Month: June 2006

SUMMER has arrived at last – so it follows that the exams are about to start.

More than 2,700 Clare teenagers from all over the county are counting the hours of sunshine left until they begin their Leaving and Junior Certificate examinations this week.

1,344 students will sit the Leaving Cert in Clare, with 132 of them opting for the Leaving Cert Applied course.

More females than males will take part in the three state exams. Just two more female students than male have registered for the Leaving Cert exams, with 75 female students taking the Leaving Cert Applied exams as opposed to 57 males.

As many as 1,359 Clare students will face a state exam for the first time when they sit the Junior Cert. In total, 702 female students and 657 males will take the exam.

Tomorrow (Wednesday), the Clare students will join 113,500 candidates who will take their seats at 4,500 examination centres countywide to begin their exams.

Over the bank holiday weekend, the 4,500 superintendents involved in supervising the written examinations took possession of the boxes containing the three million examination papers that are required by candidates over the 13-day examination period. Almost 4,000 examiners will be involved in examining the work presented by candidates.

There will be a number of changes to the assessment of some of the examination papers this year.

The most significant changes in this year’s exams will be in the revised syllabuses in Leaving Certificate History and Geography and Junior Certificate Science. Candidates in these examinations have already completed practical coursework leading to their final grade.

For Leaving Certificate candidates taking History and Geography, the final written examination is worth 80 per cent of the overall mark.

Candidates taking the examination in the revised Science syllabus may have already accumulated up to 35 per cent of their final grade through the completion of the practical coursework element of the exam.

The examinations run until Thursday, June 22 for Junior Certificate subjects and Friday, June 23 for Leaving Certificate subjects, and then the partying can begin.

The written examinations in the Leaving Certificate Applied programme finish on Thursday, June 15.

The results of the Leaving Certificate examinations will be available on Wednesday, August 16.

Results of the Junior Certificate will be available in mid-September.

BUILDERS could be on site at the Kilrush Marina as early as the beginning of next year, developing a hotel, apartments and commercial units.

It is believed that Shannon Development has whittled down to three the number of interested parties contending to build on the site. All three are believed to have Clare connections.

Towards the end of the month, executives of the semi-state company will discuss the favoured contender with their counterparts in the Kilrush Marina Company, the Shannon Development subsidiary, which is responsible for the west Clare marina.

It is believed that the board of Shannon Development will then consult with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment before any final announcement on the future of the West Clare Marina is made. That announcement is expected some time in July.

Last summer, Shannon Development advertised for expressions of interest in developing the land around the marina. Its development was facilitated by a decision in December at Kilrush Town Council, to rezone areas of the town.

It is now believed that three companies are being considered for the project, all of whom are planning to build apartments, commercial outlets and a five-star hotel at the waterfront.

Promises have been made that the marina will continue in its present form, with plans to extend it by 100 births, up to 220.

The boat yard may have to be relocated towards the lock gates however.

The project will probably be built on a phased basis, with indications that ownership will only be handed over at the completion of each stage.

The semi-state company could face some difficulties in convincing interested parties of the benefits of transferring the land and marina to the private sector.

When contacted by The Clare People , a spokesperson for Shannon Development said the company could not comment on the details. He said “Shannon Development advertised expressions of interest last summer.

“We are currently carrying out final assessments of expressions of interest,” he said.

SHANNON DEVELOPMENT has welcomed calls from the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation for a 2,000seater international conference centre to be located in the region.

The ITIC says the centre would benefit from access to Shannon Airport, underpin passenger numbers there and help develop the Mid-West as a hub for wider economic growth.

In its report to government, the ITIC said that a regional conference centre for the region would rebalance regional growth, not only in tourism terms but in terms of overall economic activity.

In a statement, John King, Heritage and Tourism Director with Shannon Development said the body “fully endorses the call by ITIC for a major regional conference centre for the Shannon/Limerick area.

“The ITIC proposal is in line with Shannon Development’s regional tourism strategy, an important element of which is the undertaking of a feasibility study for such a regional conference centre. Shannon Development is currently working on the feasibility of this proposal in conjunction with key tourism trade partners in the Shannon Region. The study will determine the viability of this project and whether or not it can become a sustainable proposal”.

According to a statement from the ITIC, it is proposing “NDP tourism investment of €1 billion in 2007-2013 and, as part of this, a proposal for a major Regional Conference Centre in the Shannon/Limerick area with minimum capacity for 2,000 people.”

In its submission, the confederation said that if Ireland is to reach the Government target of 10 million overseas visitors by 2012, a “seachange ” is required in tourism performance.

The chairwoman of the ITIC, Catherine Reilly said that the Government “has done well from tourism and has the potential to do even better. But as this report articulates, much remains to be done on the investment side if the industry is to make its optimal contribution to Irish economic and social development.”

The confederation report claims that Ireland’s tourism product has become “tired and lacking in verve or bounce for many tourists”.