Madam, - On Tuesday March 27th, The Irish Times issued a supplement entitled "Junior Cert Study Guide". On that same day, my third year classmates and I each received a copy of the paper, supplement included, during our English class for media studies. On behalf of my class, I would like to thank you and your staff for supplying us free with a reliable medium for current affairs, as well as a clear and useful guide to helping us prepare better for our coming exams.
My classmates and I appreciate the effort that went into this guide; the sample answers, comments and suggestions by past students and teachers, and the inclusion of the Junior Cert timetable. The summarising of each exam, and the hints on answering questions helped me to properly understand what the examiners expect from us, and also helped us to realise where we went wrong in the trial exams. I believe that you and your staff have succeeded in creating a very comprehensive and helpful exam guide.
The main newspaper was also of great benefit. Most of my classmates do not read the newspaper (I myself generally stick to the front page and sports section) and yet, whenever a free period occurred, I saw students taking out their copy of the newspaper and reading it with at least mild interest.
Currently we are learning about target audiences, the profits made from advertising, etc, and this paper has been an excellent example to use for studying these terms.
I hope your newspaper continues to thrive as it has been for the past 148 years. - Yours, etc,
CIARA McGLYNN, 3rd year student, Sancta Maria College, Ballyroan, Rathfarnham, Dublin 16.