On your marks! Students get their grades for Junior Cert today

THE number of Junior Cert pupils sitting higher-level mathematics and science papers has risen, examination results due out today show.

As 62,562 pupils prepare to receive their Junior Certificate marks, it has emerged that 623 more pupils sat the higher level maths paper this year than in 2017.

It was also revealed that three-quarters of the 35,443 students who sat the paper got an A, B or C.

The number of honours science students has also increased, with 46,423 sitting the paper this year compared to 45,709 last year, and just over 9% getting the highest A grade.

And with the students set to learn their grades today, parents have been urged to talk to their children about alcohol ahead of the celebrations.

A Drinkaware study found 14% of parents think it acceptable for children to drink at home before the age of 15, yet only three in five feel confident actually discussing alcohol with them.

‘The Junior Cert results are a fantastic achievement and, of course, should be celebrated,’ said Miriam Taber of Drinkaware. ‘But these young people are about 15 years old, which is too young to be drinking alcohol. We should not accept that alcohol is synonymous with these events.

‘It is important that students marking this achievement, especially those who are concerned with their results, do not use alcohol as a way to blow off steam.

‘We would encourage parents to get involved in their children’s plans for celebrating this week, especially if there is a concern about alcohol use.’

An analysis of the Junior Cert results also reveals there were also more candidates for technology and technical graphics than in previous years.

Irish also fared well. More A grades were awarded across the board than last year, including to 11.4% of honours candidates. This year also saw a total of 47 students achieve A grades for all 11 of their subjects, including distinction in English.

An A is awarded for any mark of 85% or more except for English, which last year changed to the new Junior Cycle grading format.

Distinction is the highest award in the new system, for which a candidate must achieve 90 or more. Last year, 1.8% of students achieved English distinction and the proportion has increased to 2.5% this year, with girls taking twothirds of the top marks.

Almost 600 more students sat the honours English paper this year. However, it seems French and Italian have fallen out of favour, with students choosing to German and Spanish instead.

Though French remains the most popular foreign language, with 31,066 entries, the number of students has fallen year on year. A total of 10,561 pupils did Spanish, some 330 more than in 2017, while German had 12,466 entries this year – 436 more than in 2017.