Hoping everyone keeps a cool head
So the kind folks at the Irish Examiner have asked me to be their exam diarist for the Leaving Certificate 2012.
I am a student at Christ King Secondary School in Cork. Aside from the four core subjects, I’m studying physics, geography, art, and applied maths.
I live in Rochestown with my mom and siblings. But if all goes to plan over the next few weeks, come September, I’ll be moving to Glasgow to study aerospace engineering. If not, you’ll find me mucking about in the physics department in UCC, pretending I’m Sheldon Cooper from TV series The Big Bang Theory. That man is a hero.
Stick with me and I’ll take you through the highs and lows, the tears, laughter and frustrations of sitting your Leaving Cert exams. I’ll try to keep the ranting to a bare minimum (I promise), but it is what I do best.
As you all know, this morning is English Paper 1 and the start of the whole nerve-wrecking ordeal. I must admit I’m torn between wanting to get it over and done with, and wishing we had more time.
It’s not in our hands though, is it? The exams are here, like it or not. Hopefully we can all keep cool heads and do our best. After all, Philip Larkin was wrong; what survives of us isn’t love, it’s points.
I suppose the examiners are sitting in dungeons somewhere right now, biding their time until the first wave of attacks is launched. I really struggle to believe that they were once children who picked their noses and wiped it places they shouldn’t have, or teenagers who experienced the traumas of “the Gaeltacht shift”, or young adults who stumbled down St Patrick’s Street under the influence of two too many. But we at the Irish Examiner don’t condone that kind of carry-on, obviously.
No, all Leaving Cert examiners strolled out of the womb wearing suits, hating the world and harbouring an inexplicable urge to subtract. In fact, such is their removal from all humanity, I bet they don’t even drink tea.
For the last few weeks I’ve been spending most of my time in UCC library staring at flashcards, and wondering why some of the people there even bother going to the library.
In all fairness, you’re not studying, you’re playing with your stationery.
Up next is English Paper 2. I think the main challenges will be writing fast enough and being able to improvise if the “wrong” question comes up. Last week, a homeless man on the bus assured me that Sylvia Plath definitely won’t be making an appearance on the paper, and that Heaney is a banker. He was so certain, he said, that he could smell the “chimney smoke” and “boglands”.
Until tomorrow,
Happy Swatting,
Jess.
* Jess MacSweeney is a Leaving Certificate student at Christ King Secondary School, Douglas, Cork.
(Leaving unless stated)
Today am: English Paper 1; LC Applied (LCA) English & Communication; Junior Cert English (HL Paper 1)
Today pm: Home Economics; &
LCA Social Education; JC English (HL Paper 2)
Tomorrow am: Engineering; LCA Gaeilge Chumarsáideach/Sign Language; JC Irish (Higher Paper 1)
Tomorrow pm: English Paper 2; LCA Sign Language/French/German/Spanish/Italian; JC Irish(HL Paper 2)
Friday am: Geography; LCA Math App; JC Geography/Env & Social Studies
Friday pm: Maths Paper 1; LCA Hotel Catering & Tourism; JC Maths (Higher & Ordinary Paper 1)
June 11 am: Maths Paper 2; LCA Engineering; JC Maths (Higher & Ordinary Paper 2)
June 11 pm: Irish (Higher & Ordinary level Paper 1); LCA Child Care/Comm Care; JC Civic, Social & Political Education (CSPE)
June 12 am: Irish (Higher & Ordinary Level Paper 2)/Arabic/Russian; LCA Graphics & Construction Studies/Hair & Beauty; JC Business Studies (HL Paper 1, Ordinary full exam)
June 12 pm: Biology; LCA Office Admin; JC Business Studies (HL P 2)
June 13 am: French; LCA Agriculture/Horticulture; JC French
June 13 pm: History; LCA Technology; JC History
June 14 am: Business; LCA Active Leisure Studies; JC Science
June 14 pm: Art; LCA Craft & Design; JC Religious Education
June 15 am: German; JC German
June 15 pm: Construction Studies/Latin/Classical Studies; JC Home Economics
June 18 am: Physics/Physics & Chemistry=; JC Technical Graphics
June 18 pm: Accounting; JC Woodwork
June 19 am: Spanish; JC Spanish
June 19 pm: Chemistry; JC Metalwork
June 20 am: Economics/Ag Economics; JC Music
June 20 pm: Design & Comm Graphics; JC Technology
June 21 am: Ag Science; JC Latin/Classical Studies
June 21 pm: Music; JC Italian/Ancient Greek
June 22 am: Religious Education/Applied Maths
June 22 pm: Italian/Japanese/Technology
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