Gaelic In-Service gets Full Marks

22nd February 2018

Close to 100 professionals met yesterday for what is one of the largest Career Long Professional Learning (CLPL) events of its kind in the country that specifically targets Gaelic Education staff.

The event took place in Merkinch Community Centre, Inverness for Highland Council's annual Gaelic Education In-Service.

The Continuous Professional Development (CPD) opportunity provides an invaluable opportunity for professional dialogue, collaboration and a broad range of development activities.

The event delegates accessed 14 presentations and workshops, drawing upon a combination of national expertise and the opportunity to celebrate and share existing good practise within the Council.

Workshop content varied widely, ranging from "Words Up" Communication Development Training and "Book-bug Training" for Early Years Practitioners, “Hi 5” Health and Wellbeing Training and “Word Shark” Interactive Spelling and Reading Software for Primary Teachers through to the “Quizlet” Interactive Activities and Moderation activities for Secondary Teachers.

The presenters were identified in response to local and national priorities, in addition to professional development requirements; identified through a Highland Gaelic Education Audit. The purpose of the audit was for staff and relevant partners to directly influence an ongoing improvement agenda.

The Gaelic Education In-Service represents one element of the Council's self-evaluate approach, where collegiate engagement is central to delivering educational improvement.

In addition, a number of Gaelic Education Operational Improvement Plan projects remain ongoing, with projects including Additional Support Needs, reading, spelling, grammar, moderation and the sharing of teaching resources.

Councillor Alister Mackinnon, Chairperson Gaelic Strategy Implementation Group and Chair of Corporate Resources said, “The Gaelic In-Service day which targets Gaelic Education staff is an important event on the CPD calendar. The programme was both varied and engaging. The range of development projects demonstrated Council’s commitment to effectively support schools and professionals.”

As a core Gaelic Education professional development opportunity in Highland, Gaelic Education In-Service brings together a rich community of Gaelic professionals and supporting practitioners in the delivery of a high quality, challenging and engaging learning and teaching experiences. The professionals have knowledge with breadth and depth, through the medium of Gaelic.

This builds upon ongoing professional development, undertaken by dedicated staff on an ongoing basis and delivers a direct impact for the children and young people in the schools.

Mr Coinneach Morrison Gaelic Education Officer said, “The Gaelic Education In-Service provides professionals with the time and space to come together and focus exclusively on developing and enhancing learning and teaching, through the medium of Gaelic. Due to the scale of the Council area it can be challenging to provide regular opportunities for high quality collaboration between colleagues and stage-partners from across the Council area, therefore having this protected time each year is incredibly valuable.”