Poor grammar, punctuation, spelling and syntax are among the most common reasons for failure and low grades in the Leaving Certificate (ordinary level) English paper, according to the chief examiner's report on last year's exam.
"It was evident in relation to spelling, for example, that many candidates did not know the difference in the use of similar-sounding words such as principal/ principle, accept/except, to/too, their/there, through/true and whose/who's," the report said.
Other reasons for failure were lack of care in reading exam instructions; irrelevancy in the writing of compositions; and inability to interpret questions properly.
The chief examiner notes that many of the same reasons were noted in the 1995 report, "but it would appear that little has been achieved by way of remedying such matters in the intervening years."
The chief examiner's report on Leaving Certificate (higher-level) French observes that over the past decade "great strides" had been made in improving the oral and aural skills of students taking higher Leaving Certificate French, although there had been no similar improvement in their written answers.
"The new syllabus seeks to address this problem through its focus on language awareness and its emphasis on an integrated approach to the development of language skills.
"This year's [1997] scripts contain compelling evidence that, in spite of the impressive standards attained by some, much still needs to be done if we are to ensure that our Leaving Certificate higher-level candidates not only understand and speak French well, but also write it competently."
On the French oral test, the chief examiner notes "the dramatic increase in nervousness among candidates" in last year's exam.
"This did not seem to have been adequately appreciated or anticipated by the schools. A new format, extra time, a higher percentage of Leaving Certificate marks, all added to the old stresses of the oral examination."
The chief examiner expressed surprise that higher-level German candidates "had difficulty with spelling and numbers", although the listening comprehension test was "very successfully answered".