This online summer course, which is worth 3 EPV days, is aimed at primary school teachers who would like to use technological resources and facilities to teach Irish. Participants will learn about the technological resources currently available to Irish speakers, including teachers and pupils. This practical course is suitable for teachers who are familiar with computers, as well as those who are less knowledgeable about technology and find it difficult to use computers. It will help teachers:
By the end of the course, teachers will know far more about the most important technological resources available in Irish, and will be able to share what they have learnt with their pupils.
Each module in the course also contains interactive grammar exercises, and these will help teachers add to their writing skills in Irish.
This course was written by Cóilín Ó Floinn and Éamonn Ó Dónaill.
There are five modules in Irish Language IT Resources for the Classroom and each module contains advice and information on various technological resources for Irish, as well as practical ideas for the classroom. Please note that there are four versions of Module 1: one aimed at those who have Windows XP on their computers, another suitable for those who have Windows Vista, another for those who have the Windows 7 operating system and a fourth for those who have the Mac OS X 10+ operating system.
Module 1 - Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7 / Mac OS X 10+
In Module 1, you will learn about the following:
- configuring the operating system, language and keyboard on your computer
- adapting Microsoft Word for Irish
- ensuring that you won’t find a capital I in the text while typing in Irish
- installing the spelling checker GaelSpell on your computer
- installing the Irish version of the Firefox browser and adding GaelSpell to it.
Module 2
In Module 2, you will learn about the following:
- resources for young learners
- resources for primary school teachers.
Module 3
In Module 3, you will learn about the following:
- the print media online
- online radio stations and TG4 online
- how to download videos from the Web
- podcasts
- blogs
- Wikipedia and Vicipéid.
Module 4
In Module 4, you will learn about the following:
- online terminology databases
- the placenames of Ireland database
- Google’s services
- the resources available on the aistear.ie website
- online song and folklore collections.
Module 5
In Module 5, you will learn about the following:
- searchable online grammars
- Dinneen’s Irish-English dictionary and the Collins dictionary app
- the abair.ie text-to-speech facility
- an Irish language grammar checker
- online shops
- online learning resources.
There are five modules in Irish Language IT Resources for the Classroom and each module contains advice and information on various technological resources for Irish, as well as practical ideas for the classroom. Each module has a different objective, and the user is asked to complete exercises based on the content of the module.
All the exercises are interactive. Once you have completed an exercise, you can then click on the Seol (Send) button and receive feedback immediately. You’re told which answers were correct and which were incorrect, and you’re given the correct answers and a score.
At the beginning of each module, you’re told what the focus of that module is.
In order to move from one screen to another, all you need to do is click on the 
icon, which appears on the right-hand side, at the top and bottom of each screen. You can also click on any line of text under the words PLEAN AN AONAID on the left hand of the screen in order to access another part of the unit.
On the last page of each module, an leathanach scoir, you’re given an overview of the work that you’ve done in that module and your total score for the module. You’re given several choices as well: to continue to the next module, to go back on the module that you have just completed, or go back to the very beginning of the course.
A forum will be provided for Irish Language IT Resources for the Classroom. In this forum, teachers will answer the interactive question at the end of each module, as well as the reflective question at the very end of the course.
Those registered for the course will also have an opportunity to contact other teachers through the discussion forum. They will be able to send messages, ask and discuss questions, and express ideas.
There are interactive exercises in each module, and once you’ve completed an exercise you can then click on the Seol (Send) button and receive feedback immediately. While you’re given a score for these exercises, they’re not assessed for the purposes of the award of EPV days; their aim is to stimulate the user’s interaction with the course content, and to give him/her the opportunity to practise what he/she has learned.
Participation in the online debate forum is an obligatory part of each module. You must participate in the forum by sharing ideas with the other teachers and by completing written tasks.
At the end of the course, the participants must answer a reflective question. This question will confirm that you have engaged with the course content, and it will give you the opportunity to reflect on the implementation of the course content in the classroom.
Assessment of your work is based predominantly on the standard of your written work, but a record will also be kept of the amount of time you spent working on the course.
In order to earn 3 EPV days, the course must be completed between 1 July 2015 and 21 August 2015. During that period, it’s up to you to decide when to study the course content.
Department of Education and Skills criteria for online courses stipulate that participants may complete one online course for the awarding of 3 EPV days, two online courses for 4 EPV days and three online courses for 5 EPV days.
This course focuses on Microsoft Windows, especially Modules 1 and 2, therefore those two modules are not suitable for Apple Mac users. Those who use a Mac, however, will find the rest of the course relevant, apart from the section which deals with WinGléacht, a program only available for PCs.
It is not necessary to have advanced computer skills to benefit from this practical online course.
Immediately!
Any time from the beginning of July onwards. In order to earn 3 EPV days, the course must be completed between 1 July 2015 and 21 August 2015.
By 21 August. In order to earn 3 EPV days, the course must be completed some time between 1 July 2015 and 21 August 2015. During that period it’s up to you to decide when to study the course content.
You will have to read the material in the module and do all the interactive exercises.
When you have done all that work, you will have to answer the interactive question at the end of the module. You must post this answer on the course forum.
At the very end of the course, you must answer the reflective question. Again, you must post your answer on the course forum.
Approximately twenty hours.
The course is bilingual - each sentence in Irish is translated into English.
No. We would encourage you to use as much Irish as possible in your answers, but you can use English if you need to.
Most of ranganna.com can be used on smart phones and tablet computers, however the site’s multimedia content does not work on all devices. It would be advisable, therefore, to try a sample unit of the course you’re interested in on the device before registering for that course.
Write it on the forum or write to your course facilitator.
If you have any difficulties with the site, call (01) 484 5220 or write to eolas@ranganna.com.
Absolutely! Department of Education and Skills criteria for online courses stipulate that participants may complete one online course for the awarding of 3 EPV days, two online courses for 4 EPV days and three online courses for 5 EPV days.
You will have completed the course when:
- you have spent approximately 20 hours working on the course material
- you have answered the five interactive exercises as well as the reflective exercise
- the course facilitator is happy that your work is of a suitably high standard.
You will receive your certificate and CPD record within two days of having completed the course. It takes a little while to compile the answers, and to prepare the certificate and record.
‘The course content gave me information on a wide range of IT resources and online courses that are available to aid with the teaching of Gaeilge. A lot of these resources were new to me. The IT resources recommended will create a more interesting learning environment for the children and thus improve their understanding and enjoyment of the language.’ - PP
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