2. Our experience – over three phases...
Autumn 2012
2013 / 2014
2014 / 2015
3. Portmarnock Community School
850 pupils approximately, co-educational
Wide catchment-area across North County Dublin
Strong academic and extra-curricular focus
5. Some history
Portmarnock Community School became an NCCA
Junior Cycle Network School in May 2012
I am the Link-teacher
Very supportive Principal, Pat O’ Riordan
I presented about the possibilities involved with Junior
Cycle reform to my colleagues in September 2012
N.S.P.I
6. A new vocabulary
Framework document
Short Courses
Subject specifications
Toolkits
Key Skills
Statements of Learning
Assessment for Learning
Moderation
Priority Learning Units
Portfolios
Level Two learning programmes (L2LP’s)
2014: J.C.S.A. – Junior Cycle Student Award
8. In Portmarnock there seemed to be a lot of interest in
Short Course development
9. Why this interest?
A strong history of innovation in Transition-year e.g.
Photography, Heritage, Film, Animation, English,
History...
A confidence and capacity to introduce new and
innovative methods of teaching
Junior Cycle reform – an opportunity to mainstream
from Transition-year to the Junior Cycle
10. NCCA support from 2012
Online space – J.C. 2.0
Many teachers from Network Schools were very active
in this during 2012/2013
Lots of ideas
13. Noticed that many Link schools were working with
their strengths, whether Short-courses, Assessment for
Learning, Key-skills etc
14. We promised
Support to teachers
November 2012:
In-house staff-development particularly in the area of Key
Skills (used a cross-subject approach)
Denise Kelly from the National Council for Curriculum and
Assessment) presented in the school to about fifteen
teachers (who volunteered) on Short Course development
Very well received – learned a lot
15. We lead...
Management and I are very supportive of the move
from product to process in relation to learning
Want to develop the students appreciation of the
“how” and “why” of learning over a period of time
This is a rationale we bring to the table at all meetings
17. We asked...
Teachers to volunteer to develop their own Short
Courses
This was at a time when the NCCA had subject titles
for their for Short Courses but no developed ones as
such (not the case now)
The NCCA had a template however which was (is)
what the teachers worked off
19. Areas to be covered
Title
1. Introduction to Junior Cycle: Standard for all short
courses
2. Rationale: Setting the course in the broader context
3. Aim
4. Links: Statements of Learning / Literacy and Numeracy /
Key Skills
5. Course Overview
6. Expectations for Students
7. Assessment and Certification
8. Resources
21. Some teachers worked as a group
Some alone and then consulted each other
Denise Kelly (NCCA) was available for advice via email. I
was the conduit, as the Link-teacher
Three Short Courses emerged – Media literacy (David
Clarke and Aileen Bradley), Animation (Karen Tynan),
Robotics (Michael Sweeney and Danny Murphy).
22. Decisions...
December 2012 and January 2013
Principal, Deputy Principal, Link-teacher and our
Time-tabler
Go with two Short-courses? Yes
Which ones? Animation and Media Literacy
23. Why these two?
The Robotics Short Course was not fully finished
Animation had been highly developed in Transition-year
Animation and Media Literacy very much complemented
each other - Good mix of ideas – teachers saw possibilities
between the subjects
Attractive to boys and girls
24. Caveat about using pre-existing courses
Material must be re-modelled for the younger
students, taking into account the principles of the
Junior Cycle Framework
25. Where on the timetable?
Within an existing option-block
No change to the structure of the timetable as such
Treading slowly...
Students have to do both Media Literacy and Animation
One double each – for three years (c. 120 hours each)
26. Block with Materials Technology (Wood), Home-
Economics and Technology
An option block that allowed corresponding subjects to be
taken in 4th / 5th Year
Banding meant two class groups – offered it to one class in
the band
Twenty-four students
27. School certificate at end of Third-year (2016)
Assessment focus in Second and Third-year
28. There was a very strong presentation to the parents
and guardians of the incoming Sixth-class (January
2013)
Covered a lot of positives about Junior Cycle reform
and education in general
Our choice of Animation and Media Literacy reflects
what is relevant to real-world needs and expertise
30. Minimised the use of the phrase Short Course and
looked at it as the introduction of a new subject
31. A digression!
I think the term Short-course was unfortunate
“You mean I’m going to replace my subject with a short-
course”
“I’ll be a short-course teacher...”
There is the potential of short-courses to promote and
develop subjects, and indeed to define the identity of a
school over time
33. Lessons learned
A lot of work (time) developing in-house short courses
– teachers found the Short Course Template a
challenge, but fulfilling when completed
Reliance on one teacher – what if our animator leaves?
Don’t become a hostage to one teachers specialism...
Implications for numbers in the other subjects in the
block
34. Lessons Learned
Need for some updated training in Animation – speed
of change of applications
The need for technical backup – in our case relying on
a technically literate teacher to manage software
updates for the animation teacher
Need for digital resources – Broadband and Wi-Fi
NCCA in discussions on ICT infrastructure
37. Lessons learned
Using First-year to establish the Group-work and other
skills – no assessment focus is of great value
Its insights like this that give an idea as to how First-
year might be re-imagined...
38. Lessons Learned
Don’t presume that because students opt for a course
that they have certain competencies
Don’t underestimate students either – confidence built
during First-year is now becoming obvious
39. Hard work to establish the course identity
Keep trying to establish the Short Course / New-
subject identity – do things to highlight the course – at
Assemblies, on the website etc.
41. 2014 / 2015 Context is changing
NCCA has drafts of eight Short Courses for incoming
2014 First-years – consultation process in place
42. 2014 / 2015 Context changed in/for
Portmarnock
Two teachers have been involved with the NCCA,
examining aspects of teaching and learning from the
Short Course in Coding
Two P.E. teachers have been exploring possibilities
with the Physical Education Association of Ireland and
the draft Physical Education Short Course
One P.E. Teacher had developed a Sports Science
module in Transition Year
43. 2014 / 2015
Decided to introduce two new short courses / subjects
To spread the load amongst a variety of teachers /
subject areas
In the same block
Offered to both bands
A minimum of 48 students
44. 2013 / 2014
Coding – as per the NCCA draft short course
specification – two teachers
Sports Science – at the request of a member of the P.E.
Department, who has developed his own Sports
Science course in Transition Year – two teachers
45. Current teacher concerns
Sports Science – to develop a separate identity from
the existing Junior Cycle P.E. classes
Timetabling needs around Sports Science
Assessment in general, assessing our own students in
particular and exploring moderation
46. Other Concerns
Costs associated with these courses – can students asked to
pay for swimming? Buses for external trips...
Any formal funding for running Short Courses from the
NCCA or others?..... Saving money one way, so give us
money another way
Do we need to look for sponsorship?
Do we need to develop linkages with a University who will
work with us as a local-school?
47. Other concerns
Started to collect feedback from current First-year
parents / guardians
Students were telling them about the subjects
Concern about feedback to date
48. Other concerns
If we go with Robotics in 2015 / 2016, what subject
would we place with it so as to attract the balance of
boys and girls?
What do parents think of the changing of the Short
Course subjects each year?
What are the implications for Transition Year?
49. Assessment / Moderation
We are conscious we have got the Short Courses off the
ground in a creative way – now want to get the
Assessment right
Support for Short Course Assessment / Moderation
training for teachers
We would like Portmarnock to get support from the
NCCA in developing this, not alone for the Short
Course teachers, but for all teachers in the school