A cross border consortium led by the Education Authority has been awarded €34.5m (£29m) of PEACEPLUS funding to support shared learning in formal education settings across Northern Ireland and the border counties. 

The Advancing Shared Partnerships through Inclusive Relationships in Education (ASPIRE) project will bring students from different cultural, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds together to learn, while also providing joint training schemes to upskill educators to better equip them to facilitate shared learning.

The project aims to engage 111,000 pupils and 1,761 educators over the next four and a half years. The programmes will be delivered at every level including pre-school, primary and post primary schools, primarily targeted at those with no or limited prior engagement in shared education.

The ASPIRE project is led by the Education Authority, working alongside partners Léargas, Early Years, National Childhood Network and the Fermanagh Trust. The project will engage with key stakeholders from across the education sector including parents and communities.

The Special EU Programmes Body announced the award, which follows awards made  earlier this year of €13.3m for a North South schools civic exchange programme and non-formal shared learning projects.

Read more by clicking this link: Further Investment for Shared Learning | SEUPB 

Good Relations Week 2024, from 16th to 22nd September, embraces ‘OpportUNITY’ – a call to action to create a brighter, inclusive future for all.

‘OpportUNITY’ is a collective moment for us all to UNITE and be architects of change in helping build a region where every voice matters.

By showcasing the dynamism, creativity and dedication of local groups, organisations and individuals we can spotlight the transformative power of working together to address challenges such as sectarianism, racism, inequality, health and well-being, poverty and education.

Get involved in Good Relations Week 2024 and help create a future where inclusivity and diversity are not just celebrated but lived.

Click the link below to find out more about events happening during Good Relations Week in September

Good Relations Week Link

The Education Authority in collaboration with BBC Northern Ireland welcomed 180 pupils to Queen's Film Theatre Belfast on Tuesday 16th April for a special screening of the multi-award-winning documentary 'Once Upon A Time in Northern Ireland'. The screening of episode two from the series was part of a new education pilot aimed at supporting students as they seek to understand the legacy of the troubles. Following the screening one of the creators of the BBC drama Blue Lights, Declan Lawn, hosted a Q&A discussion panel with award-winning director James Bluemel and cast members answering pupil questions. 

Please see link below to information on this year’s event series highlighting the legacy of Frederick Douglass. Events are happening in Belfast, with additional events in Cork, Rochester, NY, USA and online around the globe. Throughout the week, events will explore the work of Frederick Douglass, the Douglass family and other changemakers, and also to discuss the many contemporary, related topics that relate to Frederick Douglass and the impact of his life and work on issues such as identity, race and equal rights. As always, the themes of connectivity, co-creation and collaboration remain central to the programming and activities. 

Events 2024 — #DouglassWeek 

Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council hosted a Pupil Voice Event at Ulster University Coleraine on Tuesday 5th March with many of the local Shared Education Post-Primary Partnership Schools in attendance. The event offered the opportunity for students to ask hard-hitting questions to their locally elected council representatives about issues that are important to them. Mark Carruthers and Peter Osborne facilitated the question and answer panel along with interactive polling throughout the session. Students also engaged in a 'Councillor Speed-dating' session enabling them to have time to speak to each of the representatives of the political parties present.

The Education Authority (EA) in partnership with Belfast City Council and Stena Line have hosted a Shared Education celebration event at W5, Belfast. 

Through the Stena Line Shared Education Project eight schools from South and West Belfast have been participating in a four-year shared education programme that has supported the development of four new shared education partnerships.

St. Peter’s PS & Malvern PS, St. John the Baptist PS & Finaghy PS, St. Bride’s PS & Donegal Road PS and Springhill PS & St. Clare’s PS have taken part in this fantastic programme which has cemented relationships between the pupils, staff and the wider community.

The programme targeted Key Stage 2 pupils and in the last four years pupil participation has increased with over 600 pupils, in 2023/24, engaging in shared education activity as part of the project.

Paul Close, EA Head of Shared Education and Sectoral Support said: “The EA has worked in collaboration with the Belfast City Council to plan, deliver and evaluate the Shared Education Projects. To date there has been an investment of £120,000, by Stena Line & Belfast City Council over 4 academic years, which has provided pupils with the opportunity to engage in shared learning experiences which help build relationships, explore similarities and difference and respect for others.

“This innovative project demonstrates how the public and private sector can work collaboratively to improve learning experiences for children and young people. The project enabled schools to form new partnerships which has helped build positive relationships and improve educational outcomes. We hope that this project will be a catalyst for future collaborations with the private sector.” 

Dan Sten Olsson, Chairman, Stena Line said: “I would like to applaud our friends in Belfast City Council and the Education Authority (EA) for their support and drive on the Stena Line Shared Education Schools Programme over the last four years. 

“I am convinced that we all can meet and learn from each other through collaboration, dialogue, and art. Given the number of global challenges around the world at the moment, the Non-Violence Project continues to have an important place in our communities, and I’m delighted to see the positive impact it has created for the young people of Belfast.”

Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Ryan Murphy, said: “We’re delighted to have supported the Shared Education programme over the past four years through our Good Relations Action Plan, funded by The Executive Office. 

“Through the Belfast Agenda, we’re working with our community planning partners to ensure our city is a place where everyone feels welcomed, safe and is equipped to be the best at what they want to be.  Programmes such as this ensure that our young people can continue the great work that is already in place to make Belfast a city for all.

“Today’s event is a great opportunity to congratulate all of the participants who have committed their time to the programme. I hope they’ll continue to develop the relationships they’ve formed and use the experiences they’ve gathered as they move forward through life.”

The 4 shared education partnerships have been supported by a range of external partners, with experience in Community Relations, to facilitate pupil engagement such as Peace Players and Community Relations in Schools (CRIS). These organisations have helped contribute to attitudinal changes in children and young people, improved outcomes for pupils and stronger connections across communities.

STEM with Wings

Picture a satellite the size of a basketball or a plane fueled by hydrogen. Each term, primary and secondary schools are invited to learn about a new theme from an expert in their field. Workshop will involve engaging activities, opportunities for Q&As and inspiring insights into STEM innovation. 

Join schools across the country for STEM with Wings, a series of digital events bringing STEM into your classroom. Each term two schools will win a follow on workshop with RAF Youth STEM to embed learning. 

Following on from a special screening of the ‘Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland’ episode in BBC Blackstaff Studios back in October 2023, a group of ten teachers who attended the event agreed to be part of an exciting opportunity to co-design a bespoke Teacher Professional Learning Module around teaching Controversial and Sensitive Issues in the modern classroom.

The intention of the module is to support schools who are new to shared education and in particular beginning teachers who have a very different experience of living in Northern Ireland post conflict and post Good Friday Agreement. Within the module development there will be scope to continue to work with the BBC to share the learning from the series and to encourage and support schools to use the resource in a variety of subjects and in a shared education experience. 

The ten teachers enjoyed an interactive 2-day module planning course at Crumlin Road Gaol, Belfast on 1st and 2nd February 2024. Some of the speakers over the 2 days included Prof. Tony Gallagher, Prof. Duncan Morrow (UU), Lisa Dietrich (CRIS) and Mary McKeagney (BBC). 

There are further plans for a follow-up workshop in the third term to finalise the content of the new TPL module in order to make this available to all teachers in the near future.

Please watch the video below for a flavour of what they got up to.

A delegation of Korean Educators had the opportunity to visit Northern Ireland to learn more about the education system and the peace building work that has been ongoing through Shared Education. The group had the opportunity to listen to speakers from the Education Authority, Stranmillis University and Community Relations in Schools (CRIS). 

The challenges that are currently ongoing in the Korean Peninsula are significantly different to those that we currently face in Northern Ireland. However, there have been many lessons learned and examples of highly effective practice which the delegation were keen to discuss and consider for future developments in their own region. 

*** Deadline extension to Friday 27th October ***

Ulster University is committed to engaging school pupils across Northern Ireland, in high quality educational outreach resources, specifically designed to motivate and inspire the next generation.

www.ulster.ac.uk/schoolsacademy

Ulster University Discovery Academy is our online version of outreach, it's open to all young people, school pupils Year 8-14/college students etc, its free, self-paced and we currently have 75+ courses on offer.

Each course is aligned with curriculum, personal development or showcases pathways into university disciplines, co-designed by Ulster University academics.  The Discovery Academy enables young people across NI to have unlimited access to university outreach, removing barriers and creating pathways to HE. 

To find out how your school could can get involved, please contact by email schools@ulster.ac.uk or access our online learning platform at www.ulster.ac.uk/schoolsacademy

INTO Film would like to share the exciting news that our new video games hub, www.intofilm.org/games, with various resources, including Story Builder: Games, game reviews, teaching materials, and teacher training opportunities, is now live and completely free to every school.

The INTO Film Team have developed a new suite of resources that harness the potential of games in classrooms. Through collaboration with BAFTA and other game industry organisations, we can now make these resources, workshops, and teacher training available to all schools across NI. More details and all of the materials can be found here. https://www.intofilm.org/news-and-views/articles/national-video-games-day-2023 

The Good Relations Week 2023 Event Listing is now live at https://goodrelationsweek.com/events/ with a packed programme of face-to-face event, virtual events, and digital content from a diverse range of groups and organisations across the region.

‘Building a Future in Shared Education’ 

On Friday 9th June, Ulster University, Coleraine welcomed 50 pupils from the local Millburn PS and St. Malachy’s PS Shared Education partnership to engage in an interactive workshop using Lego as the medium to create a ‘shared town’. 

The Primary 7 pupils worked in seven different groups focusing on the following themes; Education, Worship, Leisure, Retail, Transport, Healthcare and Housing. The event was the culmination of a series of shared lessons using a ‘Blended Approach’ both in school and on MS Teams where they had previously planned and designed their ideas on paper and with the support of the school and university staff brought these to life in Lego form. 

The children engaged in healthy dialogue and debate about where best the various elements should be situated in order to realise their shared vision of an inclusive, sustainable and environmentally friendly town. The pupils should be proud of the end product but importantly they had the opportunity to build their friendships and create special memories together. 

Good Relations Week 2023 to embrace Togetherness for meaningful change

Local groups, schools and businesses are urged to participate in the annual Community Relations Council event taking place this September

Good Relations Week 2023 is in preparation mode with a mission to embody the spirit of togetherness as it celebrates peace-building and cultural diversity in its annual contribution  to eradicating sectarianism, racism, and inequality across the region.

Good Relations Week 2023, coordinated by the Community Relations Council, is scheduled to run from Monday 18th September to Sunday 24th September 2023.

The theme for this year’s celebration is ‘Together’ which will be showcased through a week-long programme of events focused on cooperation, inclusivity, and progress.

The programme of events will include workshops, lectures, panel discussions, talks, podcasts, film screenings, music and dance performances, storytelling, and exhibitions from a diverse range of organisations across the region.

Local community groups, voluntary organisations, schools, representative groups, statutory bodies, businesses, and local councils are encouraged to participate and register their events before the deadline of Friday 1st September 2023.