05 Apr 2006

Passionate About Languages - Schools Language Competition at UCC

An initiative by UCC launched last November aimed at second level language students culminated on Friday last (31 March 2006) when pupils from schools across Munster gathered at UCC for a prizegiving ceremony.  The second level languages competition titled Passionate About Languages, organised by UCC’s German Department in close collaboration with the Departments of French, Italian and Hispanic Studies, offered students one of two routes to express their views on learning a foreign language(s).  Students had the option of making a visual representation of their favourite word from one of the four languages and explain why they chose it, or write a letter to the Minister for Education & Science, Mary Hanafin outlining the value of languages in the school curriculum.

Just under 30 entries were received from schools all across Munster. First Prize, with a voucher of €200 was awarded to the High School, Clonmel, Co.Tipperary for a multimedia project comprising a German language magazine with news items, articles, cartoons and poetry. The entrants also wrote and performed a song entitled Liebe (Love) which they produced on DVD. Prizes were also awarded to Coláiste Choilm, Ballincollig, Co.Cork for art projects involving collage and painting. St.Mary’s, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary received also a prize for their colourful representation of the World Cup in Germany. Another runner-up, Claire Creedon of Christ the King Girls Secondary School, Douglas, Cork received a prize for writing a compelling letter to the Minister outlining her feelings on how languages are taught at second level and the restrictions felt by students, at times, in their choice of languages to Leaving Cert level. On this letter, and the ongoing plans by the Department of Education towards their languages policy in Ireland, Mr Paul Caffery, a senior inspector for the Department of Education, who was a special guest at the ceremony, spoke.

The President of UCC, Professor Gerard Wrixon officiating at the prizegiving, commended the students on their visible enthusiasm and lustre for learning a foreign language and noted that the study and research of languages has always played an important role in UCC since the enrolling of the first UCC students in 1849. This was the first year of the competition was run and was extremely well received by teachers and students alike. There was indeed a visible passion about languages evident among all those involved.

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