From Leaving CertiFiCate to Leaving SChooL a Longitudinal Study ...

Curriculum, Teaching and Learning 27
the lowest quintile. A similar pattern is evident for Geography (74 per
cent compared with 42 per cent), French (74 per cent v. 48 per cent), and
German (83 per cent v. 39 per cent).
Figure 2.3: Proportion of sixth year students who find the selected
subjects useful (those taking the subjects only)
Biology
Home Ec.
Maths
PE
History
French
German
English
Geography
Irish
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
% useful
Continental languages are seen as the most difficult subjects, as in fifth
year, with over half of students also viewing Biology, Maths and Irish as
difficult (Figure 2.4). Difficulty levels are lower for English than for
many other subjects, and only a handful of sixth year students find PE
difficult. Difficulty levels are found to relate to the level at which students
are studying subjects. For Irish, perceived difficulty is found to be
greatest among those taking higher level (64 per cent) or foundation
level (60 per cent), and lowest among those taking ordinary level (45 per
cent). Forty-six per cent of students taking higher level English find it
difficult compared with 25 per cent of those studying ordinary level. For
Maths, perceived difficulty is greatest at higher level (64 per cent) and
lowest at foundation (56 per cent) and ordinary (52 per cent) levels. Female
students are more likely to find English difficult than their male
counterparts (45 per cent compared with 34 per cent); a similar pattern is
evident in relation to Biology (62 per cent v. 45 per cent), History (55