Leaving Cert: Japanese: The brand-new Leaving Cert Japanese syllabus was examined for the first time yesterday, and its 39 pioneers emerged "confident" of a good performance.

"My students had no idea what to expect from today's paper, but they all feel that it went well," Ms Una McGrath said.

She teaches a class of 20 students who are drawn from five Dublin schools.

"The paper covered language, culture and linguistics, and the students were able to show off their learning."

Most of this year's group were taking the language for the first time.

Since Japanese is not yet offered as a timetabled subject, lessons took place outside school hours.

"The students took Japanese on their own time and showed an extraordinary dedication to the subject," Ms McGrath said.

"It's a good option for students who need a modern language but who have not had a good experience with French.

"It's now possible to take up Japanese for the first time in fifth year."

Today's paper featured questions on shopping in a Japanese department store and a profile of the Irish 19th-century scholar of Japanese, Lafcadio Hearn, who forged many links between Ireland and Japan and is well known there.