Loreto Secondary School, Bray, Co. Wicklow, Ireland is an all-girls Catholic second level school. In addition to offering the standard Leaving and Junior Certificate programmes, Loreto Bray also offers the Transition Year Programme and an enhanced Leaving Certificate Programme called the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP).Loreto Bray also offers a wide range of extracurricular programmes to its students. In the area of sport, students have the opportunity to participate in hockey, basketball, badminton, table tennis, soccer, Gaelic football, rugby and other sports. Drama, debating, French, German and Spanish Language Societies and a Peace & Justice Group are among the other activities available in the school. During the school year 2006/2007 the school Principal, in consultation with a number of staff members explored the option of offering a programme of Chinese Studies to students in Loreto Bray. Ambassador Zhang Xinsen was contacted by letter at the Chinese Embassy, seeking support and guidance on how best to introduce a Chinese studies programme into the school. A representative of the Ambassador responded to the school’s letter and suggested contact be made with the Confucius Institute for Ireland. The school was also informed of the recently established links between the Confucius Institute and University College Dublin (UCD). Following talks with the UCD Confucius Institute, Loreto Bray was delighted to introduce a Confucius Institute funded programme of Chinese studies into the school. The programme started in September of the school year 2007/2008 and was offered to first year students. It was intended that the Chinese Studies Programme would continue throughout the six years the girls spent in second level school. It was further intended that the students would, at the end of the six years have achieved a reasonable level of proficiency in the Chinese language. The Confucius Classroom programme stated aim of ‘developing Chinese teaching and learning in local …secondary schools and enhancing the mutual understanding and friendship between young people of both countries’ was a goal the school found it could readily embrace. Consequently, following consultation with the Board of Management, the Principal was authorised to seek approval from the Confucius Institution for the establishment of a Confucius Classroom in Loreto Secondary School, Bray. In 2006, with the helo of UCD Confucius Institute, Loreto Secondary School Bray successfully became the first Confucius Classroom in Ireland.
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Jesus and Mary College is a Catholic Community in keeping with the educational philosophy of St. Claudine Thevenet and the sacred ethos of the school. We are committed to providing a quality education in pursuit of excellence. Jesus and Mary College endeavour to provide a teaching and learning environment, which encourages the school community to develop to its full potential cognisant of all its talents and skills. They aim to work together in a safe, respectful, caring and just environment. We value the principles of mutual respect, equality and tolerance encouraging positive self-image, confidence and pride in all achievements. Jesus and Mary College has fostered an excellent working relationship with the Confucius Institute. Our programme commenced in 2012 and we look forward to bolstering our friendship with a successful application to become a Confucius classroom. We wish for our common interests in culture, language and education to extend well into the decades ahead. Our Chinese department consists of a growing number of enthusiastic teachers. Together, our department structures planning by holding weekly meetings to discuss the success of our Chinese programme and to discuss areas where we wish to improve. We endeavour to reflect upon using the strengths of the school to best enhance the Chinese experience for the students. Our teachers have collaborated to produce a broad and ambitious Chinese Short Course to be included in the new JCSA programme which begins in August, 2014. In 2013, Jesus and Mary College hosted a Chinese classroom as part of our Open Evening. We felt this was essential to promote our affinity with Chinese to the public. Music, crafts and dress were included in this very popular attraction. The feedback received from parents in the local community was highly encouraging. In Jesus and Mary College we constantly consider and reflect on the contribution Chinese Culture and Language Studies has made to the education of our students. In our self - evaluation we continue to look for ways to improve what we offer. We look forward to working with the Confucius Institute to achieve this aim.
The Galway Education Centre has over 20 years’ experience of International cooperative programmes and provides training programmes for teachers in County Galway and throughout Ireland. Global partners of the Galway Education Centre include the UCD Confucius Institute, National Flight Academy Florida, TEQ Games @ Universal Studios, Office of EU Commissioner for Research and Science, British Science Association, Emory University Atlanta and Indiana University. In addition, the centre has working partnerships with Medtronic Philanthropy USA, SAP in France, HP, Boston Scientific, and LEGO Education in Denmark. For over 15 years, the centre has become one of the leading examples in relation to organising cooperative programmes between educational institutes and entrepreneurs. In December 2012, the UCD CII regional centre in the Galway Education Centre was launched officially. Mr. Ciaran Cannon, Jr. Minister of Education in Ireland and Mr. Xiaochuang Wu, first secretary of the Chinese Embassy in Ireland attended the event. Since then, the Galway Education Centre cooperated with the UCD CII and developed the training programs for Irish teachers. At the end of 2013, there are 11 secondary schools in Galway launching Chinese classes and 4 sessions of Irish teachers’ training programmes with more than 50 Irish teachers enrolled. Through the training programme, 14 Irish teachers started to teach Chinese language and culture on their own.
On Monday 16th February 2015, the UCD Confucius Institute for Ireland will host a spectacular Spring Festival Gala in the National Concert Hall. Read more...
