CSSC visit Nerve Centre

CSSC Schools' Support Officers met with John Peto, Director of Education at the Nerve Centre on 15 September 2017.

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The team had a chance to explore the opportunities available to schools in Northern Ireland to develop their use of digital technology in the classroom.    

The Nerve Centre in Derry/Londonderry is one of three Creative Learning Centres in Northern Ireland which work to support purposeful access to ICT across the curriculum that motivates and increases engagement and achievement in education. The other two centres are in Belfast and Armagh.

The Nerve Centre supports and trains over 5,000 teachers every year in the creative use of media and technology. 

Training and support programmes are available to both primary and secondary schools.

A number of schools within the controlled sector have availed of this training and enabled their pupils to use digital technology to engage with activities such as coding and animation. 

Each year the Nerve Centre offers 30 Partnership programmes which schools to work with them on a one year programme of training and support. This increases their use of multimedia and digital technologies. 

Moving Image Arts is a growing area of the curriculum, offered at GCSE and GCE. The Nerve Centre offers a free week of training in August of each year for teachers, as well as the opportunity to apply for a Moving Image Arts Partnership Programme.

John Peto from Nerve Centre shows Donna O'Connor 3D laser printer
John Peto from Nerve Centre shows Donna O'Connor 3D laser printer

School Support Officer, Donna O’Connor was particularly impressed by the Nerve Centre’s use of 3D laser printers, saying 

Whilst the use of a 3D laser printer might be expected in a technology classroom, being able to see how they are used to explore other subjects such as history was very interesting.

CSSC’s Tracey Woods added 

The Creative Learning Centre is ETI inspected and is supporting schools in strengthening their delivery of the curriculum.

It is also enabling teachers to keep children of all learning styles engaged, whilst equipping them for the changing demands of the world of work.

For more information contact your School's Support Officer.

 

23 October 2017