Customer Solution Case Study
/ School Partners with University to Provide Innovative Professional Development for Staff
“A group of teachers identified the advantages of using ICT in their classrooms early on. That group has created a critical mass—as their colleagues see the advantages of it, more of them want to participate.”
Janice Corrigan, Deputy Principal, Dunshaughlin Community College
Teachers at Dunshaughlin Community College wanted more opportunities for professional development. Seeing the need to expand professional development opportunities beyond those traditionally offered by the Irish educational system, Dunshaughlin partnered with St. Patrick’s College, Dublin City University through the Microsoft Partners in Learning Innovative Schools Programme. The programme has been so successful that it is now being offered to allVEC post-primary schools in County Meath.
This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.Document published October 2010
Business Needs
Dunshaughlin Community College is a post-primary school for 12 to 18 year olds. It has 850 students and is located in Meath, a small town just north of county Dublin in Ireland. The school offers a full range of programmes and students enjoy a variety of extracurricular activities.
Within the Irish education system, one of the primary goals of post-primary teachers is to prepare students for the state leaving exam—the Leaving Certificate—which is required for admission to further education or higher education. Such a highly structured educational system leaves little opportunity to deviate from a strictly prescribed curriculum. This can be challenging for teachers who like to personalise learning to suit the special needs of their students. Information and communications technology (ICT) is an important tool to help meet this challenge.
Since buying its first computer in the early 1980s, Dunshaughlin has acquired a variety of ICT resources. Janice Corrigan, Deputy Principal at Dunshaughlin Community College, says: “Our vision for teaching and learning is simple. Staff are encouraged to integrate ICT into teaching and learning, but it’s not compulsory. However, it’s a valuable tool that many of our teachers use in creative ways to enhance the learning process.”
As more teachers wanted to add ICT elements to their lessons, administrators at Dunshaughlin saw a need for additional professional development. Corrigan says: “Traditionally, if teachers wanted to improve their skills they were limited to taking evening courses—most of which are difficult to get to, oftenlocated within cities far from Dunshaughlin. Their other option was to take some time off, which doesn’t suit everybody. So we looked for a way to bridge the gap between what was currently being provided and what our teachers were requesting.”
Solution
In 2006, Dunshaughlin launched a virtual learning environment (VLE) using communication and collaboration solution Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007. The following year, the school was awarded Innovative School status as part of the Microsoft Partners in Learning Innovative Schools Programme—developed to help school leaders create a culture of innovation by using technology to teach students 21st-century skills. Every teacher at Dunshaughlin was given the opportunity to use a portable computer and administrators evaluated the resources the programme provided for the professional development of teachers.
In 2009, the school was awarded Mentor status in the Innovative Schools Programme by Microsoft. Corrigan says: “We take the lead from our teachers. Instead of prescribing what they should learn, we listen to them and do our best to provide whatever resources they need.”
When the school’s Microsoft Account Manager Dr. Kevin Marshall informed Corrigan and her colleagues about an accredited professional development programme at St. Patrick’s College, Dublin City University, teachers from Dunshaughlin were eager to participate. “We’ve seen tremendous enthusiasm. A group of teachers identified the advantages of using ICT in their classrooms early on,” says Corrigan. “That group has created a critical mass—as their colleagues see the advantages of it, more of them want to participate.”
Dr. Deidre Butler, a Senior Lecturer at St. Patrick’s College, Dublin City University and Co-Chairperson of the Partners in Learning Advisory Council for Microsoft, worked with teachers at Dunshaughlin to develop and support the creative and innovative uses of ICT in the classroom. The programme is much more personalised than professional development traditionally offered in the Irish education system. Butler says: “We focused on developing the teachers’ needs and interests anchored in their classroom practice. We looked at the way teachers were already using assignments and student work and developed a common language of what teaching and learning looks like in the 21st century.”
Benefits
The Partners in Learning Innovative Schools Programmedeveloped at St. Patrick’s College provides the tools and skills teachers need to apply 21st-century teaching and learning skills within the context of the Irish education system. Teachers can also earn post-graduate certification, improving opportunities for career advancement.
- Creativity in the classroom. Teachers at Dunshaughlin have embraced the use of ICT in the classroom. Creative ways of integrating it into the prescribed context of the education system include an agricultural science teacher who shows his students You Tube videos of cows calving, and language teachers who use Microsoft Photo Story 3 for Windows to teach German spoken language skills. Departments have used SharePoint to create an extensive bank of resources within Dunshaughlin and also in schools across the county.
- Personalised professional development. By focusing on the specific needs of teachers, St. Patrick’s College and Dunshaughlin have created a professional development model that staff engage wholeheartedly. “Our teachers have specific needs. This personalised approach gives them opportunities to put 21st-century teaching and learning skills into the context of their own practice,” says Corrigan.
- Room for growth.With the support of school leadership and county management, teachers willengage with a specially designed Digital Learning Peer Coaching programme developed by St. Patrick’s College. “The goal is to have a set of peer counsellors in each school in this district. If it works, the plan could be adopted nationally,” says Butler.
- More opportunities for students.The use of ICT is linking schools together to share resources and provide better learning opportunities for students. For example, a teacher at Dunshaughlin provides chemistry instruction to several students at another school using the VLE and Microsoft Office Live Meeting. “The students—who attend a school that does not have a chemistry instructor—will now have chemistry on their leaving certificates,” says Corrigan.
- Expanded professional development.The programme at St. Patrick’s College offers post-graduate certification, providing additional opportunity for career advancement. “Eight of our teachers have received post-graduate certificates. They also have the opportunities to go on to receive diplomas and masters degrees,” says Corrigan.
This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
Document published October 2010