Irish Paper 1 | Easter Revision | The Essay- Marking Scheme - Avoid penalties -How much to write

The session begins by welcoming students to the Easter revision course for Irish Paper 1, emphasizing the importance of essay writing and introducing a 'cheat' system to manipulate essays for various titles. The instructor outlines a five-week revision plan, covering various aspects of the Irish exam, including listening, literature, and different paper components, and stresses continuous support until the exams.

The instructor explains the essay marking scheme, which allocates 100 marks (16.6% of the overall Leaving Cert). Marks are divided into Style (5%), Subject (15%), and Irish (80%). Crucially, penalties for not adhering to the essay title are discussed, with significant deductions in Subject (5 marks) and Irish (26 marks) if the essay deviates from the prompt. This can lead to a drastic drop in grades, highlighting the importance of understanding the question.

A 'TSPP' method is introduced to help students avoid penalties and plan their essays effectively within the allocated 1 hour and 50 minutes. 'T' stands for Topic, identifying the overall subject. 'S' stands for Situation, determining if the topic is improving or worsening. 'P' stands for Plural, checking if multiple examples or aspects are required. The final 'P' stands for Position, indicating whether the essay should focus on Ireland or an international context. This method helps in dissecting essay titles to ensure full alignment with the examiner's expectations.

The TSPP method is applied to the 2023 essay titles, demonstrating how seemingly specific titles can be manipulated to fit learned material. Examples include 'Cost of Living' allowing discussion of homelessness and crime, 'Drugs' linking to crime and homelessness, and 'Famous People' enabling discussion of politicians or social media figures within the context of existing essay material. The session emphasizes that essay titles are designed to be broad, allowing students flexibility if they understand the underlying themes.

The '3-2-1 method' is presented for studying essays, especially for managing motivation. The idea is to learn the largest chunk of a paragraph when motivation is high (e.g., 5 lines), then a smaller chunk when motivation dips (e.g., 3 lines), and finally the remaining smallest part (e.g., 2 lines) when motivation is at its lowest. This approach ensures continuous progress and prevents burnout, making essay learning more manageable and effective.

The instructor clarifies when it's permissible to disagree with an essay title. If the title is a simple statement (e.g., 'Healthcare System'), students can explore various aspects. If it contains a verb like 'is' (e.g., 'Ireland is a fair society'), students can agree or disagree. However, if the title mentions a specific aspect without a verb (e.g., 'The impact of climate change'), students MUST adhere to that aspect and cannot disagree. The concept of 'double titles' indicated by 'August' (and) is explained, requiring discussion of both parts, though not necessarily with equal length.

Emily asks about the ideal essay length. The minimum requirement is two A4 pages (equivalent to 500-600 words), with a penalty for writing less. For H1/H2 grades, three to three and a half A4 pages are recommended. Writing four pages is considered the upper limit, with anything beyond that being excessive. Tom's question clarifies that 'A4 pages' refer to standard notebook pages, which translate to more pages in the smaller exam booklets. Rachel's question about big handwriting suggests aiming for slightly more than the minimum to compensate for larger script.