My trip to Dualla National School

I was lucky enough to go to Dualla NS with Pam Moran and Ira Socol as part of their preparations for the ICT in Education conference last weekend.  The plan was that I would go for about half an hour and then return to Thurles to continue the last minute preparations, leaving Pam and Ira to complete the visit, and meander around nearby Cashel, before returning to the college for the CESI Meet, that would kick off the conference.  That plan went out the window once we got to Dualla.  It’s hard to put my finger on what entranced me about the visit and what kept me there for an hour longer than intended but that’s exactly what happened.  Dualla is a 2 teacher school and because of our timing we only got to see the senior room which houses the children from 2^nd to 6^th class.  What really struck me about the class is the sense of fun, of trust (between teacher and pupils and vice versa) and the ease with which technology has been woven into what is done in the classroom.

This is not a school with a state of the art computer room, yet technology is an integral part of the classroom.  The technology consisted of an interactive whiteboard, a couple of laptops and an iPhone with a broken screen.  During our visit we heard about the history of the school and the history of hurling in Tipperary, the children sang songs, taught Pam how to dance and how to hurl, and all the while pictures were captured using the iPhone with the broken screen, to preserve the memories, and to be used in the blog post that was put up before the visitors left .  We checked where Pam and Ira were from in the US and saw Animoto videos that the children had prepared and all of this interspersed with the more traditional forms of display.  The children were delighted to show us the school crest on the floor in the hallway (which had been designed by a pupil of the school), their projects about the Titanic on the walls and so much more.

One of the very strong feelings I got from the visit was the protectiveness that the older children had for the younger ones.  As one of seven children it reminded of that sense of protectiveness that often exists within families juxtaposed with how well each knows the other.  To my shame I had been a bit ambivalent towards small schools in rural Ireland and to be honest I had been dismissive at times, despite being educated in a four teacher school, but my trip to Dualla showed the beauty of small rural schools in all their glory.

My lasting memory of the trip was seeing Pam getting stuck in to a game of hurling with the children, after a very brief introduction to the mechanics of hurling.  Once she hit the ball the induction was complete and the game called.  To say that neither the children nor Pam held back is an understatement and I’m sure that I heard Pam mention a sore leg at some stage over the next 48 hours! Unfortunately on this occasion Ira had to watch from the sidelines due to the small matter of a knee operation only 2 months previously.  I have no doubt that a return trip will result in a re-match with Ira in the thick of it all

A brief induction to hurling for Pam

The game

The trip to Tipp

With less than 3 weeks to go to the ICT in Education conference on Friday 18th and Saturday 19th May, it is conference central in my house and in my head! There are lots of things to be following up on at this stage – presenters, registration, marketing, facilities, technical support … the list goes on and on.  For those who don’t know what the conference is all about – here’s a synopsis.

The conference is in its 8th year and continues to go from strength to strength.  As an organiser of the conference I would describe is as ‘a conference for teachers by teachers’.  What I see as the main strength of the conference is that it draws together educators across primary, secondary and third level education in Ireland who are passionate about what they do.  I think sometimes we tend to compartmentalise education into the 3 stages, and it’s almost as if there is no crossover.  Of course we all know that this isn’t true, so it’s great to have events where we can all meet to discuss issues that affect us all.  Many who come to events such as the ICT in Education conference, are discussing topics at the Monday night #edchatie and generally on Twitter, so the day of the conference involves many lightbulb moments where you put a face to the avatar from Twitter.  It then becomes about meeting up with ‘old’ virtual friends and continuing the conversation.

This makes it seem like you have to be a tech whiz to come to the ICT in Education conference – this couldn’t be further from the truth.  To quote Nietzche  ’He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance, one cannot fly into flying.’ Some who come to the conference are indeed flying, but for every one who is, there are many multiples who are watching in awe, some standing shakily, more who have taken their first wobbly steps, and a few others who have found their feet and are running and dancing.  What has drawn me in to the organisation of the conference, and what keeps me involved, is the willingness of those who have managed to take the shaky steps or who have mastered the art of flying, to share what they’re doing with those who are aren’t sure of where to even begin.  I think many teachers are willing to incorporate technology into their classrooms but are bewildered about where to start and this is what we’re about.    So, if you’re hesitant about where to start, or even where to go next, come along – you never know what you might learn!

The theme for this year’s conference is Learning Spaces with conversation panels led by Pam Moran, Ira Socol, Conor Galvin and Bernie Goldbach in the plenary sessions and a rich and varied programme of presentations and workshops in the breakout sessions.

My parting shot is this; at a time where educators seem to be under fire from many quarters it’s heartening to see so many give up their Friday evening and/or Saturday to make the ‘trip to Tipp’ to share their passion for what they do, to share what is working for them and to learn from others.  So, if you’re flying come and share, if you’re taking your first shaky steps come for encouragement and if you’re on the sideline waiting to get stuck in come and be inspired  For more details of the conference, to register or have a look at the programme for the day check out the conference webpage.