Park College Chemistry Teacher, Orla Cunningham gives an overview of the Honours Leaving Cert. Chemistry paper.

The Honours Leaving Cert. Chemistry syllabus is very broad. It is therefore imperative to approach the subject content in a logical and structural manner so as to focus on the main concepts of the course and the likely, if not necessary, questions to be asked in the examination. Adopting such an approach, one readily realises that the formation of molecules (Bonding), the favourability of the process or processes by which they are formed (Equilibrium) and the speed at which they are formed (Rates) are three corner stones on which any chemistry course at this level must be based.

Thus it is no surprise that there are usually three full and separate questions on the examination paper on these particular topics, as well there should, given their key position in our understanding of chemical phenomena. It is therefore very important that students sitting this exam have a thorough knowledge of bonding and structure, equilibrium and rates of reaction.

Still taking a broad sweep, we see that the Leaving Cert. course is more or less divided into two main areas viz physical/inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry and so a reasonable portion of the examination paper must be set aside to test students' knowledge and understanding of this latter part of the course. There are normally two questions on the paper in Section B dedicated to organic chemistry. One of these questions concerns itself with fuels and thermochemistry, the other is usually based on reaction type and mechanism. In addition to this, one of the practical questions of Section A is usually organic based giving a total of three questions on organic chemistry. Now that's value for knowledge and students should equip themselves with a detailed understanding of this area of their course, together with the accompanying mandatory practicals and take on these three questions without hesitation.

Any student having a detailed knowledge of the five sections referred to in the above will have made huge inroads into the chemistry course and will be well poised to achieve a very high grade. In addition to the above, Section A of the examination paper is based on mandatory practicals of which there are a total of 28. This is akin to being handed a list of 28 questions and being told that three of them will appear on the paper. Consideration of this list, together with the fact that this is the Honours Leaving Cert. course, results in quite a reduction in the number of questions likely to be asked from that list and so it is wise to prepare to answer all three practical questions in Section A.

It is conceivable that one could answer the required eight questions on the basis of the above outlined, but it is wise not to be over zealous in trimming the course, and one should always hold something in reserve lest there be any unusual twists and turns. To this end of matters, topics such as acids, bases, pH and indicators, redox reactions, stoichiometry and water should be studied in detail and students should be mindful of the fact that electrochemistry has been little examined since the start of the new syllabus.

Structure of the examination paper

The Chemistry paper consists of 11 questions in two separate sections and a total of eight of these questions must be answered. There are three questions in Section A, of which at least two must be attempted with the option of answering all three. There are eight questions in Section B and, if only two of Section A are attempted, you must take six of these. Alternatively, if you have answered all three practical questions, you need answer only five of these. All questions on the paper, irrespective of which section they come from, carry equal (50) marks.

Time management

There are a total of three hours allotted for the examination, with a total of eight questions, equally weighted, to be answered. Given that you take the first five minutes to look over the paper, you have approximately 22 minutes per question.