Learning Tree bears fruits at Croí na
Gaillimhe Resource Centre, St Vincent de Paul
A learning tree which symbolises the highs and lows of adult
learning was unveiled on Wednesday February 27th by Deputy Mayor of the City of Galway Cllr. Frank Fahy
and will be prominently displayed and available for learners throughout the
week.
This event is one of almost two hundred nationwide events taking
place during the AONTAS Adult Learners’ Festival. AONTAS estimates that approximately 300,000 adults
take part in some form of adult learning (from basic education, community
education, right through to third level) each year. In 2011, learners in community education
centres around the country achieved 20,000 awards.
Loretta Needham,
Manager of Croí na Gaillimhe Resource Centre explained at the event “that Community Education has demonstrated
significant social outcomes along with the development of core skills for
participants. These outcomes include:
greater levels of volunteering, better health outcomes for participants, both
physical and mental, improved parenting skills and stronger social networks. She
said that we need to recognise that many people sign up for a course for social
reasons, to pursue a hobby of interest and make new friends and there is a need
to see the broader role of further education and training (including community
education) within society and beyond the labour market”.
Majella Mallon
McGrath, Volunteer at Croí na Gaillimhe added: “Although I may be called a
volunteer; I don’t really regard time spent in Croí na Gaillimh as
volunteering. I now see the process as a mutual educational exchange between
individuals, where each of us benefits on many levels in coming together albeit
under the heading of computer training. Individuals may leave classes with what
are now fast becoming essential computer skills but I benefit from new
information and insights on a very large range of topics. Over time, Croí na
Gaillimhe has shown me that there still exists a great and essential social
medium for community development on many levels and there is always a heartfelt
welcome”.
‘We know that adult learners and Community Education Centres
do vital work on a daily basis, and this is even more apparent during a time of
economic recession’ said Frank Fahy
Deputy Mayor of the City of Galway .
‘Centres such as Croí na Gallimhe are providing opportunities for people
to learn new skills, but also they provide a valuable social role at a time
like this. By social role I mean
responding to the themes of social exclusion, educational disadvantage and
isolation of people in society both city and rural’
Several of our enthusiastic learners gave a brief account of
their learning experiences at Croí na Gaillimhe. They all spoke of the joy and the fun they
experienced in learning and most of all, they mentioned the friendships they
had made - or in many cases, renewed. Music and entertainment was provided by the very talented
young men from St Joseph’s Secondary School..
If you come into the
Croí na Gaillimhe on any given day there will be older adults enjoying a dinner
and social club, migrants taking part in English conversation classes, young
parents engaging in group activities and workshops, school children working
alongside older people on the intergenerational programme and various classes
and clubs in progress. The clubs and
groups in Croí na Gaillimhe are: the
Parents Network and workshops relating to parenting, Men’s Group, Lunch and
Social Club, Knitting Club, Tea Dances and Creative Writers Group. There are classes in Movement and Relaxation,
Drawing, Painting, More Money in your pocket including guides on healthy
shopping, Beginner Computer Classes and
Computer Workshops.
For more information contact
Loretta Needham 091
895203
Email: lorettaneedham@gmail.com
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| Cllr. Frank Fahy speaks at the Celebration of Learning at Croi Na Gaillimhe |
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| Volunteer tutor and learners |
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| Angela a volunteer and member of the Parents Network shares her experience of adult education. |
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| Loretta Needham explains how community education has demonstrated significant social outcomes along with the development of core skills for participants. |
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| The boys from the Bish school kept us all entertained |
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