Irish (Junior Cert)
Encyclopedia
Irish
(Gaeilge) is a subject of the Junior Cycle examination
in Secondary school
s in the Republic of Ireland
. There are three levels: Higher (commonly known as Honours), Ordinary (commonly known as Pass) and Foundation (rarely taken, usually for very weak students).
at the Junior Cycle level is aimed at developing the student's skills in listening to, speaking and writing in Irish. The examination tests the students on aural, written, and literature
skills.
Written Paper 2 ( 1 hour 30 mins ) has four sections: Prose
, Poetry
and Letter writing:
The Ordinary level examination has two parts, a written examination, which lasts 1 hour 30 minutes (90 minutes) and is worth 220 marks, and an aural comprehension (Irish: Cluastuiscint) examination, which lasts 30 minutes, with a maximum of 100 marks available.
Section One: Comprehension
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#EEEEEE"
!Question
|-
|Question 2
|Notices/Poem(Answer 2 of 3)
|30 marks
|10 minutes
|-
|Question 3
|Extracts (two parts)
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#EEEEEE"
!Question
!Type (example)
!Mark
!Recommended time to spend
|-
|Question 1
|Write a 12 page essay in 3hours:)
|25 marks
|10 minutes
|-
|Question 2
|Write a letter
|30 marks
|15 minutes
|-
|Question 3
|Short article,Diary entry (c. 15 lines)
|45 marks
|20 minutes
|}
Irish is also under debate as to whether it should remain mandatory in the Irish curriculum. Currently, most colleges
in Ireland will only accept students with a pass grade in the Irish Leaving Certificate
. Arguments for this motion contend that forcing the language on students fosters dislike, producing a generation of Irish people who dislike their culture. Making it optional, the argument goes, would mean students would enjoy the language more and teachers would be of higher quality. In opposition however, it is claimed that the language is a part of Irish heritage and culture, which needs to be preserved.
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
(Gaeilge) is a subject of the Junior Cycle examination
Junior Certificate
The Junior Certificate is an educational qualification awarded in Ireland by the Department of Education to students who have successfully completed the junior cycle of secondary education, and achieved a minimum standard in their Junior Cert. examinations...
in Secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s in the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. There are three levels: Higher (commonly known as Honours), Ordinary (commonly known as Pass) and Foundation (rarely taken, usually for very weak students).
Syllabus
The Irish syllabusSyllabus
A syllabus , is an outline and summary of topics to be covered in an education or training course. It is descriptive...
at the Junior Cycle level is aimed at developing the student's skills in listening to, speaking and writing in Irish. The examination tests the students on aural, written, and literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
skills.
Higher level
The Higher level examination has three parts, two written papers, which last 3 hours (180 minutes) in total and are worth 210 marks, and an aural comprehension (Irish: Cluastuiscint) examination, which lasts 30 minutes, with a maximum of 40 marks available.Questions
Written Paper 1 (1 hour 30 minutes) has two sections: Written Language, and Comprehension:| Question | Type | Mark | Recommended time to spend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section 1, Question 1 | Essay Essay An essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal point of view. Essays can consist of a number of elements, including: literary criticism, political manifestos, learned arguments, observations of daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The definition... , Story Narrative A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"... or Debate Debate Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion... |
50 marks | 35 minutes |
| Section 1, Question 2 | Conversation Conversation Conversation is a form of interactive, spontaneous communication between two or more people who are following rules of etiquette.Conversation analysis is a branch of sociology which studies the structure and organization of human interaction, with a more specific focus on conversational... or Interview Interview An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -... |
20 marks | 20 minutes |
| Section 2, Question 1 | Extracts | 30 marks | 90 minutes |
Written Paper 2 ( 1 hour 30 mins ) has four sections: Prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
, Poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
and Letter writing:
| Question | Type | Mark | Recommended time to spend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section 1, Question 1 | Unseen Prose | 15 marks | 15 minutes |
| Section 1, Question 2 | Novel Novel A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century.... , Short story Short story A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because... , Etc. |
15 marks | 15 minutes |
| Section 2, Question 1 | Unseen Poetry | 15 marks | 15 minutes |
| Section 2, Question 2 | Studied Poetry | 15 marks | 15 minutes |
| Section 3 | Letter Writing | 30 marks | 25 minutes |
Ordinary level
Bold text†The Ordinary level examination has two parts, a written examination, which lasts 1 hour 30 minutes (90 minutes) and is worth 220 marks, and an aural comprehension (Irish: Cluastuiscint) examination, which lasts 30 minutes, with a maximum of 100 marks available.
Questions
This paper has two sections, Section 1 (Roinn 1), which is the comprehension (Léamhthuiscint) section, and Section 2, the written language (Scríobh na Teanga) section. Each carries 110 marks.Section One: Comprehension
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#EEEEEE"
!Question
|-
|Question 2
|Notices/Poem(Answer 2 of 3)
|30 marks
|10 minutes
|-
|Question 3
|Extracts (two parts)
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" bgcolor="#EEEEEE"
!Question
!Type (example)
!Mark
!Recommended time to spend
|-
|Question 1
|Write a 12 page essay in 3hours:)
|25 marks
|10 minutes
|-
|Question 2
|Write a letter
|30 marks
|15 minutes
|-
|Question 3
|Short article,Diary entry (c. 15 lines)
|45 marks
|20 minutes
|}
Criticism
This course is frequently criticised. The most common argument is the entire way in which it is taught, with a large number of people (including teachers) believing the course should be much closer to that of the French and German course.Irish is also under debate as to whether it should remain mandatory in the Irish curriculum. Currently, most colleges
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
in Ireland will only accept students with a pass grade in the Irish Leaving Certificate
Leaving Certificate
The Leaving Certificate Examinations , commonly referred to as the Leaving Cert is the final examination in the Irish secondary school system. It takes a minimum of two years preparation, but an optional Transition Year means that for those students it takes place three years after the Junior...
. Arguments for this motion contend that forcing the language on students fosters dislike, producing a generation of Irish people who dislike their culture. Making it optional, the argument goes, would mean students would enjoy the language more and teachers would be of higher quality. In opposition however, it is claimed that the language is a part of Irish heritage and culture, which needs to be preserved.