Inside Education - a podcast for educators interested in teaching

Programme 49, Speech and Language Delays, and News (13-6-10)

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney News Interview by Barry Hennessy This week's programme featured interviews with Nellie Torres and Ronan Maher to coincide with the Cluas conference on Unlocking Speech and Language Difficulties. The Cluas centre uses a specific therapy, the Tomatis method, to support children with developmental delays, especially delays in speech and language. Barry interviewed Conor Ryan about the proposed abolition of the General Teaching Council in England and about academy schools in the United Kingdom.

Programme 35, Mr. Mac's Memoir and Grade Inflation (7-3-10)

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney. This programme began with an interview  with Dr. Brendan Guilfoyle of the Institute of Technology in Tralee about grade inflation. In the interview he responds to Minister O'Keeffe's response to the problem highlighted by the Network for Irish Educational Standards, of which Dr. Guilfoyle is a founding member. The feature interview was with Maurice McMahon about his book Mr. Mac: A Blackboard Memoir on his life as a teacher in St. Benildus College in South Dublin. It is the first memoir about secondary teaching written by an Irish teacher. In it he talks about teaching Irish, teaching history, what makes a good teacher, how students have changed and about his father, the well-known writer and teacher Bryan McMahon. The book costs €15 and can only be ordered directly from Maurice McMahon at his e-mail mrmacbenildus@gmail.com.

Programme 33, Spellings and News (21-2-10)

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney. News report by Barry Hennessy. The guest on the programme was Brendan Culligan from the Marino Institute of Education whose latest book is called Spelling and Handwriting. His previous book is Improving Children's Spelling. Barry's news report covers the strategic alliance between NUIG and UL; an interview with Michael Moriarty, General Secretary of the Irish Vocational Education Association, on three new community national schools; and the appointment of Dr. Harold Hislop as the new Chief Inspector at the Department of Education and Science.