[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Odhrán,

Thank you for your post. As you have referred to, we are all very lucky to be living in a prosperous nation such as Ireland. However, you are very right to highlight that inequality is not something that is pigeon holed into certain corners of the world. Inequality exists in Ireland, and children are coming to school from many different backgrounds. Reducing inequalities, locally as well as globally, is an excellent focus for children to have.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Mary,

Thank you for your post. I am sorry to hear of the unfortunate diagnosis of the child you have mentioned and wish him/her a full recovery. It is fortunate that we have so many useful assistive tools that can help bridge the gap for children with SEN and/or those who miss significant periods of school due to health concerns. Many people on the forum have spoken about the benefits of Immersive Reader, and I’m delighted you have also honed in on Dictate. I often describe this as the inverse of Immersive Reader, and can be really transformative in helping children with literacy difficulties get their thoughts down in writing.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Sinead,

With regards to part 1, simply creating a Forms quiz, designing a PowerPoint, using Edge as a web browser are all perfectly acceptable. The description can then focus on how a children with SEN could benefit from using this for accessing content. You have highlighted some interesting insights into your reading of the Cosán Framework. As you have pointed out, many professions and jobs gave built-in training and upskilling programmes – unfortunately in teaching, much of this is on the individual teacher’s own terms and there can be huge disparity in the levels of proficiency between teachers in different areas.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Odhrán,

Welcome to the course and thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. You have touched upon some great points which really capture the essence of the value of pursuing development education in schools. Creating opportunities for children to engage in collaborative projects and forging links with community organisations, and how children can apply what they are learning in their own lives is so important for sustainable growth in this area.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Brendan,

Thanks for sharing your post with us and how you would envisage the use of Immersive Reader and Office Lens in an infant school setting. Very often, at this age group the gap between those who ‘can’ and ‘cannot’ read can be quite large as emergent readers begin to establish their reading skills. However you have also raised a crucial point around teacher competence. To be able to fully utilise these tools in the classroom, we need to have some experience of using these ourselves and knowing little tricks that will help us get the most out of them.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Ciara,

Thank you for sharing the work of some of these Cork based organisations with us, as well as the excellent efforts made within your own school community. It is often at times of crisis that the best sides of humanity are shown. You have made a really important point regarding the arrival of people from Ukraine – greater collaborative efforts and communication between schools and these organisations will allow us to support these pupils in the best way possible.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Test

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Karen,

Thanks for your post here and for sharing many excellent ideas for promoting climate activism in schools. I love how your ideas really centre on the children taking ownership of this around the school. Maintaining the school garden, planting crops and seeds, etc. can really create a real sense of sustainability within the children. I’m sure there’s not a school in the country that wouldn’t have a significant water accumulation from the rainfall harvesting systems. Getting children involved and invested in these initiatives is a crucial part of them being able to apply these outside of the school building and in their own communities.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Ciarán,

Thanks for your post here. Particularly moving into 6th class, it is so important that children begin to look at sources through a critical lens and know what to look for when checking for reliability, bias, etc. In an era where ‘fake news’ really seems to be taking hold, and where social media platforms are being used to generate mass movements based around this, it is essential for children to be equipped with these skills. I agree with you regarding the potential benefits of using Google’s Teachable Machine. We may have some course participants who can share practical examples of its use over the coming days and weeks.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Carrie,

Thanks for your post and for sharing your thoughts on various AI tools – I share your thoughts on Diffit and can attest that it is highly unlikely that any of our imaginations can keep up with the power of AI. It’s also great to have some ideas on different activities that can be completed with those who are exempt from religion / Gaeilge. You have listed Microsoft Reading Coach as a suitable tool for this, and many other AI tools could be used for this purpose also.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Ciaran,

Welcome to the course. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and for sharing your enthusiasm for the use of Gen-AI within the classroom. You are correct in identifying the potential transformative effect of AI tools for generating assessments and differentiated learning material for students. As well as enhancing student learning, it also offers the potential to free up time for the teacher to engage in more meaningful preparatory activities.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Martina,

Thanks for your post here. I fully agree with you regarding the amount of paper waste that happens in our schools. I spoke to a secondary school teacher who estimated their photocopying costs for the year to be in the region of €40,000. Most schools have invested significantly in interactive whiteboards and panels, and perhaps more training on how these can be used would be useful in reducing the paper wastage.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Karen,

Thanks for your post. As I mentioned in an earlier reply, access to quality education is something we may take for granted at times in Ireland. However, the ‘100 people’ graphic really hammers home just how lucky we are to have widespread access to both primary and second-level education here. I am intrigued to check out the ‘most dangerous ways to school’ video series – thank you for sharing that with us.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi Martina,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. As educators, we are very aware of the benefits that can be brought about from access to quality education. Even in areas of social deprivation, education can be an equalising factor, and ensure that we all have equal opportunities to pursue our own interests and passions. In many cases, children in DEIS schools in Ireland can pay testament to this. We can often feel removed from areas of the world that do not have the same opportunities we have here, but the ‘100 people’ visual is very powerful in highlighting just how widespread some of these issues are around the world.

[Eoghan O’Neill]

Hi James,

Thank you for your post and for sharing your thoughts with us. Many participants have shared their perspectives on using Immersive Reader with children that have literacy difficulties. However, its fantastic that you have been able to identify ways in which it can be used for children with ASD and autism. The picture dictionary is a great feature that can be rally useful in forging links between English and native language, and builds both vocabulary and understanding in the process.

[Author]

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