"A Student" Selling His Notes On eBay

JamesJB

This is ridiculous, but the more I think about it the more I realise the kind of mindset that's at work here. People place a huge emphasis on notes and summaries and all such written material because it can streamline the whole process of learning something.

Notes get way too much credit, though. A teacher I never even had from my old school called me up yesterday (at 10 am. I had only gotten to sleep at 6:30 :mad:) and asked for my geography notes. When I told him that my notes were actually given to me by my teacher, and that I hadn't really used them all that much, he actually kept me on the phone because he thought that I was joking. This isn't just something worried parents or teens looking for an easier time perpetuate.

Still, I wonder how he actually got paid. I'd be almost 100% certain that his notes come from sources anyone could find. Plus, with the internet, you can find hundreds of explanations of any complex subject...

i like pie

wow i cannot believe the notes sold for that much! parents must be very naive if they think notes like this will help their son of daughter:rolleyes: i got 7 a's in the lc like the seller, but no way would i sell my notes as i doubt they would be that beneficial to anyone!! the whole point of making out your own notes is that you remember some of it by writing it down, not by just reading off a page. i printed off lots of different notes off the internet to use for the lc, which i never did in the end! most people rely on their books, exam papers and teachers/grind notes and they can still get a's, that's all you need! fair play to him for making a bit of money though:)

lctake2

i just threw 5 sets of of a1 notes in the bin, now feel like i've thrown away a lottery ticket

Lawliet

I feel bad for the teachers, I'd say they're responsible for a few of his "A1 standard notes" but they're not getting any credit, let alone any money.

felic

SO he got his money? wow! Thats a kick in the teeth to all of us who knocked him. I thought it was all a piss take to be honest. What will happen now is that there will be a string of students doing the same thing every year. Nice easy money if you can get it... Apparently it was sets of parents doing the bidding and i feel so sorry for those parents because they think this is whats best to get their kid the best chance... and its not! Hard work and dedication is the only way to getting those points. I still dont like how that guy plugged the media to get these notes sold though. Will there be a segment every year now on the RTE with similar students pushing for a sale? And then parents eager to bid and waste their cash on these notes as well as paying fees for grind schools and extra tuition? Its really becoming a huge money racket! And with the ever approaching fees for college... its almost scary the direction this system is going.

si_guru

Lawliet wrote: »

I feel bad for the teachers, I'd say they're responsible for a few of his "A1 standard notes" but they're not getting any credit, let alone any money.

Don't teachers get paid?

JamesJB

si_guru wrote: »

Don't teachers get paid?

Yes, but they won't get anything out of the hundreds of euro this guy apparently is getting for selling notes he likely took from sources they gave him.

Lawliet

si_guru wrote: »

Don't teachers get paid?

Yes, but you're missing my point.

leavingcert

Lawliet wrote: »

I feel bad for the teachers, I'd say they're responsible for a few of his "A1 standard notes" but they're not getting any credit, let alone any money.

I agree

RolandIRL

To the parents who bought the notes

............................................________
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.............................,.-”...................................“-.,
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.....................,?......................................................\,
.................../...........................................................,}
................./......................................................,:`^`..}
.............../...................................................,:”........./
..............?.....__.........................................:`.........../
............./__.(.....“~-,_..............................,:`........../
.........../(_....”~,_........“~,_....................,:`........_/
..........{.._$;_......”=,_.......“-,_.......,.-~-,},.~”;/....}
...........((.....*~_.......”=-._......“;,,./`..../”............../
...,,,___.\`~,......“~.,....................`.....}............../
............(....`=-,,.......`........................(......;_,,-”
............/.`~,......`-...............................\....../\
.............\`~.*-,.....................................|,./.....\,__
,,_..........}.>-._\...................................|..............`=~-,
.....`=~-,_\_......`\,.................................\
...................`=~-,,.\,...............................\
................................`:,,...........................`\..............__
.....................................`=-,...................,%`>--==``
........................................_\..........._,-%.......`\
...................................,<`.._|_,-&``................`\

JamesJB

whiteman19 wrote: »

To the parents who bought the notes

............................................________
....................................,.-‘”...................``~.,
.............................,.-”...................................“-.,
.........................,/...............................................”:,
.....................,?......................................................\,
.................../...........................................................,}
................./......................................................,:`^`..}
.............../...................................................,:”........./
..............?.....__.........................................:`.........../
............./__.(.....“~-,_..............................,:`........../
.........../(_....”~,_........“~,_....................,:`........_/
..........{.._$;_......”=,_.......“-,_.......,.-~-,},.~”;/....}
...........((.....*~_.......”=-._......“;,,./`..../”............../
...,,,___.\`~,......“~.,....................`.....}............../
............(....`=-,,.......`........................(......;_,,-”
............/.`~,......`-...............................\....../\
.............\`~.*-,.....................................|,./.....\,__
,,_..........}.>-._\...................................|..............`=~-,
.....`=~-,_\_......`\,.................................\
...................`=~-,,.\,...............................\
................................`:,,...........................`\..............__
.....................................`=-,...................,%`>--==``
........................................_\..........._,-%.......`\
...................................,<`.._|_,-&``................`\

Picard isn't enough for this situation. We need a new breed of facepalm.

You know what surprises me? I didn't see any threads on here of people investigating whether or not buying notes would be a good idea. People who have sat the LC could pretty much be considered experts in it and would correct them straight away. Also, parents often make threads asking questions regarding the LC so it's not exactly unheard of.:pac:

RolandIRL

JamesJB wrote: »

Picard isn't enough for this situation. We need a new breed of facepalm.

Solved :pac:

pbowenroe

felic

lol. thats funny.
I feel so sorry for the parents. They're doing what they think is best for their kid. I just hope the notes are good! But Im astonished it was French that got the highest amount. Wouldnt the parents have been better paying for the kid to go on vacation in france and forcing them to speak the language?

Doubt the guy selling those notes will be too popular in his college year! total jump on the wagon artist! Well done on his 7As but that doesnt mean someone using his notes will get the same result!

pbowenroe

RolandIRL

pbowenroe wrote: »

<pic>

i think we get the picture

pbowenroe

pbowenroe

And finally:

TimeToShine

You sir are a genius.

pbowenroe

TimeToShine wrote: »

You sir are a genius.

Lawliet

princess764

Anybody know any one who brought these notes? Dieing to ask them next august how they got on in those subjects....

RolandIRL

O_o way to drag a thread off-topic. Picture Battle thread is that way

---

>

randylonghorn

whiteman19 wrote: »

O_o way to drag a thread off-topic.

In fairness, whiteman, I'm not sure there was much topic left ...

princess764 wrote: »

Anybody know any one who brought these notes? Dieing to ask them next august how they got on in those subjects....

Tbh, I doubt whoever did will be boasting too loudly.

RolandIRL

randylonghorn wrote: »

In fairness, whiteman, I'm not sure there was much topic left ...


Tbh, I doubt whoever did will be boasting too loudly.

well, we still have to hear did he get the money for the french notes :P

i'd love to know as well, but that's not likely. i'd really feel sorry for them if they didn't do well. they (or their parents) did spend a lot of money but fools with money

mcfahy

Just to add some closure here (I am related to Cillian).

Cillian didn’t contribute to any posts here. And while he started the media circus it pretty well grew wings all of its own.

I won’t get into a discussion about the value of the notes only to say the following:
1. All the people who bided for the notes weren’t students in the conventional way. Some were people sitting exams in a part-time capacity, some were educators, some seems to just have a lot of money. Most were well intentioned.
2. Cillian’s work is of very high standard and he mentioned this plan to me in September 2009 and structured his notes accordingly.
3. It was never about the money.

In relation to the money, the French bid, is still outstanding. But there are still two bidders willing to take the notes.

Two asides on the power of media:
As soon as the auctions ended, eBay contacted Cillian and assigned a personal consultant to make sure things got worked out.
A national paper has offered Cillian some writing work throughout the course of next year.

JamesJB

mcfahy wrote: »

Just to add some closure here (I am related to Cillian).

Good, should make this post impartial then :rolleyes: (j/k)

Cillian didn’t contribute to any posts here. And while he started the media circus it pretty well grew wings all of its own.

I'll believe that; the media is one big leech after all.

All the people who bided for the notes weren’t students in the conventional way. Some were people sitting exams in a part-time capacity, some were educators, some seems to just have a lot of money. Most were well intentioned.

Hmm. I don't see how being a part-time LC student would make notes any more (or any less) necessary, particularly for the ridiculous amounts of money involved. I'm curious about the educators. As for the people who just have lots of money, I reckon that those could be the ill-informed parents people were conjecturing about in the thread.

2. Cillian’s work is of very high standard and he mentioned this plan to me in September 2009 and structured his notes accordingly.

It doesn't matter how high the standard is, most of the value of notes comes from the personal touch given to them and the actual process of making them. Using notes can streamline the process of learning, but as I mentioned before notes get way too much credit.

3. It was never about the money.

If that's the case, why not take these carefully structured and planned-out notes, scan them into a computer and put them online for free? Very easy to do with all the methods we have at our disposal for exchanging information. I'd do it myself if my notes weren't written in my own twisted fashion.

As soon as the auctions ended, eBay contacted Cillian and assigned a personal consultant to make sure things got worked out.
A national paper has offered Cillian some writing work throughout the course of next year.

Fair play. To be honest, even though I think it's ridiculous, I can't fault the guy as an entrepeneur. It's caveat emptor at it's finest, if I define it correctly, and a classic example of people buying into something without knowing the facts. I guess you could say that the buyers....didn't do their homework :cool::cool::cool: (sorry)

As an aside, the guy has inspired me to use my own success to financial advantage. However, I'll hopefully try my hand at something that might be of significant use: giving quasi-grinds to people I know at a fair price :pac:

felic

if it wasnt about money why did he place the items on as a bid thing? he would have set the final price and first come first serve. It was SOOOO about the money.. especially when he was planning this from 2009.
Cant blame him I suppose but for an 18 or 19 year old to be such a, how do i even put it... Im sure he'll make lots of money in his future, but I wouldn't be looking to be part of his entourage!
As someone said, notes are only a part of the process. You cant bring the notes into the exam with you and everyone has their own style; particualrly with subjects like French. For example, those notes that went for what, 1200.. could very well have pages and pages documenting the works of Shakespere, as Cillian was interested in English literature. What use would such vocab be to a student who is interested in becoming a Music teacher, or a Vet?

lemansky

Educators looking to buy his notes? National papers getting him to do some writing?

He got an exceptional result alright.........but nothing that quite a few don't get each year.......

Yes, he is taking the initiative by doing what he did, but that doesn't really make the notes worthy of the above points!

randylonghorn

JamesJB wrote: »

Good, should make this post impartial then :rolleyes: (j/k)

In fairness, I have respect for the fact that the poster declared his interest rather than pretending absolute impartiality ... always a positive thing.