{"id":484477,"date":"2026-06-05T12:07:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T12:07:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/484477\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T12:07:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T12:07:13","slug":"the-extra-points-really-mean-a-lot-leaving-cert-students-prepare-to-sit-maths-paper-one-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/484477\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The extra points really mean a lot\u2019: Leaving Cert students prepare to sit maths paper one \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday\u2019s Leaving Certificate<\/a> English paper two<\/a> was overall viewed as \u201cmanageable\u201d as poets Paula Meehan and Elizabeth Bishop both appeared<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The third day of the Leaving Cert begins at 9.30am today with geography, followed by maths paper one at 2pm. <\/p>\n

Key reads<\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 18 minutes ago<\/p>\n

Spare a thought for the parents of those winging it<\/p>\n

One reader and parent, Lucy O\u2019Reilly from Dun Laoghaire in Co Dublin, wrote to us this morning asking we spare a thought for those whose children are winging it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the coverage of studious students, worried about this paper and that poet, spare a thought for the parents of those who have decided to wing it. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy youngest decided months ago that he doesn\u2019t need to study as the course he wants requires low points (and an interview). So he\u2019s done zero revision since his mocks. I\u2019m so anxious I\u2019m eating Kimberley, Mikado and Coconut Creams for breakfast!\u201d<\/p>\n

It sounds like A) a great breakfast and B) a pretty cool kid to me. <\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 35 minutes ago<\/p>\n

Geography was \u2018fair, well-balanced and student friendly\u2019<\/p>\n

Geography has just finished up, and the first reviews are in. <\/p>\n

My colleague Peter McGuire has this first take:<\/p>\n

Students sitting the Leaving Certificate geography exam were happy with a paper that rewarded preparation while avoiding unexpected questions, teachers have said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe higher-level paper was fair, well-balanced and student friendly,\u201d said Stephen Doyle, teacher at Moyle Park College in Clondalkin, Dublin 22 and an expert reviewer for Studyclix.ie.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe short questions followed a familiar structure that gave students a comfortable start to the exam.\u201d<\/p>\n

All Leaving Cert exam papers should pose some questions to differentiate the H1 student from their classmates. In this year\u2019s paper, that challenge came in the human geography elective. <\/p>\n

\u201cUndoubtedly, the human geography elective section was the only section of the paper that may have caused some difficulty for some students,\u201d said Dan Sheedy, principal of TheTuitionCentre.ie.<\/p>\n

Doyle, meanwhile, said that some questions in this section were more specific than in previous years.<\/p>\n

Mapwork, aerial photographs and graphs featured prominently throughout part one of the paper, which was consistent with previous years. <\/p>\n

Doyle said that students may have been caught off guard by a question asking about the formation of sedimentary and metamorphic rocks, as many had focused their revision on igneous and metamorphic rocks.<\/p>\n

The physical geography section, however, delivered on widely-anticipated topics. <\/p>\n

\u201cExpected topics such as karst landscapes, erosion, constructive plate boundaries and human interaction with surface processes all appeared,\u201d said Doyle.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe weathering question was quite specific, focusing on the role of temperature in physical weathering, and may have challenged some students.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheedy said that many candidates will have turned immediately to the optional geoecology section upon receiving the paper. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey will have been pleased to find questions on the characteristics of a biome and the impact of human activity on soils,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The regional and economic geography sections covered familiar ground across Irish, European and continental regions. <\/p>\n

\u201cTopics such as cultural regions and a 20-mark question on the European Union and Eurozone were also highly accessible and are unlikely to have posed significant difficulties,\u201d said Sheedy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe EU theme continued into the economic geography elective, where reliable and familiar topics such as multinational corporations appeared. While this section was perhaps slightly more demanding than in previous years, students were still presented with questions they could approach confidently.<\/p>\n

In the short questions, a question on isostasy stood out as a more demanding inclusion. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an excellent, albeit challenging, question, but it added an extra layer of depth to this section,\u201d said Sheedy.<\/p>\n

Overall, both teachers offered a positive verdict. <\/p>\n

\u201cStudents are likely to have left the examination feeling very pleased with both the content and structure of the paper,\u201d said Sheedy. <\/p>\n

Doyle agreed, saying the exam \u201cprovided plenty of opportunities to demonstrate both their geographical knowledge and skills, while containing very few major surprises.\u201d<\/p>\n

At ordinary level, the picture was similarly positive. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe questions were accessible, covered familiar topics and gave candidates plenty of opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge,\u201d said Doyle. <\/p>\n

\u201cOverall, it was a fair and manageable paper.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Geography papers have now been published on the State Examination Commission\u2019s website.<\/p>\n

Higher level part one is here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Higher level part two is here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ordinary level part one is here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ordinary level part two is here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Advice for parents from a career consultant\"PetrinaPetrina Mitchell. <\/p>\n

Petrina Mitchell\u2019s two children are sitting the Leaving Cert and Junior Cycle exams respectively. <\/p>\n

Having students sitting both exams requires a different kind of support, she says. One that is reflective of age and maturity and the type of people they are. <\/p>\n

She\u2019s conscious with her Leaving Cert <\/a>student of a need to encourage breaks. \u201cYou\u2019re kind of going, \u2018maybe we might go for a run, or go to the gym, or take a break\u2019. You\u2019re reminding [him] of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whereas, she explains, with her Junior Cycle student<\/a>, it\u2019s about continued support and motivation. \u201cYou just have to go with the child that\u2019s in front of you,\u201d she says. And sometimes support looks like \u201ccajoling\u201d. <\/p>\n

Read her full interview with Jen Hogan here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

\u2018Sensible\u2019 degrees are overrated<\/p>\n

In today\u2019s Opinion section, professor of cultural and creative industries at Queen Mary University of London Aoife Monks is arguing for the importance of arts degrees.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring this anxious first week of the Leaving Certificate<\/a>, with the minds of students and their families turning to their degree choices, it\u2019s worth remembering that even ancient Greek philosophers couldn\u2019t tell what practices and skills would prove to be valuable in the future. In the face of artificial intelligence<\/a> (AI), we can\u2019t even tell what skills are going to be useful in five years\u2019 time,” Monks writes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is why it\u2019s so concerning when Irish educational policy narrows its priorities to emphasise only the most apparently \u201cuseful\u201d skills and jobs.”<\/p>\n

You can read the full piece here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 3 hours ago<\/p>\n

Photographer Fran Veale was in Belmayne, Co Dublin yesterday evening where students of the Educate Together secondary school were reflecting on the English paper.<\/p>\n

\"TristanTristan Beresford, Jasper Lavin, Meadhbh Malone and Julia Maher discuss how their Leaving Cert English paper two went at Belmayne Educate Together Secondary School. Photograph: Fran Veale \"MyaMya Doyle, Juz\u00e9 Pereira and Polina Beliakoff discuss how their Leaving Cert English paper two went at Belmayne Educate Together Secondary School. Photograph: Fran Veale \"LauraLaura Gromska and Erin Redmond Forman discuss how their Leaving Cert English paper two went at Belmayne Educate Together Secondary School. Photograph: Fran Veale <\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 3 hours ago<\/p>\n

So how was English paper two yesterday? \u2018No curveballs,\u2019 the teachers tell us<\/p>\n

Our reporter Jack Brady spoke to Siobh\u00e1n O\u2019Donovan, a teacher at the Patrician Academy in Co Cork, who said students will be \u201cvery happy\u201d with the exam overall as they faced \u201cno curveballs\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anyone had any big problem with the exam,\u201d O\u2019Donovan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIts lovely to see them coming out happy,\u201d she said, adding that it\u2019s not always the case that you see students coming out of the exam hall with a smile on their face.<\/p>\n

Liam Dingle, a teacher at the Institute of Education, said the appearance of poets Paula Meehan and Elizabeth Bishop would have given students a \u201clittle moment of triumph\u201d before taking on the exam.<\/p>\n

You can read the full paper review here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 4 hours ago<\/p>\n

If I fail maths, do I fail the Leaving Cert?<\/p>\n

The short answer is no. There is no pass or fail system in the Leaving Cert. <\/p>\n

If you fail maths, you will receive zero CAO points for the subject and likely won\u2019t use it as one of the six subjects you count for CAO points. <\/p>\n

Some college courses have a minimum requirement in maths, so you if you fail the subject you won\u2019t be able to access those courses even with the right points. <\/p>\n

But many courses do not have that requirement, and it is worth checking that before finalising your CAO choices if you feel it didn\u2019t go well for you.<\/p>\n

With the right college course selection, and six other strong subjects, it may not affect you at all.<\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 4 hours ago<\/p>\n

\u2018I\u2019m worried most about maths\u2019\"MominMomin Bari. <\/p>\n

Seventeen-year-old Momin Bari from Dublin spoke to Jen Hogan today about his hopes for the maths exam.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s hoping to study either economics and finance, or commerce and is studying seven higher-level subjects and one at ordinary level. <\/p>\n

Business and history are his favourite subjects. He\u2019s worried most about maths. \u201cI\u2019m doing higher-level maths for the bonus points. Other than that, I\u2019d probably do ordinary level. But those extra points really mean a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

He has been taking grinds in maths, which has helped with his confidence. \u201cBefore, I was pretty weak, but you need to put in the hours obviously if you want to get better.\u201d<\/p>\n

So how many hours is Bari putting in? \u201cI\u2019d say anywhere between six to 10 hours\u201d per day, he says. \u201cI make sure I wake up early, and I\u2019m sleeping well and eating well,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Read his full story here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Niamh Towey – 5 hours ago<\/p>\n

Today will see students face geography and maths paper one as the first week of the Leaving Certificate exams comes to a close.<\/p>\n

After almost 3\u00bd hours of English paper two yesterday, students may understandably be waking up a little groggy this morning. <\/p>\n

Well, they have algebra to look forward to in maths paper one, along with differentiation and integration. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s not all bad though, because by 4.30pm this evening you will be through the bulk of the two core subjects, English and maths, with the weekend to prepare for maths paper two. <\/p>\n

If you have any questions, thoughts or feedback, please email me, niamh.towey@irishtimes.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Good luck.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Yesterday\u2019s Leaving Certificate English paper two was overall viewed as \u201cmanageable\u201d as poets Paula Meehan and Elizabeth Bishop…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":484478,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[43491,61,60,45841,3184,80],"class_list":["post-484477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-cao","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-junior-cert","tag-leaving-certificate","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=484477"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484477\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/484478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=484477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=484477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=484477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}