Unfair Dismissal Act, Management Skills (Communication and Management), Insurance, Change, Business Expansion and Marketing. "There were a few mathematical questions, with a calculation on pay and the break-even chart. This again would have helped with students' choice as it gave a break from the theory questions.' Advertisement On the ordinary level Leaving Certificate business exam, O'Brien said it had a "nice mix" of short questions using a lot of different techniques, like ticking the box, giving definitions, labelling diagrams, and matching the terms. "Again, we see real life example coming into the ordinary level paper's long questions, with the high-ticket prices for Oasis to Apple's €13 million tax bill ruled by the European Union. "Overall, seems to have been a nice paper with a range of questions to cover all the units." Junior Certificate German exam Commenting on the Junior Certificate German exam, which was common level, Studyclix subject expert and German teacher Geraldine Dwyer said it was "pleasant" and covered a range of topics. Advertisement Lifestyle Leaving Cert Irish Paper 2 'very manageable' with... Read More Dwyer, who teaches German at St Mary's Secondary School, Macroom, Co Cork, said the paper covered a range of topics in the Reading Comprehensions, such as signs, compound nouns, celebration and food, holidays, travel, and German school tradition. "The exam included different question formats, such as match up, multiple choice and questions to be answered in English," she said. "The comprehensions to be answered in English required considerable detail and a good range of vocabulary. The written section was like the format in past papers, as it contained a fact file and blog. "The blog covered a range of topics and gave an opportunity to use knowledge on various topics, such as siblings, weekend, pet, pocket money, school, school trip, languages and Christmas Holidays in the past tense. In all, the exam had a good variety of topics and was an approachable exam.'
BreakingNews.ie
05-06-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Quiz: Could you pass Junior Certificate Maths?
Maths is notoriously one of the more difficult subjects in school, with what seems like countless elements to it. From interest, to currency, from algebra to fractions, geometry, Pythagoras and so on, getting stuck on an equation at the kitchen table as a child is something we all relate to (parent screaming at you about it optional). Advertisement So, with the State exams kicking off this week once again, and no exam weather going with it, take our quiz to find out if you still have the potential to pass Junior Certificate maths. And yes, we chose Junior Certificate maths because Leaving Certificate math is too hard. Take the quiz here:
RTÉ News
04-06-2025
- General
- RTÉ News
Record number of students to begin Leaving and Junior Cert exams
A record number of candidates will begin the State Leaving and Junior Certificate exams today. 140,457 students will sit the exams, the first time the number has exceeded 140,000. The rise is due to population growth. 61,632 candidates will take the main Leaving Certificate written exams over the next several weeks, an increase of 5% compared to last year. There has been an 11% rise in students opting for the Leaving Certificate Applied programme. 4,512 students have chosen that pathway. 74,313 candidates will begin their Junior Cycle exams this morning. The State exams will take place in examination centres across more than 800 post-primary schools and other centres across the country. The State Examinations Commission has described the process as "a massive logistical exercise involving the secure distribution of circa four million examination papers". The exams begin at 9.30am with English Paper 1 for most Leaving Certificate students. LCA and Junior Cycle candidates will also sit English papers. The last Leaving Certificate exam takes place on 24 June. Leaving Certificate results this year will once again be artificially inflated through a post-marking adjustment which will be applied after all marking of individual papers has been completed. Post-marking adjustments were introduced following the Covid pandemic in an attempt to compensate students who had missed out as a result of school closures and other restrictions arising from the pandemic. Following a request from the Department of Education and in order to facilitate a gradual return to normal pre-Covid outcomes, this year's post-marking adjustment will be reduced to bring results in aggregate on average to a point broadly midway between 2020 and 2021 levels. Leaving Certificate results will be issued to candidates on Friday 22 August. The State Examinations Commission said this date took account of the time needed to apply the post-marking adjustment. It said the timeline for results also had to allow sufficient time for an extensive range of quality assurance checks to be undertaken. Minister for Education Helen McEntee is among many public figures and organisations who have wished the Class of 2025 good luck. Sending her best wishes, Ms McEntee said: "I know the amount of work and effort you have put in to reach this point. It is the culmination of many years of effort. "This can be a very stressful time so I would remind everyone that when it comes to examinations, all we can do is our best. "We are all very much behind you over the next few weeks, and I know that regardless of the outcome of these examinations, there will be many great opportunities ahead for you all," she said.
RTÉ News
26-05-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
4 tips for improving handwriting in the Junior and Leaving cert
Analysis: At this point in the academic year there is little that can be done to improve your speed, but there are quick ways to increase legibility It is that time of year again when approximately 120,000 students will sit the Irish Leaving and Junior Certificate examinations. Like in many countries, students in Ireland continue to write their State examinations by hand despite the huge surge in technology. This is not a bad thing as there are many benefits to writing by hand including better recall and learning. However up to 15% of students (12,000-15,000) heading into their exams will have a handwriting difficulty of some sort characterised by either reduced writing speed, poor legibility or both. Some children may present with handwriting difficulties due to a developmental disorder such as Developmental Coordination Disorder/'dyspraxia, dyslexia, Developmental Language Disorder, ADHD or Autism. Other children may find it challenging due to environmental factors such as lack of practice or explicit teaching of the skill. Handwriting speed (or typing in the case of keyboarding) is crucial to writing performance. We know from research that the number of words a person can handwrite or type per minute predicts not only how much they will write in a free writing task (such as an exam) but how good that piece of text will be ie grammar, punctuation, spelling, idea development and cohesion. This is because when handwriting or typing is laboured, the individual must divert valuable cognitive resources away from generating content and toward the mechanics of writing—such as forming letters or locating keys. From RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime, Novelist Ally Bunbury reacts to new research which shows that handwriting may boost brain connections more than typing does For most people handwriting begins to become speedy from eight to nine years of age at which point they can start to devote cognitive resources to higher-level processes of writing such as planning, generating and reviewing text. They will no longer need to focus on producing letters on the page as this process should now be automatic. However for children who have not yet developed handwriting speed this can impact on overall productivity and the quality of their written communication. At this point in the academic year there is little that can be done to improve handwriting speed as it takes time to rectify and develop. However there are quick wins for increasing the legibility of writing which just as important as speed though for a very different reason – to ensure the exam text is readable. Unlike handwriting speed, legibility does not develop in a linear way and does not increase with age or experience. Many of us will have our own unique style despite being taught (or not) to form letters in a particular way. Handwriting legibility is important for examinations in particular due a phenomenon known as legibility bias where text that is easier to read may yield a more positive evaluation. While examiners are very experienced with navigating text that is difficult to read there are some strategies that can be implemented by students to make their text more readable in time for the June exams. Spacing: Letters and/or words that sit too closely together or overlap can be difficult to read. To improve this, take a look at something you've written recently. Are your letters crammed together, overlapping, or stacked on top of each other? If spacing is an issue, come up with your own simple reminder to leave space as you write. When a strategy is your own, you're much more likely to remember it and use it. Size: Letter size can also play a key role in how readable your handwriting is—especially when letters are too small. Letters fall into different categories: tall ascenders like l, f, t, h, b, d; descenders that go below the line like p, g, y, q; and mid-height letters like r, n, m, o, w, z. The key is to avoid writing so small that letters become hard to distinguish. For instance, if letters like a, d, or e are too tiny, they can lose their inner spaces and start to look like l or i. Tip: If your writing is very small try to generate a strategy to remind yourself to write larger letters as it allows for all gaps to be visible in letters that require them. Sitting: Letters that sit properly on the line are much easier to read. This is because consist ent alignment gives handwriting a cleaner, more structured appearance. When combined with good spacing and appropriate letter size, consistent placement helps the reader follow the text more easily. Tip: Make sure your letters sit as close to the line as possible. Avoid "floating" letters, as they disrupt consistency and reduce overall readability. Alterations: Another key issue that affects legibility is the addition of extra strokes to letters or words. In exam situations, students often try to correct mistakes by writing over letters or adding to them, which can make the text harder to read. Instead, it is more effective to simply cross out the incorrect word, place it in brackets, then rewrite it clearly. This will keep the text cleaner and more readable for the examiner. Letter formation plays a crucial role in handwriting, but—much like developing speed—it isn't something that can be fixed overnight. However, frequent and explicit teaching of handwriting in the classroom can lead to better outcomes. Good Practice for Handwriting resource by the National Handwriting Association.
