The Entire Experience

MonTheBiffy

I finish tomorrow with Economics, and as it happens it is also Bonfires night and England are playing Slovenia. So after I finish economics I'm heading straight down to the pub having two pints and going home. There I'll shower change eat etc. head back in to town watch the game (with baited breath) a few more scoop's the off to burn all my books copies and notes in a massive inferno. Followed by a few more nippy sweeties :rolleyes: Anybody have similar plans?

Oh and I have found the entire Leaving Cert experience very enjoyable. Each test has been a challenge, interesting and fulfilling. It is way too hyped in the media and this is to the detrement of many a student in my opinion. It puts unnecessary pressure on already fragile psyche's. If everybody just let us get on with it, it would be much easier and probably would result in better results.
I personally loved the banter outside the exam hall both before and after exams. I went to the gym and played football in the garden and had the odd spin on the Playstation during the entire thing. I found it relaxed me, let off some steam. The idea of locking yourself away and pulling all nighters is absurd, in my opinion. It might work for one in ten, but the rest just end up tired and inevitably worse off than before. So, next year when its all said and done, if anybody asks me how to prepare for the LC, I'll just tell em to relax, enjoy it and do your best. It's all anybody can do. :pac:

JoeyBuddy

Yeah, it definitely is hyped.
I'm glad it's done, but I also enjoyed doing it.
Probably because I have no pressure on me in terms of points.

But yeah, people way make too big a deal about it. It was GRAND!

Ashashi

I would personally like to thank the Leaving Cert as it has made my Sevilla team in FIFA 10 unstoppable.


CHEERS SEC! **








** SEC may have adverse effects on one person's social life, hence the unstoppable Sevilla team

EuropeanSon

MonTheBiffy wrote: »

I finish tomorrow with Economics, and as it happens it is also Bonfires night and England are playing Slovenia. So after I finish economics I'm heading straight down to the pub having two pints and going home. There I'll shower change eat etc. head back in to town watch the game (with baited breath) a few more scoop's the off to burn all my books copies and notes in a massive inferno. Followed by a few more nippy sweeties :rolleyes: Anybody have similar plans?

Oh and I have found the entire Leaving Cert experience very enjoyable. Each test has been a challenge, interesting and fulfilling. It is way too hyped in the media and this is to the detrement of many a student in my opinion. It puts unnecessary pressure on already fragile psyche's. If everybody just let us get on with it, it would be much easier and probably would result in better results.
I personally loved the banter outside the exam hall both before and after exams. I went to the gym and played football in the garden and had the odd spin on the Playstation during the entire thing. I found it relaxed me, let off some steam. The idea of locking yourself away and pulling all nighters is absurd, in my opinion. It might work for one in ten, but the rest just end up tired and inevitably worse off than before. So, next year when its all said and done, if anybody asks me how to prepare for the LC, I'll just tell em to relax, enjoy it and do your best. It's all anybody can do. :pac:

I'd echo almost all of that, except I do App Maths.

mark.oc

MonTheBiffy wrote: »

Oh and I have found the entire Leaving Cert experience very enjoyable. Each test has been a challenge, interesting and fulfilling. It is way too hyped in the media and this is to the detrement of many a student in my opinion. It puts unnecessary pressure on already fragile psyche's. If everybody just let us get on with it, it would be much easier and probably would result in better results.
I personally loved the banter outside the exam hall both before and after exams. I went to the gym and played football in the garden and had the odd spin on the Playstation during the entire thing. I found it relaxed me, let off some steam. The idea of locking yourself away and pulling all nighters is absurd, in my opinion. It might work for one in ten, but the rest just end up tired and inevitably worse off than before. So, next year when its all said and done, if anybody asks me how to prepare for the LC, I'll just tell em to relax, enjoy it and do your best. It's all anybody can do. :pac:

Can't stress enough how much I agree with all of this. People make out that working over two years for a nine or ten three hour exams needs to take over your life. It doesn't. People make out that it should be an awful, stressful and unenjoyable experience. It shouldn't. Like you said this is mainly stoked by the media, but I think we could all do with looking at this with a bit of perspective. I'm not trying to belittle all the work we've done, but sometimes the magnitude of the thing is completely blown out of proportion.

When it comes to pulling all nighters, totally agree, it's completely ridiculous.

And most importantly, to answer your Q, after finishing with maths on friday morning, it's to the pub or to home to watch the last games of the group stages. And that night a friend of mine is throwing a party with (apparently) more than sixty people at her gaff. It's going to be a f**king disaster zone by 2 o'clock, but I suppose we wouldn't have it any other way.

**Timbuk2**

I found it great craic. Especially the long lunch times with my friends. The exams themselves are ok, it's the studying part that is stressful!

MonTheBiffy

Left to our own devices, I'm fairly confident most people could be hitting the 400 mark. Sounds crazy I know, try being on the inside looking out, but honestly the exams are not too difficult with effort and patience even the ''weaker'' students can exceed expectation and i think its purely down to lack of pressure.

Psychedelia

totally agree!
i found stress only came for me when i was surrounded by other people who were getting stressed!
also the way people outside the whole thing keep asking or rather telling you how hard and difficult it is etc!

the whole locking yourself in the room thing is indeed a waste of time!
watch telly and study and go for runs and have the craic with friends, HAVE a social life! its all possible while getting a very good leaving cert!

Joe_Dull

I would consider myself academic - the school doesn't do mocks but I got 560 in the Christmas tests. Thought the best part of 6th year was great craic, but honestly, if you're aiming for the really high marks the latter half (Easter onwards) is hell. I hardly got to see any of my friends not in my year and was generally confined to barracks most of the time. However, I've only Music left now and overall I'm happy with how I worked and how the exams went.
Overall, it's not a year that'll kill you, but all the same by the time Biology rolled round I wasn't exactly ar muin na muice :rolleyes:

MonTheBiffy

Here, RTÉ take a look at this thread. Nevermind all yere scaremongering and apocolyptic idea's on the Leaving Cert.

It can be fun, it can be enjoyable.

In times of recession all ye do is moan and groan and tell us how royaly screwed we are. Well here, in a time when we are supposed to be stressed and on the verge of mental breakdowns, is proof that the LC isn't that bad. Put that on the SixOne and see the response.

EuropeanSon

MonTheBiffy wrote: »

Here, RTÉ take a look at this thread. Nevermind all yere scaremongering and apocolyptic idea's on the Leaving Cert.

It can be fun, it can be enjoyable.

In times of recession all ye do is moan and groan and tell us how royaly screwed we are. Well here, in a time when we are supposed to be stressed and on the verge of mental breakdowns, is proof that the LC isn't that bad. Put that on the SixOne and see the response.

That's getting quoted in the papers tomorrow lol.

leavingcert 2010

i repeated my leaving cert , and i found rpeat 6th year to be the best time of my life in school, me and 4 others were repeating and we became close friends and had great crack during school(we used to mitch of 3 classes a day )

spent the whole year telling jokes and playing football

i never thought i would but im actually going to miss school

Lawliet

leavingcert 2010 wrote: »

i repeated my leaving cert , and i found rpeat 6th year to be the best time of my life in school, me and 4 others were repeating and we became close friends and had great crack during school(we used to mitch of 3 classes a day )

spent the whole year telling jokes and playing football

i never thought i would but im actually going to miss school

I'm a repeat too, but I had the opposite experience. Easily the most depressing and stressful year of my life. So glad it's over.

Conor108

90% of what I've learned over the past 2 years will be gone by August. Continuous assessment for the love of god!!

mark.oc

Joe_Dull wrote: »

honestly, if you're aiming for the really high marks the latter half (Easter onwards) is hell.

I'd tend to disagree. I'm going for max points and got 560 in my mocks too, and I didn't find it too bad at all. There's never going to be a uniform experience though I suppose.

MonTheBiffy

I will also miss school. I have met people I otherwise would never have had the privilage of meeting, shared in some of the most memorable events in the lives of many people, and I've formed friendships that will last until I die.

I've had good days and bad. It's been such an education. In both the most literal sense of the word and morally and socially. I don't regret a single moment, even the mistakes I made. There have been so many more positives than negatives, more smiles than frowns, and more fits of uncontrollable laughter than tears.

I will never forget my time in school and will never underestimate the influence it has had on my life. Without these experiences I wouldn't be the person I am today (the slightly twisted, nostalgic, sarcastic ejjit).

For all its flaws and drawbacks, our education system gives us so many opportunities to grow and learn and better ourselves that its foolish to speak of it negatively. I'm sure there are those who have suffered and dreaded each day, and thats unfortunate, but for the majority I believe it has being a fulfilling experience. It has been for me anyways.:rolleyes:

PARARORY

Was not as hard as everyone made it out to be but then maybe I didnt work as hard as other - got A's and B's throughout the whole year and pretty confident I did the same more or less in the big LC.

Fair play to all the repeats - so impressive! Out of the subjects I do I would just never be motivated for stuff like pass maths , biology etc... I'd say I would do worse If I repeated! Good luck everyone , college awaits

DancingQueen:)

I thought it was very tough and i'm a good student. It was too cramped, I finished early but I had no breaks and days when I got home at half six/seven and had to study for two tests the next day were torture!
I've been doing really well all year but don't think i'll get anywhere near my mocks results in the real thing which is disappointing but not much I can do now.

In saying that I really loved everything about 6th year. My school was amazing and i'm really going to miss it but exam wise it was a lot more difficult than I thought it was going to be

kev9100

Up to Easter, it was fine but after that it all became a bit too intense. Still, I will never forget the feeling the of joy I felt after Biology as I no longer had to pretend I gave a **** about photosynthesis:D.

MonTheBiffy

I found after Easter easier, it seemed the closer it got to June the less work I did.:rolleyes: Maybe I'm unique I dunno.

wayhey

kev9100 wrote: »

Up to Easter, it was fine but after that it all became a bit too intense. Still, I will never forget the feeling the of joy I felt after Biology as I no longer had to pretend I gave a **** about photosynthesis:D.

Photosynthesis: "You're with that skank Respiration again! Aren't you? Aren't you?!!"

kev9100

wayhey wrote: »

Photosynthesis: "You're with that skank Respiration again! Aren't you? Aren't you?!!"

Trust me, I hate and don't understand them both equally.

MonTheBiffy

Did anybody find it completley awful?

Conor108

MonTheBiffy wrote: »

Did anybody find it completley awful?

I did, do and will until 12:01 this Friday...

MaggieNF

I agree with all of this. I remember in 5th year being terrified of 6th year and how horrible it would be. But the brings you closer to people you may have hated before and gave you a chance to talk to them and get to know them, which had we all not been terrified about the Leaving, would of had nothing in common to speak over.


And lunch times in 6th year, I loved, sitting and chilling with mates. laughing about things that have nothing to do with the exams. It's nice to think of goin to the debs with friends and having fun. I really can't wait

Then there was days out or last day of school, where despite saying how much we hate our schools, we probably all shed a tear and thought of the good times and moving on...

The parties were pretty decent all year too

The whole exam thing was only really scary for the first day, fear of the unknown and stuff. after that it became routine. where you went in, in the morning and sat a paper then chilled with friends and went in in the afternoon to do it again, sure it was exhausting but hey it was fun with the examiners cos, chances are they also have students goin through what we go through, they are sympathetic!


I am more depressed now than I was all year. It's like being at this weird crossroads. we are finished second level and don't go to college. We have no study to do for exams next year, its the first real summer where you
have nothing to worry about other than fun in the sun


*sniff*

muffinz

hmm, it was actually ok, but I think the worst bit of it is the 2 days you have between tests or whatever, they're horrible
the last day is so anticlimatic though...

yesno1234

MonTheBiffy wrote: »

I found after Easter easier, it seemed the closer it got to June the less work I did.:rolleyes: Maybe I'm unique I dunno.

I started studying after the mocks but also started goin out more or less every weekend. I found going out really helps you study cause at least you went out enjoyed yourself and now you could study without the regret of sll your friends telling you how good a night was.