History & Geography Support Services
The intensive phase is now at an end. The History and Geography Support Services are now being looked after by the Second Level Support Service with effect from September 1st 2008. New contact details are as follows:
Administration for the History Support Services:-
Wexford Education Centre,
Milehouse Road,
Enniscorthy,
Co. Wexford.
Phone: 054-39100
Administration for the Geography Support Service:-
Donegal Education Centre,
2/3 Floor, Pier 1,
Quay St.,
Donegal Town.
Phone: 074-9723487
Geography Support Service
It is my great pleasure to put this final report for 2007 before you.
The full Geography Support Service has been in existence since Jan 2004. It presently comprises 3 RDOs and a National Coordinator.
To date we have organized and delivered 11 modules of in-service to 13158 teachers in 718 clusters at the various Education Centers.
In 2007 we ran two main modules:
Module 8 (97 clusters) with 1471 teachers attending.
Module 9 (80 clusters) with 1517 teachers attending.
Our database now contains the names of over 2300 teachers who teach the Revised Leaving Cert., syllabus. It also confirms that Geography is a core curriculum subject in almost every school in the country.
The feedback from teachers is testimony to the high quality of delivery of the in-service which we provided.
Main highlights of the work
At each in-service we made a conscious effort to provide as much resource material as possible. We were fortunate to acquire a number of high quality resource packs from groups e.g. The Written in Stone (CD and booklet) and Understanding Earth Processes (Book) from The Geological Survey of Ireland; Geographical Exploration from The Heritage Council; Coastview for Schools From The Marine Institute; The Environment, society and the economy fro the EPA (Video and teaching materials) What in the World - globalization and poverty Video from KMF productions and out latest is Field Study Starter Pack for each school the details of which are outlined below.
The in-service was interactive and skills based in the main with the module on the Geographical Investigation delivered in the field as appropriate.
Significant achievements during the year
National Coordinator
SeamusToomey had left the Geography Support Service to take up the directorship of Limerick Education Centre. He was replaced by Gerard Syron a member of the support team.
Scoilnet Maps
The development of the Scoilnet Maps resource web page in conjunction with the National Centre for Technology in Education.
The next module of in-service will take place in February / March 2008 and will be based on the Scoilnet Maps. This project is part of the Digital Content initiative developed by NCTE and is funded by the Department of Education and Science through the ICT Policy Unit.
The initial phase of teacher training will be carried out by the Geography Support Service. One teacher from each school (nominated by the principal) will be invited to attend in service which takes place during February and March.
The Scoilnet Maps project will be available via the internet. Each school will be able to access the maps by means of a username and password. There will be unlimited and free access provided. Teachers will be able to download, print and use the maps for educational purposes. There is a registration process that will provide teachers with access from home if they require it.
The maps provided in the initial phase include 1:50,000 topographic, 1:5,000 Urban and Rural Place Maps, Aerial Photographs, Historic 6” and 25” maps (1834, 1905), Corine landuse maps (1990, 2000), census data in map form (1996, 2006). Full coverage for the Republic of Ireland is provided with all these maps and photographs.
The Scoilnet Maps initiative is also a Geographical Information System (GIS) which will enable teachers to organize their teaching resources and store them in this website. The website will allow the storage of worksheets, animations, photographs, video clips, web-links and documents related to a chosen location. These resources can be used in class or made available online to students to meet their learning needs.
This initiative has huge potential for the way in which teachers organize their resources and teach their classes in the future. Initially it will provide instant and unlimited access to the maps and aerial photographs that are essential tools for teaching geography.
Field Study Starter Pack
One of the major innovations of the Revised Leaving Certificate Geography Syllabus was the requirement that every student complete a Geographical Investigation. The investigation involves students undertaking a piece of fieldwork and writing a report on it for submission in the Spring of their final year.
The Geography Support Team has been aware for some time that the dearth of field study equipment has hindered the smooth completion of field investigations in certain instances. So, we are now pleased to announce that there is one free Field study Starter Pack on its way to every second level school in the country. The free pack will be distributed during Module 11 of the in-service programme. It is hoped that the pack will assist teachers in their fieldwork activities.
The pack contains the following equipment:
| Equipment | Possible uses |
| Rain Gauge | Local weather or ecological study |
| Cup Anemometer | Local weather or ecological study |
| Compass | Determining direction, orienting maps |
| Stopwatch | Timing flows of traffic, rivers, longshore drift |
| Trundle Wheel | Measuring lines in transects etc. |
| Hand Tally | Counting in traffic or wave studies |
| Sighting Clinometer | Determining slope angles |
| Magnifying Glass | Examining samples of rocks, plants and soils. |
| pH Paper | Soil and ecological studies |
The 2007 Leaving Certificate Examination.
The verdict on the initial examination of the Revised Syllabus was given as a “challenging” and “fair”. The subsequent results obtained by the students who sat the examination was also hailed as being “most satisfactory” insofar as they were broadly in line with previous year’s results.
In 2007 24218 candidates sat geography making it one of the most popular subjects at Leaving Cert.
At Higher Level the grades broke down as follows:
- Grade A: 7.7%
- Honours Grade: 76.1%
- Pass Grade: 21.2%
At Ordinary Level the grades broke down as follows:
- Grade A: 5.2%
- Honours Grade: 78.2%
- Pass Grade: 18.7%
National Coordinator
Seamus Toomey who was National Coordinator of the Geography Support Service since its inception in 2003 has moved on to become the director of the Limerick Education Centre.
During his time with the support service he initiated the in-service programme and steered it through delivery of eight successful modules throughout the country. He was centrally involved in the provision of a long list of geography resources which have been made available to teachers.
We wish Seamus every success in his new job and in his future life.
The Future
It has been decided by the Teacher Education Section of the DEepartment of Education and Science that the Support Service in its present form will be would up at the end of August. The RDOs will be returning to the former position in school and the National Coordinator will be offered a position within the Second Level Support Service.
Buiochas
On behalf of the geography may I offer a mhíle buiochas to the Management Committee of Monaghan Education Centre for their support over the last four years, and I look forward to continuing to work with you until August and into the future.
Gerard Syron
National Coordinator
Geography Support Service
History Support Service
A revised syllabus for history at leaving certificate level was introduced in September 2004, with the first examination taking place in June 2006.
The History In-Service Team was established in September 2003, with the appointment of a national coordinator. In addition to the national coordinator, the team for 200 was also composed of three Regional Development Officers – John Dredge, Linda Neary, and Gerard O’Sullivan. The HIST team would also like to express its appreciation of the work of the new director, Mr Jimmy McGeough, who is a great advocate for the work of the team. The administrator, Ms Sharon McCoy, continues to provide an excellent support service to the team, ably supported by the general staff in Monaghan Education Centre when the need arises.
The main work of the team has been to provide in-service on the Revised Leaving Certificate History Syllabus and the Guidelines. Over 9,000 teachers attendance days have been recorded at inservice since we started. The principal aim - of developing teacher understanding of the history syllabus - has been a success. The numbers presenting for examination in the first two years of the syllabus has risen, as has the attainment of students at Higher and Ordinary level. The team is very proud to be associated with this commendable statistic.
The evaluations as submitted by teachers attest to the positive reception given to the HIST support service, and to the appreciation that exists for relevant and successful in-service programmes. Highlights have included an active partnership with NCTE to develop a website (www.hist.ie) that has been hugely adopted by teachers, a partnership with NCTE/RTE to provide film material on modern Irish history via broadband for students and teachers, a series of training courses in education centres for history teachers, as well as a fruitful relationship with COGG, the organisation promoting education through the Irish language, to develop an innovative and critical series of materials for Irish language teachers. We have prepared four magazines for teachers, and a fifth is in preparation. In 2007, we focused on the research study report, on the promotion of history. Newly qualified teachers received advice on important aspects of the syllabus, and teachers were able to attend inservice related to the USA documents-based study. Currently, the team is delivering inservice on the Northern Ireland documents-based study, to be examined in 2010 and 2011.