It’s crunch time for Leaving and Junior Cert students across Kilkenny and Carlow

English is first up for an estimated 4-thousand local students sitting state exams this morning.

Both the Leaving and Junior Certs begin when the first papers are turned over at half past nine.

Tyndal College Guidence Counsellor Gemma Lawlor says students should remember that examiners are only looking to see what points they can award:

“The person who’s going to be looking at your paper wants to give you credit for the work that you’ve done and actually wants to give you as many marks as they can. So if you keep that in your vision all the time when you’re answering questions, then that gives you a calmness and it gives you a sense that the work is done, now I’m just showing what I’ve done and it takes away a lot of the fear.”