Exam error was blown out of proportion
St Oliver's CC pupils take the opportunity to go over the first English paper during lunch last Wednesday.
Wednesday June 10 2009
A HUMAN error that was blown out of all proportion is how one St Oliver's Leaving Cert student described the English exam paper mix up that cost the state an estimated € 1 million.
The Drogheda school found itself the centre of national and international attention when honours English paper two was given out in error instead of English paper one to students sitting the exam last Wednesday morning.
'It was all hyped up out of proportion,' said James English from Tullyallen.
James was among the 30 students in the exam hall when the mix up occurred.
'I didn't get a chance to have a look at the paper but some people did get a quick glance. It was all over in less than a minute,' he added.
Also in the exam hall was honours English student Gheorghe Rusu.
' The people at the front got a good look at the paper but after about a minute someone said this is paper two and it was withdrawn.'
Gheorghe, who is originally from Moldova, felt sorry for the exam superintendent involved, a retired maths teacher from Dundalk.
'It was a human error. He didn't do it on purpose and nobody suffered as a result.
'People were afraid that the replacement paper would be vastly different to what they had prepared for. It wasn't, it was broadly similar,' said Gheorghe.
James English praised the counselling service St Oliver's provided for worried students.
In the end both young men were 'quite happy' with the alternative English paper two they sat on Saturday morning.
Questions have been raised about the six and a half hour delay between the wrong exam paper being given out at 9.30am and the State Examinations Commission (SEC) being informed of the error at 3.55pm.
The Drogheda Independent has learned that students made an informal agreement among themselves to 'keep quiet about the mix up'.
'I went home and found it was on a website allhonours.ie. I was amazed at how quickly it spread after that,' said one.
St Oliver's principal Dan Toole was only told of the error by a parent on Wednesday afternoon.
He informed the SEC immediately at 3.55pm. By 6pm that evening the SEC had decided to reschedule the exam.
- Angela MCCORMICK
