The 19,000 or so students who sat the Junior Cert exam in civic, social and political education (CSPE) made a little bit of history yesterday. It was the first time the subject, which was introduced on a pilot basis back in 1993, had been examined.
CSPE was introduced into the school curriculum three years ago and in 1997 became compulsory. Despite its novelty, however, students were able to take a relatively relaxed view of the exam. It's worth only 40 per cent of the total marks - the remainder was achieved on an action project report or a course work assessment book which students completed in May. Yesterday's paper was welcomed by the Association of CSPE Teachers. "It was a great improvement on the Department's sample paper and we commend the Department for taking our recommendations on board," commented the association's PRO, Mr Brendan O'Regan. Although the layout of most questions was good, more could be done in terms of design, he said. The quality of photographs was extremely poor and there was a need for clear and bold headings especially on the essay questions. While the poster-making option - Section 3 (c) - was welcome, it was regrettable that there was no designated space on the paper for the design, Mr O'Regan noted.
The paper was well-balanced and questions came from all parts of the course. Topics included the Nobel Peace Prize winners, children's rights, the EU, rights for people with disabilities, student councils and refugees.
While some of the questions appeared simple at first glance, they were deceptive. "They became more challenging as you proceeded," Mr O'Reagan observed. Early parts of Section 2 question 1 (on U2 and Amnesty International's signature campaign), for example, demanded only one-line answers. The last part of the question, however, required students to name one of the rights in the Universal Declaration of Human rights, state why it was important and state two actions that could be taken to support this right. Mr Michael Stokes, ASTI subject convenor, who teaches at Castlecomer Community School, Co Kilkenny, was equally welcoming of the paper. The paper, which offered just one level, successfully catered for both the more able and the weaker student, he commented. Question 4 on section 2, which included a table of the results of a by-election in Cork South-Central constituency, was "very perceptive", he noted. Mr Stokes was particularly pleased with the essay-type questions in Section 3. Teachers, he said, would be relieved and happy and, in particular, would appreciate the fact that the paper reflected the course.
Sample question
Imagine that your local council or corporation is considering closing down the local library. You think this library is of great benefit to the community.
(a) Write a detailed letter to the chairperson of the council and in it outline your arguments for keeping the library open.
(b) Describe how you would organise a campaign to keep the library open.
(c) Describe in words or draw an outline of a poster which would encourage young people to use the library.