Modern Foreign Languages
Radharc na Mara Primary School is part of an Erasmus consortium aimed at raising the linguistic skills of the staff of 14 different schools throughout the county. As part of this consortium, an application was made through Leargas for Erasmus accreditation. Led by the Galway Education Centre, the consortium was succesful in its application and acquired funding to analyse language learning in other European countries. From September 29th to October 3rd, Mr. Joyce visited the beautiful port city of Cadiz in Southern Spain. During the week of study, the consortium visited several schools in the city. Mr. Joyce got to visit "CEIP Fermin Salvochea" in the newer part of Cadiz. The school is a state run school with 150 pupils. The school were very welcoming and put on a number of language learning workshops during the visit. The consortium saw firsthand how the Spanish teachers taught English to children as their second language.
The consortium project will last over a period of two years. It is a wonderful opportunity to upskill and disseminate with the coming of the new curriculum, which looks at developing lingusitic skills for European languages in Irish schools. Our school has received funding to begin the "Say Yes to Languages" programme in the summer months. 5th and 6th Class will begin this programme in preparation for their transition into secondary school.
Following on from the Erasmus consortiums first trip to Spain, the programme continued its mission to gain an understanding of the methodologies specifically used in teaching modern foreign languages within their staff by visiting schools in the capital city of Estonia, Tallinn. The consortium, led by the Galway Education Centre were divided into three groups and visited three different schools over the course of 3 days in February 2026.
Ms. Forde represented our school and visited Puha Johannese Kool, a Russian Orthodox private school located in the southern suburbs of the city. The school was very welcoming and provided the visiting teachers with ample opportunities to attend a number of language classes. The Irish consortium saw how Estonian teachers teach Spanish and English to the pupils of their school. The Erasmus programme is a wonderful way of allowing European teachers to share their skills. An extremely worthwhile, informative and enjoyable project.
In May 2026 Ms. Kilroy travelled with 12 other Galway teachers to visit schools in Nantes, France for four days. During the trip, Ms. Kilroy visited Lycée Notre-Dame de Rezé and École Primaire Notre-Dame de Rezé, a private Catholic school located just 20 minutes from the centre of Nantes.
While there, she had the opportunity to visit classrooms and observe how teachers organise their classes and teach English to the students. Ms. Kilroy also gave a presentation in French about Ireland and school life here. The children were fascinated to see photos from our website showcasing the many activities taking place in our school, and they were especially impressed by our wonderful playgrounds and playing fields. Ms. Kilroy even taught the students some Irish words.
The visit was a fantastic opportunity to learn more about another European country, share ideas and experiences with teachers from other Galway schools, and further develop language and teaching skills. It was an enjoyable and rewarding experience for everyone involved.
During the summer holidays of 2026, Ms Lynskey, Ms Roynane, Mr Costello and Ms Kilroy travelled to Málaga, Spain, to take part in an Erasmus+ training course.
Over the course of a week, they explored new approaches to language teaching and came away with lots of exciting ideas and activities to bring back to their classrooms. The course also provided a wonderful opportunity to learn more about Spanish culture and life.
While in Málaga, the teachers visited some of the city’s famous landmarks, including Málaga Cathedral, the Picasso Museum and the historic castle. They also enjoyed sampling delicious Spanish food and making the most of the beautiful sunshine!
Our four teachers had also completed an intensive introductory course in Spanish as a Modern Foreign Language in the Primary School, delivered by Galway Education Centre during the summer holidays. Their Erasmus+ experience in Málaga gave them the perfect opportunity to put their new Spanish phrases into practice.
It was a fantastic week of learning and the teachers are looking forward to sharing their new ideas and enthusiasm for languages with our pupils.
