All funding must be maximised – O’Dowd [sinnfein.ie]
- Published: 29 June 2011
Education Minister, John O’Dowd, has visited St Mary’s Primary School, Newtownbutler, to see the completion of an upgrade to their facilities.
The school has been the beneficiary of minor works funding of over £100,000 to enhance the school facilities.
Speaking after the visit the Minister commented: “Often relatively small investments can have a significant impact on the life of a school. Minor works funding is prioritised according to need and may include refurbishment to existing accommodation or as in this case, upgrading security for the school building. It is important that in this current financial climate that we deploy all available funds on a strategic basis ensuring we maximise and maintain the facilities we have.
Full Story: www.sinnfein.ie
40 New Schools to be built by 2017 [careersportal.ie]
- Published: 29 June 2011
The Education Minister, Ruairi Quinn, has announced that 40 new schools are to be built over the next six years, at a cost of around €380m.
Twenty primary and twenty secondary schools will be built to cater for the increasing number of pupils in the schools system.
Of the 40 new schools, 17 will be in the Dublin area. A further 12 will be constructed in the greater Dublin commuter belt of Wicklow, Meath, Kildare and Louth. There will be 6 schools in Cork, 3 in Galway and 1 each in Wexford and Cavan.
Full Story: www.careersportal.ie
Rural bus cuts issue to grow [IrishExaminer]
- Published: 29 June 2011
A CAMPAIGN to stop cuts to primary school buses in rural areas is "only just beginning" according to activists who have mobilised up to 600 parents from schools across Munster.
Parents in the Kerry region said a meeting in Listowel on Monday was just the start of what would turn into a national campaign to halt the erosion of the social fabric of rural life.
Sean O’Sullivan from Tuosist, near Kenmare, said 60% of pupils at Realt na Mara national school would be affected by cutting bus routes.
He said some children had to travel up to 10 miles to get to school because of smaller schools being amalgamated in the past. Mr O’Sullivan said if children from the parish could no longer go to the school it would "devastate" the social fabric of the area.
Full Story: www.examiner.ie
Students above OECD average for digital literacy [IrishExaminer]
- Published: 29 June 2011
IRELAND has improved its grade when it comes to students’ ability to read computer-based text — but the level is behind that of a decade ago
The report, published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), ranked Ireland eighth out of 19 countries that took part in the Digital Literacy Test, focussing on students’ ability to read emails and websites.
The score in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a marked improvement on a 2009 study that looked at traditional pencil-and-paper literacy tests.
Ireland’s average score in the most recent test was 509, some 13 points higher than in the 2009 test, but still lower than the 527 points scored in a similar test in 2000.
Full Story: www.examiner.ie
Thank-you-gifts [schooldays.ie]
- Published: 29 June 2011
And so another school year comes to an end and with it comes the annual dilemma of the ‘thank you teacher’ gift.
Of course, the shops wised up to this growing trend for giving teacher more than just an apple and a homemade card at the end of the school year, and there are now any number of shelves dedicated purely to gift displays for suitable thank you teacher presents.
Which makes me ponder. Is it really necessary to give your child’s teacher a gift? Is a personal thank you not enough? Is a gentle nudge to get your child to draw a picture or write a little note to their teacher not sufficient anymore? And if a gift is necessary, what should I get for my child’s teacher? What does she like? Does she drink wine and if so, is she a red or white kind of girl (personally, I wouldn’t say no to either, but that’s just me). Does she eat chocolates – and if so, does she prefer milk or plain – or even white? What about hand creams and body lotions - does she have dry, sensitive skin or oily perhaps?
Full Story: www.schooldays.ie
