Day 1
Board of Education report highlights redevelopment of RE programme in Republic and concern over lack of investment in Northern Ireland
The redevelopment of the ‘Follow Me’ Religious Education programme for Church of Ireland, Presbyterian and Methodist primary schools in the Republic of Ireland was showcased at General Synod meeting in Naas this afternoon (Friday May 9).
Dr Jacqui Wilkinson of the Church of Ireland Centre at Dublin City University gave a presentation on the programme as part of the Board of Education Report. She noted that since 1998 the Government had given school patrons the legal right and responsibility to develop a programme for their school which underpins and supports the characteristic spirit or ethos of the school. This continued in the new primary curriculum framework.
Dr Wilkinson began work as editor and coordinator of Follow Me 25 years ago which say a move away from a teachers’ manual to textbooks which meant that RE was regarded as having the same status as other subject areas. She is now working on the newly developed Follow Me programme for a new generation of children.
Following consultation by the General Synod Board of Education, the Follow Me curriculum is to be retained while a redeveloped programme of delivery, which is digitally based, has been devised. The aims and strands of the 2001 curriculum are retained.
“The redevelopment project commenced a couple of years ago but has really moved on with the launch of the new supporting Follow Me website in November 2024 – serving as a resource bank for schools and the point of access for schools to purchase the new slide decks for the Follow Me books,” Dr Wilkson said.
Slide decks for the 3rd and 4th class books have been created by a team of 10 teachers. They have been piloted in over 50 schools and will be ready for publication later in the summer. Schools will be able to purchase downloads in September. The team of teachers is now working on the 1st and 2nd class books. Dr Wilkinson thanked the committee behind the project and those who had played a part in bring the first stage to completion.
The website had been a great resource for schools she said with materials added each month and particularly at different seasons of the Church year. It also provides resources for RE and assemblies, she said. Dr Wilkinson noted that by teaching RE through the programme, teachers were fulfilling the general key competencies required by the primary curriculum.
“To conclude, the redeveloped Follow Me programme is the Patron’s Programme for our school network. It should be taught in each and every classroom under the time allocation in the new curriculum. It is integral to the ethos of our schools and is written as such in our school ethos statements and admission policies,” she said. “It fulfils the key competencies of the new primary curriculum framework. It is inclusive, accessible to all teachers and pupils no matter how much or how little religious understanding or affiliation they have and through the eyes of myself as teacher educator and the teachers in the classrooms who created and piloted slides we can be confident the programme is pedagogically up to date.”
The Report of the Board of Education was formally proposed by Bishop Ian Ellis who commended the work of Dr Ken Fennelly and Suzanne Ellis for their hard work for the Board of Education.
“Members can see that the Board has addressed a great many issues and engaged with the Department and other education partners on a range of current issues. Foremost in the work of the Board this year has been redeveloping the Follow Me Curriculum. A subcommittee of the Board chaired by Rev Professor Anne Lodge has been working on renewing this excellent RE teaching programme for use in our Church of Ireland National schools. An exciting development has been the redesign and update of the Follow me Website, work led by Dr Jacquie Wilkinson”.
Seconding the report Mike Johnston thanked all the principals, staff and governors for their hard work and dedication despite difficult circumstances on behalf the Board of Education for Northern Ireland.
He expressed the concerns of the board about the lack of funding and investment in schools, specifically in terms of investment in teachers and their life long learning, bringing school buildings up to a modern safe standard, and providing sufficient teaching and support staff for children.
Mr Johnston said that churches engaging with their local schools had never been such a vital witness and support to staff and children. He said the board was supporting projects to assist with this in new and innovative ways and would be opening the fund again to encourage more projects to come to fruition.
He explained that while the Church of Ireland had only two schools in Northern Ireland, they had been given places on the boards of most of the controlled schools which amount to almost 50% of schools in Northern Ireland. He said the board acknowledged the hard work and dedication of all who volunteered as school governors which he described as a vital and rewarding role. He encouraged members of the churches to fill the Church’s spaces on school boards.
At a strategic level, he thanked Canon Amanda Adams for her service to the board of the Education Authority over the last number of years. The board welcomes Ray Gilbert (St Nicholas Parish, Carrickfergus) as her replacement as the Church of Ireland representative.
Through the Transferor Representatives’ Council, the board has an impact on area planning, special educational needs, the work of the Controlled Schools’ Support Council, the development and implementation of the Religious Education curriculum and a voice for the churches with the Minister for Education and other stakeholders, Mr Johnston reported.
He expressed the board’s concert with the status of Religious Education in schools and acknowledged the need for a curriculum review. He thanked all who go into schools on a regular basis to offer input into school assemblies and other religious activities. He also thanked Dr Hamill for his work and congratulated him on 10 years in the role of secretary to the Board of Education (NI).
Speaking to the report Carolyn Good (Cashel, Ferns and Ossory) spoke about the Follow Me programme. She said the Follow Me programme had seven strands and the revised programme is and needs to be colourful, bright and user friendly. This programme is designed by teachers for teachers and she commended the programme and the only approve Patrons’ programme for our schools.
The Revd Adrian Dorian (Down) told a story about his first visit to Garton School before Easter and was astounded by how much the children knew about the Easter story. He commended the Follow Me programme and said it was a great benefit to Church of Ireland national schools.
The Revd Catherine Simpson (Down) encouraged parishes to think of a project with which they could support their local schools. She thanked the Board of Education for their funding.
Willie Oliver (Derry) said he sat on the board of governors of two schools. He said that many controlled schools ran on deficits while voluntary grammar schools had a fixed fund and invariably went to parents for extra funds. He said he was convinced that all schools had financial difficulties and he noted that many boards had vacancies. “Good education leads to better housing and in turn better health. I firmly believe the money is there to fund education. I call on politicians to eliminate the waste, move away from their pet projects and stop focussing on their re–election in five years’ time,” he stated.
Bishop Michael Burrows said he had been a school patron for twenty years and said that being a school patron did not come without problems, all in the context of delivering the greater good of education. He said he wanted to say that as a school patron he would have “gone demented” by now but for the sheer dedication and kindness of Dr Ken Fennelly who has saved his life on a number of occasions.
Archbishop John McDowell said that when things went wrong on health it was a conspicuous problem, similarly with housing and the issue was addressed. He said that when there were funding issues in schools children continued to go to school, get educated and get socialised. He said the message about funding needed to go out strongly from Synod. The financial issues on education North and South needed to be taken seriously.