{"id":520863,"date":"2026-06-05T23:19:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T23:19:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/520863\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T23:19:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T23:19:17","slug":"state-exams-2026-reassurance-offered-after-leaving-cert-maths-struck-bum-note","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/520863\/","title":{"rendered":"State exams 2026: Reassurance offered after Leaving Cert maths ‘struck bum note’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leaving Cert<\/a> maths paper 1 may have \u201cstruck a bum note\u201d with some students, with a very testing paper focused heavily on calculus, algebra, and sequences.<\/p>\n

The 2026 State exams continued on Friday, with geography and maths paper 1 in Leaving Cert, along with Junior Cycle history and maths exams taking place.<\/p>\n

Heading into the weekend, some Leaving Cert students may feel discouraged after a tough maths paper 1.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Niall Duddy, subject spokesperson for the ASTI and teacher at Presentation College, said he gives students the same advice every year if they are upset following the exam.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“If the paper is tough, they will reward students for attempting the questions,” he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Col\u00e1isteCol\u00e1iste Christ R\u00ed Leaving Certificate students Shane Murphy, Shane Keating, and Diarmuid O\u2019Donovan who sat Maths Paper 1 today. Picture: Noel Sweeney<\/p>\n

\u201cThat goes for every exam, not just maths.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

That being said, the higher level paper 1 was a \u201ctesting\u201d paper, said Mr Duddy.<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly in our school it was mixed to negative, the reaction.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AmyAmy N\u00ed Sh\u00failleabh\u00e1n, Liadha N\u00ed Mhaolcatha, Jaydine N\u00ed Shuaird, and Kelsey N\u00ed Mhath\u00fana who sat Leaving Cert Maths Paper 1 today at Gaelchol\u00e1iste Mhuire AG. Picture: Noel Sweeney<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of students were very glad there was choice, but anyone taking chances might be unhappy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“The paper was very heavy on calculus and algebra, sequences, and series in particular \u2014 and anyone who was hoping for financial maths, they weren\u2019t really rewarded.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

There were also a \u201ccouple of unusual\u201d questions, such as question 8, he believed. \u201cIt struck a bum note with some people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Question 10 about patterns was also \u201csomething a little bit left of field”.<\/p>\n

\"EarlierEarlier today we caught up with Leaving Cert students of Gaelchol\u00e1iste Mhuire AG studying hard before their Maths Higher Level Paper 1. Picture: Noel Sweeney<\/p>\n

Overall students were happy that the paper offered different choices, he added. \u201cIf there had been less choice, I think there would have been more long faces.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was certainly a very testing paper, a lot of students would have found it tough.\u201d<\/p>\n

The feedback from students after ordinary-level maths paper 1 was \u201coverwhelming positive\u201d, said Mr Duddy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey liked the fact there was a lot of financial maths on the paper, which they had prepared very well for. There was a good mix there in the questions, there was something for everyone.\u201d <\/p>\n

Geography a ‘marathon’<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Leaving Cert geography<\/a> was a “marathon” and a “very demanding” paper, according to Margaret Fitzpatrick, a teacher and ASTI subject spokesperson.<\/p>\n

\"SophieSophie Comerford, Elia Deriu, and Emma Jane O’Sullivan who sat their Leaving Certificate Higher Level Geography exam in Carrigtwohill Community College. Picture: Howard Crowdy\"RoanRoan O’Keeffe and John O’Connor look over the Higher Level Leaving Certificate Geography paper at Carrigtwohill Community College. Picture: Howard Crowdy<\/p>\n

However, she believed the 2026 paper would be widely praised by both students and teachers.<\/p>\n

“It was a fair and balanced paper with predictable question structures,” she said.<\/p>\n

The short questions were in line with previous years, as were the structured essay questions.\u00a0“Well-prepared students will do extremely well,” said Ms Fitzpatrick.<\/p>\n

The ordinary-level paper also contained no major surprises, according to Stephen Doyle, Studyclix subject spokesperson.<\/p>\n

\"LeavingLeaving Certificate students Faye N\u00ed Coitir and Anna-Lee Ni Rinn-N\u00ed Sh\u00failleabh\u00e1n sat Geography Paper 1 today at Gaelchol\u00e1iste Mhuire AG. Picture: Noel Sweeney<\/p>\n

“Students would have been reassured by the range of choice available throughout the exam.”<\/p>\n

“The questions were accessible, covered familiar topics, and gave candidates plenty of opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge. Overall, it was a fair and manageable paper that should have been well received by students.”<\/p>\n

Junior Cycle exams<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Junior Cycle maths exams for both higher and ordinary level were received “relatively well”, according to Stephen Begley, who teaches at Dundalk Grammar School and is Studyclix subject spokesperson.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The higher-level paper included “an excellent range” of usual topics, he said. “It opened pleasantly with approachable probability and statistics questions, helping to settle students\u2019 nerves, before moving into a comfortable financial mathematics problem that concluded with a more demanding part.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

The paper’s trigonometry question was very direct and familiar, though students needed to be careful with the mixture of units in the diagram, he said. “Overall, the paper presented a fair and balanced reflection of the Junior Cycle higher-level course.”<\/p>\n

At ordinary level, the exam engaged students with a series of routine and well-structured questions at the beginning, “helping to ease nerves before progressing into more applied topics”, said Mr Begley.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Many will be satisfied with their performance in this candid paper as they head into a weekend of study ahead of next week\u2019s examinations.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Junior Cycle history exam was also well-received\u00a0 as it “continued the trend away from rote content and towards source analysis, with photographs, a cartoon, a diagram, and a timeline all featuring”, said history teacher Patrick Hickey, who posts online as @lchistorytutor.<\/p>\n

“A fresh climate change and archaeology angle opened the paper. Question 6 on the Holocaust proved trickiest. I think the paper will be broadly welcomed.”<\/p>\n