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Something to think about Ruairi Quinn (Part 1)

18 Jan

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After attending the BETT conference in the UK, I experienced Michael Gove for the first time.  For those of you who don’t know who he is, this is the education secretary in the UK who seems intent in driving everyone out of the teaching profession.  Last week he announced that headteachers could now fire teachers | Read on…

How much would you spend on a digital camera? (2011 update)

16 Oct

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This article is an update from the same article written in July 2008.  Not much has changed really and the question still remains. Every few months, a new digital camera comes on to the market with more megapixels, bigger screens and nifty gadgets.  But how much of this is needed in primary schools? I’m going | Read on…

Thoughts on Ruairí Quinn's Plan for Literacy and Numeracy

23 Jul

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Ruairí Quinn has figured out how we can improve literacy and numeracy standards in primary schools across the country.  Since the PISA reports damned our education system in late 2010, a number of solutions were offered to our Minister.  Many organisations suggested that we train up teachers and trainee-teachers in more modern teaching methodologies. Some | Read on…

Survey Results: Web 2.0 in Schools

26 May

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As part of Anseo.net’s competition to win a HD Flip Cam, participants answered some questions about the Web 2.0 tools that they use in school and at home.  In this article, we’ll examine the results and explore some of the reasons behind the results.  It’s worth pointing out that the people who probably took the | Read on…

Should Moodle be used in Primary Schools?

30 Apr

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Moodle is a tool for creating online courses and virtual learning environments (VLEs).  When you do a summer course online, it is likely that it has been created with Moodle.  With Moodle, the developer provides you with the course content, dividing it up into modules and filling it with questions, reflections and discussion fora.  In | Read on…

Labour – Fine Gael Education Programme

28 Mar

        A Wordle image of Fine Gael and Labour's Education Policies

With a new government in place, a few decisions between the two parties had to be made about education policy.  The policy document began dramatically stating that a “revolution had taken place” in Ireland so I was expecting some revolutionary ideas for education, specifically at primary level.  Revolutionary ideas were certainly there but overall, it | Read on…

What do Jedward and Positivity Week have in common?

23 Jan

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There is a link, trust me. I am a member of the IPPN but that doesn’t mean I can’t disagree with some of their initiatives. According to recent media, some primary school principals are worried. These principals reported that children in their schools were becoming more anxious, worried and negative about the recession, their future | Read on…

A Reaction to Falling Literacy and Numeracy Levels

17 Dec

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I wanted to comment a bit on some of the proposals from the government with regards to literacy and numeracy.  Before reading this article, it might be a good idea to read the proposals from the DES, which may give the angle that the government are coming from.  I’m also assuming this is a reaction | Read on…

PISA reveals worrying results for Ireland

8 Dec

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According to the research of PISA 2009, only 6.6% of students questions did not have Internet access at home. As somebody who has assumed that this figure was much higher, I often avoid giving ICT-related homework to children in my class. While I don’t wish to alienate the children that don’t have Internet access, there | Read on…

We need an update on kids' safety.

24 Nov

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Here’s a transcript of Rozz’s recent article published in the Think Tank section of the Sudnay Times, 21st November, 2010. The Social, Personal and Health Education curriculum (SPHE) has a 30-minute slot per week in the curriculum of Irish primary schools. It has three programmes – Relationships and Sexuality Education, Walk Tall for prevention of | Read on…