60,000 candidates get first taste of state examinations

The first taste of state exams for around 60,000 Junior Certificate students came in the form of English papers yesterday morning.

Christina Henehan of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland said the first, higher-level reading passage, in which a woman describes setting about writing a novel, was accessible but testing. She thought an essay about books was likely to have had few takers, except for some female students, but another about sport bringing out the best in people should have been favoured by many candidates.

The media studies questions were considered tricky by Ms Henehan, who said a tabloid article was not as easy as it looked. She said the other option asking students to compare anti-litter campaigns in Dublin and Limerick was challenging as it referred to ‘target audiences’ and different types of campaigns.