Heads down for NCEA in this household

Eamon Tolhurst, 15 (top left), his sisters Caitlin, 16 (top right) and Carmel, 18 (bottom right), and boarder Jerry McCarthy, 17, share a common problem - NCEA exams. Picture / Glenn Jeffrey

School exam time can be as fraught in the home as the classroom, with frantic teenagers feeling the stress of last-minute revision.

Have pity, then, for the Tolhurst household in Mt Eden, which has four students sitting all three levels of this year's NCEA exams.

Carmel, 18, is sitting level three exams, Caitlin, 16, is studying for level two and 15-year-old Eamon faces level one exams. To add to the confusion, boarder Jerry McCarthy, 18, is also doing level three this year.

Mother Marie Tolhurst said it was a challenge timetabling everyone's quiet time. "They tend to study together around the dining room table so it's absolute chaos, but generally they egg each other along, which is good."

The girls, who all attend Baradene College, are unanimous in agreement that Eamon, a Sacred Heart College student, is least likely to knuckle down.

But Mrs Tolhurst said the girls are all keen on sports and "often seem to disappear to do that instead".

Carmel, who sits a geography exam today, said they preferred to have their own spaces to revise.

"Jerry has her room, Caitlin and I use the dining room table and Eamon says he studies in his room," she said.

Carmel, who plans to spend a year working before beginning university, said chemistry had been the toughest of her level-three subjects.

* West Auckland students were allowed to arrive up to half an hour late for morning exams after a crash involving a large truck-and-trailer unit, a 4WD and two other cars blocked State Highway 16 near Whenuapai about 6.45am.

The Qualifications Authority said no students would be disadvantaged.

"If any of those students feel that the stress of being late to the exams affected their performance they can talk to their school about applying for compassionate consideration," said acting chief executive Karen Sewell.

Those who could not get to the exam by 10am would also be eligible for a compassionate consideration.

TODAY'S EXAMS

Levels one and three: Geography (am); dance/Samoan (pm).

Level two: Dance/Samoan (am); geography (pm).