07.12.2013
Class of 2013 Praised at CICE Graduation Ceremony
The Bachelor of Education class of 2013 returned to the Church of Ireland College of Education on Thursday November 5 for their graduation ceremony. They had been conferred with their degrees in Trinity College Dublin earlier in the day and received their special awards at the ceremony in the college chapel.
The graduates and their families were welcomed by CICE principal, Dr Anne Lodge. They were also addressed by Brendan O’Sullivan, president of the INTO, Eileen O’Sullivan, divisional inspector with the Department of Education and Skills and Archbishop Michael Jackson who is chairman of the college’s board of governors.
Coming from a long line of teachers, Brendan O’Sullivan told the graduate teachers that they had chosen a great career. He said there were challenges and among those was a culture of über–accountability. “Don’t get me wrong, you are accountable… and that is as it should be. But I wonder sometimes that we’re spending more and more time laying down minute paper trails,” he said. “There is a balance but I worry that the joy and creativity of teaching could be lost.”
Eileen O’Sullivan said she was conscious of the many changes and challenges the graduates faced but added that there were also golden opportunities. She said that 2013 was the first year of the new National Induction Programme which she described as a tremendous opportunity for teachers to learn from their colleagues and gain support throughout their careers.
Archbishop Jackson congratulated each of the graduates on their significant and important achievements in their own lives as well as in the life of the college community. “You have the opportunity to guide and release the energy of very small people as they grow bigger and stronger. It is in your hands that words like trust, sharing and belonging can be invested into their lives and the lives of the schools in which you and your colleagues work,” he stated.
Dr Lodge congratulated the graduates on finishing their B.Ed, getting through teaching practice and emerging into the real world. She said every year the graduates innovation and creativity was remarked upon but asked them not to lose it. “That is what makes a great teacher. Hold onto that creativity,” she urged.
Elaine Carter, a native of Ballyroan, County Laois who is teaching in St Patrick’s National School in Greystones, County Wicklow, was presented with the Vere Foster Award by Brendan O’Sullivan. She was also presented with the Carlisle and Blake Award by Eileen O’Sullivan.
Lorraine Booth from Castlecomer, County Kilkenny, was presented with the Governors’ Prize for contribution to the life of the college by the Archbishop.
Photo caption: Eileen O’Sullivan, Divisional Inspector with the Department of Education and Skills presents Elaine Carter with the Carlisle and Blake Award.