Leaving Cert Home Economics: post-mortem: Home is where the Hoover is - at least according to the lower level Home Economics (Scientific and Social) Leaving Certificate exam which is taken by 98 per cent of those who choose the course.
It asked students to "give an account of the vacuum cleaner that you would recommend for use in a modern apartment. Refer to: construction; working principle; modern features and attachments and cost". A question about wooden floors was thrown in for good measure.
This was covered in the course, but was challenging in its "exhausting" detail, proving - said Elizabeth Hayes of the ASTI and a teacher at Coláiste Dún Iascaigh - that home economics is "not an easy option".
As anyone who has ever tried to decipher the energy efficiency and working principles of storage heaters knows - or should if they were taking this exam because it was one of the most difficult questions in the higher exam.
Combining practicality with ethics, the paper also asked students to identify and discuss the primary functions of the family, as well as giving an account of the effects of social and economic change on the modern family unit.
They also had to know the details of three major pieces of legislation. And they had a maximum of 30 minutes to answer the question if they were to leave time to answer all five of their chosen questions well.
The exam was "very long and testing", partly because it was the final exam of the week and lasted two and three-quarters of an hour. While it won't make any difference to this year's crop of home economics students, this was actually the last year of the exam in its current form.
The curriculum has been completely revised and from next year, the general paper (taken by only two per cent) and the scientific and social aspects will be merged into what teachers hope will be an even more relevant and enjoyable curriculum.
Even so, this year's students were "very happy" with the higher paper because it was so topical, said Marian Nugent, representative of the TUI and a teacher in the Technical Institute in Ringsend. Life skills such as being able to determine the pros and cons of renting versus buying would be useful in future life, she said.