Over 200 delegates attended the Comhairle na Gaelscolaíochta (CnaG) Conference on 20 September, in St Mary’s University College, Belfast.
The Conference, entitled Eochair Feasa Foghlaim was a hugely successful event which provided a series of TPL workshops for IM practitioners during the morning session, on a wide range of topics including; accuracy & grammar in Irish; CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) and the Language Framework for IM Primary Schools. Also during the morning session, a series of innovative booklets was launched, commissioned by CnaG and written by Dr Gearóid Ó Domagáin, University of Ulster, entitled Self-assessment and self-Learning; language development resources for immersion practitioners.
In the afternoon of the Conference, a significant research report was launched, again commissioned by CnaG, on core competencies in Irish-medium education, written by Dr T.J Ó Ceallaigh, University of Cork and Dr Gabrielle Nig Uidhir, St Mary’s University College. The launch was chaired by Pat Sheehan, MLA, vice-chairman of the Assembly Education Committee.
CnaG thanks the hundreds of practitioners and other guests who attended the Conference this year from across the sector and we extend a special word of thanks to COGG, Coláiste Mhuire and the Department of Education, who funded some of these initiatives through the ‘A Fair Start’ programme. We are also grateful to the staff of St Mary’s University College for hosting the Conference this year, especially Eilis McAteer and Christopher Owens for their support in making the day so successful.
