Ireland - Leaving Cert English

Leaving Cert English grinds

English is the longest exam in the Leaving Cert: two papers and more than six hours of writing. Grades are won by students who plan answers quickly and write to the marking criteria under time pressure, which is exactly what grinds can practise week by week.

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What every programme includes

✓ Paper 1: comprehending questions A and B
✓ Paper 1: the composition, from plan to final draft
✓ Paper 2: your single text and the comparative modes
✓ Paper 2: prescribed and unseen poetry
✓ Essays marked with PCLM feedback (purpose, coherence, language, mechanics)
✓ Timing plans for both papers

Lesson times in your time zone

Weekdays 3pm-9pm after school · Weekends 8am-8pm, your local time. Pick the slot when you book.

How the English exam is marked

Higher Level English has two papers worth 200 marks each. Paper 1 (2 hours 50 minutes) has Section I, Comprehending (100 marks: a Question A on one text and a Question B, a functional writing task, on another), and Section II, Composing (100 marks: one composition from a choice of titles).

Paper 2 (3 hours 20 minutes) is studied literature: the single text (60 marks), the comparative study (70 marks) and poetry (70 marks, split between an unseen poem and a prescribed poet). Answers are marked on purpose, coherence, language and mechanics (PCLM); mechanics (spelling and grammar) is a small share, so the marks are in clear, sustained argument.

Where marks are lost

Examiners' reports and our own marking show the same patterns:

✓ Running out of time on Paper 2 and writing a short final poetry answer
✓ Retelling the plot instead of answering the question asked
✓ Comparative answers that discuss texts one after the other, not side by side
✓ Prepared essays bent to fit a question they don't answer
✓ Compositions with a strong opening and no clear shape after it

How our English grinds work

Each week the student writes one timed answer before the session; the tutor marks it against the four criteria and the session works on the weakest one. Over the year that builds a bank of quotes, key moments and paragraph plans for the single text, comparative modes and poets on your course.

Higher or Ordinary Level?

Higher Level English needs long, sustained essays on Paper 2, written to time. Students who can plan a clear answer in five minutes and keep their argument on the question usually manage it; those who struggle to finish essays often gain from a term of timed practice before deciding. An H4 (66 points) at Higher Level is worth more than an O1 (56), so the move is worth trying for.

Leaving Cert English, Higher Level

Paper	Time	Section	Marks
Paper 1	2h 50m	Comprehending (Question A and Question B)	100
Paper 1		Composing	100
Paper 2	3h 20m	Single text	60
Paper 2		Comparative study	70
Paper 2		Poetry (unseen and prescribed)	70

English keeps its current exam in 2027. Prescribed texts and poets change each year: check your year's list from the Department of Education.

From September to June

1
September to Christmas
Single text and the comparative modes: one timed answer a week, marked and rewritten.
2
January to the mocks
Prescribed poets one by one, and two compositions in different genres.
3
After the mocks to May
Full timed papers, alternating Paper 1 and Paper 2.
4
Final weeks
Paragraph plans and quotes for each text; timing drills for Paper 2.