Latest news with #LeavingCertAnalysis
RTÉ News
11-06-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Leaving Cert 2025 Reaction: History was a tricky paper
Here is reaction to 2025 Leaving Certificate History (Higher Level) by Stephen Tonge, History teacher at The Institute of Education - part of their Leaving Cert Analysis series. Download the exam papers here: Key points: Questions with narrower focuses will require students to quickly edit and adjust their approach to topics. The reappearance of topics from last year will have upset some. For many, things are winding down but it has already been tough going - here are tips on nutrition, sleep and minding yourself. Opening Section 1's documents-based question many students will be pleased with the topic of The Jarrow March. While Document B was perhaps a little longer that you'd like for such a pressurised environment, the first three questions were very approachable. At question four, the challenge increases. Being asked to "argue your case" on the failure of the march is an unusually narrow focus and while students could easily approach it, it would tax them to write a fully robust answer in order to get the marks. In Section 2: Ireland, many will have been drawn to "Topic 3: The pursuit of sovereignty and the impact of partition". This section seems designed to upset a reliance on sample answers - which while that is a fair ambition, makes it much harder for students to revise and navigate the vast course. The first question on the rise of Sinn Fein and the decline of Home Rule offers a range of relevant years but in practice was narrowly focused on 1916 to the election of 1918. The question on de Valera's leadership needed the combination of Civil War and World War II, which prioritises a key personality in a way that differs from previous approaches which emphasised contexts. While some would be happy with the cultural identity question, the inclusion of "North and South" makes it trickier to fully address. The most surprising element of the paper was likely "Topic 5: Politics and Society in Northern Ireland, 1949-93". The questions themselves were not particularly difficult but 3 of the 4 questions returned to topics from last year's exam. In a curriculum as vast as History, students and teachers often must prioritize some elements over others, and the reappearance of questions on Lord Brookeborough and the Coleraine University Controversy will be an unpleasant surprise. If students had thoroughly prepared this case study, they would be fine, but many would not have anticipated a second outing for such comparatively minor elements of the topic. Those who planned to write on "Europe and the Wider World Topic 6: The United States and the world, 1945-1989", will be relieved by the Lyndon Johnson question which many consider to be a banker when preparing. Additionally, the question on Berlin and Cuba would allow students good range to show their understanding. However, what stands out here is that only one case study appears (Vietnam). Earlier "Ireland Topic 6: The Republic of Ireland 1949-1989" had three case studies, so there is an imbalance in question selection. Indeed, the US Economy comprises roughly one third of that part of the course and is only tangentially related to one of the questions, while the much more niche power of religion in American life got a question to itself. For students who really knew the material and are confident in their ability to adapt, edit and combine under pressure, this was a nice exam. However, many will have found themselves adjusting to narrower confines in question choice and demanded material. Definitely more taxing than they may have expected given previous exams.
RTÉ News
09-06-2025
- General
- RTÉ News
Leaving Cert Irish Reaction: Paper 1 gave everyone a chance to represent their level of Irish
Here is reaction to the 2025 Leaving Certificate Irish Paper 1 (Higher Level) by Nuala Uí Cheallaigh, Irish teacher at The Institute of Education - this content is part of the Leaving Cert Analysis series. Don't forget to rest and relax too - here are some tips on nutrition, sleep and minding yourself. Download the exam papers here - sound files available at Leaving Cert Irish Paper 1 (H) Leaving Cert Irish Paper 1 (O) She says: "This paper gave everyone a chance to represent their level of Irish without additional twists or turns." Read more below and watch her video above. Key points The aural had familiar topics and questions. Broad aiste titles allowed students the scope to adapt their material to fit. Nuala says: "Students facing the first Irish paper will be happy to find something for everyone on the paper. Settling into the aural, students were met with familiar topics like school and TV – things they would have prepared for their oral. As result they will find themselves with a good grasp of the material discussed and capable of discerning the appropriate answers. Those who had practiced previous aural exams will recognise the key questions of "who", "who", "when" and so their ear will be nicely attuned to those details. However, some might have been challenged by the appearance of the Deposit Return Scheme, potentially unfamiliar vocabulary. But those moments of pause are just part a tapestry of marks that students should find quite fair. "Turning to the essays, a wide range of viable choices mean that everyone will have a chance to reflect their work and skill on the page. While some might have anticipated specific topics like education or the Irish Language today, there were ample opportunities to bring these under the other titles. Prompts like "is Ireland a good country to live in today", "people I have respect for" and "big stories nowadays" are brilliantly broad. Students can draw upon so many topics and areas of interest that they will really feel the benefit of their preparation work. Furthermore, the examiner will be able to assess them on their communication skills first and foremost rather than a fixed set of vocabulary. "The two more specific aiste topics fell in line with expectations: Politics around the world and the Environment. The latter may have caused some to pause if they did not recognise the term "comhshaol" (environment). But those who prepared environmentalist material could have repurposed it to fit the broader topics with ease. Students looking to distinguish themselves often avoid the scéal, choosing either the aiste or debates. The prompt on the pros and cons of AI will appeal to those who have put special care and attention into this very contemporary topic. "This paper gave everyone a chance to represent their level of Irish without additional twists or turns. The better students would have the chance to shine, while those who were anxious about topics will have somewhere to present their work."
RTÉ News
06-06-2025
- Science
- RTÉ News
Leaving Cert Reaction: How did Ordinary Level Leaving Cert Maths add up?
Jean Kelly from Dublin's Institute of Education is here to share her thoughts on the 2025 Leaving Cert Ordinary Level Maths Paper 1 exam. She is contributor to RTÉ Study Hub, and we have her expert tips from the show to help you prepare for Paper 2. This content is from their Leaving Cert Analysis series. You can watch Jean's video up top and read on for more insights. Jean says: "This paper had everything thrown in or at least as much of the syllabus as they could possibly fit in to just 10 questions. Students would have been surprised by the sudden jumps between topics. A question could start in algebra in Part A, move to calculus in Part B and rates of change in part C. Many might find this lack of uniformity gave them a bit of whiplash as they had to quickly adapt to new areas of the course on the fly. "However, parts of the paper were lovely; not inaccessible at all, but you really needed to think. Questions had wordy window dressing to mask simple techniques that students would have already known. If you read carefully and pieced out the relevant material, you were flying, but you needed to know your concepts to make that call." "Students really did need to read the question over and over to get a sense of what they are asking. Each part of a question might have a new story element to be disentangled from central mathematics, so questions often didn't build on each other. As a result, some students will have found the more purely mathematical questions easier and so may have preferred the traditionally harder Part Bs to the Part As. One shock will be the appearance of Area, Volume and Nets of a 3D object in Q10 Section B as this is usually preserved for Paper 2. "There were lots of opportunities to get marks and secure their grades, but it was definitely exam that, at first glance, might have fallen outside of some students' comfort zones."
RTÉ News
06-06-2025
- General
- RTÉ News
Leaving Cert Reaction: Louise Boylan looks at Maths Higher Level Paper 1
RTÉ Study Hub regular Louise Boylan, maths teacher at The Institute of Education, gives her expert opinion on the Leaving Cert Maths Higher Level Paper 1 exam - shared from their Leaving Cert Analysis series. Key Points A paper with an off-putting appearance but many manageable elements. Continues the trend of pulling material from unexamined areas of the Project Maths Course. Download the Leaving Cert Higher Level Paper 1 exam paper here. Louise says: "Students likely won't feel triumphant as they leave the exam hall, but they shouldn't feel defeated. While there was a lot that was out of the box – logic puzzle style questions, material that hasn't appeared since the course's overhaul – there was much that would be welcome. Algebraic skills, Rates of Change, Differential Calculus, and Sequence and Series would all have fallen into the familiar. Yet the elements of the paper that will stand out to everyone will be those more novel aspects, the things that past papers won't have shown them. Within a number of questions there was something challenging. The 2nd part of Q2, the middle of Q4 and the end of Q5 all added stings to otherwise approachable questions. However, if students could take a moment to breathe and look past their initial reactions, they will see that the question setter has given some helpful hints. Question 4 (b) told you the theorem and expression to use and 5 (c) bolded the font of one line to draw the student's attention to it. Later in the paper, Question 7's wall of text will have caused some to pause, but once that was parsed, the underlying Sequences and Series were familiar. While Question 8 straddled a wide range of topics, Question 9 was neatly in line with previous work. The concluding Question 10 may have more resembled an aptitude test rather than an application of learned methods. This was a challenging paper but challenging for everyone sitting it as the question setter continues the trend of drawing from all corners of the course. As such there was material examined on the paper that simply wasn't present in past exams and some students will rightly feel that they were pushed beyond their comfort zone. However, with much that will earn them marks, they shouldn't focus solely on the negative – the marking will reflect the challenge.
