STATES EXAMS: Irish poets give completists the advantage

Students who focused on John Montague and Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin should have been pleased to see both feature on yesterday’s Leaving Certificate higher and ordinary level English exams.

The second English papers closed the second day of the State exams, and the higher level paper was considered fair by Teachers’ Union of Ireland subject spokesman Ollie Power.

He said the question on Robert Frost and Thomas Hardy were both standard types about those two poets, but the language in the Montague and Ní Chuilleanáin questions was difficult. The Montague question, for example, asked about evocative language and profound empathy, while the other Irish poet’s “formidable” style was referenced.