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news and events 2011 - 2012

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION STUDENT CHOSEN TO PARTICIPATE IN Washington Ireland Program 2012

May 2012

NUI Galway students Annita Brady and John Campion

Two NUI Galway students, Annita Brady and John Campion, are among a select group of 30 candidate’s chosen to participate in the 2012 Washington Ireland Program (WIP). Each year, the successful candidates, who have shown a commitment to service and a track record of leadership, take part in an eight-week internship program in Washington DC. The programme aims to help the students to develop skills through work experience, educational opportunity, and hands-on citizenship both at home and in the US.

A native of Drung, Co. Cavan, Annita Brady is a Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) student in the School of Education at NUI Galway. In 2011 she received an MA in Military History and Strategic Studies in NUI Maynooth. During her four years at NUI Maynooth, Annita played an active role in The Friends of Raphael’s Society as Chairperson for two years and now currently volunteers with the Galway Traveller Movement assisting with homework clubs.

John Campion, a third-year Medical student from Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny, is currently on clinical placement in Montpellier, France. At NUI Galway, he has instigated a special study module in Applied Adolescent Mental Health Promotion and is Founding President of NUI Galway Friends of Médecins Sans Frontières, who participated in the Rotaract Italy Roundtrip for Cultural Understanding in 2011. John has undertaken studies in French, Italian, Irish Sign Language, Arabic and Gaeilge and has previously worked with the Centre for Talented Youth, Ireland, as Instructor in Medicine and as Assistant Residential Coordinator.

Commenting on the internship, John said: “I’m really looking forward to working in Washington. Several of its hospitals and research facilities are at the cutting edge of medical innovation; making breakthroughs that have a huge impact on diagnosis and treatment of illness globally, including here in Ireland. On top of that, this summer, the White House is determined, in the face of strong Republican opposition, to push ahead with implementing Obamacare, which aims to improve Americans’ access to healthcare services. For me, WIP will provide great insight into high-level experimental medicine and healthcare policy-making.”

The WIP students are required to commit to a minimum of 30 hours of public service before their placement in Washington DC, and are encouraged to take on a new community service project. While in Washington DC the students will complete an extensive leadership curriculum with their peers – developing their leadership skills and learning from the leadership experiences of those in Global leadership positions. Students will also complete an individual internship.

The program is supported by both Governments and the universities in Ireland and Northern Ireland. The internships include placements on Capitol Hill, government agencies and the private sector.  Previous students have interned in the offices of then US Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, former Presidential Candidate Senator McCain, at the Headquarters of the World Bank and at CNN.

Text and image courtesy of the Press and Information Office, NUI Galway.  

'leading learning': educatative school - university partnerships by professor lori beckett, leeds metropolitan university

May 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway, held a Research Seminar Series (RSS) event on Monday 14th May 2012.  

The presentation was given by guest speaker, Professor Lori Beckett, who is the Winifred Mercier Professor of Teacher Education at Leeds Metropolitan University, having been recruited from Australia in 2005.  Initially trained as a secondary health and physical education teacher, Lori has been working in the field of education for over thirty years, in schools, in post-graduate studies, in the public education lobby, and in teacher education in Australia and for the last seven years in England.

The presentation was for stakeholders in schools, particularly teachers and academic partners, and discussed the potential for meaningful partnerships that serve an educative purpose: developing and mobilising teachers’ knowledge about what needs to be done to improve the academic and social learning outcomes of all groups of students.  It began with a sketch of what partnerships can offer, notably a locally developed infrastructure of support which is crucial in this era of austerity and budget cut-backs.  It continued with an illustration of partnerships for school improvement and ways this might sit with government expectations and the pressures currently being exerted and experienced.  The presentation offered some suggestions for working strategically to build a local model of partnership that is well positioned to develop responsive CPD programmes for school Heads, teachers and allied agency workers, and illustrated this with working examples from Australia and England. 

 

The photo shows Dr Manuela Heinz, Director of Teaching Practice (PDE), guest speaker Prof. Lori Beckett and Dr Mary Fleming, Director of  the PDE 

For further information, please contact Dr Mary Fleming (email  mary.flemingnuigalway.ie  ) or Dr Manuela Heinz (email  manuela.heinznuigalway.ie )

award winning teacher returns to share experience of teaching in the uk

May 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway organised information sessions for trainee teachers who may be interested in teaching in the UK.  Mr Alan McDonnell, (winner of the RAF Award for Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School (Distinction) in Northern Ireland) gave an informative and interesting presentation.  He shared his experiences and gave an insight as to what to expect as a newly qualified teacher (NQT) teaching in the UK.    

Alan graduated from the  School of Education, NUI Galway with a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (2004/05).  After having obtained teaching experience in England he moved to Northern Ireland where he is now the Head of Chemistry at Shimna Integrated College, Newcastle, Co. Down.

 

The photo shows Alan MacDonnell, accompanied by Dr Mary Flemming (Director of Teaching and the PDE) speaking at one of the sessions to final year BA Mathematics and Education students.

interactive whiteboard training event

May 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway, organised a training event for its staff and trainee teachers on the use of the Promethean 500 Series interactive whiteboard and the resources on Promethean Planet, "the world's largest interactive whiteboard community."

Ms Samantha Clewes, Teaching and Learning Consultant with Promethean watches on as a student on the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PDE) programme hones his skill on Promethean's latest interactive whiteboard and software. 

Video editing course hosted in the school of education

May 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway recently hosted a 1 day course in their Apple iMac computer suite on the art of "Video Production for the Web", in conjunction with the NUIG Film Soc, the College of Business, Public Policy & Law and local media consultants Staunton Media.

The focus of the course was on commercial/informational video production for the web, using a practice based, hands-on, teaching approach. The course was designed for the staff and students of NUI Galway utilising existing NUIG equipment and freely available video editing software.

The photo shows Cormac Staunton of Staunton Media advising one of the course participants on his video editing project.

Postgraduate research seminar series (rss) event

April 2012

The School of Education's, most recent Research Seminar Series (RSS) event was held on Saturday, 28 April 2012 and was dedicated to Postgraduate Research undertaken within the School.

Presentations were made by our current PhD and MLitt students.  Former NUI Galway, Master of Education students also shared their findings and their learning.  The audience consisted of both current and past Master of Education students, School of Education staff, and members of the wider educational community.

 

The photo shows Prof. Chris Curtin, Head of the School of Education & Vice President for Innovation and Performance and Dr Elaine Keane, welcoming everyone to the event.

If you would like further details on this event, or information about future events, please contact Dr. Elaine Keane
( email to elaine.keanenuigalway.ie ).

Inaugural Final year symposium, b.a. mathematics and education: Innovative strategies for teaching mathematics in the twenty-first Century

April 2012

The first final year class of the B.A. Mathematics and Education organised and hosted the inaugural final year symposium of the B.A. programme in the School of Education, NUI Galway on Monday 2nd April. The B.A. Mathematics and Education was introduced by NUIG in 2008 to support and enhance the teaching of mathematics in schools. It was at the time the first specialist teaching programme of its kind in the State, focusing to honours university level on the mathematical sciences, within a full, concurrent initial teacher education degree. Graduates of the B.A. Mathematics and Education will be fully qualified and recognised teachers of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics to honours Leaving Certificate level in post-primary schools.



Photo shows the first cohort of final year students from the B.A. Mathematics and Education specialist teaching degree programme in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics with Mr. Philip Lloyd, symposium keynote speaker; Dr. Catherine Paolucci and Dr. Kevin Jennings, Joint Programme Directors, B.A. Mathematics and Education; and lecturing staff from the School of Education and School of Mathematics, Statistics and Applied Mathematics, NUI Galway.

The well-attended public symposium featured final year project research and innovations spanning a diverse array of key contemporary topics in Irish and international mathematics education, and addressing developments within the national curriculum reform, Project Maths (2008-2015). The presentations, posters and demos included the use of novel technologies (e.g. Wiimote and interactive whiteboards) to support pupils' gesture-based interaction with maths concepts; probability and genetics, and game theory for Leaving Certificate Applied Maths; coordinate geometry syllabi and pedagogies; digital video tutorials to enhance mathematics teaching, in and outside the classroom; and a comparative study of mathematics education in Ireland and Finland. The students also presented on the maths enrichment and outreach maths education programmes they collaboratively designed and delivered: Stepping Up! and MATHS: Making Awesome Things Happen in Summer, and two of the international initiatives the B.A. Mathematics and Education has been involved in: the Erasmus Intensive Programme BEAM: Building European Identity through Spirit, Sense and Meaning, and the Hewlett Packard Innovation in Education project: Teaching and Learning Mathematics in a Digital Environment. A highlight of the symposium was the keynote presentation by Mr. Philip Lloyd, Epsom Girls Grammar, Auckland, New Zealand who outlined his compelling research on phantom graphs as an exemplar, innovative approach to maths teaching in schools. The full programme for the day-long symposium is available at this link.

Call for papers - iHCI 2012: Irish Human Computer Interaction conference 2012: 'Poetics of design, narratives of use'

 

April 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway will jointly host iHCI 2012: Irish Human Computer Interaction Conference 2012. The conference this year will take place on Wednesday 20th and Thursday 21st June on campus at the National University of Ireland, Galway. 2012 marks the sixth year of the annual Irish Human Computer Interaction (iHCI) Conference, and the first time it will be hosted in the the west of Ireland. The conference theme for 2012 is ’Poetics of Design, Narratives of Use’, with a focus on discussing, exploring and challenging the role that different artefacts, perspectives, methods and tools play in the design of new technologies. Submissions will discuss the frames, discourses, resources and symbols that we employ at different stages of the design process, from ideation and conceptualisation through to the appropriation and evaluation of computing, across a range of use contexts: artistic, cultural, social, organisational and educational. The particular emphasis of this year’s conference will be to look at the broad range of methods – artistic/impressionistic, creative and scientific - we use to design, implement and evaluate technology, and to share stories of the design, deployment and evaluation of computing in context. Areas for consideration will include, inter alia:

• Creative methods and tools to conceptualise, visualise and communicate technology design;
• Adaptive and iterative design-based deployment of technologies to enhance users’ experience in a diverse array of contexts;
• Narrative approaches, methods and frames for eliciting, analysing and appropriating user evaluation data;
• Storytelling as a framework for the design of meaningful interaction with computing.

We welcome contributions that include, but are not limited to, any of the following technologies and topics of interest:

• Accessibility & Universal Access • Collaboration, groupware and social networks • Context-aware systems • Education and Play • Ethnographical and field studies • Evaluation methods and frameworks • Evaluation and usability • Group interaction and mobility • Human-centred design practices, tools and methods • HCI Theory and Practice • Inclusive Design • Information visualization and presentation techniques • Interactive Art • Novel user interfaces, interaction techniques and technologies • Novel or speculative research practices • Mobile, Ambient, Augmented or Tangible HCI • Multimodal interaction and interfaces • Multi-cultural interaction • Technologies for Learning • Ubiquitous, pervasive, and mobile interaction • User-centred design • Usability investigation and evaluation • Virtualisation and Cloud Computing • Wearable computing, smart clothes, new devices and sensors. 

For further information on iHCI 2012, email tony.hallnuigalway.ie or click on this link.

'twitter' for teachers

March 2012

Twitter for Teachers is one of the workshops available to students of the Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) in the School of Education, NUI Galway. As a way of keeping in touch with like-minded professionals, it enables trainee teachers to tap into a wealth of teacher experience and advice through the construction of a personal learning network (PLN).

Seen here in the Twitter for Teachers workshop is PDE student teacher, Paul Brennan.

'scratch' programming for Professional DIPLOMA IN EDUCATION (PDE) student teacherS

March 2012

Students on the School of Education, NUI Galway Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) course take part in a workshop on Scratch programming given by Dr Tony Hall. Developed by the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab, Scratch is free, easy-to-use software for developing interactive computer programs: interactive stories, animations, games, music and art. Scratch derives its name from the idea of mixing and remixing different media, in creative and innovative ways. It is hands-on software well-suited to supporting creative, interactive and collaborative use of ICT by pupils. As an extensible, multimedia programming language, Scratch can be adapted to support the learning outcomes of different subject areas - across the curriculum.

nui galway hold challenge maths competition for junior certificate students

March 2012

NUI Galway students from the BA in Mathematics and Education programme hosted a Challenge Maths competition for Junior Certificate students from secondary schools in Galway. The event took place on Friday, 23 March at NUI Galway.

Challenge Maths is an initiative designed by NUI Galway’s third-year BA in Mathematics and Education students to promote mathematics and applied mathematics to Junior Certificate students in a fun and challenging way. The NUIG students devised a full day of practical hands-on maths based challenges which are closely modelled on the current Junior Certificate maths and project maths curriculum. Teams of students from various secondary schools competed against each other to be crowned the NUI Galway Challenge Maths champions.

Dr Kevin Jennings, Joint Programme Director of the BA in Mathematics and Education at NUI Galway, said: “We are frequently impressed with the initiative and imagination of NUI Galway’s students on this programme, on top of their academic and mathematical abilities. Last year’s students organised two wonderful summer workshops for regional schools, and we expect this year’s events to be very rewarding for the participants. Local maths and applied maths teachers and principals have also been very supportive of this programme. We have high hopes and expectations for when these students graduate and become teachers.”

Third-year BA in Mathematics and Education student at NUI Galway and event organiser, Damien O’Connell, said: “My fellow students and I have put in a lot of work in planning the Challenge Maths event and we are confident that the secondary school students who attend will reap the benefits. This is a great opportunity for the participants to interact with mathematics in a fun and challenging environment, while at the same time representing their school. We would like to specifically mention the teachers of the participating schools, NUI Galway and our sponsors, without their help this event would not be possible.”

The event was sponsored by NUI Galway, Engineers Ireland, Casio, Sligo Graph Ltd., Folens, Polydron and Buzzgold.

For further information please contact Damien O’Connell at d.oconnell1nuigalway.ie or 086 - 822 8721.

Text and image courtesy of the Press and Information Office, NUI Galway.  

Digital Storytelling in the Apple ipedagogy learning environment, ba connect with film studies, huston school of film and digital media

March 2012 

Students in the BA Connect, Huston School of Film and Digital Media are undertaking digital storytelling projects in the School of Education's AiPLE: Apple iPedagogy Learning Environment. The students are developing and post-producing creative film projects using the Apple suite and Apple iLife technologies. This is the second year of this narrative technology collaboration between the School of Education and Huston School of Film and Digital Media.

Coláiste Éinde: St. Enda's Secondary School Galway - Transition YEAR ICT

March 2012

The Transition Year students from Coláiste Éinde: St. Enda's Secondary School Galway participated in an ICT workshop provided by fourth year students, B.A. Mathematics and Education and Educational Technology staff in the School of Education, NUI Galway. The workshop covered interactive whiteboards (IWBs) for mathematics; Apple iPads and educational apps for students; and animation technology.
 

Photos show Ciara Taylor and Nichola Leonard, 4th Year B.A. Mathematics and Education teaching transformation geometry interactively to the TY students using a Promethean Interactive Whiteboard (IWB), and the students designing and producing animation projects using visualisers and stop-frame animation software.

students get free access to folens online school textbooks

March 2012

At a presentation in the School of Education, NUI Galway Alison Mc Namara, a PhD student of NUI Galway and Digital Editor with Folens Educational Publishers, provided students on the Postgraduate Diploma Education (PDE) and 2^nd and 3^rd year BA Mathematics and Education students with access to the teacher’s digital eBook and digital resources online.

As the first to launch online teacher’s resources Folens offer useful, value-adding resources that are highly beneficial to trainee teachers at the beginning and throughout their teaching careers. Folensonline has become part of the teacher’s everyday lessons. In partnership with 'Channel 4 Learning' Folensonline textbooks offer a world of resources. The handy tools make it simple for teachers to design and deliver lessons on screen in the way they want. 

technology paper published in creative education journal

March 2012

Tony Hall, School of Education, NUI Galway has had the paper "Digital Renaissance: The Creative Potential of Narrative Technology in Education" published in the open access journal, Creative Education. This position paper provides an insight into the development of educational technology research in the School of Education over the last five years, specifically School of Education research exploring new, creative and educational possibilities and synergies of combining ICT and narrative/storytelling.  Click here to download the paper in PDF. Email tony.hallnuigalway.ie for further information.

Dioplóma Gairmiúil san Oideachas LECTURER tests dartfish digital video analysis software

February 2012

Students on the School of Education's Dioplóma Gairmiúil san Oideachas (DGO) programme, took part in drama workshops as part of their teacher training course.  These workshops also provided an opportunity to test the recently aquired 'Dartfish' video analysis software.  This software allows the teaching staff to provide immediate and specific feedback to each individual trainee teacher and is a key component of Dartfish's 'Student Teacher Evaluation Programme' (STEP).

Photo shows Ms. Sinéad Ni Ghuidhir, (lecturer on the DGO programme) monitoring the trainee teachers with the new Dartfish digital video analysis software.

Development EDUCATION CONFERENCE HOSTED BY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

February 2012

applications invited for master of education (m.ed.) programme 2012 - 2013

January 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway invites applications for the Master of Education (M.Ed) programme 2012 - 2013

The Master of Education programme aims to provide participants with the opportunity to design and carry out educational research under supervision, to a high professional standard. The taught courses in research methodologies are specifically designed to equip participants with the necessary research skills. Teaching and learning strategies include lectures, workshops, tutorials and seminars. Assessment consists of assignments and a minor dissertation of 20 - 25,000 words.

Applications are made online via the Postgraduate Applications Centre (PAC) http://www.pac.ie/. The relevant PAC application code is GYA47.

Closing date: 31st March 2012

Please click here for more information.

promoting innovation in mathematics and science education

January 2012

The School of Education, NUI Galway held a special lunchtime seminar "Promoting Innovation in Mathematics and Science Education" on 25 January 2012.

This event focused on sharing and discussing current research and professional projects related to innovation in science and mathematics education and featured a presentation and discussion session with Dr. Gail Burrill, Michigan State University.

Dr. Gail Burrill is a former President of the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and has been involved with developing national standards for mathematics education in the United States. She has been recognised for her contributions to the field of mathematics education through both research and teaching and is the author of a number of books and articles on statistics and mathematics education.
In addition to the featured session, the event also displayed presentations from members of the School of Education and focused on the following areas:  

- Science outreach
- Progressing mathematics education
- Innovative applications of technology in education

 

L to R. Dr Kevin Jennings, Joint Programme Director, BA in Mathematics and Education, School of Mathematics; Dr Gail Burrill, Michigan State University and Dr Catherine Paolucci, Joint Programme Director, BA in Mathematics and Education,
School of Education.

For further information please contact:
Dr. Catherine Paolucci
Joint Programme Director, BA in Mathematics and Education
School of Education, NUI Galway
Phone: +353 91 492155
E-mail: catherine.paoluccinuigalway.ie 

leading international mathematician gives lecture to B.A. MATHEMATICS & EDUCATION STUDENTS

January 2012

 

The School of Education and the School of Mathematics, Applied Mathematics and Statistics were excited to welcome Dr. Alan Rogerson to NUI Galway on the 24th of January.  Dr. Rogerson is an extremely accomplished leader in the international Mathematics Education Community.  In addition to authoring numerous articles and books related to mathematics education, he is the International Coordinator of the Mathematics Education into the 21st Century Project and was the founder and International Coordinator of the Mathematics in Society Project.  Dr. Rogerson spent the day speaking to students from the BA in Mathematics and Education, presenting to staff and formalising plans for future collaboration with Dr. Catherine Paolucci (School of Education) and Dr. Kevin Jennings (School of Mathematics), Joint Programme Directors of the BA in Mathematics and Education.

 

January 2012

Bonnie Long and Dr. Tony Hall of the School of Education, NUI Galway have had a paper accepted for presentation at Narrative Matters 2012 - Life and Narrative.

The paper, "Nöogenic Narrative: Meaning and Positive Orientation in Educational Autobiography" discusses the conceptual background to School of Education research into the design and application of narrative and technology to enhance learning and reflective practice.

B.A. Mathematics and Education Students host U.s. students

January 2012





The School of Education, NUI Galway's B.A. in Mathematics and Education students hosted a group of American students and staff from Hartwick College in upstate New York. NUIG's future teachers drew on their talents and interests to offer the visiting students a full day of workshops and activities to give them first-hand experience with various aspects of Irish culture. The days activities included workshops in GAA, Irish dancing, the Irish language, sport in Ireland and comparative presentations and discussions on the Irish and American educations systems.

Research features in esai newsletter

January 2012

Dr. Elaine Keane, Lecturer and Programme Director of the Master of Education in the School of Education, NUI Galway, has had research recently featured in the 2012 Educational Studies Association of Ireland (ESAI) newsletter.

Elaine's research is on the topic 'Widening Participation and Traditional-Entry Students and the Student Experience in Higher Education'.

Click here to view newsletter.

Email Elaine.Keanenuigalway.ie for further information. 

school of education ph.d. student gets National university of ireland award

December 2011

 

Ms. Hannagh McGinley (BA, HDipED, MA, NUI Galway), and Dr. Maurice Manning (Chancellor of the National University of Ireland) pictured at the recent National University of Ireland (NUI) Awards ceremony. Hannagh was the recipient of the 2011 Dr. Mary L. Thornton Scholarship in Education from the NUI. Hannagh is a PhD student at the School of Education, NUI Galway, under the supervision of Dr. Elaine Keane. Her research topic is “Post-primary Teachers and Travellers in Education: Preparation for and Experiences with Education for Social Justice. Hannagh is also an Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences (IRCHSS) Postgraduate Scholar.

trainee teachers provided with interactive whiteboard software free of charge

December 2011

Trainee teachers on the Postgraduate Diploma in Education programme (PDE) in the School of Education, NUI Galway, are now provided with Promethean ActivInspire Professional Edition interactive whiteboard (IWB) software free of charge thanks to the SoE collaboration with Promethean and their 'Pass It On' scheme.   

Promethean’s 'Pass It On' scheme gives trainee-teachers the opportunity to incorporate the use of interactive whiteboards and software into their pedagogy, as they study. The use of ICT is integrated into their learning, allowing more exposure to the tools and maximising opportunities to develop their interactive whiteboard skills throughout the course and while on school placements.

This software, which normally retails at €500 per licence, will give our students an added advantage in terms of their teaching and learning.  Students will also have access to over 50,000 resources on Promethean Planet - 'The World's Largest Interactive Whiteboard Community' at over 1.2 million members worldwide.  This scheme is also being expanded to cater for students on other programmes within the School of Education, NUI Galway and it is the first Post-Primary teacher training establishment to provide this software to their students.

student teachers get access to edco's e-books free of charge

December 2011

At a presentation to students on the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PDE) programme in the School of Education, NUI Galway, Patrick Barry, Digital Development Manager with EdCo, the educational textbook publishers, provided students with access to all the Junior Certificate e-Books free of charge, for this academic year.  This highly beneficial and 'value added' resource has now been rolled out across other School of Education programmes.

Award for erasmus intensive programme "beam"

December 2011

At a ceremony on Friday 2nd December in Vienna, the Erasmus Intensive Programme "BEAM" was awarded a Lifelong Learning 2011 Award by the Austrian National Agency. The Lifelong Learning Award 2011 was presented to the BEAM Coordinator: Viktor Frankl Hochschule/University College of Teacher Education, Klagenfurt by the Austrian Minister of Science and Research, Mr. Karlheinz Töchterle and the Secretary of State, Mr. Theodor Siegl. The School of Education, NUI Galway is a BEAM partner institution and member of the BEAM consortium. Students and staff of the B.A. Mathematics and Education, School of Education, NUI Galway participated in the BEAM Erasmus Intensive Programme in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011. 
Building European Identity through Spirit, Sense and Meaning (BEAM) aims to enhance the European identity of Europe's future educators and teachers through cultural, social and educational cooperation and interaction, working towards the concept of a 'European Teacher'. 120 student teachers from teacher education institutions and universities in eleven European countries participated in BEAM in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Norway, Slovenia, UK and Ireland (represented by the B.A. Mathematics and Education, NUI Galway).

Adult Learner Journal - Call for Papers

November 2011

The Adult Learner Journal (Aontas - National Adult Learning Organisation) wishes to publicise its call for papers.  Please click on the link below for further information.

http://www.aontas.com/pubsandlinks/theadultlearner.html   

guerilla science at nui gALWAY

November 2011

The annual Galway Science and Technology Festival exhibition, which took place at NUI Galway on Sunday 27th November, was opened by EU commissioner for research, innovation and science Máire Geoghegan-Quinn. As cited in the Irish Times (Siggins, 2011); “As thousands of visitors streamed through the NUIG campus, the “Latch-on” project by art and science students from NUIG and Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT) challenged young people to hunt out hundreds of ceramic samples of mini purple and green hemiparasitic plants on campus”. The ’Latch-on’ and ’iRun’ projects were the two Guerilla science projects which were hosted at the event. These projects arose out of an interdisciplinary research team across both NUIG (Kevin Davison, Veronica McCauley, School of Education, Emily Cullen, Sarah Knight, Ann Lyons, Christine Domegan) and GMIT (Eileen Healy).

The ’Latch-on’ project is based around haustoria, the point where parasitic plants ’latch on’ to other plants. Usually, haustoira are underground, where the parasitic plant roots invade the roots of its host. The ’Latch-on’ challenge was to seek out the hundreds of mini purple and green haustoria that are invading the city. These ceramic haustoria were found latching on to buildings, wrapping around lamp posts, lurking around corners and hiding on stairways throughout the NUI Galway campus and parts of Galway City. They led to one main mural piece with many haustoria on display at the NUI Galway campus. ’Latch On’ is a joint venture between a botanist, Anna Pielach of NUI Galway, and a ceramicist, Veronika Straberger of GMIT.

In another interactive artistic effort, iRun was an installation based on movement. NUI Galway researcher Ted Vickey and GMIT 4th year experimental film and performance artist Jessica Buckley explored the innovative role that mobile technologies can play in encouraging healthier lifestyles. Can the digital revolution really help mould our bodies into shape? What happens when we track our regular and repetitive movements? Will mapping your motion make you want to move? The public were invited to take part in the live tracking of the GMIT artist as she spent an eight-hour day moving around the NUI Galway campus during the Galway Science and Technology Festival Exhibition. This interactive performance and real life science and technology simulation aimed to entice the audience in and encourage participation.

School of education at Apple RTC winter conference

November 2011

Mr. Jim Lenaghan, Chief Technical Officer and Dr. Tony Hall, Lecturer in Educational Technology, School of Education, NUI Galway, attended the Apple Regional Training Centre (RTC) Winter Conference, 24th-25th November; at the North Somerset RTC, Sidcot School, Winscombe. The conference featured presentations and hands-on workshops by Apple Distinguished Educators and educational technologists who are utilising apps, innovative infrastructures and peripherals, and portable and ultra-mobile technologies to enhance learning and teaching in RTCs across the UK and Ireland. The School of Education's Apple iPedagogy Learning Environment (AiPLE) is an Apple Regional Training Centre. For latest information and updates on apps, educational technologies and innovations, follow School of Education on Twitter edtechne.

Seminar on Widening Participation in Higher Education

November 2011

On Wednesday, November 9^th 2011, the School of Education, in conjunction with the Access Office, at NUI Galway, hosted a seminar entitled “ Widening Access and Participation and the Student Experience in Higher Education: Evidence from Research and Practice at NUI Galway”.

Following the opening by Professor Chris Curtin (Head of the School of Education, and Vice-President for Performance and Innovation, at NUI Galway), and an introduction by An tOllamh Nollaig MacCongáil (Registrar and Deputy President of NUI Galway), two presentations were given. The first was an overview by Imelda Byrne (Access Officer, NUI Galway) on the design and delivery of access courses at NUI Galway and the successes and challenges encountered over the period of the initiative. The second presentation was by Dr. Elaine Keane (Lecturer in the School of Education, NUI Galway). Drawing on her recent publications in the area, Elaine presented findings from a three-year study exploring the post-entry academic and socio-cultural experiences of 45 school-leaver-aged access and traditional-entry students at an Irish university. Finally, there was a presentation from a former access student at NUI Galway, who outlined her experiences as a participant of this programme.

 

Pictured L-R: Ms. Imelda Byrne (Access Officer, NUI Galway), An tOllamh Nollaig MacCongáil (Registrar and Deputy President of NUI Galway), Ms. Ciara Togher, Professor Chris Curtin (Head of the School of Education, and Vice-President for Performance and Innovation, at NUI Galway), and Dr. Elaine Keane (Lecturer, School of Education, NUI Galway).

For further information, please click on this link or contact Dr. Elaine Keane, School of Education, NUI Galway.
Email: elaine.keanenuigalway.ie

educational technology research - book launch

September 2011

The book, Quality Issues in ICT Integration: Third Level Disciplines and Learning Contexts has been launched at the University of Limerick. The collection includes a chapter, "Quality through Synergy: Technology-Enhanced Learning (Animation, Virtualisation and Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) in Higher Education", by Bonnie Long and Dr. Tony Hall, School of Education, NUI Galway, and Dr. Seán Duignan, Department of Computing and Maths, Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology. The chapter describes research undertaken within the School of Education and its Apple Regional Training Centre: the Apple iPedagogy Learning Environment (AiPLE), and Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology. The research explored the educational potential of animation and virtualisation technologies, and multi-user virtual environments (MUVEs). Link to the publisher's webpages for the book.

NUI Galway Students Step Up Maths Education

August 2011

    

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