Leaving Cert Irish

Sir, - With interest I read your Going to College supplement on Wednesday 19th

Sir, - With interest I read your Going to College supplement on Wednesday 19th. I cannot understand how in 1996, 1997 and 1998 zero percentage of ordinary level students were awarded an A1 in Irish. In other words, out of 34,042 who sat the paper in June, not even 340 were competent enough to gain top marks? Surely this is an insult to the young people, to their teachers and to the many Gaeltacht colleges around the country. Can we not encourage and reward their efforts? - Yours, etc., Perdita Quinlan,

Donnybrook,

Dublin 4.