Madam, - It was with great delight that I read Miroslawa Gorecka's article "Testing time for Polish girl" (Exam Times, June 5th). She is to be admired for her courage and determination. Having started the Leaving Certificate course half-way through fifth year, taking up subjects such as English, maths, business,chemistry, biology and Polish, Miroslawa hopes to get the necessary points for a course in medicine at Trinity College. Surely we are privileged to have such students attending our schools.
I am a secondary school teacher at Dominican College, Griffith Avenue, Dublin 7, and I am amazed every day at the coping skills of young "new Irish" students.They are determined, ambitious, self-disciplined, highly motivated, polite - and a real pleasure to teach.They have a very positive and refreshing outlook on life.
As I stand in front of my class I watch with great interest as the "native" and the "new Irish" students accept and respect their various differences and opinions. This experience of working and learning with very diverse cultures in a class of 30 is in itself an education for me and the students.
A very sincere welcome to all our "new Irish" young people. You, along with our "native" Irish students, are the future of our country. May I take this opportunity to wish all Leaving Certificate and Junior Certificate students success in their exams.
Thanks to Miroslawa for her honest and open contribution to Exam Diary. I eagerly await her further entries over the exam period. Her grasp of the English language is uplifting, to say the least - so no worries there! - Yours, etc,
BERNADETTE EDGEWORTH, Lucan, Co Dublin.