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Leaving Certificate Italian (NCCA specification), Higher and Ordinary Level, with the SEC examination.
Overview
Leaving Certificate Italian (NCCA specification), Higher and Ordinary Level, with the SEC examination.
Complete topic map
Every topic recorded for this subject in the curriculum is reproduced below in its full hierarchy. The descriptions reflect the mapped scope without implying additional exam rules.
Spoken proficiency assessed through a general conversation with the examiner, a prepared picture sequence and a role-play. Marked on vocabulary range, grammatical accuracy, fluency and pronunciation, and conducted by a visiting SEC examiner.
An externally administered listening examination on authentic spoken Italian — dialogues, monologues, interviews and news-style items. Answers are mainly in English at Ordinary Level, with some required in Italian at Higher Level.
Comprehension of written Italian: an unseen journalistic passage with questions answered mostly in Italian, plus a literary-comprehension element at Higher Level. Ordinary Level uses lighter, more straightforward contemporary prose.
Written expression in Italian: a short opinion piece linked to the reading passage and extended composition tasks such as guided narrative, formal and informal letters or an open essay. Higher Level demands greater length, range and accuracy; Ordinary Level focuses on guided compositions.
The communicative functions of greeting, introducing oneself, exchanging personal details, maintaining social relations, expressing feelings and attitudes, and managing conversational conventions — the entry-point theme of the shared modern-language syllabus.
Personal and domestic life in Italy and the wider Italian-speaking world: family, home and neighbourhood, food and meals, shopping for goods and services, daily routines and health. A recurring oral and reading-comprehension theme.
How young people are educated in Ireland and Italy: the school systems, subjects and timetables, study habits, relationships with teachers and peers, and future academic plans.
How people spend their free time — sport, music, cinema, theatre, television and social media — with reference to leisure habits in Italy. A regular focus of the oral examination.
Planning and discussing travel, coping with transport, holidays in Italy and abroad, and tourist experiences. Italy as a tourist destination is a key theme of the compositions and the oral.
Employment, careers and working life in Italy, job-seeking, and economic issues including unemployment and equality in the workplace. Higher Level compositions extend to application and formal professional letters.
Wider social themes from the shared syllabus: the generation gap, changing family and relationships, immigration and minorities, gender and racial equality, health and lifestyle, youth culture and the media. These appear in chosen journalistic passages and compositions.
Environmental concerns — pollution, climate, ecology and sustainability — understood locally and globally, including the European and global dimension, as encountered in reading passages and written tasks.
Understanding how meaning is organised in Italian: grammar and syntax, word-formation, vocabulary-building strategies, the use of dictionaries and references, and reflection on one's own language learning. Grammatical accuracy is assessed across all four skills.
Contemporary Italian society and culture through media and everyday-life comparisons between Ireland and Italy, and transcultural issues. At Higher Level this extends to the study of prescribed literary texts, with analysis of theme and style in Italian.
Where this subject applies
These pathways and regions are explicitly connected to the subject in the curriculum.
Higher Level
Higher Level — the more demanding level, with broader and deeper content and the H1–H8 grade scale.
Ordinary Level
Ordinary Level — the foundational level covering the core of the syllabus, graded O1–O8.
Official sources
The public sources below are referenced directly by this subject or by one of its topics.
This editorial selection points to the relevant official bodies. Always confirm current requirements, dates and exceptional arrangements with your school and the responsible authority.
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Public references
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