Straightforward and predictable, was how one German teacher described yesterday's Junior Cert German exams. "Students came out of the higher-level exam and said the paper was fair," commented Mr Helmut Sundermann, who teaches at St Kilian's Deutsche Schule, Clonskeagh, Dublin. Section 2 A2 could have caused some difficulties for some candidates. "The compound noun kofferkuli - luggage trolley - was tricky. On its own kuli means biro. If you break down the compound noun, you won't get the meaning." Sections B and C on advertisements were straightforward and very much as expected. Students had worked extremely hard for section D, which involved classroom phrases. "It is not without its difficulties," and demanded a good knowledge of German. Section E(2) concerned a cookery demonstration. Although students were asked at whom the notice was targeted, the answer was missing from the text. Section E(3), meanwhile, failed to mention admission costs even though students were asked for them. All in all it was a lovely, but challenging paper," commented ASTI subject convenor, Ms Eleanor Jones of St Angela's Secondary School, Ursuline Convent, Waterford. Some questions may have caused difficulties, however. Section c(iv) included the word verischerung (insurance) - a term with which students may be unfamiliar.
Section F, a comprehension piece on using the Internet, was "lovely", she said. "My students liked and were able to do it." However, students who lacked home computers may have been at a disadvantage. Section G was another excellent, school-based comprehension piece, on which the Department should be congratulated, she said. Students could use the information about a language assistant in the school in the next question (section 3A) - which involved letter-writing. However, students who did not have experienced language assistants in their schools may have had difficulty in describing their work, she observed.
Teachers were also complimentary about the aural tapes which were extremely clear and unlikely to cause problems. The ordinary-level paper, too, was praised by teachers. "Very doable," Ms Jones commented. However, one illustration in section D was confusing. Students were required to put a caption on a picture of a teacher addressing the class. "She could have been saying anything." It was only by elimination that students could chose the caption Who is missing today?, she noted. Four pages of the insert in the higher-level paper were found to be missing when the exam papers were distributed at a school in Borrisoleigh, Co Tipperary, yesterday. The supervisor contacted the Department of Education and the missing pages were faxed to the school. In keeping with procedures laid down, extra time was given to the students to complete the exam, a Department spokesman confirmed.