The Learning Blog - Courses.ie

Five tough interview questions and how to handle them

2010-06-16T12:49:00.003+01:00

Great article on MSN today about interview questions. They were compiled by Ken Harbourne, Senior Manager, Robert Half International in Ireland.

Examples:

What interests you about this job? What are your weaknesses?

To find out how to answer these questions and more, check out the article.

CAO Handy Links

2010-03-15T14:24:00.002Z

Points Required for Entry to 2009 Courses

Applicant scoring - guide to assessment of CAO applicants by participating 3rd level institutions

2010 FETAC Entry requirements

CAO Handbook

Learning to Drive

2010-03-15T14:08:00.006Z

We dream of getting behind the wheel of our parent's car. Independence! Music at a volume WE love! Picking up our friends and heading out to have fun and enjoy ourselves. Ah, yes.....that was my dream. It is fast startng over again as my son is learning to drive and thinks my car is just there waiting for him to come in and take it!

I love driving, always have done. I de-stress (yes,I did say that.) but only when I leave the streets of Dublin behind me. I love getting out onto country roads with my window open, wind in my face and music either gently playing or the sounds of Meatloaf ringing in my ear, '....you took the words right out of my mouth..'

Continue reading Learning to Drive

Distance Learning - Flexibility at your Finger Tips

2010-02-17T13:50:00.005Z

Maybe you cannot find the course of your choice locally or time does not permit you to enrol on a day, evening or week-end course. Whatever the reason a distance learning provider offers you the opportunity to continue your education no matter what time constraints you may have.

Distance Learning is a way of learning that means you are never far away from finding a course of your choice. It is similar to any other course that you would attend, but instead of you going to class and receiving assignments or course work, with distance learning they are sent to you either in the post or by email.

How does Distance Learning Work?

NUI Galway describes the distance learning method of teaching as follows: "If you enrol on a distance education programme, in most cases, you receive a set of self-paced, self-instructional learning materials. You either receive these in hardcopy in the post or they are available online over the Internet. The course fees cover tuition costs and the supply of all course materials. However, for certain programmes, you may be required to purchase additional text books.These learning materials are broken into modules, which you study on your own. A tutor is also assigned to each student, who is available to provide help to students and also corrects and gives feedback on assignments."

Can I receive a qualification with Distance Learning?

Very definitely. There are different types of distance learning providers, private, colleges and universities who offer certificate, diploma, and degree courses.

Gaining a qualification through distance education can be done in a specified time, i.e., a years study to gain a diploma, or you can build towards your qualification on a step by step basis.

Each successfully completed course earns the candidate a set number of credit points. These credit points can be used across a combination of courses and or difficulty progression. On completion the credits earned build toward your experience and qualification.

It is entirely up to the student to decide what level of progression they wish to gain and over what period of time. Depending on the course and credits, you could gain a degree in two years or five.
Please note that some courses will have a set time frame due to course content that may date.

What are the benefits of study by Distance Learning?

Flexibility

In your own time and at your own pace. Fit your study around your work and home commitments.

Tutor Support

Distance Learning Colleges offer 'supported learning'. When you enrol a tutor is assigned to you who will monitor and provide assistance to you throughout the course. Support is available via the internet, phone, and occasional workshops / seminars.

Course Dates All Year Round

Most colleges have no set start dates allowing you to start anytime you want.

No Travelling

Save time, money and be environmentally friendly too.

Distance learning has opened the doors for many people who otherwise may not have been able to avail of further education.

You too can take the next step by requesting information from one of these top accredited colleges and universities.

Kilroy's College

College of Management & IT (CMIT)

NUI Galway

DCU - Oscail

Open University in Ireland

Going to College 2010

2010-02-02T07:27:00.004Z

Yesterday was the initial deadline for CAO applications. But students can also use the change-of-mind process to change their options before the July 1st deadline.

New figures released last night reveal there are just under two candidates for every place in our colleges and universities, according to today's Irish Independent.

These are to include the unprecedented number of mature students (more than 15,000) seeking college places this year because of the economic downturn; the surge in the number of Leaving Certificate students, after years of decline, up by an estimated 2,000; new social welfare rules whereby those on jobseeker’s allowances risk the loss of benefit unless they are in education or training; and a directive from the Higher Education Authority that staff numbers must be cut by 6 per cent in the two-year period from December 2008 to December 2010 according to the Irish Times. Full articles available online.

Popular 3rd Level Courses may see CAO points surge

2010-01-11T07:36:00.002Z

Career experts say 2010 could see a reversal of a decade-long pattern, where points for most courses slumped dramatically so says today's Irish Times.

Career experts say other factors are putting upward pressure on CAO point levels.

These include:

* the record number of mature students (more than 12,000) seeking college places this year because of the economic downturn;
* the surge in the number of Leaving Certificate students after years of decline, up by an estimated 2,000;
* new social welfare rules whereby those on jobseeker’s allowances risk the loss of benefit unless they are in education or training......Continue reading in the Irish Times

Aontas - Adult Learning - Budget 2010 Reaction

2010-01-05T17:34:00.002Z

AONTAS broadly welcomes the government commitment to upskilling and training through the allocation of €136 million in funding to provide 26,000 individuals with training places and supports. Reacting to the announcement, Berni Brady said 'It is encouraging to see that the government investing in training and education to address unemployment. However, training initiatives must be relevant, must provide qualifications and most importantly, must lead to progression to employment or further education. Courses must cater to the needs of people and reflect the emerging needs of the economy. Short term courses which lead to dead ends will only prolong the frustration that accompanies unemployment.' For more information read their press release

The Controversial HPAT Aptitude Test

2010-01-05T17:29:00.000Z

It is a major breakthrough following the disappointment of high-flying Leaving Certificate candidates who failed to get into medicine in the autumn because of poor HPAT results, according to the Irish Independent. Read the full article.

Commercial Photography Techniques with Ronnie Norton at THE LIGHT EXCHANGE

2009-09-25T15:16:00.004+01:00

This seven week course on commercial photography techniques with Ronnie Norton, one of Ireland's foremost advertising photographers will run at The Light Exchange.

The course will begin with a recap of the core principles of;

lighting in the studio,
achieving correct digital exposures
accurate colour rendition
lenses & accessories essential for commercial work.

During the course he will discuss how to light for various commercial 'people' shots including fashion. He will also demonstrate how to overcome specific problems with a variety of subject matter such as product packaging, glass & bottles, chrome and silver surfaces, gems, fabric and textured objects, including post-production issues. Pricing, invoicing and communicating with commercial clients will also be covered. 8 places are available but they book up fast.

Starts Thursday October 8th from 7.30pm to 9.30pm for 7 weeks price: 350euro deposit required 50euro students 300euro

For further information please contact Susan or Emer on 01 4975626

Recently Norton Associates had the dubious (!!?? :-) pleasure of the famous duo Podge & Rodge into their studios to have their photographs taken. Read about their exploits on Norton Associates blog.

How to Photograph Silhouettes

2009-09-07T07:14:00.003+01:00

Just a quick post to pass on a link to a terrific website about photography. Striking examples of silhouette photos that just inspire.

Right now the sun is coming up over Dublin in glorious tones of orange and yellow which would have made a fitting backdrop to a silhouette photograph. Memo to me, be out and about with the camera at 6am tomorrow. Just in case!

There are other really helpful posts on exposure, light, landscape photography and more.

How to photograph silhouettes in 8 easy steps

Swine Flu Guidelines for Schools & Parents

2009-09-02T17:21:00.005+01:00

INFORMATION SHEET FOR SCHOOLS, COLLEGES AND CENTRES OF EDUCATION ON INFLUENZA A(H1N1)

This information sheet gives general information about Influenza A(H1N1)v (which has been referred to as Swine Influenza) as well as anticipating questions that may arise within a school, college, or centre of education. In particular it advises on what can be done to help prevent the spread of the Influenza and what should be done if a student develops flu-like symptoms whilst at school, college or centre of education (hereafter referred to as school/college). This document will be updated to take account of other questions that may arise or as advised by the Health Authorities.

What is Influenza A(H1N1)v?

Influenza A(H1N1)v is a type of influenza. It causes respiratory disease in humans, pigs and birds. The current variety of Influenza A(H1N1)v is a type that was primarily found in pigs. Up to this, human cases of Influenza A(H1N1) have most commonly occurred in people who have been in close proximity to pigs but it is possible for Influenza A(H1N1) viruses to spread from person to person, as is being seen now. The virus has now changed and can spread easily from person to person. It is called Pandemic Flu because people all over the world are being infected by it.

Is there any requirement at present for schools/colleges to close?

Schools/colleges should continue to operate normally unless advised by their local Department of Public Health in the Health Service Executive (HSE). Refer to http://www.dohc.ie or http://www.hpsc.ie to check for the most up to date guidance in this regard.

What are the symptoms of Influenza A(H1N1)v?

The symptoms of Influenza A(H1N1)v are similar to the symptoms of normal human, seasonal influenza and include sudden onset of fever, fatigue, coughing, sore throat, runny nose, headache and pains in the limbs or the joints. Some people with Influenza A(H1N1)v have also reported vomiting and diarrhoea. Anyone developing these symptoms is advised to stay at home. They should call the HSE Flu Information Line Freephone 1800 94 11 00 or check http://www.swineflu.ie for advice on what to do next. If concerned, they should contact their GP or Out-Of-Hours GP service by telephone.

Should students who have recently returned from travel abroad, be kept away from schools/colleges?

No. As long as they are well and not suffering from flu-like symptoms, there is no reason for these students to be kept away from school/college and they can carry on with their normal routine. They should, however, be vigilant for the symptoms of flu and, at the first signs of these, should stay at home and call the HSE Flu Information Line Freephone 1800 94 11 00 or check http://www.swineflu.ie for advice on what to do next. If concerned, they should contact their GP or Out-Of-Hours GP service by telephone.

What action should be taken if a student develops flu-like symptoms whilst at school/college?

If a student develops flu-like symptoms/Influenza Like Illness (ILI) at school/college, arrangements should be made for him/her to be taken home. Where the student is an adult he/she should be advised to contact the HSE Flu Information Line Freephone 1800 94 11 00 or check http://www.swineflu.ie for advice on what to do next. If concerned, they should contact their GP or Out-Of-Hours GP service by telephone.

Where the student is a minor the parents should be advised as above. Whilst waiting to go home, the student should be placed in a suitable area, such as a small office, away from other students, but where an eye can be kept on them to ensure that they are all right. The student should not return to school/college until 7 days from the onset of symptoms have passed. No further action should be taken unless there is a cluster of ILI, in which case the school/college should seek advice from their local Department of Public Health of the HSE.

What about a student, who was at school/college and is now off school with flu-like symptoms/ILI?

If a student is off with Influenza Like Illness (ILI), no action should be taken, other than to ensure that they do not return to school/college until 7 days from the onset of symptoms have passed. Where there is a cluster of ILI, the school/college should seek advice from the local Department of Public Health.

How will a school/college know if it should close?

Unless the local Department of Public Health advise the management of the school to close as a precautionary measure, the school/college should remain open. A list of the Department of Public Health offices (HSE) is attached for your information at http://www.hse.ie/eng/Find_a_Service/Public_Health/

As is normally the case where management finds it is necessary to close some or all of the school/college it is not necessary to obtain the Department of Education and Science’s approval in advance. Schools/colleges should simply act in accordance with the advice of the health authorities. A school/college closing on foot of advice is however requested to advise the Department of Education and Science of the position without delay. By continuing contact from the public health, a school/college will be advised on when it may re-open.

What if a cluster of schools/colleges are advised to close or it is decided that schools/colleges countrywide should close?

Any decision, based on public health advice, to close a range of or all schools/colleges (and where the number of schools/colleges affected is such that making individual contact locally would be impractical) the advice regarding closure will be announced by a statement through the national and local media with supporting information provided on the Department of Education and Science website.

Should schools/colleges continue to go on trips?

There is no reason why schools/colleges should not continue to go on trips both in this country and abroad. If the trip is abroad we recommend that they look at the latest available travel information, if any, on the Department of Foreign Affairs website (http://www.dfa.ie) and advice on the Department of Health and Children website http://www.dohc.ie

What should you do if a student gets sick on a trip?

If symptoms are consistent with flu they need:

1. To be isolated from the other students.
2. Their parents should be contacted immediately.
3. Arrangements should be made for student to return home if at all possible.
4. If not possible for student to return home, a local GP should assess. If GP advises that the student fits the criteria for a possible Influenza A(H1N1)v case the student must remain in isolation for 7 days from onset of symptoms.
5. If student is very ill and requires immediate medical care, the GP or hospital should be phoned PRIOR to attending.
6. If the GP advises that the student does not fit the criteria for possible Influenza A (H1N1), normal procedures for looking after a sick student on a trip should be followed.

What is the advice to parents regarding student attendance?

While schools/colleges are open parents should send their children to school/college, in the normal way, unless they have any symptoms of Influenza A(H1N1)v.

Can a school/college close if there are high levels of staff absenteeism?

The normal rules in relation to staff absenteeism apply to Influenza A(H1N1)v.

Decisions to remain open or to close having regard to the unavailability of staff due to illness in the event of an outbreak of Influenza A(H1N1)v, are a matter for each individual school/college authority as is the case at present where any significant number of teachers are absent due to illness or the sudden onset of severe weather. Each school/college must assess the viability of remaining open having regard to the number of staff absent/available. The position of students that may already have arrived at school/college before the position on teacher absence becomes fully known should be taken into account. This may mean that in the case of a school, for example, it remains open on the day in question with the available staff carrying out a supervision role over the students where normal classroom and tuition activity is not possible.

Should schools/college invest in masks or cleaning products?

At this time, there is no requirement for schools/colleges to invest in masks or any specialised cleaning products or detergents. However, schools/colleges must ensure that adequate facilities for hand washing are available and routine cleaning of facilities takes place.

Educational institutions, as far as possible, should encourage and facilitate everyday actions that can help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like Influenza A(H1N1) including:

* Students should cover their mouth and nose with a paper tissue when coughing or sneezing. If no tissue is available they should cough or sneeze into the inside of their elbow. Students should use a tissue only once and dispose of it quickly and carefully (a dustbin is fine). This is respiratory etiquette. Waste, including used tissues, may be disposed of in the normal way. There is no need to take special precautions in the handling of such waste.

* Students should wash their hands with soap and water.

* Wash hard surfaces such as kitchen worktops, door handles, etc with a normal household cleaner as the virus can live on these surfaces.

Schools/Colleges can encourage good prevention awareness by putting up posters on respiratory etiquette and hand hygiene.

Where does responding to a flu pandemic fit in the context of wider emergency planning guidance?

Schools/colleges are reminded of the departmental advice provided in 2004 in relation to ensuring that they are included in emergency plan framework for their area. Copy of this departmental circular (PBU 04/04) is attached. http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/pbu04_04.doc

The key agency in relation to advice on a flu pandemic is the local Department of Public Health (HSE) and as advised many of the decisions regarding advice and actions will be taken locally by personnel from that office. For that reason it is important that your contact information is provided to the local Department of Public Health, if that has not been done previously.

What is the position if a student is due to take a State examination and becomes ill or is being monitored as a possible influenza case?

The State Examinations Commission (SEC) makes arrangements each year to accommodate examination candidates that are ill, injured, or where a student has to be isolated from other students. These arrangements include where appropriate, setting up special individual candidate centres and making arrangements for taking the examination in hospital. In this regard if a student scheduled to take the Leaving or Junior Certificate examinations is diagnosed with Influenza A(H1N1)v or, is being monitored as a suspected case, the SEC should be contacted in the normal way with any advice made available to the school by the health authorities.

How can schools/colleges keep up-to-date with developments?

Schools and colleges should keep themselves informed of developments regarding Influenza A(H1N1)v by checking the websites provided at the end of this information sheet.

Checklist of key actions that should be taken by Schools and Colleges.

(This should not be regarded as an exhaustive list but as complimentary to existing best practices in school relating to health, safety, and hygiene and existing procedures for notifying parents and students of decisions regarding school/college closures that occur at short notice).

* Keep up to date on advice issued by the health authorities.
* The Health Service Executive has already posted information to every household in the country on the Influenza A(H1N1)v. Schools/colleges can supplement this information by promoting good awareness throughout the school/college community.
* Place posters on hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette up in the school/college. Updated material and posters to assist educational facilities is available at http://www.hse.ie
* Make staff and students (especially at 2nd level and beyond) aware of the symptoms of Influenza A(H1N1)v.
* Make sure the school is part of the local areas emergency plan. See Departmental Circular PBU04/04.
* Update a list of key contacts in the event of a closure (and re-opening).
* Review procedures for communicating with staff and families in the event of a partial or full closure.
* Consider any arrangements that may be required for students with special needs.
* Plan, where possible, for staff absences and consider at what level a school/college may need to close where sufficient staff are not available.
* Identify the arrangements to be made for looking after pupils/students showing symptoms while waiting for parents to collect them.
Where can I get further information?

This information specific to the educational institutions will be kept updated, as further information becomes available. In the interim, further and updated information is available from a range of other websites including:

Department of Health and Children, that provides timely and regular advice and information – http://www.dohc.ie

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre – http://www.hpsc.ie

The Health Service Executive Swine Flu website – http://www.swineflu.ie

In relation to schools, the general position regarding school openings and closures is set out in department circulars 11/95, M29/95, and 107/2007, copies of which are attached.

Standard school year http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/cl0107_2007.doc

Primary Schools http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/PC11_95.doc

Post-Primary Schools http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/m29_95.doc

Current at 31st July 2009.

Taken from http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/influenza_information_for_educational_establishments.pdf

Courses.ie Makeover!

2009-08-24T11:25:00.004+01:00

We are changing our look and introducing loads of new features to Courses.ie. Be one of the first to hear all about the new features by signing up for our newsletter and be in with a chance to win an iPod!

We are so, so excited by the new developments we are jumping for joy!

CAO Points Pushed up by demand

2009-08-17T10:22:00.004+01:00

THOUSANDS of students will be bitterly disappointed today as they discover that points have risen for 550 college courses according to todays Irish Independent...

A record number of applicants has pushed up CAO points virtually across the board this year.

The increase will hit students with around 350 points in particular. They would previously have hoped they had enough points to get into their top choice in today’s first round of offers.

Popular courses such as nursing and teaching – regarded as passports to secure jobs – are all harder to get into this year.

Science has unexpectedly rocketed by up to 85 points, while entry to arts courses is up in most cases.

And the introduction of a controversial aptitude test for medicine this year has thrown up dramatic results, with girls and repeat students losing out badly.

Even some of those with six A1 grades – which is the maximum 600 points in the Leaving Certificate – had failed to get into medicine.

However, others succeeded with just 520 points because, for the first time, they can combine their Leaving with the results of the Australian-devised aptitude test which all medicine applicants had to take.

As a consequence of the change, dentistry has now emerged as the toughest course to get into – up to 575 on random selection in UCC, the equivalent of five A1s and one B3 on higher level papers. In Trinity, entry went from 555 to 570 on random selection.

Despite the current plight of farming, agricultural science has also gone up, as has food science in both UCD and UCC.

The points squeeze comes just days after pupils were left disappointed by the first fall in the number of top A grades in years.

But the sharp rise in points is caused by record numbers of applicants to the CAO.

These include 2,000 more Leaving Cert students than last year and more adults, many of whom have been made redundant. Fewer applications for property- related courses and law have, however, pushed down points in those areas.

And government attempts to boost engineering have yielded disappointing results – dozens of courses will advertise vacancies in engineering on the CAO website within days.

In total, 380 honours degree courses show an increase in points while 252 are lower, 83 remain the same and the remainder are not comparable or are new courses.

Of the ordinary degree and higher certificate courses, 166 were up, 89 were down, 33 remained the same and the remainder were not directly comparable or were new.

This year, overall applications to the CAO were up 7.2pc to just under 74,000. The increase reflects what’s happening in the country due to the recession, said John McGinnity, assistant registrar at NUI Maynooth.

“More adults have applied, and want to get a qualification either because they been made redundant or see the writing on the wall,” he said.

In addition, 2,000 more Leaving Cert students applied than last year. This was partly due to the closure of other non-CAO options, such as apprenticeships.

Arts

Applications for arts were up by 1,000 to just over 10,500, or one in every seven applications. As a result, points for arts were also up. Entry points in UCD for the country's biggest arts faculty, which takes in 1,300 students every year, went from 350 to 360; while in the University of Limerick, arts went from 440 to 445.

Maynooth's arts course now has a higher entry point than NUI Galway, Cork or Dublin. A spokesman for NUIM said the university had broadened its range of subjects to 26 to include law and business and this had proven very attractive to students.

“Many students have chosen a broadly based honours degree during this downturn in the economy, which will allow graduates choose from a range of work or further study options after graduation,” he said.

Other trends from this year’s first round were:

- Nearly half the nursing courses require 400 or more points.

- A poor year for engineering with a slight decrease in applications.

- Two popular business courses – in UCD and NUIG – are down in points, but up in TCD and UCC. The CAO said last night that in round one, 46,918 of all 73,982 applicants received an offer – 63pc of total applicants – as compared with 67.6pc of all applicants in 2008.

Those who did not receive an offer included more than 4,000 who failed ordinary level maths which is needed for most courses.

The figures also show that fewer applicants got their top preferences this year compared with last year.

Of those applying for honours degrees, 26,832 applicants (76.9pc) received either their first, second or third preference as compared with 79pc in 2008.

Already this year 6,922 applicants have received offers in the small earlier Rounds A and Zero, which are mainly for mature applicants, students who deferred a place last year, and some applicants presenting with Further Education and Training Council qualifications for Post Leaving Certificate and other courses.

To date, 5,094 of these (7pc of all applicants) have accepted places.

At this time last year, 3,824 acceptances had accepted offers, representing 5.5pc of total applicants.

- John Walshe and Katherine Donnelly - The article in the Irish Independent

Personally, the fact that the CAO site is not updated constantly with news and information concerning the points situation, only adds to the stress and anxiety of our students, maybe next year they will remedy the situation.

New Masters degree in security and digital forensics

2009-08-17T09:40:00.005+01:00

The Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown has launched a new degree course that has been inspired by the rising tide of cybercrime. 98pc of all Irish organisations have experienced incidents of cybercrime according to Silicon Republic.com

They continue to say that the programme is one of three streams in a Masters in Computing (Business Data Mining and Software Engineering are the other two) qualifying for government subsidy and has a number of free places allocated for jobseekers. Full course information is available on www.itb.ie

You can read the full article on Siliconrepublic.com

Leaving Cert Results Out Today

2009-08-12T10:41:00.005+01:00

Fingers crossed and good luck to all Leaving Cert students who are either eagerly or anxiously awaiting their results today. There is life after the Leaving Cert!

Results are also available online from noon today at www.examinations.ie

For those who shared their thoughts on Leaving Cert.net do let us all know how you got on!

Student Helpline from the National Parents Council will be in operation at 10am on Wednesday 12th of August

Helpline Phone Number: 1800 265 165

Points calculator and further information courtesy of CAO

* Bonus points for Leaving Certificate Higher Level Mathematics will be awarded in 2008 by University of Limerick and for Liberal Arts (MI004) and Early Childhood Care and Education (MI007) at Mary Immaculate College. The Dublin Institute of Technology also awards bonus points for Mathematics and a number of science subjects in the case of the Level 8 course DT021. Applicants should refer to DIT literature for full details.

# Points for Foundation Level Mathematics will be awarded by certain institutions. Applicants should refer to the HEI literature for full details.

NCAD does not award points for Leaving Certificate or other examinations. Consult NCAD literature for details.

Accompanying conditions:

1. The six best results, in recognised subjects, in one Leaving Certificate Examination will be counted for points computation.
2. One sitting only of the Leaving Certificate Examination will be counted for points purposes.
3. In the case of certain subjects, e.g. Home Economics (General), Foundation Level Mathematics or Foundation Level Irish, some HEIs may not award the points shown above. If in any doubt, check with the Admissions Office of the appropriate HEIs.

# LCVP points awarded: Distinction - 70, Merit - 50, Pass - 30

Top 7 social networking sites our children use

2009-08-11T07:40:00.004+01:00

Parents arrive and our teenagers leave? Sound familiar? Well it seems it applies to Twitter and Facebook also. We adults start using these sites and our children find somewhere else to hang out, according to the Times Online.

I am not so sure that the sites listed are where our teenagers are hanging out. Quite a few of the sites listed would suit a younger age group where as Twitter, Facebook, etc are for the older teenager.

Would you agree? Where do you think your children are hanging out online?

5,000 vacancies the IT sector

2009-08-10T12:24:00.002+01:00

Yet the CAO (Central Applications Office) report the number of applicants for engineering and technology degree courses was down by 9.8pc on last year. Why is that?

According to the experts, changing the way our education system works is vital if we are to encourage young people to take up professions such as IT and engineering that will benefit our smart economy, reports Silicon Republic in their article Learning our Lesson.

Learning a new language opens your mind!

2009-07-23T10:49:00.007+01:00

We are delighted to welcome the first of a number of guest writers to the Courses.ie Learning Blog.

Starting off our series of guest articles is Liz Hannon from Languagewise.

To learn a new language is an acknowledgement that you are willing to embrace the people and culture of another nation. Through learning how to speak the language of another country or state you will not only gain a better understanding of the attitudes of another group of people with a different social, historical and political background to your own but you will also gain an insight into their sense of humour.

To be able to even say a few words of greeting in a foreign language is a great ice breaker and an act of friendship. It shows that you are reaching out to someone of another nationality and are keen to know more about them , their language and culture.

It can be fun learning the different idiomatic expressions and discovering that something that "costs an arm and a leg" translates in French to "it costs the eyes in your head" or that "you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear" translates in Spanish to "although a monkey looks like its made of silk, it is still a monkey" !

Absolutely anyone can learn a new language. A lot of people say " I am not good at languages" or "I hated French in school" and from a bad learning experience close themselves off to the idea of learning a new language and feel that they they are not capable. Well they are wrong!! There is no mystery to learning a language. If there was how does a one year old child start speaking!

Once you have a qualified and experienced teacher (preferably a native speaker), they will guide you quite literally from A to Z! It is the experience of the teacher that allows them to interact with a student effectively to make them feel at ease and to progress at a pace that suits the student. Just like learning to swim or ride a bike absolutely anyone can do it and all it takes is practice!

Learning a language is one of the most positive steps one can take in life and enriches the learner who through their experience can open up a whole new world of travel and making friends in a different country. It is a pursuit that transcends age and class and unites people.

Learn a language and broaden your possibilities in life!

On a personal note, I think you also have to be prepared for some laughter as you find your way around accents and nuances of a new language. I was chatting to some friends who were helping me to learn Swedish by webcam and messenger. I had them hooting with laughter as I replied to what they were saying. I thought I was typing, 'I hear you', but it turned out to be something else entirely as I had forgotten to put an accent in the correct place! It was a great lesson as I have never forgotten and won't make that mistake again! What I did discover though was not to be nervous of making mistakes, because when I did (and do) it is beneficial and I found myself enjoying the experience even more.

If this article wets your appetite to explore another language and culture during the Autumn evenings Languagewise deliver courses in a wide range of languages for both business and personal interest, on a day or evening class schedule.

5th Year Student states "Guillotining in the Dáil"

2009-07-20T11:52:00.003+01:00

Not old enough to vote yet but political parties take note, the students of Ireland are watching you closely if this blog post is anything to go by....

That time of the year again. Lots of work to be done but no time to do it. The holidays of TD’s and Brian Cowen’s tan takes precedence over the few dozen bills before the house in the coming days. Recently we’ve seen other problems in the Dáil with the house suspended for 3 hours one afternoon after TD’s ran out of things to say. The Seanad is the house that everyone talks about as being in need of reform however everyone forgets that the main house is just as flawed. Here’s some changes I believe will make things run better in the national parliament..........Read his suggestions at http://short.ie/7raa7c

Polish to be taught in NI Schools

2009-07-20T11:17:00.003+01:00

Children as young as four will be taught Polish in Northern Ireland primary schools from September, it was revealed yesterday.

According to the Belfast Telegraph:

The aim of the language programme is to offer an enjoyable experience of language learning for the youngest pupils with a view to encouraging more to continue at post-primary level.

So far 25 schools have signed up to have a tutor provided for their Primary 1-4 classes under a scheme funded by the Department of Education. During the last school year 247 primary schools had regular Spanish lessons and 76 Irish lessons.

Do you think this is option to be considered by the rest of Ireland?

Stop Press! The Adult Learning Festival dates are out!

2009-07-02T21:55:00.002+01:00

Aontas - The Adult Learning Festival 2010 is coming to a venue near you! The festival will take place from February 2nd to February 6th 2009!

The Adult Learners' Festival is about

* Celebrating adult learning and the achievements of adult learners
* Showcasing the work of adult education providers
* Promoting the work of AONTAS and the adult education sector
* Ensuring that adult education is placed firmly on the political agenda

Aontas exists to promote the development of a learning society through the provision of a quality and comprehensive system of adult learning and education which is accessible to and inclusive to all.

Check the Adult Learning Festival site for information on courses being run as part of the festival which may tweak your fancy to go along and try.

Course Providers - If you are involved in community or adult education, why not organise an event during the festival? You will get publicity for your group’s activities, help to raise awareness about the value of adult learning, and be part of a national event which celebrates the achievements of adult learners all around the country. Contact your local Aontas link here

Email Aontas at mail@aontas.com or phone them on 01 406 8220

They will include details about your event, and send you out posters and other publicity material for your event.

Adult Learning - Something worth celebrating!

CAO site up and running as normal

2009-06-27T15:49:00.001+01:00

The CAO website crashed yesterday evening and went off line. It is now fixed and up and running as normal.

Students have till July 1st, which is Wednesday to go online for the change of mind though the CAO.

Hyperwords - such a handy plugin

2009-06-14T11:11:00.004+01:00

Reading the Times Online announcing Microsoft's Bing Search Engine

The two biggest names in technology are set to slug it out over the coming weeks in a $20 billion (£12 billion) battle for web supremacy. In one corner is Google, the dominant player in online searches; in the other is Microsoft, the world’s biggest software company. Microsoft is poised to launch Bing, a new search engine it says will give more useful results and end its rival’s hegemony.

I admit to not being sure what the word 'hegemony' means. Instead of having to look for the dictionary (which I don't always have to hand, or opening another tab to access an online dictionary) I just double click on the word and thanks to a plug in called Hyperwords, I have the meaning in seconds without leaving the page.

From Ancient Greek ἡγεμονία (hēgemonia), “‘supremacy or leadership, chief command’”) < ἡγεμόν (hegemon), “‘a leader, guide, commander, chief’”) < ἡγεισθαι (hegeisthai), “‘to lead’”) < αγειν (agein), “‘to lead’”).

I can translate the word into French, hégémonie, into Arabic سيطرة, and replaces the original word in the text with the translated word.

There are a number of other different functions that it carries out, but what a godsend just for its translation and reference features alone!

Exam Help

2009-06-11T16:56:00.001+01:00

RTE - Have a very helpful site with all the latest advice via podcasts, blogs, message boards. Check it out.

Can everybody learn something new?

2009-05-21T11:57:00.001+01:00

Let's see what Stephen Fry has to say about it.....

Creative Thinking: Stephen Fry: Learning

Can you help?

2009-05-06T12:06:00.002+01:00

Rainforests around the world are being destroyed at an alarming rate. This is increasingly due to destructive logging operations and conversion of the land for farming use. RainforestSOS states. An online campaign asks for our help.

Please put your name to the list using the widget on the right. Thank You.

And we wonder.......

2009-04-27T11:32:00.001+01:00

Taken from the Drogheda Independent

Wednesday April 22 2009

Dear Sir,
I RECENTLY had a long conversation with a friend of mine who lost his job. He was in a reasonably good job and after a little bit of overtime was earning a gross salary of € 35,000 per year.

So I asked him the obvious question of how he was going to cope now with four children to feed and I have to be honest the answer startled me, he was actually a lot better off and now in a position to go out golfing every day when his children are at school.

Frankly I did not believe him until I sat down and did the sums.

On a salary of € 35,000 his annual net income after the mini budget was € 28,854, after all deductions.

Now he's on the supplementary welfare allowance which, with a wife and four children, gives you € 443.90 per week or € 23,083 annually.

As he also has a mortgage he is entitled to mortgage interest supplement which pays all the interest on your mortgage so in his case € 1,200 per month of his € 1,500 mortgage or € 14,400 per annum.

He is also entitled to back to school and footwear payment of € 905 per year for four children, a medical card which we will say is worth on average say € 500 per year (probably more) and a heating supplement which I cannot quantify.

In total he now therefore has tax free income of € 38,888, an increase in his net income of € 10,034 per year working on his handicap.

Based on the calculations after the mini Budget you would need to earn more than € 47,000 per year if you have four children to justify continuing to work. Now this is even before the costs of working like petrol, car maintenance, tolls, lunches etc.

Now in any civilised society and especially a society in a deep recession with a huge welfare bill surely the Government must give people an incentive to go out and work.

Making the child benefit taxable or means

for golf tested later this year is just going to make the situation far worse and encourage more people to give up work and rely on the state to live.

It could even drive our small economy to collapse as the welfare bill gets bigger and bigger as more people, including myself, say why should I bother to go out to work when it is basically costing me money to work?

The country needs to get back to basics, to a system that encourages people to get up off their backside to work, encourages people to take risks, set up businesses, enterprise rather than encourage people to rely on the state.

Unless something radically changes I will be joining my mate on the golf course very soon.

More Please

2009-04-25T15:17:00.005+01:00

Another brilliant show, Boston Legal bites the dust. There is a dearth of really good shows out there that can engage the mind rather than vacant it.

I love the writing, the acting and the fact that it makes me think as I watch, it also educates me, and can have me running the gamut of emotions all in 40 minutes.

James Spader explains Scientology in an episode;

Another programme I am hooked on is The Wire. Again both the writing and acting is superb. This series has just started on BBC 2. I had tried before to watch it, but found the American Projects and drug dealers slang hard to grasp. This time I turned on subtitles and it was so much better and I am glad I did otherwise I would have lost on on following this terrific series.

Here, one of the drug dealers explains how to play chess by using the allegory of the hierarchy of the drug dealers and the running of their operation.

There is only so much time I have available to watch shows, RTE have released the Beta version of their Player and I am enjoying it. The quality is excellent. I do have a fast broadband connection but I think anyone with 1mb+ should be fine.

I caught up with The Best of The Panel today :-) I hope this player does not disappear for long before they bring out the final version.

Believe in yourself

2009-04-18T14:17:00.003+01:00

Count me in as one of the millions that have watched Susan Boyle's rendition of I Dream a Dream (from my favourite musical Les Mis). (Currently this version has been seen over 25 million times!)

Don't you just love the fact that she is an everyday woman, a woman you would see all over Ireland. Yet for all the knocks she has received in life she had a belief in herself and a dream to honour her Mother, and did she ever! It was wonderful.

I found another recording that she did 10 years ago and her diction today as then is one of the reasons I enjoyed her singing so much. I find many singers today have little sense of diction and it ruins my pleasure in listening. Susan Boyle sings Cry Me a River, stunning, even on You Tube.

Twittering

2009-04-08T14:49:00.003+01:00

We have just added Twitter to our sidebar where you can follow all the latest happenings on Courses.ie!

As providers update their listings with new courses or events we will be letting you know as soon as it happens.

New articles? Get to hear about it first by following us on Twitter. Look forward to seeing you there. www.twitter.com/courses

New Fourth Level Education Announcement

2009-03-11T17:28:00.002Z

New fourth level education proposal to create thousands of jobs

According to the Irish Independent

Wednesday March 11 2009

The Taoiseach has unveiled a major new initiative between the country's top two universities, aimed at creating thousands of jobs over the next ten years.

Trinity College and UCD are teaming up to create what has been described as a new fourth level academy, similar in concept to the IFSC in Dublin.

Up to one thousand graduates will be trained every year in specialised areas, in a bid to promote innovation and entrepreneurship.

It is estimated that this will result in the creation of around 300 new enterprises in this country over the next ten years.

The winners & losers in course choices this year

2009-03-10T08:52:00.002Z

In today's Irish Times, they have given a run down on the course choices students are making according to the CAO.

The big winner this year is science where demand for higher level degree is up by 20 per cent. The Government and business leaders will be delighted with this trend, which reverses years of steep decline.

The bad news for Leaving Cert students is that CAO points for science courses are set to rise because of the increased demand.

The other big winner this year is agriculture where demand for courses is up by almost 50 per cent, reflecting confidence about the long term security of employment in the food industry and in agriculture.

Physics for the leaving Cert

2009-03-03T20:57:00.002Z

For those of you studying physics, here is a wonderful site with lots of notes and great advice from the physicsteacher.ie

According to his blog;

For each chapter I have included all past exam questions, which can be cross-referenced with the relavant marking-scheme which is also included. Also included is a copy of the associated extracts from the syllabus - this gives the students the responsibility of checking up on me to ensure I have everything covered before moving on to the next chapter.

There is also plenty of “extra-credit” material tucked in at the end to help address many of the conceptual difficulties which students (and teachers!) have; these also help to set the historical and social context of many of the discoveries. Science is after all a very human activity, dispite what you might think from the text-books and syllabus.

I would hope that students outside of my own school would find these useful, particulary those who don’t have a specialised Physics teacher should find it to be a useful resourse to help them help themselves.

Some would see the decision to allow the students to see their test in advance to be somehow ‘cheating’, but for me it helps overcome one of the biggest obstacles facing many students who may not be in the top bracket; they simply don’t know what to learn. I have found with this new approach that hard-working students who are of average ability have gone from 50% to 75% since I introduced the option. It doesn’t change those at the top; the A-students still get their A’s, while at the other end those determined to do as little as possible still continue to achieve results which reflect this.

But I’m delighted with this practice. We spend at least one class and maybe two going over these questions at the end of each chapter and before I give them the test. Then I simply pick ten questions from the list, while altering the numbers in the maths questions. After seven years of leaving-cert questions (2002 - 2009) there is a pretty comprehensive bank of questions there, so I don’t believe it is giving students an inflated sense of their own worth.

But as an incentive to prepare for class tests and greater student participation it is working like a dream. I’m not too proud to say that I’m thrilled with my work!

Courses.ie leading the way....again :-)

2009-03-02T20:01:00.004Z

They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery.

It is both a compliment and interesting to see sites older than ours recognise that we have raised the benchmark and are now incorporating features that we, Courses.ie, introduced and felt should be taken as standard.

Watch out for more as we start to introduce some of the changes and new features you have told us that you want to see.

Furniture Design in Ireland

2009-02-26T12:08:00.014Z

Just imagine if you designed a chair and it sold for over 22 million and went into the history books as the most expensive piece of design in the world! Well that is what happened to Irish designer Eileen Gray. 23 years after she has died and over 90 years since it was designed. It was in the collection of Yves Saint Laurent which is currently being sold in Paris. (Photo courtesy of the Irish Independent) The National Museum had the foresight to purchase her private collection of papers and furniture from her apartment in Paris. They are now on permanent exhibition in in the Museum. Gray died at the age of 98 yet many of her designs would not look out of place in this contemporary age. If you might like to follow in her footsteps and learn furniture design or study design there are many colleges around the country that run design courses, below is a list while not exhaustive, will help you get started. If you would like a college added to the list please let us know. Photos of the Yves Saint Laurent auction at Christies are on Flickr. COLLECTION YVES SAINT LAURENT ET PIERRE BERGE Catelogue Athlone Institute of Technology	www.ait.ie
BA (Hons) in Design Communications (3yrs ab initio) BA (Hons) in Design (Visual Communications) (4yrs ab initio) BA (Hons) in Design (Multimedia Studies) (1yr add-on)
Carlow Institute of Technology	www.itcarlow.ie
BA in Industrial Design BA (Hons) in Industrial Design BA (Hons) in Product Design Innovation
Cork Institute of Technology	www.cit.ie
BA (Hons) in Multimedia (4yrs ab initio) BDes in Design Communication (3yrs ab initio) BDes (Hons) in Visual Communications (1yr)
Crawford College	www.cit.ie
BA in Ceramic Design BA (Hons) in Ceramic Design Higher Diploma in Arts (Art & Design Education)
Dublin Institute of Technology	www.dit.ie
BDes in Visual Communication BDes in Interior and Furniture Certificate Design Display BSc Product Design National Certificate in Design Studies BSc in Architecture
Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology	www.iadt.ie
BA (Hons) in Animation BA in Design (Model-Making for Film & Media) BA (Hons) in Design (Visual Communication) BA (Hons) in Film & TV Production BSc (Hons) in Psychology Applied to Information Technology BEng in Digital Media Technology Higher Certificate in Arts (Make-Up for Film, TV & Theatre)
Grafton Academy	www.graftonacademy.com
Diploma in Fashion Design (3yrs)
Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology	www.gmit.ie
BA in Art & Design BA in Art & Design (P/T) BA (Hons) in Textile Design BSc in Furniture Design & Manufacture BSc in Furniture Production & Technology BSc (Hons) in Product Design (Furniture) BSc (Hons) in Manufacturing Technology (Furniture) BSc (Hons) in Design & Technology Education
Griffith College Dublin	www.gcd.ie
BA in Interior Design BA in Interior Architecture BA (Hons) in Interior Architecture Diploma in Interior Design (2yrs)
Letterfrack Furniture College (GMIT)	www.gmit.ie
BSc in Furniture Technology National Certificate in Furniture Design & Manufacture National Certificate in Furniture Production National Diploma in Furniture Conservation & Restoration
Limerick Institute of Technology	www.lit.ie
First Year Art & Design BA (Hons) in Product Design (Level 8) BA (Hons) in Fashion Design (Level 8) BA (Hons) in Design (Visual Communications) (Level 8)
Letterkenny Institute of Technology	www.lyit.ie
BA in Graphic Design BA in Industrial Design BA (Hons) in Design Media, Design & Production
National College of Art and Design	www.ncad.ie
BA in History (Art, Design & Craft) BA in History (Art, Design & Fashion) BA in History (Art, Design & Textile) BA in History (Art, Design & Visual Communication) BA in Art & Design Education BDes in Visual Communication BDes in Fashion Design BDes in Textile Design BDes in Industrial Design BDes in Craft Design (Ceramics, Glass & Metals) HDip in Art & Design Education
NUI Maynooth	www.nuim.ie
Degree in Product Design (4yrs) BA/BSc in Multimedia
Queen's University Belfash	www.qub.ac.uk
BSc in Architecture (3yrs) BSc in Creative Multimedia (4yrs) BEng in Product Design & Development (3yrs) MEng in Product Design & Development (4yrs)
Sligo Institute of Technology	www.itsligo.ie
BA in Industrial Design BA (Hons) in Industrial Design BA in Interior Architecture (ab initio) BA (Hons, add-on) in Interior Architecture
University College Cork (UCC)	www.ucc.ie
BSc (Hons) in Architecture (4yrs) Run jointly with CIT
University College Dublin (UCD)	www.ucd.ie
BSc in Architectural Science (3yrs)
University of Limerick	www.ul.ie
BSc (Hons) in Digital Media Design BSc (Hons) in Product Design & Technology BEng in Computer Aided Engineering & Design Bachelor of Architecture
University of Ulster	www.ulster.ac.uk
BA (Hons) in Architecture BA (Hons) in Art & Design BA (Hons) in Textiles & Fashion Design BDes (Hons) in Design & Communication BDes (Hons) for Visual Communication BDes (Hons) in Interior, Industrial & Furniture Design BDes (Hons) in 3D Design (Interior, Product & Furniture) BSc (Hons) in Interactive Multimedia Design BSc (Hons) in Multimedia Computing & Design BSc (Hons) in Technology with Design BSc (Hons) in Technology with Design (with Integrated Foundation Year) PgD/MSc in Computing & Design PgD/MDes in Design Communication Foundation Studies in Art & Design (Diploma) CertHE in Interior Design PhD/MPhil in Arts & Design
Waterford Institute of Technology	www.wit.ie
BA (Hons) in Design (Visual Communication) (4yrs)

Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Tuesday

2009-02-24T08:55:00.006Z

Today is Shrove Tuesday - the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. It is so called because it was the day on which people were ‘shriven’ or absolved of their sins prior to Lent.

The word shrove is the past tense of the English verb shrive, which means to obtain absolution for one's sins by way of Confession and doing penance. Thus Shrove Tuesday gets its name from the shriving that English Christians were expected to do prior to receiving absolution immediately before Lent begins.

Shrove Tuesday is also known as Pancake Tuesday, because traditionally pancakes were made on this day. Many people in Ireland (and elsewhere) still enjoy celebrating ‘Pancake Tuesday’ by making pancakes. The reason for associating pancakes with Shrove Tuesday is that they use up the fresh items from the larder – items which could not be eaten during the period of Lent, as it was a time of abstinence.

Odlums, one of Irelands longest manufacturers of flour run Odlums Pancake Party in aid of The Children's Hospital in Tallaght. You host a party any time between the 20th and 24th February by inviting family, friends, work colleagues, to your home, school, community centre or work place. The idea is to have some fun while raising money for a worthy cause. They have pancake recipes on the website; traditional, easy and easier!

I am the traditional type with sugar and lemons, but there are various methods of pancakes from different countries, maybe instead of traditional you might like to try Griddle (from America) Crepes (from France) or Bellinis (from Russia). Have fun :-)

Nowadays we don't have to use up all the fresh items in the larder but many people still want to atone, offer up, do penance, by giving up something they enjoy for the Lenten period. Be it chocolate, sugar, alcohol or cigarettes. For years in homes around the country many school children brought home the Trócaire Box. The idea being that what you would have spent on chocolate, sugar, alcohol or cigarettes you put in to the Trócaire Box instead. In that way you are helping not only yourself but also people in the Third world.

Trócaire state on their website;

Lent is our most important fundraising and awareness building period. Each year during Lent we highlight particular challenges facing people in the developing world and encourage the public to take action through campaigning and by raising funds through our Trócaire box.

In our home my son has taken to making the pancakes (and Mum gets to clean up after!!) so enjoy Pancake Tuesday and try not to leave the pancake on the ceiling when you have the toss the pancake competition! :-)

A-Z using British Sign Language

2009-02-23T20:53:00.000Z

British Sign Language:How To Sign The Alphabet Using British Sign Language

Eight Toughest Interview Questions

2009-02-21T23:33:00.000Z

Paul MacKenzie-Cummins for CareerBuilder.co.uk

Interviews are designed to do just one thing: identify the best possible candidate for the advertised job. And sometimes it may feel that the questions being asked have been designed to deliberately catch you out or make you question whether you are up to the job or not.

But that's not their intention. Some questions aim to establish how well you cope under pressure, others will be to reveal your personality or to see what your career aspirations are. Just remember that there is no need to draw a blank or clam up if you have done your research and preparation beforehand.

If you want to avoid an interview disaster, here are some of the toughest interview questions and their suggested responses.

Q: "Tell me about yourself"

This is perhaps the most open-ended question of them all and is typically used by interviewers as a warm-up question to give you the opportunity to shine. But resist the temptation to start talking about your life history. What your interviewer is looking for is a quick two or three minute snapshot of who you are and why you are the best candidate for the job. So keep your response relevant to the position you are applying for. For example:

A: I started my media sales career five years ago as a telesales representative, rising through the ranks before gaining promotion to sales manager three years later. I am now responsible for training and developing a team of 15 sales consultants that are currently the company's best performing sales team.

Q: "What are your salary expectations?"

You should have done some research into the average salary and remuneration that this type of position will pay. Try to deflect the question by turning it around and asking the interviewer about the salary on offer. Typically, they will start with a lower figure than they are prepared to offer because they want to keep their costs down. So if you are pressed to give a number, its best to give a range to avoid pricing yourself out of contention. For example:

A: I'm sure whatever salary you're paying is consistent with the rest of the market average of £23,000 to £25,000.

Q: "Why should we hire you"

This can be a killer question and can make or break your chances of winning the job. And how you answer will depend on how well you have probed your interviewer about their requirements and expectations. So what the interviewer is really asking you is, What can you do for my business? Your response needs to answer that question. For example:

A: As I understand your needs, you are first and foremost looking for someone who can increase your advertising sales and has experience of managing a sales team. I have a proven track record in successfully managing and developing my territory within this sector, having increased my sales from £150,000 to £210,000 over the last two years alone.

Q: "If you were a car ... tree ... animal what would you be?"

Baffling though it may seem, some interviewers still insist on asking silly questions, such as If you were a car, what type of car would you be and why? There are no right or wrong answers. The interviewer is simply testing your reactions under pressure to see how you will cope with the unexpected in an attempt to gain an insight into your personality and how you view yourself. Don't get hung up on the implications of what type of car you say you would be, just be mindful that you will be expected to explain your choice. For example:

A: I would probably be a 1962 Alpha Romeo Spider -- classy, stylish, driven and fast off the mark

Q: "Why did you leave your last job?"

You know this question will be asked at some stage, so have your answer ready in advance. The rule of thumb is to always remain positive about your current and previous employers because you never know when your paths may cross again. Besides, who are you going to turn to for a reference? For example:

A: I learned a lot from my previous employer and enjoyed my time there. However, promotional opportunities were few and far between and I am keen to advance my career sooner rather than later.

Q: "What are your weaknesses?"

Career manuals abound with ways to tackle this question. And most of them seem to suggest that you should take one of your strengths and portray it as a weakness. For instance, I work too much. But this will actually work against rather than work for you because it may imply that you do not organise your workload effectively, or that you have poor time management skills. Instead, opt for a genuine weakness. For example:

A: I used to struggle to plan and prioritorise my workload. However, I have taken steps to resolve this and now I have started using a planning tool and diary system on my laptop.

Q: "What motivates you?"

Short of telling your interviewer that you are motivated by the prospect of earning a footballer's salary, driving a Bentley or having a holiday home in St Tropez, try and give a constructive answer that will excite your interviewer into understanding what benefit you will bring to his business. For example:

A: I get a real kick out of seeing my team exceed their sales targets and completing the project on time and within budget.

Q: "How would your former colleagues describe you?"

This is a sure sign that the interviewer likes you and is already thinking about contacting your previous employer for a reference. And this is the time when you realise how important it is to choose your referees carefully. So answer this question in the way that you would like to think your employer would respond. For example:

A: I have an excellent working relationship with my manager and we have mutual respect for each other. He considers me to be hard working, dedicated, reliable and able to work well using my own initiative.

Essential Maintenance

2009-02-17T10:10:00.001Z

Please excuse the inconvenience but Courses.ie will be down today for a couple of hours due to essential maintenance.

Thank you

Core Skills and Up Skills - a debate

2009-02-14T17:14:00.010Z

Thanks to Bernie over at Inside View posting about Core Skills in Ireland. He discusses the post 'Core skills not up skills' by Chris Horn, who says

"There's some considerable debate here in Ireland about the need to "up skill" our economy, in the light of loss of jobs to lower cost economies. I however contend that there is not so much a need to "up skill", but to "core skill" - to get back to fundamentals and thus ensure that we have a solid foundation of lifetime skills."

I feel there is a need to do both. We cannot ignore the fact that many workers now need to gain more skills if they wish to be in demand as ongoing or future employees. I see his point and fully agree that core skills are being neglected in primary and post primary schools. Getting back to basics now will only allow us to see the benefit in our children in 10 years time.

Horn says

" Our young people should be able to reason, to deduce and derive, to correlate and spot patterns, to explore and to be inquisitive, and to be articulate and confident. In my humble view, these are more life centric skills than learning facts and perspectives by rote: knowing something off by heart, but not understanding why, why not, and so what. Skills taught in schools should be for life. There are many things which can be learnt during adulthood, but some skills which are difficult to learn without a solid foundation during the teens and 20s."

Maths and science is where Horn is leading and feels our students are being let down by the education system that fails to take more of an interest in these skills.

In Britain Carol Voderman is being suggested as a Maths czar as a means of getting students interested in Maths, and there is an American TV police show 'Numbers' that is fascinating with the way it shows how we interact with numbers every day of our lives. The site explains the maths in the series and also has a weekly maths puzzle, well worth exploring.

Bernie Goldbach of Inside View states,

I know that many of the asipiring programmers have weak mathematical skills. Many do not program in second level education, so learning programming is like learning another language. Some first year students do not think logically and expect their third level education will remedy their deficiencies. Third level is often too late in the education cycle. Taking a page out of Chris Horn's blog, the primary level is where the skills start--in mathematics classrooms. Then those skills continue into second level, with an expectation that geometry, trigonometry and calculus get sound coverage. From what I see entering third level, I think there are serious core skills shortfalls in Ireland and I don't believe those shortfalls will be remedied during the current recession.

Bernie Goldbach is a lecturer in Tipperary Institute.

Teachers, things can only improve

2009-02-14T12:39:00.006Z

Despite all the doom and gloom around us our children will still need to be educated and "students should not be too quick to abandon the profession, because of the current shortage of jobs." So says the article in the Irish Independent.

While the start of the article would make you wonder why anyone would go into education as a career following the budget it does go on to say...

Demographic trends suggest that more teachers will be needed in Ireland in the coming years.
The number of school pupils in Ireland is expected to grow by more than 50,000 over the next five years, and unless class sizes are increased dramatically, staff will have to be hired to teach them.
Moira Leyden, the assistant general secretary of ASTI, says: "We are very concerned about the increase in pupil-teacher ratios, and the fact that there will be job losses.
"The long-term trend is an increase in population over the next five or six years, and ultimately there will have to be jobs for teachers coming on stream so that these children can be taught. There are still plans to open new schools, and these will need teachers.''
In the second-level sector, employment prospects also vary according to subject areas.
Those who specialise in English, history and business studies are finding it much tougher than those with degrees in maths and Irish. Aspiring teachers can also improve their chances of securing steady work when they are on placement by showing enthusiasm and dedication, and becoming involved in the school's extra-curricular activities.
Ultimately, the trainee who directs the school play or coaches two hurling teams will be seen as a greater asset to a school.
The full article can be read here

How to treat the mocks - a life saver

2009-02-10T13:34:00.002Z

An excellent article appeared in the Irish Times by Brian Mooney on how to treat the Mocks. It could be your life saver.

Don't throw it all away - your mock exam papers that is. They can tell you more about the gaps you need to fill before the State exams this summer than anything else.

At the end of the mock examination process, you will have the most valuable resource possible in the form of the corrected scripts returned to you. These will help you to improve your results in the State examinations in June. Many of you will simply deposit these scripts deep in your school bag, where they will never see the light of day again. If you take this course of action, your mocks have been of little real value to you.

Your corrected scripts are a road map to your best possible result in June. They contain within them all of the evidence of what you did well and what you did badly.

YOUR CORRECTED MOCK EXAM SCRIPTS WILL TELL YOU

* Where you allocated time appropriately to each section of each question
* Where you addressed the question asked, or where you drifted into writing irrelevant material which only had some loose association with the question.
* Where nerves and stress led you to answer poorly, when a more careful approach could have paid rich dividends.
* How prepared you are to meet the standard of answering required in June.
* To conclude, how you analyse the feedback you receive will determine whether your mocks act as a catalyst for a greatly improved performance in June or are a wasted opportunity.

HOME ECONOMICS SOCIAL AND SCIENTIFIC

* Study the following topics in detail: proteins, lipids, vitamins and minerals, carbohydrates and water.
* Food commodities: alternative proteins (their nutritive and dietetic value), meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk and milk products, cereals, nuts, fruit and vegetables, fats and oils.
* Food labelling, food preservation, food additives, food hygiene, and food safety. National Agencies for food study/food hygiene legislation (HACCP) ISO 9000.
* Household technologies, large and small appliances.
* Consumer studies and consumer laws, components of management (inputs, outputs and throughputs).
* Types of mortgage, forms of credit and savings schemes.
* With regard to your chosen elective, practise past paper questions and check your answer against the marking schemes available on www.examinations.ie
* Finally, practise both short and long questions, on past examination papers.

GEOGRAPHY

* Practise previous examination questions and use the State Examination Commission marking schemes to check the quality of your work.
* Core questions: In answering these questions ensure that you are able to refer to appropriate case studies at both national and international levels.
* Attempt all of the short questions, as you will be marked out of your best eight.
* In physical geography study a “landform question”.
* Study the three topics of rivers, seas and glaciers. You must study one of them in detail and prepare a case study of the human interaction with that topic.
* Memorise regional geography, primary, secondary and tertiary activities.
* Ensure that you are able to identify all surface landforms by name or from a diagram.
* Elective questions: At the beginning of fifth year, you will have chosen either human or economic geography as your elective. If you have chosen human geography, you should revise population as overpopulation is a commonly occurring topic.
* Settlement: Settlement patterns – site, situation, function, map and photograph skills are other topics you should be familiar with.
* Optional geography question: This is an essay-type question for higher-level students. Practise writing a number of appropriate essays in your chosen optional area. You will be working on one of the following topics in your geography class in school: geo-ecology, global interdependence, culture and identity, and the atmosphere-ocean environment. Ensure that you have a clear structure to your work, which deals with three to four aspects of the topic and identify seven to eight significant relevant points on each aspect.
* The written paper makes up 80 per cent of the overall marks. Leaving Certificate geography students have until April to complete their Geographical Investigation, which will be assessed outside the written examination.

HISTORY

* Ensure that you complete your work on the research topic as soon as possible.
* Develop a regular pattern of revision- at least four 40-minute sessions weekly.
* Draw up outline plans for all of the essays you are preparing.
* You should now be at the stage where you can write full essays in approximately 40 minutes, without the use of textbooks or notes.
* Prepare answers for a possible contextualisation question in the documents section of the examination paper.
* At this stage, it is often not possible to revise every topic. Ensure that the topics you do revise are done in some detail. For example if you are revising Home Rule within Irish history, you need to cover every aspect of the topic.

BIOLOGY

Familiarise yourself with the structure of the paper and the application of the marking scheme.

Short questions

Practise the short questions on both past exam papers and on sample papers.

Experiments

Revise all of the experiments you have done in fifth and sixth year, which will be examined in section B of the paper.

Long questions

* Go back over the definitions you have learnt and practise writing them out.
* Always be careful to ensure that you are addressing the question asked.
* Plant biology is a section of the course you should study carefully.
* You should consider answering questions 14 and 15 as they will offer you choices within the question.
* Practise drawing the diagrams you have studied and ensure that you label them accurately.
* Concentrate on the following topics: ecology, respiration, genetics, plant structure and body systems.

PHYSICS AND APPLIED MATHS

There is an excellent website physics students can use in their revision – www.thephysicsteacher.ie. The site also provides excellent revision materials for students studying applied maths.

CHEMISTRY

* Ensure that you are completely familiar with the practical questions you have studied to date.
* The organic chemistry section of the course is regularly examined and should therefore feature prominently in your revision schedule over the coming weeks.
* If you are considering attempting question four, which contains 11 short questions, you may find that this is a relatively easy question if you have a good overview of the entire course.
* You have been accumulating detailed records of your laboratory experiment work over the past two years. Revise this work fully prior to your mocks.

FRENCH

Timing

As with all exams, the mock gives you the chance to fine-tune how long you spend on each question. Practise this by answering a reading comprehension or one of the past paper essay questions and seeing how long it takes for you to finish it.

Aural

Practise the past papers. Go back over sections and identify vocabulary that is repeated. Add this to your notes. Practise the past papers again. If you’re sick of listening to past papers, go to you tube, type in “entretien francais”, and watch a chat with some French celebrities. This helps get your ear in for the oral too.

Oral

Even if your school doesn’t have a mock oral, this is still a good time to revise for it. Remember, it won’t be long before you’ll be sitting the oral proper.

Revise all the topics your teacher has given you and go back through your documents. Remember the more often you read and write the vocabulary, the better your chances of remembering it. Try recording yourself and picking out your mistakes.

Reading comprehensions

Know what the questions mean. Learn off the required vocabulary you’ve got from your teacher. Don’t leave gaps. A guess is better than nothing.

Written work:

Look back over your vocabulary notes. Tenses are important here too. Revise the present, past, subjunctive, future and conditional tenses. Make up sentences to practise the topics and vocabulary that your teacher has given you.

* You might take a look at skoool.ie and read over their study notes. Check out www.s-cool.co.uk/alevel/french/writing.html too. It’s for the British A Level, but has some notes that are relevant to the Leaving Cert.
* www.languagesonline.org.uk/ is for A levels also, but will correct your answers for you.

BUSINESS

* Ensure that you read the business pages of the national newspapers so that you stay abreast of the current business environment. This will enable you to draw on examples of current practice from the world of business in your answers.
* Financial ratios, such as profitability and liquidity, are regular question on both mock and Leaving Certificate papers. Revise these, so that in answering this question you will be able to propose a course of action that the business should follow, based on your ability to calculate the correct ratios.
* A question on marketing is a hardy annual on business papers. Revise global marketing, market segmentation, product life cycle and breakeven analysis.
* Use bullet points in all your answers. Take note of the number of marks offered per question. A 20-mark question should have five key points in the answer, supported by relevant examples.
* You should practise answering full questions in 30 minutes so that you can maximise your performance. If you write beyond this time limit, you will not complete the required number of questions.

PREPARING FOR ORAL EXAMINATIONS

The most important aspect of preparation for oral examinations is to be comfortable about a range of topics or issues that an examiner might raise with you or allow you to introduce. The only way you can do this is by practising discussing the issues outlined below in the appropriate language with a fellow student or a person with fluency in the language in question.

Typical topics include:

* Yourself, your family, where you live, your past times or hobbies.
* Sport: your participation in sporting activities, your sporting achievement (real or imagined), your interest in sport.
* Your school, the facilities on offer, your friends, the subjects you are studying and what you like most about your school.
* Things you did during your holidays, over the past year or things you plan to do once you complete your Leaving Certificate in June.
* Your plans for the future, colleges or courses you are interested in or plans you may have to travel.
* Your hopes for the Leaving Certificate, the points you are aiming for and how you are preparing for the exams.
* Current Affairs: It is important, given the current economic crisis to be able to discuss your views on major world or national issues.

PREPARING FOR AURAL EXAMINATIONS

You can improve your performance in the aurals by listening to past papers on the CDs, which are readily available. You need to focus on the key question forms, such as when, how, and what etc.

To enable you easily to identify words that are in regular use, you should familiarise yourself with key vocabulary.

The following are some of the areas you should be familiar with: counties, countries, towns and cities, months, time, numbers, occupations, academic subjects, types of schools and vocabulary relevant to the CAO college admissions process and job applications.

• Acknowledgment: I would like to thank my teaching colleagues in Oatlands College, Mount Merrion, Dublin for their tremendous support, in writing and preparing the subject content of these mock examination articles – Brian Mooney

Health or teaching course applicants must get Garda clearance

2009-02-07T17:33:00.000Z

Applicants to some CAO courses are surprised to discover that they may be vetted by the Gardai before taking a place on the course.

Garda vetting is a necessary reality for some courses now, although applicants to the majority of CAO's courses are not affected by the procedure. Anyone who is offered a place on a course especially in the areas of medicine, health care, nursing, social work or teaching will require clearance from the Garda Vetting Unit when they register.

Garda clearance is sought only when a person is accepting a place on a course. Students on all of these courses will undertake placements that will bring them into contact in positions of trust with children and vulnerable adults. The Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) are committed to ensuring that only suitable adults are allowed to undertake these programmes.

A list of over 200 course codes can be found on CAO's website, by clicking "Garda Vetting" in the left hand menu. About 80 of these codes relate to nursing. The list of nursing codes is doubled for each branch of nursing or midwifery in any college, because there is one code for standard applicants and one for mature applicants.

Q Is Garda clearance necessary for all individuals being offered places on the relevant courses or does the issue affect only mature applicants?

A Clearance is sought for all those being made an offer, whether they are standard school leavers, or mature or other non-standard individuals.

What normally happens is this: when a HEI is making an offer on a relevant course to an applicant, it will send that applicant a form to complete, where they must give their name, date of birth and all addresses they have lived in since their birth.

They will also be asked to disclose on that form any convictions they may have. Failure to disclose a conviction could do them more harm than the conviction itself might have done, depending on the conviction.

Each HEI submits all the forms to the Garda Vetting Unit for clearance, and the Garda Vetting Unit returns the forms to the college when it has processed them.

CAO's website states that in some cases the HEIs may require applicants to provide more information by way of an affidavit, so an offer of a place on a course would be conditional and might be withdrawn if applicants did not meet the Garda vetting requirements.

Q Supposing an applicant, whether school leaver or other, had come to the attention of the Gardai for something like a minor driving offence, would that be enough for the college to withdraw their offer?

A Any disclosure of a conviction will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and in complete confidentiality by the relevant HEI.

The purpose of the Garda clearance is to satisfy the requirements of the placement provider, that is, where the student would be doing their placement during their course. Some placement providers operate a policy of zero tolerance.

Most of the time, it would depend on the nature of the offence. Anyone can understand that a minor motoring offence might not rank in the same way as an assault or abuse offence of any kind.

Q If an offeree (that is, a person being offered a place on a course) did not meet the placement provider's requirements, and the offer was withdrawn, would that applicant be offered a place on their next highest CAO preference course, if it did not require Garda clearance?

A Withdrawal of an offer is so rare that there is no well-established practice. It might depend on the timing of the withdrawal of the offer, or whether the applicant had applied only to other courses requiring Garda clearance.

Irish Independent

Students to suffer as VECs hit with cutbacks

2009-02-07T17:29:00.001Z

THE country's 33 Vocational Education Committees are set to lose €13.3m as a result of the Budget, a new study has revealed.

The loss is due to changes in staffing levels, a 5pc cut in adult and further education, an 8pc cut in youth grants and a 3pc cut in VECs' payroll.

Irish Vocational Education Association's General secretary Michael Moriarty last night said the cuts would particularly hit the vulnerable and disadvantaged.

The survey claims that more than 80 posts allocated to disadvantaged areas would be lost.

The schools that will lose out were previously classified as disadvantaged but are not included in the DEIS scheme (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Education).

Disadvantaged

DEIS was introduced four years ago and currently caters for 876 primary and post-primary schools at a cost of €80m this year. But 130 other schools previously regarded as disadvantaged have lost that status.

As well as losing posts they will also lose financial supports such as book grants.

Mr Moriarty said that while it is important to focus supports in DEIS schools it was lunacy to assume there were no children from disadvantaged backgrounds in non-DEIS schools.

"These pupils may now be left to fend for themselves in schools which have considerably fewer resources and less capacity to address their needs. In such cases, it will be the survival of the fittest, and my fear is that the vulnerable will fall away in the absence of the range of supports that are confined now to DEIS schools," he added.

He said two factors alone -- where young people lived and their family income -- could tip the balance in favour of advantage or disadvantage.

The vast majority of the 3pc who left school with no qualifications came from the lowest socio-economic backgrounds, Mr Moriarty added.

- John Walshe Education Editor Irish Independent

Snow and Race Horses :-)

2009-02-05T15:53:00.003Z

Housebound because of the snow. Am I complaining? Not a bit, have spent a wonderful couple of hours browsing the web doing research and a little bit of shopping :-)

So while it keeps snowing outside my window I thought I would write about horse racing! Yes, a little bit unusual considering no one would be racing on a day like this, but that does not stop the would be jockeys, trainers, grooms all having to work and train.

Did you know that Ireland has its own racing academy? Well it does and it is based in the Curragh. It is a state of the art complex. The purpose-built training facility comprises a 30 horse barn, feed room, tack room, hosing bay, large indoor riding school (60 metres x 40 metres), outdoor all-weather ring, simulator coaching room, http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifgymnasium and sports hall. Based outside are the eight-horse walker, two furlong sand gallop, schooling hurdles and paddocks. In addition there is an isolation unit, hay barn and machinery shed. Most of the horses at RACE are ex-racehorses that have had success on the track and have kindly been loaned by their owners.

Currently they are running courses including:

Pre Qualified Riders, this course is for those that wish to go on for their Apprenticeship Licence. To receive that licence you undergo a series fo tests at the Turf Club. This course is to ensure you are up to scratch and have not developed any bad habits. Think of it like a pre driving test course.

Trainee Jockey Course is a year long training for those aged between 15-18. On application you will be invited to take part in a weeks trial. Should that trial prove successful you will be offered a place on the course.

See Racing Academy for further information and details on other courses that they run.

Tips for surviving and enjoying our snow

2009-02-03T10:52:00.007Z

As I type the snow is pelting down outside my window in Dublin.

It has been a while since the island, particularly Dublin, has experienced this much snow.
So here now are some tips to avoid the perils and enjoy the playful potential of snow.

PERILS

Walking

A good pair of slip-grip boots is your best bet for cutting through the slick slush. A fuzzy lining or double pair of socks will help keep your toes toasty warm.

Take smaller steps and be more aware of traffic. The stopping distance for all vehicles greatly increase in these conditions, more so for larger trucks, so think twice before you dash across the street.

Cycling

A good pair of tyres will keep your rubber on the road. Cover up all of your extremities so the biting wind will not bite your skin.

Be careful when going around corners and make sure you are illuminated as snow on windshields and darker conditions are added obstacles for drivers.

Driving

The car advice website Edmunds.com advises drivers to make the following adjustments when driving on snow and ice:

Slow down: Speed limit signs are intended for normal conditions. In snow and ice, reduce your speed considerably because your stopping distance is greatly increased, particularly if you are driving a large vehicle (or you are driving a small vehicle which would get caught under the chassis or wheels of the large vehicles around you).

If you slide, let it ride: Do NOT slam on your brakes if your car starts to slide. Edmunds says when the wheels are braking, their surface becomes static and they can behave like four hockey pucks on their side and can move multidirectionally. Always brake gently and gradually to avoid skidding. If your wheels start to lock up ease off the brake. However if you were going too fast and started to slide in a certain direction, prepare for impact for there is little you can do.

Corner carefully: Taking a corner too quickly is a common way to skid. Apply the brakes as you approach a turn, but release them before you actually take the turn. As Glenn Frey used to say 'Take it easy.'

Look ahead: Double your stopping distance. An easy calculation for this distance is five car lengths for every 20kph you are traveling.

Steering Safely: Rough, imprecise movements of your steering wheel will cause your vehicle to become imbalanced, according to Edmunds. Once that happens, you'll probably skid.

Know your car: Find out if your car is front, rear or all wheel drive and how that affects its performance on snow and ice.

Skid control: Believe it or not, the best thing to do when your car is starting to skid, go against your natural tendencies. Turn INTO the skid and accelerate. However, how much you accelerate depends on the kind of car you have, so ring a local dealership for more information.

Eating

Do not eat yellow snow.

PLAY

Snowballs

Snowballs can be fun if done correctly and safely. To form a snowball, fill your hands up with snow, pack it into a ball and roll it around in your hands. Wet snow is the best for packing. Do NOT put foreign objects like rocks or glass as this is anti-social and might garner the attention of your local gardaí.

Sledding

Find a good hill or slope near you and slide down. Feet first is the safest. Head first should only be done by experienced sledders. Avoid areas with a lot of trees or obstacles as it is near impossible to steer a sled unless you have the kind on the right. If you do not have access to a proper sled, certain rubbish bin tops turned upside down and long, thick cardboard will do. Try and fashion some sort of handle so you do not slide off the sled while going down the hill.

Snow Angels

The most heavenly of all snow activities, snow angels are easy to make. They are best done with proper winter clothing as you will be rubbing against a large amount of snow.

1) Find a big, untouched patch of snow

2) Flop down backwards onto it with arms and legs outstretched

3) Move your arms up and down and legs sideways 5-10 times

4) Carefully get out of the angel so that you do not create too many footprints

For more on this process, check out this YouTube video

Snow Sculptures

Snowmen are the most common snow sculpture to make.

You will need a large tract of snow to produce one as well as a few household products.

1) Form a snowball and start rolling it around in the snow. Make it as big as you can and place it in the spot where you want to build your snowman

2) Roll two more balls of smaller size and stack them on top of your original snowball

3) Add hats, scarfs, ear muffs, carrots for the nose, coal or other appropriate items for the eyes

For other ideas for snow sculptures, check out the International Snow Sculpture Championships website.

Some content courtesy of RTE

Top Lists for January 2009

2009-02-01T11:31:00.005Z

We have just had the best month ever on Courses.ie and it is all thanks to YOU. So a very BIG Thank You for your continued support and letting us know that we were right in our plans and outlook for the site and that we are heading in the right direction.

Top 5 Exit Links

Just Dance
Learning Blog
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CAO Points
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Top 5 Popular Pages
Courses.ie home page
Course Directory
Links
CAO Point, Points Points article
Music, Drama, Dance Directory Page

Top 5 Referral Search Terms

Courses (Google)
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Google.ie
Google.com
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Top 5 Search Engines

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Links
CAO Points, Points, Article
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Links,
Music, Drama, Dance Directory page
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Thank you once again and lets continue climbing together to success.

Video Help - How to use Office 2007 to write a good essay

2009-01-31T12:06:00.003Z

One of the things we love is finding new items that we think will interest you and passing them on...

We have a treasure trove of items waiting to be shown, some quirky, funny, educational, across all mediums...

Here is one from the educational box....How to use Office 2007 to write a good essay....

Just in time for when those essay's are due in!

Microsoft Office:How To Use Office 2007 To Write A Great Essay

Advance your career and get the distinct competitive advantage

2009-01-30T10:34:00.004Z

When it comes to your earning power, your education is the most important thing you can do. The more education you have, the better your chances of earning more “lifetime” income.

Your education can come in a number of different ways;

Going to college
Taking Evening Courses
Doing a FETAC Course
Becoming apprenticed to a trade
In House training
Distance Learning
PLC Course
Training on the job
Online Learning

Education is out there. It is available to everyone no matter what age or level of education you have or wish to have.

You can find all the different course providers necessary to keep up-skilling in our Course Directory.

In this trying time we have to get creative and think about the skills we have, the skills we need, and the skills that can be improved on.

Creativity is a combination of qualities, of which all people have to some degree. Creativity depends on many factors including experience, motivation and talent. The way you use these qualities is what makes the difference. According to the publication CollegeJournal.com, there are three factors that determine creative success.

* Problem Solving

CollegeJournal says creative types recognize a problem early and easily. Once they recognize the problem they can begin to formulate an approach to solving.

* Strength

Successful creativity depends on your ability to move past your fears. There will always be no doers and negative opinions. Don't let others stomp on your ideas. Use strength to get past the negativity.

* Originality

Original thinking is what allows you to get outside the box and ignore what everyone else is doing. Processes, norms and stereotypes strip creative thinking of life. Mental tradition is bad, mental flexibility is good.

Start thinking outside the box, stay positive and keep learning! It will advance your career and maybe even take it in a new direction.

The Adult Learners' Festival

2009-01-15T11:19:00.003Z

Daily we are hearing about the recession, enough to make us want to dive under the covers and only come up or air when things improve! The 6pm news is enough to have us stampeding to the doctors crying out for prozac! Instead of doing that, add another string to your bow and learn another skill, improve your hobby, meet people and have a laugh along the way.

The AONTAS Adult Learners' Festival will run for the third time from February 2nd to February 6th During that time a number of training providers will be running courses to coincide with the festival. Over one hundred events took place over the week of last year's Festival, with even more due to take place during this year's event.

During the week we will be celebrating twenty years of the VTOS (Vocational Training and Opportunities Scheme) programme, and AONTAS will launch a major piece of research about the lifelong learning needs of older people. For the first time, next years' Festival will include a 'Learn at Work' Day, which takes place on Thursday February 5th, and AONTAS is delighted to be working with ICTU, IBEC and other organisations to use that opportunity to focus on the issue of training, upskilling and education in the workplace. It is more crucial than ever despite the economic downturn, that government invest in adult learning in order to build our future economy and society.

Aontas have supplied a map with locations of were different events around the country are taking place.

CAO course guide for 2009

2009-01-13T12:02:00.001Z

CAO course guide for 2009
Click the links below to download the latest CAO course guide in PDF format.
Page one
Includes:
Agriculture
Architecture / Architectural Technology
Art and Design, Product Design, Photography
Arts/Humanities
Page two
Includes:
Arts / Humanities (cont..)
Business / Commerce / Accounting
Page three
Includes:
Business/Commerce/Accounting (cont..)
Computer Science / Systems / Electronics
Construction Studies / Valuation / Surveying
Education / Primary Teaching
Education/Second Level Teaching
Engineering
Page four
Includes:
Engineering (cont..)
Food Studies
Hotel Management, Catering, Travel, Tourism
Law
Page five
Includes:
Medical / Health Sciences / Health Care / Pharmacy
Music, Music Technology
Nursing -General
Nursing - Psychiatric
Nursing - Intellectual Disability
Nursing - General and Children's
Nursing - Midwifery
Other Technology Courses
Sciences / Applied Sciences
Page six
Includes:
Sciences / Applied Sciences (cont..)
Social Science, Social Care, Social Studies, Early Childhood Care & Education, Counselling Studies
Sports Science & Management / Recreation / Leisure Studies

Courtesy of the Irish Independent.

Kinsale Community School win Young Scientist of the Year

2009-01-10T16:05:00.002Z

Congratulations to John O'Callaghan and Liam McCarthy's whose project involved developing a cheap and efficient way for farmers to detect infection in milk cows, and they now become the Young Scientists of the year.
A long-held belief that a drop of washing-up liquid could help warn of infection in milk cows was the trigger that got John (14) and Liam (13) two first years from Kinsale Community School started on their project, entitled "The Development of a convenient Test Method for Somatic Cell Count and its Importance in Milk Production".

Somatic cells are a sign of infection and these appear in the milk. "If the level is high, the cow is fighting an infection," explained Liam. It is "a big deal for the farmer", who receives less if the cell count is high but enjoys a bonus if it is low, said John.

The only way to test was to send a sample for analysis, but this took days, by which time the milk had already reached the production plant.

The students were aware of the "rural myth" and began checking to see if there was any truth to it. They added the washing-up liquid to high cell count milk and found it thickened. They then began a series of tests to study the effect and to devise a way to use the finding.

They focused on a method where viscosity could be gauged by how quickly a sample ran through a narrow tube. "We have done over 1,000 tests and the test developed dramatically over time," Liam said.

The result is the "Ballymartle Milk Test", named after their townland. "This is a test that farmers can use all over Ireland and all over the world," Liam said. "It is very encouraging when you get good results," John added.

The two won a perpetual BT Young Scientist trophy, a cheque for €5,000 and the opportunity to represent Ireland at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists.

Irish Times

Log On, Learn

2009-01-09T11:45:00.003Z

Log On, Learn, a new nationwide initiative bringing Transition Year students and Older People together to share computer and life skills.

Log On, Learn is a programme that aims to provide transition year students with Marketing, Teaching and relating skills as well as insight into another age.

Simply put Log On, Learn is a new way for Older People to learn about computers and the internet.

Providing one on one learning to make sure the pace of learning meets the needs of the Older Person, the programme takes into account the type of technology the Older Person wants to become comfortable with, be that basic PC skills, booking a flight or researching something on the internet.

* An Older person registers with a school that has the programme on their transition year curriculum.
* An Older person and transition year student (IT mentor) are paired
* An Older person and transition year student have 8 weekly training sessions (1-2 hours each), as part of a wider group.

Training sessions will take place in local schools as part of the weekly computer skills class.

Log On, Learn, is sponsored by An Post in partnership with Intel and Microsoft. For more information about Log On, Learn call 01-214 7417.

How much is that doggy in the window?

2009-01-07T16:25:00.004Z

I remember that children's song about buying a puppy and the excitement in the house when it was due to arrive. Now it is the turn of the Obama's in the White House to welcome a loving, playful, but untrained four legged friend into their lives.

According to Mary Owens, dog lover and owner of Fircroft Canine Training Centre Rathanganin, in today's Irish Times. You need to train your dog to behave in much the same way as we train our children, she advises. The problems arise because we think from a human rather than a dog's perspective.

"Dogs have a pack mentality and it comes very naturally to them to manipulate you. In short, you need to teach the dog who is the boss in the house. If you allow your dog to sit on the armchair with you, that's fine. But if the dog then decides that he wants the chair all to himself and you end up sitting on a kitchen chair, well, the dog is now in charge."

Mary Owens cautions those who, like the Obamas, are considering a shelter dog. While it is a great thing to do, she says, sentimentality should have no role to play in selecting a dog.

"Make no mistake about it. A shelter dog is often a dog with problems. If you take one and find that you cannot manage it and have to return it to the shelter, then that is the worst thing for the dog."

It's a fair bet that whichever puppy the Obama household opts for, the dog trainers are already pitching for business. And it is highly unlikely that Mr "No Drama" Obama would entertain a mutt with no manners chewing up the Oval Office, no matter how much he loves his daughters.

Down boy Doggy dos and don'ts

Choose your puppy carefully from a recognised breeder who is a member of the Kennel Club. Don't choose the biggest in the litter as they are often the hardest to train - choose the middle-sized one.

Life is busy today so you need to set aside time for a dog in your life. Puppies learn through play. Dogs like company. If you are out all day, it may not be fair on your dog to be home alone.

Reward your dog with a little tasty treat like a small piece of sausage or affection or a game when they do as you wish.

Until the dog learns that you are the boss, he will do as he pleases, including barking excessively, stealing food, jumping up and pulling against the lead.

You must be consistent when you train your dog - practice makes perfect.

If your dog jumps up on people or children, train him by turning on your heel and walking away. Pet and praise him only when he has all four feet on the ground.
If you have had little or no success training your dog yourself, perhaps it is time to call in the professionals.

Keep your CAO choices as broad as possible

2009-01-05T13:33:00.001Z

BRIAN MOONEY'S ADVICE CENTRE Courtesy of Irish Times.

Given the growing economic crisis and the rapid increase in unemployment across a wide range of sectors of our economy, many current Leaving Cert students pondering their future career are deeply uncertain how they should proceed.

Many older brothers and sisters of this year's Leaving Certificate cohort, who have recently graduated from college, or who have been working for a number of years, are currently unemployed. This is giving rise to huge concern among the 70,000-plus potential applicants to the CAO, who ask seeking places in college in September 2009.

The best advice I can give to all those considering their CAO application at this time is to remember that if you are going to start an undergraduate programme in September 2009, you will be finishing your undergraduate programme in June 2012 at the earliest. If you are one of the 50 per cent of undergraduates who then proceed to a postgraduate programme, your entry date into the labour force will probably be June 2014. The question you must therefore ask yourself is how the labour market might be for your favourite discipline in 2014. The real answer is that nobody knows and the only sensible course of action for you to take is to follow the path that your natural inclinations suggest. Keep your options broad, so as to increase your choices.

A second piece of advice I would give is to keep your CAO choices as broad as you can- unless you are absolutely certain that you want to follow a particular career path such as dentistry, architecture or so on. Students taking an arts, science or law degree will have a huge degree of flexibility in the careers they wish to explore in three years' time. Students who select career specific areas, particularly those that are experiencing rapid changes due to advances in technology - such as media and journalism - may be more limited in their career options in three years' time.

Following the publication by The Irish Times and other newspapers of the progression rates of second-level students in the Republic of Ireland into publicly-funded colleges of the CAO and to colleges in the UK and Northern Ireland through USAC, many people have questioned me about the discrepancy in the progression rates as reported in different publications.

The Irish Times reported the progression rates of students who attended a particular school or private fee-paying college outside the State-funded sector, commonly known as "grind" schools, into the publicly-funded colleges of the CAO and USAC. Other newspapers reported the same progression rates, but based their figures on the number of students who actually "sat" the examination in a particular school or grind school in June 2008.

What is the difference between "attending" and "sitting" the Leaving Certificate in a school or grind school?

Every school and grind school registers the students who "attend" their college with the State Examinations Commission, which passes this information on to the CAO, which passes it on to the third-level colleges. In this way, they know the school or grind school that every students who accepts a first-year undergraduate place "attended". These are the figures, supplied by the colleges, which every newspaper publishes.

The different percentage success-rate figures published by newspapers arise from the fact that if a student "sits" the examination in a school that is not the one he/she is registered as having "attended", this increases the "sit" figure for that school and decreases the "sit" figure of the college he actually "attended".

If he/she secures a place in college, he/she will be credited to the school or grind school he studied at, but counted as having sat the examination elsewhere, thus increasing that school's "sit" figure, and decreasing its reported success rate.

A school with 90 students, of whom 45 secure a college place, has a success rate of 50 per cent. If 10 students from a local grind school "sit" the examination in the local school that school's "sits" figure increases, but as none of these candidates will be credited to the school, its success rate drops to 45 per cent. The grind school, on the other hand, which has 200 students, of whom 120 secure a college place, has a success rate of 60 per cent. If, however, 80 of these students sit the examination elsewhere, its success rate increases to 100 per cent.

The Irish Times uses the only accurate measure of the success rate of schools and grind schools by measuring success rates based on the school attended, rather that where a student happened to "sit" the examination.

Brian Mooney is a guidance counsellor at Oatlands College, Dublin and a former president of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors

To spell or not to spell........word bain.....

2008-12-29T17:16:00.003Z

We came upon a terrific post by Sentence First that we got carried away and in error blogged the complete post! For those who are new to blogging that is a No No...and we would like to apologise to Sentence First.

The complete post is worth reading as spelling errors can let us down at very important times. I have received job applications, business emails and letters where misspellings have cost the sender a job interview and possibly a job.

Sentence First gives suggestions that are handy and easy to follow with a list of common spelling errors. I plead guilty to some (thank goodness for spell check) but I have also followed one of his suggestions and found it the perfect remedy for my slip ups.

The following is just a snippit of the post, the complete post can be read under the title 'Spelling Mistakes'.

Sooner or later everyone has trouble spelling a word. Certain words pose more trouble than others, for a variety of reasons. Some spellings are inherently tricky (e.g. sacrilegious) or counter-intuitive (e.g. pharaoh). Some errant forms are widely mimicked (e.g. accomodation – two cs, two ms and two early os please), while others mislead because they resemble more familiar words or word parts (momento for memento, miniscule for minuscule). Pairs of similar words are often mixed up (e.g. principal and principle).

If you have recurring difficulty spelling certain words, it can be useful to keep a list handy, or to learn mnemonics to help you remember the correct form. For example, if you’re unsure whether it’s hypocrisy or hypocracy, you could use a mantra like “hypocrisy is a pox” or “hypocrisy is a shock, Chrissy”. Is it ad nauseum or ad nauseam? You could say to yourself, “I am nauseated that I can’t remember.” Mnemonics don’t have to make any sense; indeed, sometimes the more absurd ones are easier to remember.

Again our apologies to Sentence First for quoting his entire post.
Courtesy of Sentence First

Getting Back to Work After Redundancy

2008-12-05T11:37:00.005Z

Is the credit crunch affecting you or a member of your family? We are hearing every day about unemployment and how the numbers are rising due to the recession. If redundancy has happened to you or that threat is on the horizon, what steps can you take?

Once the initial shock has worn off it is important to sit down and plan. While it may seem obvious that there are not that many job opportunities out there; there are always some jobs available. 'But I don't have the relevant skills' you reply. Then this is the opportunity to retrain and look for that new job.

Put together a plan of action.

* List what skills you have that are transferable.
* Gather information from employment centres, agencies, newspapers, job sites online, about what additional skills they are looking for that combined with what you already have makes you more easily employable, (or indispensable to your current employer)
* Take a course or courses to upskill.

Putting together your plan of action and up-skilling keeps you positive during a difficult time in your life.

Here is just a short list of some courses that will get you started on the road back to employment that are being run by providers listed with Courses.ie.

Interview soft skills
Computer Course
Security
Safety & Risk Management
Microsoft Office
First Aid
Languages
Customer Care
Buildings Energy Ratings Assessor
Tourism
Complementary Therapy

Who's afraid of the big bad web?

2008-10-13T09:47:00.005+01:00

The web as we lay people know it has been with us for over 10 years now and this is still the early days of it.

It is a medium we really need to get a grasp on, especially if we are parents as the web has changed the way that our children and teenagers communicate.

We teach our children how best to protect themselves in the big wide world and we are comfortable doing so as in many ways we are passing on the wisdom we learnt from our parents and the world is a place we are familiar with.

The web is another matter. Both computers and the web are mediums that have developed relatively recently (apologies to Charles Babbage) and to access the web one must get to grips with a computer. Both of these are stumbling blocks to many parents who watch as their children zoom away on the information superhighway leaving their parents stranded.

To properly guide and protect our children we need to start learning about computers and the web. When you lay down your guidelines and rules children will respect them as they know you have taken the time to learn and use both mediums.

Learning about computers and the web can seem daunting at first because of the new words and language that is used. Once started it is not long before it will all just fall into place and not only are you learning and enjoying new skills but also giving your self esteem a wonderful boost.

The web is a fantastic resource and one that is growing daily and here to stay. It is the biggest library in the world and the main means by which we communicate and this form of communication is changing at a rapid pace offering more and more facilities.

The horror stories are few and far between thankfully. What is far more insidious is the level of bullying that is carried on, or the thoughtless uploading of camera phone pictures, and messages left on social networking sites.

Our children have to be taught to think very carefully before they upload that funny photo of Mary Jane slipping on a night out and landing in the lap of the lads. While it may have been funny at the time, snapped with a camera phone, uploaded and available to all to see. Shown to those that were not there, it looks like something else and now Mary Jane may become the target of some unsavory jokes, rude messages which ultimately rob her of her self esteem and leave her feeling defenceless and violated. Once put up on the web, other people can copy and send on, so you are left with little control.

The best protection we can give our children is to learn about computers and the web and let our children see the safety net we provide them as they explore the wonders of the cyber world. Ask questions about what they use the web for, listen and look at the sites they go to. Read articles and slowly become familiar with the jargon. You are not wasting time by sitting at a computer for a couple of hours surfing the net and looking at different sites, this is your learning curve and one worth taking when it allows us to talk confidently to our children about the pros and cons of the world wide web.

There is a terrific article well worth reading entitled 'who's afraid of the big bad web'. This article was published on the Australian newspaper site The Age. What makes this article different is that the author gives a run down on the most common sites used by children and teenagers today. A must for any parent!

"Kids are fearless and many parents are clueless when it comes to the internet."

But instead of being daunted, Ms Treyvaud says parents should draw on their wisdom and experience. "Rather than taking a gloom and doom approach to the internet, ask yourself, 'What can I do to help my children navigate it?'."

Go on, take the plunge, it is a world full of wonders and delight.

Useful links:

Webwise - information for parents and teachers

Mobile phones and safety - Advice on mobile phone bullying from Childline.

Take a course in your local library or night class from a number of providers all listed on Courses.ie

What to do when your horse has an accident

2008-09-03T09:07:00.003+01:00

Your horse has banged his head in the horsebox and is bleeding profusely. Do you know what to do? Accidents happen, as the saying goes, but what happens straight after an accident is critical. When faced with an emergency, how should you react and what are the first steps you should take?

Firstly, don't panic. You need to assess the injury calmly and decide on the correct action to take, be it to start some kind of treatment yourself or to simply stabilise the situation until the vet arrives.

Joe Collins, MRCVS, from the veterinary department of UCD, is a member of the equine group of Veterinary Ireland. He says the most important message to get across to horse owners is that preventing injuries is infinitely better than treating them.

"A little bit of thought before you go to do something is the best to prevent a lot of accidents," he says.

"I've had to shoot multiple horses because they were loaded into horseboxes with rotten floors, bad ramps and holes where a horse's foot has slipped through.

"Too many accidents are preventable."
He advises owners to check horseboxes for signs of damage, particularly the floor and ramp, and boxes with gaps that a foal's foot could slip through.

"People can be very lax about what's lying around in the yard -- nails, forks etc," he says. "So, have a look around at the potential accident-causing objects."

Showjumping cups left in the uprights are often the cause of tear injuries to horses and ponies, he says, while using old tack is another area where accidents can happen.

Preventing accidents

"The tetanus vaccination is imperative because tetanus is much easier to prevent than treat. It is fatal for horses in most cases," says the vet.

The initial tetanus vaccine requires two injections four to six weeks apart, followed by an annual booster injection.

"It's an excellent vaccine that works very well compared to other horse vaccines, so owners should be using it."

So what are the most common injuries and what can you do while you wait for the vet to arrive?

Small puncture wounds, such as a nail in the foot, are commonplace and, although they may look harmless enough, can cause potentially disastrous effects.

When examining a nail in the foot, it is useful to draw two imaginary lines across the hoof. If the nail has pierced the first third nearest the heel, or the third nearest the toe, these are potentially less serious than if the nail has punctured the middle third.

Punctures to the centre of the hoof and frog area are most dangerous because of the vital structures located underneath: the navicular bone, deep digital flexor tendon and coffin joint.

"If the middle third of the foot is pierced, I would recommend leaving the nail in place until the vet arrives, because if you pull it out it can be almost impossible to find the spot again," says the vet.

If the horse has pierced a hind foot, he will rest the foot himself; even if the puncture is a forefoot, he will take the weight off himself.

The priority for a puncture wound to the foot is to make the hole bigger to allow drainage of the wound.

"Bacteria, particularly anaerobic ones such as tetanus, love deep wounds that seal up and allow infection to fester inside.

"The worst thing you could do would be take the nail out, let the hole close up, say the horse is fine and leave the wound susceptible to that type of infection," says Joe.

"In four days time you could have a disaster on your hands.

"An old teacher of mine used to say that 'the solution to pollution is dilution' and he was right."

He recommends opening up the hole and flushing the wound to reduce the level of infection. Even tap water will do to reduce the level of bacteria present.

Some owners may decide to call their farrier to deal with foot-related injuries and the vet says this makes sense in many cases.

"Your farrier is a very good option because he can open up the wound for you and they are usually excellent at working with feet. However, you will need the vet for injuries to the middle third of the foot, for tetanus shots and possibly sedation for younger animals," he adds.

Puncture wounds to other areas of the body, such as a blackthorn in the knee or fetlock joint or into the tendon sheath, should always be examined by a vet.

"They are potentially disastrous because infection can build up in the sealed synovial cavity and there is no drainage if the hole outside closes up."

However, the more visually dramatic wounds such as head injuries and flaps of skin torn away are often less problematic than you would first imagine.

Head injuries, in particular, can look terrible because the head has a very good blood supply.

"You might think your horse needs a blood transfusion because he has been bleeding profusely. In reality, horses only lose a small amount of blood and this can look worse because it gets diluted with water," says the vet.

"Something like 8pc of the horse's bodyweight is made up of blood so he has litres and litres of it."

Arterial blood will be bright red and spurt out under pressure as the heart pumps. A common site for this type of bleeding is on the side of the fetlock where there is an artery that is easily knocked.

Bleeding from a vein is slower and drips rather than spurts in a steady flow. It is darker in colour, dark red or purple to look at.

The first action to take for a wound that is pumping out blood is to stop the bleeding.

Unfortunately, we can't do to horses what is recommended for humans: to raise the bleeding part, so pressure is applied instead.

A clean pad should be applied to the wound and the area bandaged firmly to slow the flow of blood until your vet arrives.

"In most instances, the bleeding will have been beneficial in helping to flush out contamination before you apply a really clean bandage," he says.

However, even the ugliest of tears can heal quite easily with help from the vet. Colic is another fairly common occurrence with horses. Some 90pc of colic turns out to be spasmodic, which needs little treatment and passes with time.

Getting comfortable

While the traditional advice to owners has always been to prevent the horse from lying down and to keep the animal moving, Joe says some owners take this advice too far.

"I disagree somewhat with not letting animals lie down because I've gone out to yards where the horse is exhausted from being walked to an unreasonable extent," he says.

"I think it is perfectly reasonable to allow a horse to lie down and even roll occasionally, as long as he is not going to injure himself through rolling.

"The animal is only trying to get into a more comfortable position.

"With some young horses this means lying on their back with their legs in the air."

He compares mild colic to human bellyache, where the most comfortable thing to do is lie down on the sofa or bed until it passes.

"Some exercise and walking is okay, but certainly not to the point of exhaustion," he concludes.

A first aid box is always useful in an emergency and one should always be kept in the yard or brought along when travelling.

Clean bandages, gamgee tissue and a poultice are essential, while a bottle of sterile fluid for flushing wounds should also be kept.

"A hoof knife is another useful thing to have.

"You're not going to become a farrier but it can be handy for opening wounds in the hoof," says Joe.

He does not recommend stocking up on drugs because they are likely to go out of date by the time they are used and are then useless.

Over-zealous application of disinfectants can do more harm than good, he says.

"Very often chemicals are used too concentrated and while they may kill infection, they can also damage the tissue.

"Iodine diluted to the colour of weak tea is the most effective. Dilute it correctly and use copious amounts to flush out wounds," he recommends.

Just remember what the teacher said: the solution to pollution is dilution.

- Caitriona Murphy
Irish Independent

How to deal with an offer from the CAO if your child is away

2008-08-20T08:49:00.001+01:00

As appeared in the Irish Times

THE IRISH Times helpline and podcasts have sought to answer all your many educational and college option questions. Our helplines are now closed, but the podcast is available on The Irish Times website at www.irishtimes.com, which covers many of the main questions which callers have been asking over recent days.
What to do if the CAO offer notice arrived at home on Monday and your son/daughter is abroad on holidays.
Your child has a personal access number to enable them to access their own individual CAO record and offer notice. The vast majority of applicants are accepting the places offered online, from wherever in the world they are.
More than 21,000 did so by lunchtime yesterday, so it very probable that they may have already logged on to the CAO website from their holiday destination, seen the offer/offers made to them, accepted a place online and are now back enjoying their holiday.
Unfortunately, given the number of distressed calls from parents, you may have no way of confirming this.
To reassure our many anxious callers, your son/daughter knows that the CAO was making its offers on Monday 18th August, so it is highly unlikely that you need to do anything at all with the written offer notice, unless your child has asked you by phone or text to do so.
If they have, you should have no difficulties dealing with it. The offer notice may contain an offer for both a level 8 higher degree programmes, and a level 7 ordinary degree/higher certificate course. You should go to the post office and post with whichever portion of the notice you wish to accept, on your son/daughter's behalf.
It is imperative that you are able to discuss this matter with your child before the weekend to ensure that the correct decision is communicated to the CAO. It must be with the CAO in Galway by 5.15pm next Tuesday evening. If it has not received it by that time it will lapse and cannot be recovered.
If you have access to your child's access codes to the offer on the CAO website, you can of course accept the place online on behalf of your child instead of making a paper return.
I have received an offer of my first choice on my course list from the CAO, but have decided that I now want to study my second preferences course. How can I do this?
You cannot be offered a course lower down your order of preference than the one you have currently been offered, so you will not be offered your second choice. The only way you can study a course other than the one you have currently been offered, is to check out the vacant places list on the CAO website at www.cao.ie .
These are courses that have not received sufficient applicants to fill the number of places on offer from the college in question. If, having studied the list, you find a course that you want to apply for, you should go into your record in the CAO website and place the new course above the course you have been offered in round one.
If this facility does not offer you a solution to your problem, your only option is to defer attending college for this year, and to reapply to the CAO again in January 2009, placing the course you now want at the top of your CAO application list.
How are places on the vacant places list allocated?
Colleges are now releasing back into the system any places for which they failed to find an applicant in the first round of the CAO offers. Theses places will be allocated according to the normal CAO rules, ie, that you have met the course entry requirements and are based on the points score of those seeking the vacant places.
If you have not secured a suitable offer to date, it is well worth while keeping an eye on the vacant place list. If you select a course that you want to apply for, amend your application record accordingly. The CAO will list these applicants in order of merit over the next few days and offer these places at the same time as round two offers, on Friday August 29th. After that date, vacant places will be filled on a first-come first-served basis for as long as there are applicants seeking places and colleges trying to fill courses.
I just missed out on my first choice course by five points. What chance do I have of getting my course in a later round, or is there anything else I can do?
The CAO will make a second round of offers to candidates on August 29th following the closing of first-round offers on August 26th. Any places not taken up in round one will be re-offered at that time.
If the course for which you were short five points falls into that category, you may be offered a place in round two at that time. The Irish Times will publish a special supplement on August 29th, with full details of all such points reductions.
If the round two offers do not bring you satisfaction, you still have one more option to consider.
You could submit a request by September 3rd to the State Examinations Commission to have one or more of your papers remarked, in the hope that you will be upgraded in one or more papers. More than 20 per cent of such remarked scripts were upgraded in 2007, so your chances are not negligible.

CAO Announce Course Places Today

2008-08-18T09:41:00.004+01:00

On the day that the CAO announce the places being offered in the first round, the Irish Independent runs an article bemoaning the lack of students taking up certain courses leading to a glut of jobs available in the Computing, Construction and Engineering areas, it goes on to say;

Thousands of jobs 'lost' as courses snubbed
By Katherine Donnelly and John Walshe
Monday August 18 2008
THOUSANDS of highly paid jobs are going abegging because colleges can't get enough students for courses that are key to the country's economic future.
Major college courses -- offering a route to high-paid technology jobs -- are struggling to fill places, despite a record number of CAO offers today.
There is deepening concern about the poor uptake in science, engineering and technology -- all of which are regarded as a cornerstone for future growth.
Despite the economic downturn, there are 10,000 vacancies in the computing and the IT sector, and 5,000 jobs available in engineering.
A graphic example of the crisis was revealed last night showing that numbers graduating in computer applications from Dublin City University (DCU) dropped from 224 in 2005 to 70 this year.
Michael Ryan, who is Professor of Computing at DCU, said at a recent meeting organised by the college that there were twice as many potential employers as computing graduates.
He said skills shortages in computing were also underlined by the fact that 35pc of new staff in software companies in the Dublin area come from outside Ireland.
He said hard questions have to be asked about maths teaching in schools.
Today, 46,577 CAO applicants received an offer in the post -- up 3pc on last year, reflecting the bumper 68,112 applications for college entry.
Taking into account mature students and those who applied with a Further Education (FE) qualification, it brings to 52,631 the number receiving an offer.
There will be huge disappointment for almost 15,500 applicants who will get no offer at all today.
These will include many of the 5,000 who failed maths, ruling them out of most third-level courses.
Negative
A pass in maths at ordinary level is required for entry to most computing courses and the high 12.3pc fail rate is likely to have had a negative impact on numbers eligible for an offer.
The trend appears to be having a knock-on effect in the world of work as employers say that lucrative job positions are going unfilled.
But even starting salaries for engineers averaging €31,000 do not seem enough to tempt high-flying students.
Other pointers from CAO Round One include:
l Law has lost its some of its lustre, with a drop in applications contributing to a fall in points on many courses.
l Architecture and other construction or property-related courses have dropped points.
l The annual scramble for medicine keeps it top of the points table, and out of reach of most applicants.
l But other healthcare courses, such as physiotherapy and nursing, are down.
l Primary teaching is buoyant with an across-the-board rise in points.
l Points rose on about 250 Level 8, honours degree courses; dropped on 310; and remained the same on 90 others.
l At the Level 7/6 ordinary degree/higher certificate, more than half the courses dropped points, but more than one-third went up.
l Half of those receiving an offer at Level 8 got their first preference and 79pc their first, second or third choice, compared with 81pc and 96pc respectively at Level 7/6
In maths at higher level, a drop in top grades accompanied by a rise in fail rates reduced the pool eligible for a swathe of engineering courses, where a C3 at higher level is usually the minimum grade required.
Because of the failure to fill all their places, some third-level colleges are holding special maths entrance exams offering a second chance to students to gain entry to engineering and some technology programmes.
Poor
The disappointing results in maths, and in some cases the sciences, compounds a relatively poor uptake in these subjects in schools, particularly at higher level.
Engineers Ireland director general John Power said Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe must prioritise investment in key subjects such as maths and the sciences at primary and secondary level while also addressing third level.
He said engineering was the cornerstone of the Celtic Tiger and must be given priority to reinvigorate our economy again.
"It takes engineering and engineers to create the pitch for other professions, such as lawyers and accountants, to play on."
Overall, today's CAO statistics indicate an upward drift in qualification levels, as Level 8 courses continue to account for a bigger share of the offers. Proportionately more courses are being offered at Level 8, including some that have been upgraded from Level 7/6.
- Katherine Donnelly and John Walshe

Beauty Tips for The Big Day from The Make-Up Room

2008-07-16T17:16:00.004+01:00

The Make-Up Room is one of Ireland's top training centres for those wishing to seek a career as a make-up artist in the TV, Film & Theatre world, or the Beauty industry. They have compiled a list of tips that will ensure you look your best on the big day and if you don't trust yourself to make you look your best, some of their expert artists could be yours for that special day!

A six-month countdown is recommended to make sure you look as radiant and healthy as possible on your wedding day, but brides who only have a few weeks to prepare can still see some stunning results.

Eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly are an essential part of the preparation.

Exercise will give your circulation a major boost and flush away the toxins that cause blemishes in the skin. Aim for 30 minutes of gentle exercise per day.

Eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, drinking around eight glasses of water a day, reducing your alcohol consumption and cutting out smoking will help prevent your skin from looking dowdy and dull. Try to make sure you get a good night's sleep of about eight hours in the weeks or days before the wedding.

It's important to cleanse, tone and moisturise every day to get rid of any impurities. Facials are also recommended as long as you start having them regularly a few months before the wedding. Trying one a few days beforehand is a mistake, as it could lead to a blotchy face.

Getting your hair in shape is also important. According to the experts you should wash your hair whenever you feel you have to, usually every few days, and make sure it has a deep conditioning treatment about once a month.

Your feet and hands shouldn't be forgotten either. Beauticians suggest a manicure and pedicure at a beauty salon every few weeks before the wedding, which normally includes a foot massage to stimulate the skin. At home, you should moisturise your hands daily and soak your feet in warm water for about ten minutes, twice a week. This leaves your feet feeling very refreshed, particularly if you use some essential oils, such as peppermint. When it comes to nails, it's important to file them two or three times a week and maybe push the cuticles back while you're in the bath.

When it comes to choosing your make-up artist for the wedding, caution is advised. Anticipate being photographed and take into account the lighting. Outdoor wedding photos demand different makeup than indoor photos. A good MakeUp Artist will understand this and will be able to create a makeup that’s suitable.

Outdoor lighting is most flattering in late afternoon as the sun begins to set. If possible, avoid scheduling an outdoor wedding ceremony and photos for midday when the sun is directly overhead. This casts unwanted shadows on your face and is universally unflattering.

Be sure to carry your lipstick and lip liner with you for touch-ups after the ceremony and before the reception. It is also helpful to carry a pressed powder and small powder brush, your chief bridemaid can always carry these for you.

Finally, don't go to bed in your warpaint. If you don't clean if off at night you'll end up with stained pillow cases and a bad case of spots, which will eliminate all your hard work leading up to your big day and your honeymoon.

COUNTDOWN TO YOUR BIG DAY

Six Months To a Year Before the Wedding
Start researching and experimenting with different hair and makeup styles to create your individual wedding day look. If you plan on using a hair stylist, or makeup artist make an appointment for a trial and bring lots of pictures of looks you love. Agree on a style that you're sure matches your personality.

Eight Weeks Before the Big Day
Have microdermabrasion or glycolic peels once a month for two months prior, to give your skin a flawless, smooth surface for makeup and a rich glow. Set up a skin care routine to ensure that your skin will be looking its best for your wedding day.

A Month Before the Big Day
Exfoliate your body daily with a loofah and/or body scrub to maintain shiny, healthy skin all over (if you're going strapless, concentrate on your arms, shoulders, and back). For flaky lips, exfoliate by brushing them gently with a soft tooth brush.

One to Two Weeks Before the Big Day
See your hair stylist to get a final trim (remember, nothing drastic!) and consider adding some highlights. Perfectly placed highlights add an instant glow to your face.

On the Big Day
For the longest lasting lip color that won't move through all that kissing and smiling, apply foundation over lips. Then line with a lip liner, then apply lip color with a lip brush.

For strappy shoes that won't stay put, use wig tape (it's clear and very sticky) to the back part of the strap, adhering them to your foot.

To eliminate blinking in all your gorgeous wedding photos, use this tip: relax your eyes before the shot by looking down. Then, when the photographer says, "cheese", look up just as the picture is being taken.

To create a thinner line in your photos, angle your body slightly toward the camera. Never stand facing the camera straight on.

Whatever you do, enjoy your day and have fun!

Teaching an old sea dog new tricks

2008-07-14T16:12:00.004+01:00

In today's Irish Times, Mary Russell writes,

LEARNING TO SAIL: Learning the language, refining the cut of your jib, knowing how to cast off and tie up - it's all part of joining the sailing set.

THE BEST PART - okay, one of them - was the point where Rathlin Island and the Mull of Kintyre faded into the darkening night and the lights of Larne and Belfast started to come on. Heading southwards for Howth across the surface of a black sea in the gallant Quetzal, we were not alone. Even without Larne and Belfast, though, there was the comfort of distant lights belonging to patient fishing boats, so still and unmoving that I had mistaken them for buoys.

In fact, I had already learned that you are never alone on a boat. On that earlier occasion, sailing between the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe and Antigua, when I was the chief tea-maker, I had been surprised to find, while making the last cuppa, that the crew's requests had changed. One wanted tea with no sugar, another, sugar no milk. Yet another wanted coffee three sugars. Up until then, everyone had settled for the same or had politely taken what they'd been given. The skipper shrugged: "Now that we're home," he explained, "we don't have to get on with each other any more."
It was one of the best lessons I ever learned about sailing. As a survival tool, getting on with the rest of the crew is as important as a life belt.

I've always lived in awe of water. One of my books - The Blessings of a Good Thick Skirt - opens with a description of the shipwreck of Ann Davison who, in 1953, became the first woman to sail single-handed across the Atlantic using a frying pan and a wooden spoon to warn other ships, in fog, of the presence of her 23ft sloop.
Not a great swimmer and sometimes prone to seasickness, I have, nevertheless, always been drawn to water. As a child, I used to pedal from Ballycorus to do belly-flops in Dún Laoghaire Baths and then cycle back again, past the Silver Tassie and up the Bride's Glen. It was worth every push of the pedals. Now I live close to Dublin's Grand Canal which, when the sun shines on it, is like a golden road leading to the end of the earth.

Last year, kind friends invited me to sail with them around the Mediterranean. I travelled as a passive passenger, making jokes to cover my ignorance of all things marine, but vowing to do something about it. And I did. In May, I enrolled on a short sailing course with the Irish National Sailing School (INSS). Our instructor, not yet 20, had seawater in his veins and from him I learned how to tack and to reef - almost. I found I knew even less than I'd thought.

The vocabulary is all new. Why have I always thought that a sheet and a shroud are things to wrap yourself in, alive or dead? And words such as cringle and rubbing strake are great if you play Scrabble, but what do they actually mean?
"You've got to use the right words," Deirdre advised me. "It's no good saying the blue thingy or that round yoke behind you." Deirdre, my daughter, who I let sail off across the Atlantic at the age of 20, without any sailing experience or knowing if the boat was sea-worthy or the skipper trustworthy. Am I a bad mother or what? At the time, she wrote that when they were riding out a hurricane, she'd been a bit concerned: "There was nothing between us and the ocean except a plank of wood."

Now that I've grown up a bit, she can tell me those sort of things knowing I won't freak out, and indeed, when I got back from a recent voyage to Scotland, we Skyped together, talking anchors, tell-tales and genoas for over two hours. She'd been nervous that first time, sailing out of Plymouth Harbour. "I could die here," she'd said to herself; then she looked at the skipper, who was sitting back smoking a cigar, and knew it was going to work out.

She's right about the vocabulary so from now on it's fore, aft, companionway and stowage. And if you want to get in contact with a nearby boat, you shout out, ahoy! Which I always thought was something people only said in the Beano and the Dandy. Above all, it's heads and not lavatory, but don't get me going on this last point, for it's not a simple matter of pulling a chain. You have to open this valve, close that one, do the business and in the right order or we're up shit creek without a paddle and I'm not kidding.

There are three ways to learn how to sail. One is to build up years of experience so I'll have to pass on that one, this being 2008 and I only began in 2007. Two is to go on a course and three is to accept offers to come on board from generous boat owners. Two is simple enough: find the cash and the time and you'll learn a lot and have fun as well. Three is marvellous, as experienced sailors, which boat-owners usually are, can teach you a lot and always seem willing to do so.

The thing to do is revert to being an importunate seven-year-old and ask any number of questions, but choose your moment. Don't ask about wind direction or tidal streams in rough seas just as the boat is heeling at a particularly interesting angle and the skipper is about to reef the mainsail. "But go ahead and ask," says Deirdre. "Some people love rambling on about boats and you often get a good discussion going about what's the best way to do things."

Books are handy sources of information too. The best are those with coloured illustrations. I got six out of the library yesterday and I'm also halfway through Theo Dorgan's marvellous Sailing for Home (Penguin), which chronicles his time spent crewing from Antigua to Kinsale. Although I'm never one to write in books, this one is full of words such as clew and cruising chute, which I've underlined to look up.

The thing is that experienced sailors can't always plumb the depths of the rookie's ignorance. On one voyage, I was told to take off the handle of the winch but though I tugged and pulled, nothing happened. I hadn't understood that all you have to do is press the little release button.

Though there's no substitute for the real thing, I've rigged up a rope in my kitchen to practise my round turn and two half hitches. There's also a website which shows you how to do knots, which is quite helpful for someone like me who is ambidextrous.
And what about sea-sickness? On a recent trip from Malahide up to Ardnamurchan at the southern tip of the Hebrides, Scotland, there was one too many of those moments when the prow of the boat rises to hang in the air, trembling slightly for an eternal moment before thudding downwards, leaving my stomach behind and my brain nauseous to the point of stupification. I devised plan A, which was that I would jump ship when we pulled in to fuel in Bangor, where, right on the harbour, would be this mirage - a silvery pink flashing neon sign saying B&B. There I would spend the night in an unmoving bed before getting the bus to Belfast and the train to Dublin, so I'd be home by tea time. Plan B was simply to die. Plan C - as decreed by the captain and the rest of the crew - was to thwart this hare-brained scheme and press on to our final port - the moonlit Scottish island of Gigha, into which we sailed calmly and at peace with the sea.

But mal de mer can't be ignored. Many people are never troubled by it but if you are, get a good strong prescription from your doctor. It'll make you sleepy so you have the choice: queasy or drowsy? Ginger is good too and after a while I found myself dispensing with the niceties of making ginger tea and simply chewing it raw. Other strategies are to either sleep as much as you can or sit on deck in the fresh air. Spike Milligan's cure for sea-sickness - go and sit quietly under a tree - is invaluable but impractical, so here's one I invented myself.

When in the heads, retching into the lavatory pan, I knelt in order not to throw up on the floor of the graceful Quetzal who was, after all, on her maiden voyage - and as the boat lurched unexpectedly to starboard (or was it to port?) the lid of the lav cracked down on my head in a sort of Laurel and Hardy way. " Ah well, that'll have cured your sea-sickness anyway, " said captain John, in that companionable way sailors have.

Living on a boat is a close-quarters thing. Everyone hears what you're doing in the heads and everyone but everyone will rush to assure you that you snore - which is funny because I always thought it was them. Then there's sailing protocol: never leave clothes flapping on handrails when the boat is under sail. Skinny-dipping is fine out at sea but not where you might frighten the horses. Don't finish someone else's crossword or, worse, their sudoku, and if you're hot-bedding, don't mistakenly get into bed with the captain's mate or indeed the captain: clamber over them instead to your own space.

Safety is paramount: if you want thrills, go to YouTube and key in "boat" and "capsize". And if you're nervous, just remember that boats are designed to heel over - it's what they do.

Finally, if you're lucky - as I was - there'll come the moment you've been waiting for when you feel the helm linking you to the surge of the sea. The jib fills with wind, the boat curves sweetly into the water, taking on the shape of a wave, and you can hear someone in the galley below putting on the kettle for tea.
Mary Russell sailed with John McSweeney and crew on his boat, Quetzal, from Malahide to Ardnamurchan, Scotland, which gave the Quetzal the traditional right to sport a bunch of heather on her prow

French man with two asses surprises Swedish officials

2008-07-01T10:47:00.006+01:00

I saw this story in an online newspaper from Sweden, thelocal.se and thought I would just pass it on. The picture reminded me of old postcards from Ireland. It is a charming tale, and I thought how much I would just love to sit down and chat to this man about everything he has seen and learnt...in particular his parting quote is a maximum I could live by...what about you?

Customs officials in Gothenburg were at a loss as to how to deal with Jacques Abdelaziz and his two four-legged pack animals when the trio wandered off a ferry boat from Denmark on Sunday afternoon.Abdelaziz, who hails from Brittany in northwestern France, has been wandering around Europe for the past two months with his two donkeys, Nounou and Toutoune, according to the Göteborg-Posten (GP) newspaper.

And the journey had been going smoothly, if not slowly, until the pilgrims landed on Swedish shores, whereupon they were met by requests for permits and paperwork.

“I had thought about just going to Stockholm and then heading back but now I’m not sure what’s going to happen. All they care about are documents,” Abdelaziz said to GP as he nodded toward the customs checkpoint.

While customs officials weren’t unsympathetic to the Frenchman’s plight, they explained that he lacked important documents required by Sweden’s Board of Agriculture, including a veterinary examination costing €250 ($395), a sum which Abdelaziz wasn’t prepared to pay.

The whole incident left the animal’s owner feeling frustrated, regretting his decision to come to Sweden.

“If the boat had still been here I would have probably gone back to Denmark at once,” he said.

After much deliberating, port officials remained stumped as to the precise set of rules governing the temporary import of two asses to Sweden from another EU member state.

“Who was it who said that we had common EU rules?” said one, according to GP.

“Where are the voluntary powers in society which can arrange a roof over one’s head and a spot of grass?” asked another.

Finally, harbour personnel decided to take up a collection to pay for the donkeys' veterinary examination in hopes that the wandering Frenchman would overlook the bureaucratic snafu.

“We couldn’t just send him back to Denmark. It’s actually a little shameful, there’s nothing human behind this. That’s just the way it is when everything hinges on a bunch of paper,” said a harbour worker who wished to remain anonymous.

The vet arrived, Nounou and Toutoune passed with flying colours, the trio was once again on its way.

By Monday Abdelaziz was heading east towards Borås, traveling about 30 kilometres a day.

“Every day I start a new life,” he quipped to GP.

David Landes (david.landes@thelocal.se/+46 8 656 6518)

Exploring horse welfare in Ireland

2008-06-26T16:27:00.003+01:00

This article struck a note with me especially as I am surrounded by horses and we have recently lost my son's first horse who sadly had to be put down as he as in increased pain.

It is so important that we look after these wonderful creatures who are so giving, loving, affectionate, playful, and downright stunning.

The Irish Times in conjunction with UCD state;

Conditions for horses at unregulated gatherings, including fairs and races, and the treatment of horses towards the end of their productive life, may pose the highest risks to horse welfare in Ireland, according to a new study.

The findings are part of the mid-term results from a review of horse welfare in Ireland from 2007-2009 that were presented at a seminar in University College Dublin last week. The review by researchers at University College Dublin explores horse welfare in Ireland in light of recent and proposed legislative changes.

“The imposition of regulations was considered by respondents as the most likely effective method of improving horse welfare, followed by information and education campaigns and fiscal measures,” says Joe Collins, from the UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, who is conducting the report.

“Over the past 12 months, we have seen the publication of several statutory instruments which strengthen the requirement for owners and keepers of horses to acquire and carry documentation for them, and bring horses within the scope of legislation designed to protect ‘farmed animals’,” he says.

“In 2009, an EU Regulation will be introduced which will make it a requirement for all horses to be identified in a permanent fashion - probably by microchip. And a current Animal health and Welfare Bill is being drafted to replace legislation which dates back as far as 1911.”

According to Collins, the Irish people have an unsurpassed tradition of horsemanship, with many people owning, breeding or keeping horses out of a genuine pleasure for their company.

“Many people ride, lead or drive. And many others take great pleasure at one step removed by attending, or by simply watching equestrian events on the television. But do we always pay due heed to the care of the animals which are integral to this sport and industry of ours?” he asks.

This study addresses this question and investigates what we mean by animal welfare: what is considered to be ‘good’ rather than ‘poor’ equine welfare. It also examines the appropriate standards that should apply to horse husbandry and the duty of care owed to horses.

“The opinions of forty-four informed experts from equestrian associations, government, equine industries and welfare charities were canvassed for the report,” says Collins. “And they highlighted what they considered to be the most significant horse welfare issues in Ireland today.”

“They also expressed their opinions on what motivates people to compromise horse welfare, and how solutions could be developed to improve current standards.”

Collins hopes that the final report, once complete, will lead to a consideration of policy and practical remedies for selected horse welfare issues in Ireland.

This report is set against a background of increasing production of horses, high profile sales and athletic performances within some sectors of the equine industries but a growing unease amongst organisations active in animal welfare, rescue and re-homing. The question to be addressed is whether the health and welfare of the horses which comprise the raw material for the industry are being adequately safeguarded.

The first objective of this project is to profile the equine industries, where the horses are, and what roles they fulfil. The second objective is to assess the common perceptions of equine welfare across these equine industry sectors and heighten awareness of the importance of this topic. The third objective is to conduct a review of the actual welfare issues that exist currently in the Irish horse population.

The report is sponsored by the International League for the Protection of Horses.

Writing is on the wall for spelling

2008-06-11T08:40:00.002+01:00

In the Education section of today's Irish Independent

If you are a fuddy-duddy traditionalist, upset that 'doughnut' is now commonly spelled as 'donut' by young whipper-snappers, then look away now.
Standardised spelling, if such a thing ever existed, seems to be in decline in Irish schools and colleges. And some people want to dump old-fashioned English spelling completely.

Martin O'Grady, lecturer in psychology at Tralee Institute of Technology, says the standard of spelling and grammar of Irish students at third-level colleges now leaves a lot to be desired.
Recently he has come across students referring to corporal punishment as 'corporate punishment', bonfire as a 'bombfire', and many students don't know the difference between 'their' and 'there'.

Last year the Department of Education's chief examiner lamented the disintegration of basic grammar and spelling skills on display in Junior Cert English papers.
Recent surveys in Britain suggest that around half of adults are unable to spell commonly-used words such as 'embarrassed', 'liaison' or 'millennium'.
More than a quarter of those surveyed struggled to spell 'definitely', 'accidentally' and 'separate'. One in three was not confident enough to fill in an application form without resorting to a dictionary or spell-checker.

There is no reason to suggest that we are any more literate here.
So, is it time to make spelling simpler? Should the English and Irish simply follow the example of Portugal, which recently simplified its spelling system.

Back in the 19th century, an American dictionary compiler, Noah Webster, set out to simplify the spelling of certain English words. His revisions led to American spellings such as 'color', 'center', 'favor', and 'traveler'.

Now there is more talk of reforming the complicated spelling system of the English language. This time, the reformers are mostly English.
A group of teachers and scholars has called for an end to difficult spellings such as 'receipt', 'through', 'cough' and 'scissors'.

The Spelling Society estimates that €25m is wasted every year in Britain teaching archaic 15th century spellings to 21st century schoolchildren.
Dr John Gledhill, secretary of the Spelling Society, told The Guardian: "If we simplified many of the difficult current English spellings by letting them follow basic English spelling rules, the English language would not change in any way, but English spelling would become easier to learn and easier to teach.
"More people would become literate and confident about writing, and children would have more time to learn many other useful things -- and to play.''

The Spelling Society is merely following the example of the Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw, who claimed that the retention of archaic English spellings was merely a wicked plot to keep the poor illiterate. Shaw highlighted the absurdities of English spelling by explaining how the made-up word "ghoti'' should be pronounced "fish''. Why "fish''?
- The "gh'' as in laugh,
- The "o'' as in women,
- The "ti'' as in motion.
The Dubliner left £1m and the royalties from his plays to the cause of rationalising English spelling, but somehow his new alphabet (or alfabet) never caught on.

Shaw was also dismissive of those who insisted on proper punctuation. Referring to the use of apostrophes, he said there was "not the faintest reason for persisting in the ugly and silly trick of peppering pages with these uncouth bacilli''.

Textspeak is commonly blamed for a perceived decline in standards of spelling and grammar among youngsters. The Chief Examiner's report for Junior Cert English, published last year, said: "The emergence of the mobile phone and the rise of text messaging as a popular means of communication would appear to have impacted on standards of writing as evidenced in the responses of candidates."

The Chief Examiner argued that textspeak was causing Junior Cert pupils to become "unduly reliant" on short sentences, simple tenses and a limited vocabulary.
He said text-messaging posed a "threat to traditional conventions in writing" because of its use of phonetic spelling and lack of punctuation.
The harrumphing BBC presenter John Humphrys was more blunt in his denunciation of text messagers, describing them as "vandals who are doing to our language what Genghis Khan did to his neighbours 800 years ago''.

Text messaging may be an easy target, but recent research suggests that it may actually improve literacy rather than reduce it.

In a study for the British Journal of Developmental Psychology, researchers at Coventry University found that 12-year-olds who used textspeak improved their "word reading, vocabulary and phonological awareness''.
There may be much hand-wringing about spelling and grammar, but John White, General Secretary of ASTI, says there is no such thing as standardised English spelling.
"English spelling is changing all the time. The spelling of words is quite different now to what it was during the time of Shakespeare and Jonathan Swift. There has been a big scare about text messaging, but the important thing is that language is appropriate for the setting.
"You would not use legal language in a love letter, and text language may not be appropriate for certain types of writing, but that does not mean that it is wrong.''
John White, a former English teacher, says it should be acknowledged that the way we spell words changes. But he says any attempt to reform the current spelling system would be doomed to failure.

Sean Byrne, lecturer in Economics at Dublin Institute of Technology, says the major problem is not poor spelling.
"Many students do not know how to express themselves clearly. Pupils at second level seem to spend to less time writing essays and reading.
"Instead they are giving factual answers to questions in exams. That is regrettable, because good writing is a skill that is needed in most workplaces.''
- Kim Bielenberg

Learning to Drive

2008-06-09T11:34:00.001+01:00

We dream of getting behind the wheel of our parent's car. Independence! Music at a volume WE love! Picking up our friends and heading out to have fun and enjoy ourselves. Ah, yes.....that was my dream. It is fast starting over again as my son is learning to drive and thinks my car is just there waiting for him to come in and take it!

I have passed on my love of driving to my son along with the lessons my Dad taught me as he took me out for my first driving lessons way back when...!

Driving today is a different ball game and while teaching my son I found myself looking through the eyes of a learner driver which was an education to me.

I am passing on some great hints, tips and advice that I have sourced that I hope will be of some help and have you driving safely in no time at all.

As a learner driver using a car on public roads you must:

Be at least 17 years old.
Hold a provisional licence (a category B licence with a vehicle which does not exceed 3,500kg and having passenger accommodation for not more than 8 persons.
While on a first provisional licence you must be accompanied by a qualified driver at all times. If you hold a second provisional licence, at present the law allows you to drive unaccompanied. For the third and subsequent provisional licences you must revert back to being accompanied by a qualified driver. A qualified driver is a person who holds a full licence in the vehicle category being driven by the provisional licence holder.
Have at least the basic minimum insurance cover.
Ensure that the car is in a roadworthy condition, taxed and if the car is over four years old has a current NCT certificate.
Display L-plates on the front and rear of the car. (Recommended positions are (a) top of the windscreen on the passenger side and (b) on the top of the driver’s side of the rear window).
Not drive on the motorways.

Provisional Licence

Car drivers (category B) with a provisional licence must be accompanied at all times by, and under the supervision of, a person with a current full driving licence to drive a car. (The only exception to this, is where the driver holds a second provisonal driving licence to drive a car).

Motorcyclists (category A, A1 or M) and work vehicle drivers (category W) with provisional licences, don't have to be accompanied when driving. (In other words, you don't need to have a fully qualified driver accompany you).

All other drivers with provisional licences must be accompanied by and under the supervison of someone with a current full driving licence for the relevant vehicle category.

All provisional licence holders, must display L-plates to the front and rear of the vehicle they are driving at all times.

If you hold a provisonal driving licence, you can't drive a vehicle drawing a trailer, drive on a motorway, act as an accompanying driver or carry other people for reward.

Since the commencement of the Driver Theory Testing Service on 11 June 2001, a theory test certificate must be obtained before a first provisional licence is granted. You may not apply for a third provisional licence unless you can provide evidence that you have (a) undergone a driving test in the two-year period prior to the application or (b) evidence of a forthcoming test date. A two year provisional licence will be granted if you provide evidence you have undergone a driving test, and a one year provisional licence will be granted if you submit evidence of a forthcoming test date.

If your provisional driving licence expired 5 years ago, then you must undergo a Driver Theory test before a new provisional licence can be issued.

Courtesy of the Department of Transport www.transport.ie

The Theory Test

Sample questions can be found on Irish Motoring.ie for;

Passing the driving test

One of the main aims of this website is to help the learner driver prepare for the Department of transport driving test so that he or she will be both proficient and confident when the time comes to actually take it.

Driver testing in Ireland is carried out directly by the Department of Transport to a standard that complies with the EU Directive on Driving Licenses. There are 54 test centers throughout the country with waiting times ranging from 20 to 55 weeks depending on the area you choose.

A driving test is a compulsory requirement for motorists who have been issued with two 2-year provisional driving licences. It's important to be aware that you may not apply for a third or subsequent provisional licence for any category of vehicle unless you undergo a driving test. The waiting times vary from county to county; so it is advisable to apply for a test about 10 months before your second provisional licence is due to expire. It is a set standard test and all test centers use the same testing procedures.

A driving test is designed to determine that you:

Know the rules of the road
Possess the knowledge and skill to drive competently in accordance with those rules
Drive with proper regard for the safety and convenience of other road users

Prior to your driving test you should study the Rules of the Road to refresh your memory. It is also a good idea to practice as much driving as possible on all types of roads and in all types of traffic situations. This will help to improve your driving techniques and build your confidence.

On the day of your test, give yourself plenty of time to arrive at the test centre with a few minutes to spare. When your name is called and you are brought into the examination room, your test officially begins.

Driving test examiner:

Driver examiners want learner drivers to show that they know the rules of the road, have reasonable control of the car, and can follow the correct procedures when carrying out basic manoeuvres such as turns, lane changes and parking. They do not expect a perfect performance, and they know that a beginner will be nervous, but they do expect you to be able to read the road environment (signs, signals, junctions etc).

The Driving Test:

The test will be straightforward and the examiner will not try to trick you and contrary to popular belief has no quota for passing or failing. Do not waste your time or the examiners time by not preparing properly for the test. Contact a reputable driving school and take a pre-test driving lesson. You may have to take a couple of these as any bad habits you have developed will have to be worked on. On your pre-test your instructor will take you around the various routes as well give instruction and advice on how best to sit and pass the test. After your lessons if you wish to further prepare, down load the sample driving test routes on www.irishmotoring.ie . These routes will help you become even more familiar with the town and it's surrounding and will help gain further confidence in your own abilities.

On a typical test route will be expected to complete some the following manoeuvres:

moving off
driving in traffic
stopping
reversing round a corner
turning about to face in the opposite direction
starting on a hill
parking

Aspects of your driving assessed will include:

road positioning
overtaking and passing
anticipation and observation
use of mirrors and signals
progress
speed
compliance with traffic lights, road signs and markings
Use of the vehicle controls (accelerator, clutch, gears, brakes and steering)
Use of secondary controls such as wipers, demisters, etc

Quite often you will have to turn right/left at a busy crossroad or at a junction controlled by traffic lights. Somewhere on the route you will be asked to turn the car in the road (turn about) reverse round a corner.

Drive in a common sense manner at a reasonable speed, and do not carry caution to a ridiculous length. In built up areas a speed limit of 50km/h applies , and if you enter an area with a different speed limit increase or decrease your speed accordingly. Do not exceed the speed limit or you will certainly fail.

Some of the more common causes of failure are listed below. These should help you to recognize the things the examiner watches for. If you drive in a manner that demonstrates to the examiner you are safe, know the correct driving methods and can drive in accordance with the rules of the road you should pass your test.

Some common causes for failing the test:

The following are the most common faults which give rise to candidates failing the driving test:

inadequate observation moving off, at junctions, at roundabouts and when changing lanes
failure to anticipate the actions of other drivers
Incorrect road position on the straight, on bends, turning left, turning right, at roundabouts, and when overtaking
inadequate progress at junctions, roundabouts, on the straight, and when overtaking
incorrect or inadequate use of mirrors and signals
non-compliance with traffic controls, e.g. road signs and markings and traffic lights
incorrect inadequate or inappropriate use of vehicle controls, including gears, clutch; accelerator, steering, handbrake, footbrake, and secondary controls
excessive speed for the road or traffic conditions
failure to yield the right of way to others
lack of competence in the reverse and turnabout maneuvers

Test Results

If you pass:

You will receive a certificate of competency to drive. This enables you to apply to your local Motor Taxation Office for a full driving licence. The certificate is valid for two years. You should take out a full licence within that period or you will be obliged to pass the driving test again in order to obtain a full licence.

Remember, passing the driving test is not the end of the learning process; so continue to drive carefully and build up your experience in different traffic, weather, lighting and road conditions.

If you fail:

You will receive a detailed report on the faults which occurred during the test. Pay particular attention to these when preparing for your next test without, of course, neglecting other aspects of your driving.

A person aggrieved by a decision of a driving test may appeal to the appropriate District Court under Section 33 of the Road Traffic Act, 1961. The District Court may either refuse the appeal or if satisfied that the test was not properly conducted, direct that the applicant be given a further test without payment of another fee.

The proper preparation will be evident during your test and your examiner will recognize someone who has or has not prepared properly after just a few minutes. Do not worry about being nervous examiners can usually differentiate between mistakes due to examination nerves and mistakes due to incompetence; a few minors errors caused by nervousness will not cause you to fail. Take the time to examine the driving test score card as this will give you an indication of the various maneuvers and possible problem areas you should work on.

Remember, the Irish Driving test only covers basic driving situations. Passing it does not make a driver safer or competent in dealing with all the different driving situations he or she will meet in a lifetime of driving.

Courtesy of the Dept of Transport www.transport.ie

Education Enterprise Entrepreneurship

2008-06-06T13:58:00.004+01:00

From the Irish Entrepreneur

Minister's for education and enterprise come together with industry leaders for the first time to talk exclusively to Irish entrepreneur about the role of eduction and enterprise in further developing entrepreneurship in ireland.

The attainment of a high level of churn in Ireland’s exporting sector has been cited as a good barometer of our ability to move up the value chain at the foreign direct investment level.

Our educational system has contributed greatly to Ireland’s success in attracting higher quality multinational technologies and jobs. Will it now play a similar or even greater role in the development of our entrepreneurial sector? Dympna O’Callaghan places this question centre stage and examines the role of education in stimulating and developing an entrepreneurial culture, mindset and skills.

Entrepreneurship has come of age in Ireland. It is now the subject of editorial comment in the New York Times which cites entrepreneurs as ranking just below rock stars in popularity! True, we are witnessing a culture shift in our perception of entrepreneurship as a way of life. Is this something new? Perhaps not if your forefathers were business people and grafted a living from self-owned businesses. Perhaps they too were risk takers, innovators, alert to and exploiting opportunities, possessing all the attributes of an entrepreneur such as need for achievement, locus of control and desire for independence.

The difference today is that business start-ups operate in a much more dynamic and competitive environment. While a high percentage operate on the domestic market, the truly sustainable have international market aspirations and technologies that go beyond the ‘me too’ scenario. These entrepreneurs’ capabilities have been shaped by education. It is no surprise therefore, that, in a drive to transform this economy into an entrepreneurial one, the development of an educational system to support start-up undertakings is regarded as paramount to Ireland attaining its goal of becoming one of the most entrepreneurial in the world.

THINKING SKILLS

Where does or should this educational process begin?
Mary Hanafin T.D., Minister for Education and Science believes that education for enterprise revolves around the type of active learning which now permeates throughout our educational system at all levels - primary, secondary and third level.

“Education today is about encouraging higher order thinking skills and equipping students with the ability to analyse and absorb. A curriculum should enable students to gain experience in a wide range of programmes, technologies, languages and assessment methods. While there is no special subject called entrepreneurship in our early stage curriculum, education is about giving skills, not subjects, and once these skills are acquired, students will know how to use them.”

ENTERPRISE INITIATIVES

Citing enterprise education initiatives such as Junior Achievement, Transition year, Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) Enterprise modules, Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) Enterprise Education Link modules and the Exploring Enterprise initiative - recently launched by the City and County Enterprise Boards and the Second Level Support Service (SLSS) of the Department of Education – as being designed to give students practical experience in the elements and practicalities of setting up a business, the Minister emphasises that the skill of teaching entrepreneurship has also been catered for with the incorporation of a DVD (within Exploring Enterprise) of eight case studies on entrepreneurship to act as a ‘Teacher Resource Book’.

“There is evidence that enterprise has caught the imagination of our second level students,” adds the Minister. “Almost 40% of Leaving Certificate students now take a business option while 28,000 students take enterprise education as part of the LCVP, and twenty-seven thousand opt for Transition year. The curve will move upwards with more schools being encouraged to offer Transition year. I am also awaiting a response to my proposal for developing a short course on enterprise for delivery to fifth year students as I feel this might speed up the process of bringing enterprise to an even wider audience.”

A lot is also being done to encourage entrepreneurial thinking in disadvantaged areas too, particularly through the Schools’ Business Partnership Programme. “This is a very useful initiative as it links employees in some of our major companies with pupils and teachers; advantages flow in both directions,” says the Minister.

FOSTERING COMMERCIALISATION

The value of teamwork across disciplines at all levels in the education system enables students to cross fertilise ideas and technologies. The fact that the patents office now attends the BT Young Scientist of the Year competition is evidence that the youth of today are developing patentable technologies; this augurs well for future entrepreneurial flow.

A key priority for the Government is to develop links between researchers in third level Colleges and Institute of Technology with industry. “The benefits to the economy of doing so are immense,” adds Minister Hanafin. “This is why we have invested €230 million in the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions. We need to encourage the move from researcher to entrepreneur and to equip researchers with the skills to commercialise their research. We need to facilitate their stepping from the world of academia to entrepreneurship.”

And, much is being done is this regard. A quick read through the Forfás report ‘Towards Developing an Entrepreneurship Policy for Ireland’ highlights the many initiatives introduced by third level colleges in the area of enterprise education. It cites the fact that we now have four professors of entrepreneurship in UCD, DCU, UCC and UL; 77 undergraduate and eleven postgraduate courses available; centres of enterprise/innovation and incubators in all third level campuses; an Enterprise Platform Programme run by all Institutes of Technology with support from Enterprise Ireland; Technology Transfer offices facilitating the commercialisation of research into new ventures and an exhaustive range of Enterprise Awards and campus enterprise programmes.

This activity, whilst doing great work, lacks cohesion according to the Forfás report which also calls on educators to introduce entrepreneurship to the curriculum of all students, business and non-business alike. This, it says, will lead to ‘a culture of entrepreneurship and develop entrepreneurial mindsets’ at all levels on campus. It will instill confidence, develop skills and cultivate an environment for creativity mixed with learning.

CULTIVATING A NEW MINDSET

If we are to use education to its best advantage in our entrepreneurship quest it has to lead to the development of entrepreneurial mindsets, a goal which the European Commission is clearly focused on. Education will play a key role in this regard, according to Paula Fitzsimons, co-author of the annual GEM, Irish report. “Many good things are being done in the educational system at the moment; what is lacking is a policy to pull it all together and guide all stakeholders involved in its implementation; a clear direction to shareholders and policy makers to deliver strategy. While we are developing a culture of entrepreneurship in Ireland, we still need to focus on creating the right mindsets, stimulating individual thinking and creativity; the softer sides of entrepreneurship.

“We also have to measure and absorb the effectiveness of what we are doing. We need to have total regard for the value of education; you will find a very clear correlation between education at all levels and entrepreneurship activity, particularly amongst women – as women become more educated, they also become more entrepreneurial. We need to do more to kick start this; to make it happen. Mindset and skills development are paramount.”

Fitzsimons believes the time is right for Ireland to make a concerted effort to fly the entrepreneurial flag. “The demographics are just right for entrepreneurship; our population is growing with a large proportion in the appropriate age group, between twenties and forties. Entrepreneurship has gone up the Government agenda; its importance to the economy is now recognised; the time is perfect for a coherent policy which incorporates an educational strategy,” adds Fitzsimons.

STRATEGY FOR CHANGE

Any future strategy on entrepreneurship will take note of recommendations made by the European Commission in its Oslo Agenda for Entrepreneurial Education in Europe which presented a menu of proposals for adoption by Member States engaged in promoting entrepreneurship in education. The Forfás report takes this into account particularly areas such as: ‘the need for political support for entrepreneurship education at the highest level; the need to integrate entrepreneurship programmes in all schools’ curricula; use of practical teaching tools; adoption of innovate methods to train teachers of entrepreneurship; associate students to real companies and to business people; offer entrepreneurial education to disadvantaged people and most importantly, encourage students, graduates and researchers with commercially viable business ideas to develop them into companies.’

BRINGING RESEARCH TO LIFE

At this stage Colleges and Institutes of Technology throughout Ireland don’t need to be prompted by the Oslo Agenda to understand the value of research commercialisation. Take NUIG for example. Its Director of Technology Transfer, Daniel O’Mahony knows his clear remit is “to identify and protect intellectual property (IP) developed and researched in NUIG. With a PhD in Bio Chemistry, a Business Degree in Technology Management and industry experience through time spent with Elan, in management consultancy and venture capital structuring, O’Mahony is well placed to promote the IP assets of the College.

Since 2005, and with a new team experienced in this realm, he has been busy commercialising technology in 2007 and has seen the number of patent applications increase from 3 to 30, 2006 on 2007 with a similar increase in the number of licenses agreed. “In the past ten years, we may have structured two license agreements, whereas in 2007, we had 24, with four stand-alone start-ups established,” he explains.

“It’s all to do with having the right team in place,” he adds. “You need people who are skilled in understanding key research projects and are dedicated to the cause of promoting research yet retain its value for the College. Many researchers don’t want to leave College so you have to identify an external management team who can lead a start-up to commericalise the research and make it work. In some instances, the researcher will be retained as scientific advisor to the start-up; that’s the key link between education and enterprise.”

Entrepreneurship education is now included in Masters and PhD programmes at NUIG so that researchers at that level spend time exposed to an entrepreneurial curriculum and can also collaborate with colleagues in other Colleges, including TCD and UCC.

“While PhD or Post Doctoral researchers are great at developing technology, some just don’t know what’s required to transfer their IP to the start-up arena; they benefit therefore from short courses on business topics such as finance, law, business negotiation, marketing and license agreements. That’s where our Campus Company Development Programme helps and it’s paying dividends: we now have fifteen people across the College exposed to campus company development. Some will progress to enterprise development, others with license on,” adds O’Mahony.

With significant projects in regenerative medicine and expertise building in its Digital Enterprise Research Institute, NUIG is building up an international reputation for developing leading edge technologies in stem cells and semantic web technologies.

LEARNING BY DOING

Enterprise Ireland is well versed in the practicalities of bringing a new business to life; its very successful four-year long Enterprise Platform Programme (EPP) was specifically designed to take entrepreneurs through all stages of business establishment.

“Traditionally, a lot of HPSUs over the years have been started by people in industry, quite a number from multi-nationals. These companies do well if the senior management team is experienced and ready to go. Some, however, may be good on technology but weak in general business and need to bring themselves up to speed; in this instance EPP is useful, it’s learning by doing,” says Michael Brougham, manager, Enterprise Preparation, Entrepreneurship and Regional Development Division, Enterprise Ireland. “From 2003 – 2006, sixty HPSUs or 20% of our top line target emanated from this programme; it’s a programme that’s proving its worth,” says Brougham.

Despite the fact that the EPP is answering a key need at business development level, Brougham feels it would be most beneficial to have enterprise modules in all third level colleges as mandatory, rather than optional. “We’d also be interested in seeing more people from PhD and Post Doctoral level coming through to business start-up. Our prime focus is on helping to generate projects with scalability in export markets; projects coming from the research stream present this ability. We need to look at third level colleges as power houses for creativity and capitalise on that. When support is available in this environment, you move to a new, higher level of entrepreneurship. That’s what Ireland needs now,” he adds.

GROUNDED

The Forfás ‘Towards Developing an Entrepreneurship Policy for Ireland’ points to a need for educators within third level to ensure that entrepreneurship ‘is part of their curriculum for students from ‘non-business and business courses alike’. The benefits, it says, will accrue.

Prof Frank Roche, Deputy Principal of the College of Business and Law and Prof of Entrepreneurship at UCD is someone who understands this thinking. “We started our journey in educating people for entrepreneurship in 1975,” he says.

When asked to elaborate, he answers, “when you spread the gospel to a broader based audience, you get a bigger impact at University level. Most people will not start-up a business as soon as they leave College; it could take anything from two to ten years to do so. Many who get into enterprise are not prepared and wish they had been able to take on board and learn more about it at the start. People vote and elect to take a course because they are curious about it, so we need to empower them to go on that journey. That’s why we introduced our New Horizons programme - to bring enterprise to all faculties as an elective in some instances and as a core subject in others. It’s taken a while to bed in as it’s not normal to step outside the normal curriculum box.”

New Horizons is a practical course and covers a cross section of subjects. “In any College where entrepreneurship is incorporated in a module, you can expect 10% to leave and run a business; this is pretty much on a par with international and US studies. That’s why our modules are opened up campus-wide; you have to spread the net. We have included entrepreneurship at undergraduate and post graduate levels. We now have seven elective courses in entrepreneurship at post grad level. And, we spread our reach out to the NOVA incubator too. We are also introducing shorter three-month courses for people who are in employment, are at business plan preparation stage but are not quite ready to leave the employment nest,” says Roche.

Entrepreneurship and start-ups are important for job creation. Ireland now needs to be as competitive in the services sector as it has been in manufacturing. “We need to replicate what’s happened in MIT in Boston; develop a map of Ireland dominated by red dots which signify technology spin-outs. That’s the new industrial development; that’s why education for entrepreneurship is needed; that’s what will generate our competitiveness in the years ahead,” he adds.

A FRESH START

The objective of embedding innovation and entrepreneurship across faculties and at every level enables colleges to develop a culture of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial mindsets on campus. NUIM’s Dr Robert Galavan, as Head of the newly-created Business and Law Department, may well have read this in the Forfás report but he was well on his way to setting up the structures needed to mainstream innovation in all his Department’s programmes. As the former Head of Executive Education and Strategy at the Irish Management Institute he is fully conversant with the drivers of industry.

As the final University in the country to have a Business Department, Galavan’s aspiration is to develop his new area of responsibility into a major school of Business and Law in the country. Galavan’s core focus will be on innovation rather than specialisation; taking, creating and helping entrepreneurs to spot opportunities and enabling them to being innovation to life.

Galavan is clearly focused on developing a culture of entrepreneurship on-campus; he wants his students to get excited about it. “Teaching it at every level gives students an ability to gain exposure to entrepreneurship; so many are missing out at the moment,” he says.

R&D

While NUIM’s business department may be new its involvement with leading edge research is not. Through its Innovation and Value Institute, a joint venture with Intel and a consortium of global companies, it works with companies to address challenges presented by IT. “The value to the College of being involved in research at this level is immense,” says Galavan. “We can take the modes and frameworks back into the classroom and present students with the latest thinking in the field. Some researchers, who are working with the Institute on research at the highest level, also teach entrepreneurship at undergraduate level. That can only be beneficial,” he adds.

While Galavan would also like to see undergraduates gain entrepreneurial experience in a proactive way he feels it’s just not practical. “Time is the issue at start-up and most companies don’t have the structures in place to give students work experience. However, we should not confuse entrepreneurial with small; seeing what’s happening in larger companies prepares them for post start-up stage, which is just as critical for the growth phase. Students gain a rich experience from job placements; they learn about finance, cash flow, scalability, international markets and most importantly about human resources.”

Galavan feels very strong about the people side of entrepreneurship. He would put this high on his list of essentials for all start-up enterprise; the ability to choose the right people, the right team to take the embryonic company through all phases of its development. “They will only learn this from exposure to real life entrepreneurial environments; they need to make the human connection with great role models,” he adds.

GOVERMENT COLLABORATION

Role models in all strata of entrepreneurship will be important if Ireland is to attain its entrepreneurial status goal. Micheál Martin, T.D., Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment is hoping to do for entrepreneurship what he did for a nti-smoking in Ireland; revolutionise our thinking.

His determination to position Ireland as a leading entrepreneurial economy is clearly evident; he sees education ‘reinforcing a strong culture, supporting and enabling men and women to develop the skills and confidence they need to start and develop businesses. “We have undergone a significant mindset change to ent repreneurship which has enabled us attain a high position among the EU 25 and OECD countries,” he says. “Innovations to promote business start-up activity including: Innovation vouchers, the Tech-Check programme, Business Campus Scheme and innovations in venture capital funding are assisting the process. We are building up a good entrepreneurial infrastructure at all educational and incubation levels with incubators such as the National Software Centre in Cork, the Digital Hub in Dublin and Webworks making an impact.

The very comprehensive Forfás report signals the way forward. Framing an Entrepreneurship Policy document, recommended initially by the Small Business Forum and currently underway, will chart a new direction for entrepreneurship in Ireland. “Education will be a key component of this policy; most importantly integrated education in schools where business will not just be confined to Transition year but permeate at all levels. My Department works closely with the Department of Education and Science on educating for business. We will refine and take tangible applications to enterprise and see how we can use the curriculum to more effectively promote enterprise, Minister Martin explains.”

Education is central to stimulating an entrepreneurship culture in Ireland. Embedding this culture requires cross Government involvement and calls for input from all eight Government Departments as happened when developing the very comprehensive Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Strategy for the country as a whole. “We now operate in a globalised world. We must equip our entrepreneurs and our business leaders with the skills to operate in that world. Education is the key,” adds Minister Martin

Record demand hits college points hopes

2008-06-02T11:17:00.005+01:00

Todays headline in the Irish Independent on the eve of the Leaving Cert Exams

A RECORD number of applications for college places has hit hopes of a dramatic fall in entry points for major courses.

A total of 68,300 students are chasing about 40,000 places in the autumn, according to new figures from the Central Applications Office (CAO).

The figures were disclosed as more than 50,000 students prepare to sit their Leaving Certificate examinations on Wednesday.

The final total will represent an increase of 2,500 on last year and will sharpen competition for some high-points courses such as law, medicine and dentistry.

The numbers taking the Leaving are up by more than 1,000 on last year and most have applied to the CAO for college places.

Apart from more Leaving Cert applicants, there are also extra applications from adults this year. And more students are applying from Further Education colleges with Post Leaving Certificate qualifications. There is also a small rise in the number of overseas applicants.

But John McGinnity, assistant registrar with the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, said students should not be alarmed by the effect on points of the 2pc rise in Leaving Cert applicants.

"It's hard to predict," he said. "But the increase is a reminder to students not to take it for granted that points will be lower this year. They should put in the effort and do the best they can."

The CAO reports 67,810 applications to date and a further 500 or so are expected by the end of the 'offer season'.

These will come from existing college students who want to transfer to another college course and from new applicants for late vacancies which inevitably arise in hard-to-fill courses.

The CAO system has been operating since 1977 and the previous highest number of applicants was four years ago, when 66,222 people applied for places.

Older

Among this year's applicants is a high number of older adults, including people who have retired. Statistics obtained by the Irish Independent show that last year there were 265 full-time and 474 part-time students in our universities and teacher training colleges over 60 years of age -- up from 236 and 418 the previous year.

In the Institute of Technology sector, there were 84 full-time and 81 part-time students in the 60-plus age bracket. While many are in their 60s, there are groups of students in their 70s and even into their 80s taking courses at present.

The most popular subject choices tend to be history, fine arts, archaeology, religion and English. The Higher Education Authority said that there are 10,500 people aged 30 and over studying full-time in our higher education institutions. Many are returning to education to boost their career prospects.

- John Walshe Education Editor

June Bank Holiday Week-End

2008-05-30T11:20:00.003+01:00

Hi Everyone,

We are taking the opportunity of this weekend to carry out essential maintenance to the our site, www.courses.ie. The site will be down between 1pm - 4pm approximately today.

We are delighted to be carrying out this maintenance to improve certain functions of the site, thanks to you making it such a part of your information searches :-)

Probably you won't even notice as many of you will be heading off to enjoy the holiday weekend.

As the song says,'Summers here and the time is right for dancing in the street...'

Have a great time and mind yourselves,

See you soon,

Courses.ie

How do I become an ISTD Teacher?

2008-05-28T10:50:00.005+01:00

As a worldwide examinations board, the ISTD provides teaching qualifications to ensure ISTD teachers are fully trained and supported in their teaching vocation from a teaching, health and safety, psychological and dance genre specific perspective.

Depending where you are in the world, and which dance genres you plan to offer, the ISTD has the teaching progression route for you, as detailed below.

If you have further questions after reading any of the information listed, please contact the Education and Training Department who will be able to assist you.

How do I become a Theatre Faculty Teacher within the EU?

The ISTD's teaching qualifications for Theatre Faculty teachers within the EU (including the UK) are as follows. (Please click here for the progression route for Theatre Faculty teachers outside the EU)

Please note, this is only a brief outline and there are some requirements not listed below. For further details you will need to read the appropriate Faculty syllabus outline obtainable free from Education and Training on edugeneralassistant@istd.org

Foundation in Dance Instruction

Candidates must be 17 years of age or over within the academic year they start the qualification and hold the Intermediate qualification from a QCA approved awarding body in the genre in with they wish to teach. For further information on this qualification please see our article on Foundation in Dance Instruction per the guidelines of the ISTD.

Certificate in Dance Education

Candidates must be 18 years of age or over within the academic year they start the qualification, hold the Advanced 1 qualification from a QCA approved awarding body in the genre in with they wish to teach and hold the Foundation in Dance Instruction. For further information on this qualification see our article Certificate in Dance Education

Licentiate

Candidates must be 23 years of age or over, hold the Certificate in Dance Education and have been teaching for 5 years

Fellowship

Candidates must be 28 years of age or over, have passed their Licentiate, have achieved their Advanced 2 qualification in the genre concerned, hold their Applied Anatomy and Physiology Parts 1 and 2 (for Fellowships being taken before 31 August 2006 only), and have been teaching for at least 8 years .

Ten easy ways to alleviate stress - by Ann Bracken

2008-05-27T11:48:00.006+01:00

Lowering our stress levels helps us feel healthy and have a positive outlook on life.

Organize your time and write a list. By keeping a wall planner or diary, you can prevent double booking appointments.

Do unimportant routine tasks when you have less energy and the most demanding jobs when you are more energetic. Do not over plan and allow yourself time to complete tasks.

Dedicate some daily time to ‘being’ instead of ‘doing’. Many of us feel guilty for taking necessary time out.

Surround yourself with Mother Nature. Taking a 30 minute walk at lunchtime clears the mind and all exercise releases natural endorphins, which lifts the mood. Other tension taming exercises include yoga, swimming and pilates.

Visualisation is a very effective self-help technique for stress. Find a quiet space where you know you will not be disturbed. When sitting comfortably or lying down, close your eyes. Breathe slowly and visualize a calm, beautiful scene. Use your senses to make it real. Imagine the sounds you would hear and the smells you would experience in such a place. Repeat to yourself “I am relaxed and happy”.

Aromatherapy can be used to relax the mind. Burn a few drops of a relaxing essential oil, or add four drops to your bath. Bergamot, Camomile, Clary Sage, Jasmine or Lavender are all calming oils. Juniper, or the citrus oils, such as orange and lemon uplift the spirits and get your day off to a good start.

Use colour therapy daily. Wear blue or black to feel relaxed, green to promote harmony, red to feel energised, orange for happiness and yellow for concentration. Not altogether of course!

When you experience muscle tension or headache, ask a friend or work colleague to massage you head, neck and shoulders. Ideally, allow yourself to benefit from a relaxation therapy weekly. Reflexology, massage, shiatsu and reiki all relax the body and balance energy flow.

Drink plenty of water. Still water, stills the mind. It is recommended to drink a litre of water per day. Tap water can contain high levels of copper, iron, chlorine and fluoride (which contrary to widespread belief is harmful in excess) and other pollutants. It is advisable to drink bottled or filtered water.

Adding foods with a high source of Iron is an excellent way to avoid physical exhaustion. Lentils and Soya beans contain a high source of Iron. Wholesome grains are very grounding such as brown rice, oats and millet. Cut down on your intake of coffee, white sugar and processed or refined foods. Apart from having no nutritional value, stimulants create mood swings.

If you find you are a ‘yes’ person, try saying ‘no’ sometimes. It is impossible to be all things to all people and actually not agreeing to every request of your time and energy allows you time to relax and focus on your own needs. When you are rested, your outlook will be positive and once again you can reach out with the hand of friendship.

Laughter helps to lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol - so as John Cleese so famously sang, “always look on the bright side of life”.

Courtesy of Irish Institute of Nutrition & Health

Meetings to help families at exam time

2008-05-13T12:26:00.003+01:00

Parents can learn how to keep their child and themselves calm during the stressful exam season, thanks to a free public meeting in Dublin tonight, May 13th.

Child psychiatrists Prof. Fiona McNicholas and Dr. Therese Thornton will give their expert advice.

The meeting will be held at the lucena Clinic, 59, Orwell Rd, Rathgar, Dublin 6. It runs from 7pm to 8.30pm.

Register by phoning 01 499 9349 or online at www.lucenaclinic.ie

Time for Tennis

2008-05-11T17:44:00.004+01:00

Ireland is still waiting to find her answer to Borg, Connors, McEnroe...Ok, OK, I am showing my age.

Tennis Ireland remains ever hopeful though! Every year Park Tennis coaching is carried out for those aged between 6 to 17 and this year it kicks in again.

A Tennis Coaching programme takes place this Summer at various venues around the country.

Hourly classes are divided according to age and standard.

This is a low cost programme subsidised by various sponsors.

The only cost is a small once off registration fee - and that's it.. All equipment supplied, racquets and balls - Free T-shirts for all.

Get going and enjoy this fun programme with your friends while learning tennis. Dates and times vary according to locations but are mostly during July or August. The full 2008 Timetable.

Quoting an interview with John McEnroe for the BBC Sports

Tennis does have a stuffy image.

That's not just here, but everywhere, even the United States.

But I can tell you tennis is one of the best all round games that I've been lucky enough to be part of.

It combines a lot of strategy and the mental part of the sport is huge because you're out there by yourself.

It can be difficult being on your own, I know this myself.

When you lose you feel really naked out there and it's difficult to accept it but that's part of the process.

Tennis is one of the most difficult sports to learn, but when you do master it, it's so enjoyable because things happen without you even thinking.

You can win points in lots of different ways and be totally creative on the court too.

People talk about attitude and in the UK it seems very important to be a good loser.

While in America you are taught to win at any cost. I personally feel that somewhere in the middle of that would be ideal.

I always say that the greatest match I was ever part of was the 1980 Wimbledon final which I lost to Bjorn Borg.

Even though it sounds corny, I felt like I came out of that match a winner.

My respect level among players and fans went up by 20 or 50 times more and that's the match people always ask me about.

It's a lot harder to go out and fail or lose than to try at all. I give automatic respect to people who are willing to get themselves out there.

You should take great pride in giving 100 per cent effort.

Maybe you don't always win but you'll be amazed that a lot of good things will happen.

Never give up!

BBC Exposes Facebook Flaw

2008-05-04T10:08:00.003+01:00

According to the BBC's Technology site Facebook has some security issues regarding the privacy of your own information and that of the people you link to.

Career Doctor: What qualifications do I need to become a legal secretary?

2008-05-02T08:23:00.002+01:00

We sourced this interesting question on the Irish Independent....

Q

I am 25 years old and work in retail, but something about the job isn’t right for me. For a long time, I’ve had a huge interest in the legal profession. I would like to know what qualifications I’d need to become a legal secretary and how to look for work experience. I would appreciate any advice you could give me about my career prospects in this area.

A

In relation to your first question, I would suggest you check out two websites: www.careerdirections.ie and www.fas.ie.

The first gives a comprehensive list of courses that will help you qualify as a legal secretary. The second outlines the details of the FÁS legal secretary traineeship.

Many of these courses are full-time day courses, typically lasting one year. When investigating courses, you should ask whether they include work experience. Would a full-time day course be an issue for you? FÁS offers a legal secretary traineeship, which is a full-time day course, but only lasts 29 weeks. This may be a better option.

Something you didn’t ask about, but I’d suggest is very relevant to your decision, is salary expectations. This depends on where you are located and the size of your potential employer’s business. Entry salaries range from €18,000 to €25,000, but good legal secretaries with more than five years’ experience typically earn up to €35,000.

In terms of the second part of your question, the good news is that legal secretaries are in demand, and the prospects of getting work, once qualified, are very positive.

Therefore I’d suggest you keep an eye on the appointments pages in both the local and national press. There are also some recruitment companies that could help you out.

Finally, consider the work you will do as a legal secretary. Do you like this type of work and does it make the most of your strengths? For example, you will need strong communication, planning and organisational skills. In addition, you will be expected to work well under pressure and meet deadlines.

It is a brave but not too daunting move you are contemplating. Best of luck with it and bear in mind, when you find work that you love, you will never work again!

Terry Judge is a career coach with Mind Solutions.

www.mindsolutions.ie

Guest Authors In Conversation with Dermot Bolger

2008-05-01T15:16:00.005+01:00

I have read novels by 5 of the guest authors who will be in conversation with Dermot Bolger at a series of readings over the next few months.

What a joy to hear treasured authors read and discuss their work. I for one will be getting some tickets.

The Irish Writers’ Centre is delighted to announce an exciting new series of fortnightly readings by leading contemporary authors at the Irish Writers’ Centre, 19 Parnell Square, Dublin 1.

This unique and intimate series of hour-long public readings has been curated by leading novelist and poet Dermot Bolger. In conversation with Bolger, writers will read from and discuss their work in the beautiful surroundings of this Georgian building in Parnell Square in Dublin overlooking The Garden of Remembrance.

The series kicks off on 20th May with acclaimed author Jennifer Johnston, followed by Roddy Doyle and Colm Tóibín in June and Joseph O’Connor, Claire Kilroy and Glenn Patterson in July. Anne Enright is among the authors due to read during the series in the autumn.

The programme for the first series (May-June) is as follows:

May
20 Jennifer Johnston

June
3 Roddy Doyle
17 Colm Tóibín

July
1 Joseph O’Connor
15 Claire Kilroy
29 Glenn Patterson

Tickets available two weeks prior to the reading by calling 01 872 1302

For details of how to book, please contact the Irish Writers’ Centre.
Tel: 01 872 1302; Email: info@writerscentre.ie

Google Images soon to get their own Page Rankings

2008-04-30T22:25:00.002+01:00

This appeared in The Age Newspaper in Australia

Google algorithm improves image search

Google researchers said they had a software technology intended to do for digital images on the web what the company's original PageRank software did for searches of web pages.

Last week, at the International World Wide Web Conference in Beijing, two Google scientists presented a paper describing what the researchers called VisualRank, an algorithm for blending image-recognition software methods with techniques for weighting and ranking images that look most similar.

Although image search had become popular on commercial search engines, results were usually generated by using cues from the text that is associated with each image.

Image analysis remained a largely unsolved problem in computer science, the researchers said.

So while progress had been made in automatic face detection in images, finding other objects such as mountains or tea pots, which were instantly recognisable to humans, had lagged.

"We wanted to incorporate all of the stuff that is happening in computer vision and put it in a web framework," said Shumeet Baluja, a senior staff researcher at Google, who made the presentation with Yushi Jing, another Google researcher. The company's expertise in creating vast graphs that weigh "nodes", or web pages, based on their "authority" could be applied to images that were the most representative of a particular query, he said.

The research paper focused on a subset of images the giant search engine had catalogued because of the tremendous computing costs required to analyse and compare digital images. To do this for all of the images indexed by the search engine would be impractical, the researchers said. Google did not disclose how many images it had catalogued.

The company said that in its research it had concentrated on the 2000 most popular product queries on Google's product search, words such as iPod, Xbox and Zune. It then sorted the top 10 images from its ranking system and the standard Google Image Search results. With a team of 150 Google employees, it created a scoring system for image "relevance". The researchers said the retrieval returned 83 per cent less irrelevant images.

The New York Times

Email and its Place

2008-04-23T09:56:00.004+01:00

Courtesy of Annette over at Interactions, I came upon Matt Moores slideshow about email. As Annette say it is simple yet very sophisticated presentation. It shows how far we have come with our cyber forms of communication.

| View | Upload your own

This presentation uses another handy programme called SlideShare that allows you to share your presentations with the world letting your ideas reach a broad audience. You can share publicly or privately.

More and more people turning to web based programmes. Most are free, and offer a freedom of not always being tied to your own laptop or computer.

The main contender in free web based programmes is Google. The Labs section lists all the programmes that are available, some are still in beta but are worth exploring and having fun with.

A site I found Zoho.com also offers a superb range of mostly free programmes from the main office suite; wordprocessor spreadsheets, presentation and database programmes to email, organisers, invoices, CRM and project management programmes to name but a few.

Education and the Knowledge Based Economy

2008-04-21T16:31:00.002+01:00

This is such a good blog posting by Piaras I have quoted it in its entirety.

So the INTO (Irish National Teachers Organisation) held their annual conference a couple of weeks ago. There was back and forth between the teacher’s union and Minister for Education, Mary Hanafin T.D., on a number of points including class sizes, IT in classrooms and education for disadvantaged and disabled students.

What’s of particular interest for me about how the whole knowledge based economy was thrown into the mix yet again. I’ve given my two cents on the topic in the past, but not so much in the context of the Irish education system (and what’s probably relevant to other education systems across the globe.)

We’re at a bit of a crossroads at the moment. On the one hand, we have business leaders, government and teachers talking about how we need to innovate in order for the country to continue on its path of unheralded economic success. On the other hand, we’re staring blankly at the huge waves of innovation taking place in front of us currently and failing to acknowledge how these new creative processes are affecting the current socio-economic environment.

Firstly let’s look at a new White Paper published by the UK government recently. The BBC reports that the UK government’s viewpoint is that “the key to the UK becoming a world leader in innovation is to forge closer links between industry and higher education.” However, when you read down through the article, the Association for Science Education points out that while that is all well and good, the current education system in the UK (like Ireland) stifles innovation when it comes to science. The BBC quotes’s Alan Rhodes from the Association for Science Education, “Our curriculum is so test orientated that children are being taught to pass tests and you do not innovate when teaching children to pass tests. I believe in high standards, but there is insufficient time for creativity in the curriculum from primary school up to the age of 18.”

The main problem facing most education systems is that they are centred on rote learning which by definition avoids understanding of a subject and instead focuses on memorisation. Ultimately this does not instill the type of creativity and free thinking that innovation depends on. The CAO system adds to the problem as it simply incentivises people to study subject like law or medicine simply based on the fact that they require high points. Some commentators are calling for bonus points to be given to maths, but this fails to recognise that the system is the problem. Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski, President of DCU, offered some other reasons why the CAO system is flawed in the Irish Times last year (subscription required):

It may be useful to describe briefly what the points system is. In order to be admitted to the third-level programme of her or his choice, a student needs to have the points required for that programme.

The points themselves are, it could be said, a market currency. There is a minimum number for each programme, reflecting the educational attainment thought necessary to succeed in that programme; but the actual points required are the product of supply and demand: where there are more applicants for a programme than there are places - ie where there is strong demand for a scarce product - then you will have higher points. Therefore if a subject becomes particularly popular, the points go through the roof. This does not reflect the intellectual demands of the programme, just its popularity; and the points can go up and down dramatically from year to year without the syllabus changing at all. If you want to buy a scarce product, you need to pay a high price; and if few want it, you can get it very cheaply.

So what is the effect of that in practice? Let us take the case of points required for entry to various subjects in University College Dublin last September.

A student wanting to study architecture or law, for example, would have to have between 500 and 600 points. But if the same student wanted to study chemical engineering, food science or biochemistry, she would need only 300-400 points.
What does that tell us? Nothing at all about the intellectual demands of the subjects concerned; in fact arguably the more difficult ones seem to require the lower points in the above examples (though all third-level studies require intellectual application). Maybe these points reflect national priorities? Certainly not, as the country’s needs in technological studies and life sciences are much greater than its need for more lawyers, for example.

It could be argued that points are a beauty parade of college programmes, reflecting current fashions rather than any assessment of need. But my worry is that they don’t reflect student preferences and aptitudes either. A student with 550 points will tend to look at programmes that require these.

Disproportionately few students with 550 points apply for programmes requiring 300, so that the brightest often shun the less popular programmes, though these in turn often reflect real national needs.

It is also arguable that some of the most popular subjects provide training for the professions, such as the law, accountancy, architecture, the Civil Service, and so on. Social pressures may be pushing students into those professions, influencing the points. But national needs don’t necessarily point in the same direction, since the biggest need for more graduates is not in areas like law and architecture, but arguably in technology-related subjects and life sciences.

If the points system is a market, then it should be assessed like any other market - is it a good distribution mechanism for the resources being traded? I would find the evidence on that count to be fairly damning, and I would fear that we are institutionalising a set of trends that are not particularly good for the colleges, the students and the country.

The other factor in the mix is how sites like Wikipedia are challenging traditional perceptions of learning in the education system. There’s a really interesting post on one of our new Edelman blogs about the difference between colloboration and cheating. Phil Gomes points out that an acquaitance if his, a scientist-turned-business-leader, once said, “In the workplace, they call it ‘collaboration’. In academia, they call it ‘cheating’.” Gomes highlights the case of Chris Avenir, a student at Ryerson University, who “is fighting charges of academic misconduct for helping run an online chemistry study group via Facebook last term, where 146 classmates swapped tips on homework questions that counted for 10 per cent of their mark.” according to an article in the Toronto Star. Gomes simplifies the situation as:

Study group wherein it’s entirely possible that solutions for chemistry and math problems are freely swapped: Perfectly okay.

Study group on Facebook, where it is demonstrably clear that no solution was traded, only helpful tips (as in any IRL study group): Expulsion-worthy!!

Education as we know it is fundamentally changing. We’re operating a system that is around one hundred years old. If there needs to be innovation in any sector, then it’s the education system. The INTO hit the nail on the head in one of the demands of Minister Hanafin at their conference and that was not to reduce the invesment in the education system in the face of an economic downturn. It’s a bit like selling your star player when a sports team gets relegated. It might make financial sense, but when it comes to getting promoted next year, you’ve effectively chopped your own legs off before you’ve started.

The main challenge facing teachers though is that change needs to be built into the education system. How prepared are Irish teachers to be constantly challenging themselves and self-improving. Why do I say this? Let’s look at the whole IT in the Irish education system debate. A number of people are saying that 252 million euro is too little, the government are saying its just fine. They’re both right in a sense.

The problem with most IT investment is that it’s a capital investment. The lifetime of a laptop is 18 months before it’s effectively obselete, but a secondary school student’s educational lifetime is six years so they will have seen four laptops in that period alone.

The big problem with introducing anything new into the classroom is that teachers need to be confident enough to use it. No-one wants to stand up in front of a class of 30 kids and be heckled because they don’t know where the ANY key is. ANY key aside, if a laptop is installed as a bare minimum into every classroom across the country then teachers need to be prepared to know how to use it and commit to further training for hardware and software upgrades.

What really needs to happen in classrooms when it comes to teaching IT is that the concepts behind the applications need to be taught. Focusing on the software is shortsighted as students will be using something completely different when they graduate. Instead they should be learning about collaboration and using the Internet as a research tool, but at the same time realising that they need to investigate a number of information sources, before ultimately offering their opinion rather than repeating what they read on Wikipedia or in a text book.

The big worry however is the resistance to change in any institution, especially public sector. Just look at the health system, everyone admits that there needs to be change, but no-one will implement it. In effect, that’s the complete opposite of what the knowledge based economy should be - the ongoing development of new processes and their incorporation into organisations.

It is all about style

2008-04-16T11:07:00.005+01:00

As Mae West famously said

It isn't what I do, but how I do it. It isn't what I say, but how I say it, and how I look when I do it and say it.

is a maximum that could have been said about Geraldine Brand. Gerldine, renowned for her own sense of style and fashion and who ran the very successful Brand model agency has turned her attention to the most style conscious section of our community, our teenage girls.

Geraldine is holding summer style workshops for 16-19-year-olds that begin in June and run weekly until the beginning of August in St. Stephens Green, Dublin.

The workshop is all about learning how to make the most of oneself. How to wear clothes that suit your body shape and colouring, how to achieve a clear skin tone and even skin colour through the correct application of skin care and make-up.
The girls learn how to style their hair, how to walk with ease and grace, and lots more about image and style.

Through her contacts in fashion and make-up, both Irish and international companies contribute to the workshop. a-wear part of the Brown Thomas group supply Geraldine with a range of their summer fashion, allowing her to show practical examples of how to build a wardrobe without spending a fortune. (I can hear parents scrambling to book their daughters on the course for this alone!)

Bobbi Brown an international make-up company based in New York supply the latest in make-up for the girls to experiment with under guidance from their make-up artists. Roc supply skin care especially suited to young and problem skin.

From etiquette to wardrobe planning, from body language to interview techniques, the workshops' aim is that each student will be able to present themselves in the best possible way with confidence.

Geraldine also works with the corporate sector who realise the advantage in developing the image and style of their employees as a reflection of their company.
One to one consultations are also available for men and woman.

Geraldine has her courses listed with Courses.ie

This sounds like a wondeful way to spend a week of the summer holidays and I know many 16-19 year old girls that would just love to do this course.

Tai chi exercises help to fight diabetes

2008-04-01T14:14:00.003+01:00

Tai-Chi describes a way of life and a system of healing and exercise which combines physical training (martial art) with spiritual growth and mental discipline. Its history can be traced back to India and the development of Buddhism circa 500BC.

Tai Chi has been practiced in all corners of the world. The most popular style of Tai Chi taught today in the Western world is Yang style, after the family name. Cheng Man Ch'ing (1900-1975) is largely credited as being the greatest master of Yang style in the modern world. Cheng developed the short Tang form, which is a concise, and shortened form. It contains the most basic principles and movements that are of great benefit to health and well-being.

According to an article in today's Irish Independent

TAI CHI exercises could help diabetics control their blood sugar levels, researchers said today.

A 12-week programme was shown to boost the the body's immune system in people suffering Type 2, which is linked to obesity.

Two studies, published ahead of print in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, looked at the impact of tai chi on diabetes.

Tai chi involves moderate exercise using flowing movements and deep breathing using the diaphragm.

The first study, from researchers in Taiwan, compared 30 diabetics with 30 healthy people acting as controls.

Over the 12-week period, those in the tai chi group learned 37 movements under the guidance of an expert, and took home a video to study the correct poses.

Each session was 60 minutes which included a 10-minute warm-up and a 10-minute cool down. Sessions were given three times a week.

The study revealed that, after 12 weeks, levels of interleukin-12, which boosts the immune response, doubled.

Meanwhile, levels of interleukin-4, which suppresses the immune response, fell.

The study also revealed a significant drop in HBA1C levels in patients after the exercise programme. HBA1C is a measure of blood glucose.

The authors suggested that tai chi may cause a fall in blood glucose levels or improve blood glucose metabolism which sparks a drop in the inflammatory response.

Or, exercise may boost fitness levels and the feeling of wellbeing, which may then boost the health of the immune system, they said.

Cathy Moulton, care adviser at Diabetes UK, said: “This interesting new research further confirms that moderate exercise is vital in effectively managing Type 2 diabetes.

- Jane Kirby

Find your Tai Chi Course on Courses.ie

Grinds & Revision

2008-03-12T12:46:00.004Z

Easter is traditionally a time when we swot, revise and take grinds in readiness for our exams that follow a few weeks later.

Over the next few weeks we will be putting up any videos or links to sites that we come across that we feel may help.

All Honours is a site that has links to the different subject areas for both Junior and Leaving Cert. With notes, news and video sections there is help and advice for all questions. Need more help? There is also a section where you can locate grinds for any subject.

Algebra was never one of my best subjects. I could have done with videos like these.!

Bob Geldof is at it again...this time not for charity..

2008-03-11T15:01:00.008Z

Did you know that Bob Geldof could have been the owner of Buy & Sell? He had this idea way back when, only the banks would not loan him the money to set it up. So he got huffy instead and went on to form the Boomtown Rats and well we all know what happened then.

But you have to hand it to your man Bob, he not only has a social conscience but he is a dab hand at the 'ol entrepreneurial skills too. He founded Planet 24 the tv company responsible for taking Zig and Zag away from us to foreign climes...Channel 4's Big Breakfast. (Bring back Zig and Zag, they were a gas pair - they could represent us in the Eurovision too. Anyway, he sold that for a cool few million and went on to form a travel dotcom company, deckchair.com, I think. He went on to sell that too...(again for zillions)and now he is back to the dotcom business again.

This time for groups and bands. Youbloom.com is according to his site;

Welcome to YouBloom, designed to help Artists promote their music and meet new fans. Use Blogs, Polls and the Calendar to post concert dates upcoming events and promotions. Friends and music lovers are encouraged to explore the site to find new talent and to build and share Play Lists with their friends.

Artists Upload your music and collectables to make it available for the YouBloom community. In the coming weeks, YouBloom is launching an online store and a sophisticated Email system to help you manage your media and fans.

Friends: Explore YouBloom and find new artists. Build and share your own playlists, keep a blog journal about your favorite bands or anything else you'd like to share with your friends. Personalize your profile pages with our polls, or customize your Profile page with your own widgets.

No better man to give MySpace a run for its money. Should be interesting to watch how it grows.

For those of you with the entrepreneurial touch Courses.ie have a number of providers running Start your own business courses. Find the one that suits you and you never know you may be the next Bob Geldof!

Ignore the silver surfers at your peril...

2008-03-11T14:30:00.004Z

According to John Kennedy at siliconrepublic.com

In their rush to be all things cool and trendy, mobile networks and broadband providers are overlooking an important market, the over 55s, with the result that the digital divide continues to widen across sectors of our society.
Not so in Drogheda, Co Louth, however, where almost 755 people aged over 55, including a party of 25 nuns from the Medical Missionaries of Mary, have taken advantage of a little-known government scheme to become adept in the arts of mobile and internet technologies.

The scheme, run by the Department of An Taoiseach, has in the past two years funded the Drogheda Partnership Company with over €100,000 to address a critical societal divide and boost inclusion. The funding came under an Information Society Initiative called Access Skills and Content.

The scheme, which includes internet surfing, digital photography and gadget classes, has also attracted support from Meteor. Staff from the operator’s local store participated in the training and gave the classes free phone credit.

According to Ina McCrumlish, who runs the course, a total of 755 people have attended 93 training groups and there’s a waiting list of over 140 eager learners.

She says the pent-up demand for technology training for over-55s has meant the scheme may be widened to the greater Louth area and even has national potential.

“What we’ve found is there’s a whole generation of people who are missing out on the digital revolution. Over-55s should be given a chance to embrace this tidal wave,” says McCrumlish.

McCrumlish says the Drogheda Partnership Company received €47,640 from the Department of An Taoiseach last year and €55,000 the previous year........”

Read the rest of the article at siliconrepublic.com

The ASC (Access, Skills and Content) Initiative ran in 2006, and 2007, while there are no details on the departments website for 2008 or 2009, it may be one to keep an eye on.

Courses.ie have providers that run courses on computer training for all ages. In fact all courses for beginners . They don't ignore the silver surfers :-)

The Bach Original Flower Remedies

2008-03-10T13:04:00.006Z

The Bach Original Flower Remedies are a simple, natural and effective system of medicine. Dr. Edward Bach, a noted doctor, homoeopath, bacteriologist
and immunologist who believed that a healthy mind is the key to recovery from ill health, developed them in the 1930’s.

The Bach Original Flower Remedies can help with premenstrual tension.
After ovulation and before the menstrual period begins, the hormones are getting ready to peak. This activity can cause a disturbance in hormonal activity within our entire reproductive system. During this time a woman can become sensitive, emotional and suffer from physical symptoms too. Each woman is different and each of us can experience different symptoms leaving the sufferer vulnerable. Pre-menstrual tension
can include depression, irritability, intolerance, lethargy and mood swings. It not only affects the sufferer but those around us too. Then when the menstrual flow brings relief from all the tension, feelings of guilt may set in when a women reflects on how she has behaved.

The Bach Original Flower Remedies really can help. The remedies are chosen on an
individual basis. It is not possible to generalise and to make up a mix of remedies for all women. There are symptoms that are common to most women and the following remedies may help:

Walnut Is the remedy is for adjustment to change. It is helpful at any transitional time from moving house, starting a new job, when babies are teething, starting a new school, at puberty, pregnancy, and the menopause. It is helpful during the menstrual cycle because this is a period of adjustment and will help at this time of the month that is often a roller
coaster ride.

Mustard Is the remedy for the type of depression that can descend like a cloud of darkness, which is gloomy, and without joy. This is the kind of depression that often comes with pre-menstrual tension for some woman. Mustard will disperse this gloomy dark feeling and allow you to feel brighter and lighter.

Impatiens Is the remedy for the feelings of
impatience, being short tempered and feeling really impatient with people who are
not as quick in movement as you would like them to be. If you suffer from pre-menstrual tension impatience can be worse at this time.

Beech Is similar to Impatiens in a way but is more for being intolerant of people. This remedy will help when it is hard to understand what appears to be stupidity in another person. This is a situation that is often around if suffering from pre-menstrual tension. Beech will help us to be more relaxed and to be more understanding of
those around us.

Cherry Plum Is the remedy for the fear of losing control, hysteria, and a sudden desire to scream or for the feelings of rage. This will help to calm these feelings and to calm this turbulence if one suffers this in premenstrual tension.

Holly Is the remedy for feelings of hatred, jealousy, revenge, suspicion and envy. It will help if you find yourself in a state of spiteful anger. Holly will allow compassion and love to take the place of these feelings.

Willow Is the remedy for feelings of ‘poor me’. This feeling is often evident during pre-menstrual tension if we are honest
with ourselves. Take Willow to be positive and not to focus on being a victim.

Hornbeam Is the remedy for those ‘Monday Morning” feelings of lethargy and just couldn’t be bothered, often common during premenstrual tension. Take Hornbeam to regain the strength to get going enthusiastically about the day ahead.

Crab Apple Is the cleansing remedy. When a
woman is pre-menstrual, she can feel bloated, have facial spots and have greasy
hair, which can make a woman feel unclean. The Crab Apple remedy will disperse these feelings and help us to appreciate the uniqueness of being a woman.

Scleranthus Is the remedy that will help
with mood swings. When one moment the mood is often too good and then the next
moment you have gone to the very depths of feeling low. If this remedy is for you, it will help to stop this seesaw of emotional upheaval and help to feel balanced and calm.

Pine This is the remedy when there are
feelings of guilt at any time. Some of the above remedies could be helpful to consider for the emotional upheaval that is experienced by many women every
month.

Dr. Bach’s recommendation is to take a maximum of 7 remedies at any one time but not more. Put 2 drops of each of these remedies into 30 mls of fresh water. Then take 4 drops by 4 times each day. The mix can be taken more often if needed. The remedies are safe and do not have any side affects. They can be taken with prescribed medication. Of course if at all worried do talk to your doctor.

Pre-menstrual tension is a common condition for a lot of women, which can be distressing and upsetting. At this time of the month, it is also important to eat well, exercise and to get adequate rest.

If you are interested in learning how to use the Bach Original Flower Remedies for everyday use with family and friends or to become a registered practitioner, contact
Walmer College & Holistic Centre, Tel. 01 8329645. The next course will take place on the 17-18th May 2008.

For information, a private consultation, part time course options, themed workshops,
talks or to have a blend of remedies made up for you, contact Carmel at 01 8672076.

Carmel will be at the Body Mind and Spirit Exhibition in the RDS on 15-17th March and will give a talk on premenstrual tension and how the Bach Original Flower Remedies could support this condition.

Courtesy the March 08 newsletter of Walmer College & Holistic Centre.

Playing Poker - an educational tool….

2008-03-09T10:48:00.000Z

Harvard law professor Charles R. Nesson says, "Poker is a great game for learning how to size up things for yourself, get into risk management, and channel aggression. A student who can hold his own at a poker table, I have no worries about when they enter the real world."

Nesson has even formed the Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society (GPSTS) among some Ivy Leagues, to promote poker as a learning tool. He also believes that poker skills can really help high school kids with maths. Poker teaches you numeracy, probability, risk assessment, and subtleties vs. complexities.
So next time my 17 year old asks to have the lads over for a poker session just remember, it’s an educational tool!

In need of dance classes!

2008-03-08T22:06:00.003Z

This guy is in need of some dance classes which he can find...where? Yep...Courses.ie :-)

Dance classes on Courses.ie