*Holy Family teacher Darryl Eade presents Progress TV
LIKE all schools across the country, Holy Family Ennis has been deeply impacted by the arrival of Coronavirus.
As the restrictions were extended, a group of teachers came together to formulate an online learning plan to support their house-bound pupils and Progress TV was born.
Co-ordinator and 5th class teacher Darryl Eade explained; “Social media was inundated with homemade videos when the lock down began. There were cooks, fitness instructors, health experts and musicians posting recordings from their living rooms. We wondered could a few of us record some simple educational lessons and present them in a fun and light-hearted way. Our hope was that the students would be naturally motivated to engage with each activity. We assembled a team and got started on Episode 1.”
Progress TV has grown into a weekly video classroom with staff from Holy family Senior and Junior schools providing lessons in a myriad of subjects, from Music to Science, PE to Art, Literacy to Geography.
The show is anchored by Darryl who introduces and links clips from his “Den” in Ennis, guiding the children through this unique learning experience.
“The show is steeped in diversity. One minute the children are virtually attending the new born lambs feeding time on Mr Bell’s farm, next Ms Felle guides them through a relaxing Yoga lesson. Ms Coughlan’s Music clips and Ms Normoyle’s and Ms Cahill’s cookery demonstrations wonderfully branch off into history, science and art lessons for all ages. That’s just the start of it. The entire Holy Family community have rallied behind the project. It is a real team effort,” he added.
The project has required a significant team effort from all staff members, and not only those in front of the camera. An editing team of four who cut, sequence and polish each episode are singled out for praise “Hours and hours of work have been put in by Sinead Finn, Gary Tyrell and the editing team. Their newly found passion for digital editing meant the show improved week by week. They have now helped create something that we are all proud of,” Darryl commented.
Progress TV has proven to be a big hit with Holy Family pupils and is bringing the school community closer together in a time of social distancing. Such is the popularity of early episodes that a dedicated weekly highlights show has also been produced, showcasing the students engaging with the different activities prescribed by their video-savvy teachers.
It has been the enthusiasm of students in engaging with this project which has been most heartening for Principal of the Senior School Sarah Barnes, “Every week I look forward to seeing Holy Family students shine and flourish on camera. What makes this project special too is that it is inclusive. Our camera-shy students can engage with ProgressTV activities and their teachers through our online classroom system (Seesaw) – even if they aren’t posted videos, we know that they are engaging with the content.”
The show has proven to be a big with parents too. Anne Walsh (mother of Ruadhán in 4th class), commended the project, highlighting its value in maintaining a strong home-school link, “Most important of all is the experience of physically seeing the teachers. That part of the interaction is invaluable. This strange time as we adults call it, has impacted on children in ways yet to be assessed. While everyone does their best with home schooling, the connection to child’s own school is so important and supportive. Ruadhán says it is “fun”. Thanks so much to the teachers it is a wonderful initiative.”
Mrs. Barnes has admitted that embracing these new digital platforms hasn’t been easy but the teachers always put the pupils first. “They are professional and generous in all they do. They just wanted to stay in contact and keep everybody connected to the school . The positivity, enthusiasm, motivation and creativity of these staff has become infectious in our community during these challenging times.”
There are plans to diversify and include some more unique teaching ideas. “The potential is limitless. There are amazing teachers, educators and staff all around the county. We’d love them to get involved with with us so we could create a show for every primary school student in Clare and end this tricky year on a high note. We also hope that some local business owners might invite us into their workplace for a very special Community Links episode.”
Whatever is in store, viewers of Progress TV (students of Holy Family and more) are in for a treat!
ProgressTV can be found on YouTube at ProgressTV Holy Family Ennis and episodes are uploaded every Monday.
