03.10.2018
Newpark Students Share Their Views During Ministerial Visit
Students at Newpark Comprehensive School welcomed the Minister of State at the Department of Education, Mary Mitchell O’Connor TD, to their school this morning (Wednesday October 3). The Minister met a group of sixth year students before viewing a number of activities being run by Transition Year students to highlight the need to reduce the use plastic and its effect on the environment. The Minister also viewed the school’s award winning sports centre.
During their meeting, which was also attended by Newpark’s principal Derek Lowry, chairman of the board of management Robert Grier and chaplain the Revd Suzanne Harris, the students raised a number of issues with the Minister.
They highlighted their initiative to ban single use plastic in Newpark. They also spoke of the stresses of the Leaving Cert which they felt could be alleviated by the introduction of continuous assessment at senior cycle. They discussed entry to third level education and the pros and cons of the Irish CAO system. The way Irish is taught was also discussed.
Other issues raised included gender balance in classroom settings, mental health issues and the difficulty of readjusting to academic demands following Transition Year.
Minister Mitchell O’Connor took note of all the points made by the students and promised to follow up on them and pass them on to the Education Minister Richard Bruton. As Minister with special responsibility for Higher Education she reminded the students to consider the options of apprenticeships and Colleges of Further Education which, she said, offered additional and excellent pathways to careers. She added that plans were at an advanced stage in relation to the Institutes of Technology which are set to become Technological Universities in the near future.
The Minister praised the students for their confidence and ability to articulate their views and noted positively that they were not afraid to challenge her position.
Before leaving the school, the Minister visited Newpark Sports Centre which just last week was declared Leisure Centre of the Year 2018 at the QMark Awards. There she met assistant manager, Jessica Davies.
