Irish Stream/ Sraith Gaeilge Moderator Advisory in 1st Post. Please Read!

Neddieog · 23-02-2014 1:09pm

Ladymuck Thesecond wrote: »

One more question, sorry!! In our familiarisation material, in the section entitled "practice tests" it says click here for practice assessments. This isn't showing up as a link for me though- I can't click into it. Anyone else in same boat?

We have from noon on Tuesday the 25th till noon on Friday the 28th to complete the tests. To access the practice tests, click on CTRL and the link at the same time and that should open it for you

Ladymuck Thesecond · 23-02-2014 1:13pm

Neddieog wrote: »

We have from noon on Tuesday the 25th till noon on Friday the 28th to complete the tests. To access the practice tests, click on CTRL and the link at the same time and that should open it for you

Thanks for that, I knew it was prob something silly I was doing!! I'm going to try that again later- need to blitz the practice today!!!

KERSPLAT! · 24-02-2014 12:34am

Finished mine on Thursday, good luck to the rest of ye

Neddieog · 25-02-2014 1:03am

Is dócha go bhfaighfidh muid na ríomhphoist ar maidín lena nascanna faoi iamh.

We should more than likely receive the emails in the morning with the links included

billie1b · 25-02-2014 1:14am

Neddieog wrote: »

Is dócha go bhfaighfidh muid na ríomhphoist ar maidín lena nascanna faoi iamh.

We should more than likely receive the emails in the morning with the links included

Best of luck to you

BluesAndThrees · 25-02-2014 1:31am

Neddieog wrote: »

Is dócha go bhfaighfidh muid na ríomhphoist ar maidín lena nascanna faoi iamh.

We should more than likely receive the emails in the morning with the links included

what makes you think that?

KERSPLAT! · 25-02-2014 1:35am

BluesAndThrees wrote: »

what makes you think that?

Well the exam window is open from 12 noon tomorrow so if you don't get them and were supposed to, there's a problem

Neddieog · 25-02-2014 12:26pm

billie1b wrote: »

Best of luck to you

Míle buíochas - Thanks a million!

Ladymuck Thesecond · 25-02-2014 7:15pm

An ndearna éinne babhta 2 inniu? Conas ar éirigh libh? Níl sé déanta agam fós- b'fhéidir ba chóir dom cleachtadh a dhéanamh anocht Agus an triail a dhéanamh amárach. Feicfidh mé ar ball! Did anyone complete round 2. How did ye get on? I haven't done it yet, maybe I should do more practice tonight and do it tomorrow. It'd be good to have it done though- I'll see later

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 7:21pm

You should look at the other forums for advice from people who have done the Stage 2 aptitude tests. I did mine last week. And by the way. Táim lán tsásta Gaoluinn a labhairt but I honestly don't see the point of writing my message in two languages for the sake of it. Do any of ye know if we have to the interview through Irish if we progress to the interview stage or is it just an Irish language exam and an English interview.

Ladymuck Thesecond · 25-02-2014 7:24pm

Archer3083 wrote: »

You should look at the other forums for advice from people who have done the Stage 2 aptitude tests. I did mine last week. And by the way. Táim lán tsásta Gaoluinn a labhairt but I honestly don't see the point of writing my message in two languages for the sake of it. Do any of ye know if we have to the interview through Irish if we progress to the interview stage or is it just an Irish language exam and an English interview.

I'm not too sure- I'd imagine there'd be a written test and oral along the way, they could just add that in as an extra step and then, if successful, send us back to do the interview with the Sraith Béarla

redout · 25-02-2014 7:25pm

Archer3083 wrote: »

You should look at the other forums for advice from people who have done the Stage 2 aptitude tests. I did mine last week. And by the way. Táim lán tsásta Gaoluinn a labhairt but I honestly don't see the point of writing my message in two languages for the sake of it. Do any of ye know if we have to the interview through Irish if we progress to the interview stage or is it just an Irish language exam and an English interview.

Common sense would say the interview would be done as gaeilge.

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 7:39pm

redout wrote: »

Common sense would say the interview would be done as gaeilge.

You would think that but depending on how they form the interview panel, it might be hard to find 2 or 3 Irish speaks. Plus, we didn't get an option to do the last aptitude tests in Irish. So, anything's possible. Oh, and what's that they say about common sense, it's not that common lol

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 7:42pm

Ladymuck Thesecond wrote: »

I'm not too sure- I'd imagine there'd be a written test and oral along the way, they could just add that in as an extra step and then, if successful, send us back to do the interview with the Sraith Béarla

I think if we're successful and proceed to the assessment centre, then we'll have to do an extra written and oral Irish exam. I've been through something similar in the past, and it was just an Irish oral which didn't help me cos the Irish oral wasn't hard, lots would attain a high grad without being great at Irish.

redout · 25-02-2014 7:58pm

Archer3083 wrote: »

You would think that but depending on how they form the interview panel, it might be hard to find 2 or 3 Irish speaks. Plus, we didn't get an option to do the last aptitude tests in Irish. So, anything's possible. Oh, and what's that they say about common sense, it's not that common lol

Not sure if the interview will have an ex-garda on the panel or not. I believe in the past it did. If you get a lad from the likes of West Cork or Kerry you won't blag it. I thought that the interview was basically just the ex-Garda asking the questions and the PAS employee taking the notes. Anytime I have ever done an interview with more than one person it usually works as such i.e. one does the majority of the talking whilst the other just takes notes. If they won't to test your fluency then it is the perfect opportunity. Someone mentioned this campaign and cost cutting. If so, then I would expect then interview as gaeilge and for them not to be adding an additional round of testing. Just my take.

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 8:05pm

redout wrote: »

Not sure if the interview will have an ex-garda on the panel or not. I believe in the past it did. If you get a lad from the likes of West Cork or Kerry you won't blag it. I thought that the interview was basically just the ex-Garda asking the questions and the PAS employee taking the notes. Anytime I have ever done an interview with more than one person it usually works as such i.e. one does the majority of the talking whilst the other just takes notes. If they won't to test your fluency then it is the perfect opportunity. Someone mentioned this campaign and cost cutting. If so, then I would expect then interview as gaeilge and for them not to be adding an additional round of testing. Just my take.

It makes no difference to me which language is chosen for the interview. And I won't need to blag any thing, in fact it's the other way around, I will instantly know if they're a native speaker or if they learned the language. I'll also know what dialect they use naturally, and what Gaeltacht they come from. I just asked a question as to whether the interview will be in Irish. In the information they have mentioned a language test. The oral would be easy but my Irish spelling would be a bit rusty now cos I don't write Irish any more except rare occasions.

redout · 25-02-2014 8:14pm

Archer3083 wrote: »

It makes no difference to me which language is chosen for the interview. And I won't need to blag any thing, in fact it's the other way around, I will instantly know if they're a native speaker or if they learned the language. I'll also know what dialect they use naturally, and what Gaeltacht they come from. I just asked a question as to whether the interview will be in Irish. In the information they have mentioned a language test. The oral would be easy but my Irish spelling would be a bit rusty now cos I don't write Irish any more except rare occasions.

Sure you'll be grand so

If you speak fluent I'm sure they will welcome you with open arms.

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 8:17pm

redout wrote: »

Sure you'll be grand so If you speak fluent I'm sure they will welcome you with open arms.

It's hard to know, no doubt there'll be plenty of competition for the sraith Gaeilge as well.

redout · 25-02-2014 8:21pm

Archer3083 wrote: »

It's hard to know, no doubt there'll be plenty of competition for the sraith Gaeilge as well.

If you pass the tests i'd say you are a safe bet (you mentioned you placed in band 1?) and they obviously did not have enough native speakers place in band 1, hence why lads from band 2 and 3 were afforded the opportunity to sit stage 2.

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 8:25pm

Tables can turn quite quickly. In the stage 2 tests, someone from Band 2 could score higher than me from Band 1. It's the same as anything else in life. Football teams, soccer teams etc have bad days, and can be brilliant one day and bad another. I never bought into this suggestion that Band 1 were better than Band 2.

OscarWhiskey · 25-02-2014 8:28pm

Are they taking any fluent Polish speakers, not that I am one, but it would make the same amount of sense as them making exceptions for the Irish speaking candidates.?

There's an A4 sheet behind the desk in the station where I work and it has a list of common 'garda' phrases (i.e. Do you request a translator/What is your name/DOB/Address etc) in English and then the Irish translation, gas craic.

redout · 25-02-2014 8:30pm

Archer3083 wrote: »

Tables can turn quite quickly. In the stage 2 tests, someone from Band 2 could score higher than me from Band 1. It's the same as anything else in life. Football teams, soccer teams etc have bad days, and can be brilliant one day and bad another. I never bought into this suggestion that Band 1 were better than Band 2.

I already had this debate on another thread. Off days aside, In general, your level will not drastically change.

redout · 25-02-2014 8:34pm

OscarWhiskey wrote: »

Are they taking any fluent Polish speakers, not that I am one, but it would make the same amount of sense as them making exceptions for the Irish speaking candidates.?

There's an A4 sheet behind the desk in the station where I work and it has a list of common 'garda' phrases (i.e. Do you request a translator/What is your name/DOB/Address etc) in English and then the Irish translation, gas craic.

Not sure, though I also thought it would have made sense. I work with a Polish woman who does translating at the local station in her spare time.

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 8:54pm

redout wrote: »

I already had this debate on another thread. Off days aside, In general, your level will not drastically change.

I think it can change. I let my nerves get the better of me the first day, I also ran out of time doing the Stage 1 tests. And I also had a cold at the time. I learned from my experience. I controlled my nerves better, practiced way more this time around, and thankfully had no cold. I should in theory do better, but I'm not confident, they could be worse. The one thing I've wondered about though is did those preparation courses help people out. I didn't bother with any. I practiced myself, but I'd be curious to know if they were helpful

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 9:00pm

OscarWhiskey wrote: »

Are they taking any fluent Polish speakers, not that I am one, but it would make the same amount of sense as them making exceptions for the Irish speaking candidates.?

There's an A4 sheet behind the desk in the station where I work and it has a list of common 'garda' phrases (i.e. Do you request a translator/What is your name/DOB/Address etc) in English and then the Irish translation, gas craic.

There are geographically designated Irish speaking areas in the country called Gaeltachts where Irish is the first language. I think it's reasonable that Irish speaking officers are recruited to service these areas. Irish is an official state language also. So, I don't understand why other people have a problem with it. And arguments about other languages should be brought up such as Polish. Polish is not an official state language. And there are not geographically designated Polish speaking areas. I won't go into the joke about how many guards kept charging the same Polish person for hundreds of parking offences!

Neddieog · 25-02-2014 9:01pm

Ní chuireann mórán rudaí isteach orm sa tsaol seo ach déarfaidh mé seo, cuireann sé isteach go mór orm go bhfuil daoine áirithe den bharúil go bhfuil sé níos fusa de lucht an tsraith Ghaeilge ná mar atá sé do lucht an tsraith Bhéarla, ag deireadh an lae, is iad na scrúdaithe céanna iad. Rud eile a chuireann fearg orm ná nuair a dhéanann daoine áirithe comparáid idir an Ghaeilge agus an Pholainnis. Seo Éire a chairde, ní an Pholainn.

I have to say I don't take life or anything else for that matter seriously for the most part but it really annoys me that certain people (especially on the other forums) think the Irish Stream candidates have it easier to the rest of the candidates. We all have to do the same aptitude tests as the rest of you. Another thing that REALLY gets on my nerves is when certain people compare Polish to Irish. This is Ireland lads not Poland.

KERSPLAT! · 25-02-2014 9:08pm

Neddieog wrote: »

Ní chuireann mórán rudaí isteach orm sa tsaol seo ach déarfaidh mé seo, cuireann sé isteach go mór orm go bhfuil daoine áirithe den bharúil go bhfuil sé níos fusa de lucht an tsraith Ghaeilge ná mar atá sé do lucht an tsraith Bhéarla, ag deireadh an lae, is iad na scrúdaithe céanna iad. Rud eile a chuireann fearg orm ná nuair a dhéanann daoine áirithe comparáid idir an Ghaeilge agus an Pholainnis. Seo Éire a chairde, ní an Pholainn.

I have to say I don't take life or anything else for that matter seriously for the most part but it really annoys me that certain people (especially on the other forums) think the Irish Stream candidates have it easier to the rest of the candidates. We all have to do the same aptitude tests as the rest of you. Another thing that REALLY gets on my nerves is when certain people compare Polish to Irish. This is Ireland lads not Poland.

I think it's great to have fluent Irish speaking candidates going through. I think what's getting up some people's backs is the fact that some of ye finished in Band 2 and as such should not have advanced while others who got similar scores and also ended up in Band 2 are left in limbo. As I said, I think it's great to have ye go through, just trying to explain how others may feel

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 9:13pm

KERSPLAT! wrote: »

I think it's great to have fluent Irish speaking candidates going through. I think what's getting up some people's backs is the f acc t that some of ye finished in Band 2 and as such should not have advanced while others who got skinnier scores and also ended up in Band 2 are left in limbo. As I said, I think it's great to have ye go through, just trying to explain how others may feel

That's reasonable enough, but there's plenty more about this process that isn't fair, but that's life.

redout · 25-02-2014 9:37pm

Neddieog wrote: »

Ní chuireann mórán rudaí isteach orm sa tsaol seo ach déarfaidh mé seo, cuireann sé isteach go mór orm go bhfuil daoine áirithe den bharúil go bhfuil sé níos fusa de lucht an tsraith Ghaeilge ná mar atá sé do lucht an tsraith Bhéarla, ag deireadh an lae, is iad na scrúdaithe céanna iad. Rud eile a chuireann fearg orm ná nuair a dhéanann daoine áirithe comparáid idir an Ghaeilge agus an Pholainnis. Seo Éire a chairde, ní an Pholainn.

I have to say I don't take life or anything else for that matter seriously for the most part but it really annoys me that certain people (especially on the other forums) think the Irish Stream candidates have it easier to the rest of the candidates. We all have to do the same aptitude tests as the rest of you. Another thing that REALLY gets on my nerves is when certain people compare Polish to Irish. This is Ireland lads not Poland.

There is no argument - certain applicants who chose the Irish stream have had "it easier" to quote yourself. Irish speaking applicants from bands 2 and 3 have been afforded the opportunity to sit stage 2 whilst applicants from the English stream have not. Are you really arguing that they have not been afforded an advantage? At the end of the day I couldn't care less but to insinuate that they are being treated no different to the rest is quite frankly absurd.

Archer3083 · 25-02-2014 9:49pm

I'm an Irish speaker. I haven't been treated differently. I'm in Band 1. I think you mean Irish speakers in Band 2 and Band 3 have been treated differently. Like I've said in other forums and in other posts. This is not a fair process. Forget about fairness. Everyone has strengths, talents or skills that will be a big advantage at some stage. Irish speakers may have an advantage at this stage. Reserves will surely have an advantage at interview stage. More physically fit people will have an advantage at the physical competency test etc. In fact, for the PCT, different age groups have different pass rates. If you're 18-25 you have to be fitter than if you're 26-35. Is that fair. Like I said, forget about fairness.

Irish Stream/ Sraith Gaeilge ***Moderator Advisory in 1st Post. Please Read!***

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Irish Stream/ Sraith Gaeilge Moderator Advisory in 1st Post. Please Read!