NO KNOTTY problems were reported in yesterday afternoon's materials technology (wood) papers.
Mr Jim Bannon, chairman of the Association of Materials Technology and Graphics Teachers, said that he was happy with the presentation of both ordinary and higher level papers.
"The diagrams were clear and the questions were unambiguous. It was a good test of students' knowledge with a wide variety of questions," he said.
The short answer section of the ordinary level paper included questions from most sections of the syllabus. The format of the questions had improved since last year and the sketches were quite good, Mr Bannon commented.
Mr Colm Hannon, ASTI subject representative, said the short answer questions were wide ranging and the diagrams were clear with the exception of the arrows for naming the parts of the lathe in question 12. In section B the long answer section, all questions were considered fair, he, said.
The diagram accompanying the first question in the long answer section showed a decorative letter stand. Students were asked about jointing the back to the base as well as shaping the corners of the base to give a smooth finish.
Finally, they had to describe how they would prepare the wood before applying a suitable finish. Mr Bannon, who teaches in Beaufort College, Navan, Co Meath, praised this question. He said that a good variety of topics were covered within the one question.
Question 2, the drawing question, was fairly straightforward, he said, while question 3, which concentrates on theory, was good. Students had a choice of two sections in question 4. Section A, the lathe question, was fine, but Mr Bannon had a minor quibble with section B where a pictorial sketch of a decorative pendant in wood with a design, in perspex was "badly drawn".
The final question, which included a diagram of a small storage unit for cassette tapes and compact discs, was fine, he said.
At higher level, students again had to choose 16 short answer questions from a total of 20. "The questions were quite fair and the sketches were clear and there was no problem with the wording or terminology," Mr Bannon said. However, he noted that question 10 which asked students to identify two out of three trees from their silhouettes and fruit, was slightly different to previous years, where more common trees such as oak and chestnut appeared. This year, the trees were beech, douglas fir and birch.
Mr Hannon said the higher level short answer sections were "comprehensive and tested most aspects of the course, ranging from hand tools to computer aided routers and from timber toe plastics". Diagrams were generally clear, he said, but he was somewhat critical of the two diagrams with question 12 and with the term "implements" which could also have been confusing. The long answer section was fair and well presented, he said.
Mr Bannon said the drawing question in the long answer section was fine, but it could take a little time to complete it satisfactorily, he said. Part two of the second question, which focuses on design, asked students to design a range of seating and table units for a woodland picnic area.
"This gave students an opportunity to express their own ideas," Mr Bannon said.
Question 3 asked students to describe how they would replace the broken blade in a coping saw. They were also asked to give one advantage and one disadvantage of a jigsaw, and to describe the steps they would take to prepare the surfaces of the stool shown in the diagram. Mr Bannon said that this was a straightforward exercise.
Both parts of question 4 were straightforward, he said, while the use of perspex in question 5 was good, he added. Overall, it was a nice test with no sticklers, Mr Bannon said. "For somebody to answer it as it should be answered, they would need a good knowledge of the subject."
Mr Hannon agreed. "Overall, the excellent layout and presentation on both sets of papers and the emphasis on safety was to be welcomed."
The written paper accounts for one third of the total marks in both higher and ordinary level materials technology (wood).