TARZAN, road safety, secondhand cars, Vietnam and the growth of Benidorm as a tourist resort were just some of the bewildering array of topics tackled by higher-level Spanish students yesterday.

Both ordinary and higher-level papers were reasonable and appropriate to the level of student, Mr Richard Craven, a Spanish teacher in St Colman's Community College, Middleton, Co Cork, said. Ms Maire Ni Chiarba, ASTI subject representative and a teacher in Colaiste An Phiarsaigh, Glanmire, Co Cork, described the higher-level paper as "quite demanding" but she said that there was nothing unexpected on it. The ordinary-level paper was standard and suitable for the student, she added.

The quality of the tape for the listening comprehension was fine. The voices were clear and the pauses were adequate, Ms Ni Chiarba said. Section D, part 2, was very challenging and careful listening was needed, she added.

At higher level, the reading comprehension was reasonable, Ms Ni Chiarba said. The passages on drug smuggling, Russian tanks and Vietnam were demanding but the questions were straightforward. She praised the question on second-hand cars as being very clear. The reading comprehension should not have caused students too many problems, Mr Craven agreed, though the occasional word may have caused problems.

The written-expression section demanded a good knowledge of numbers, dates and tenses, Mr Craven said. Ms Ni Chiarba said that the reply to the letter in section C was very practical.

At ordinary level, she noted, the reading comprehension included shortened versions of some of the passages used on the higher-level paper. In the written expression, the letter, which asked students to write about themselves and their pets, was very suitable, she said.

Also in the written-expression section, Mr Craven said that four of the five phrases to be translated into Spanish were in the present tense, with the final phrase in the past tense. Most students should have been well able for the first four phrases, Mr Craven said.