Mayo student features in Marino Institute of Education campaign

Joseph McNulty, a third-year Bachelor of Education (Primary Teaching) student from Swinford, is being featured in a new communications campaign by Marino Institute of Education (MIE) in Dublin.

Entitled ‘This is MIE’, the campaign offers an insight into student life at MIE, including student societies and clubs focused on sports, traditional music, and drama and musicals, and showcases different course options at the Institute.

Mayo man Joseph, who was a professional musician before he started studying at MIE, is among a small cohort of students who have been selected to feature in the campaign. He is a member of MIE’s traditional music society, which regularly organises trad music sessions and social events.

As part of the ‘This is MIE’ campaign, MIE undertook an online survey among its current primary teaching students to establish their preferences after graduation.

More than 100 students responded to the survey and key findings include:

- The majority of students (59%) would like to teach outside of Dublin, with 44% indicating they would like to teach in a town or rural area. Conversely, 39% said they would like to teach in Dublin

- Making a difference and having a positive impact on the lives of their students emerged as the primary motivation for becoming a teacher. This was followed by the desire to work with children

- Almost two-thirds of students would like to work in a denominational school, while 31% indicated they want to work in a multi-denominational school

- Of those who study primary teaching through the English language, 69% want to teach through English and 8% through Irish after they graduate, while 23% want to teach through both English and Irish

- Of those who study primary teaching through the medium of Irish, a course option unique to MIE, 87% want to teach through Irish after they graduate, while the remaining 13% want to teach through both English and Irish

POSITIVE IMPACT

Commenting on the survey findings, the president of MIE, Professor Teresa O’Doherty, said: “At MIE, we prepare students for all eventualities and equip them with the skills they need in any type of teaching context. As an institute that offers an inclusive and sustainable learning environment and promotes social justice through education, we are particularly pleased to see this mindset reflected in our students, who are strongly motivated by a desire to make a difference and to have a positive impact on the lives of their students.

“The use of Irish among students and staff is welcomed and encouraged at MIE, so it is also heartening to see a strong desire by many of our students to teach in Irish, or bilingually in Irish and English, after they graduate.

“We offer a Bachelor of Education through the medium of Irish (BOTMG), which is the only undergraduate degree in primary teaching in Ireland that is delivered exclusively through the medium of Irish.”

Professor O’Doherty said a key focus of the new ‘This is MIE’ campaign is to highlight the fact that additional places are available on primary education courses for the coming academic year (beginning in September 2023).

“We are pleased to offer 30 additional places on our BOTMG programme this year, as well as a further 30 additional places on our Bachelor of Education (Primary Teaching) through English and 50 extra places on our Professional Master of Education (Primary Teaching). We are all aware of the challenges facing the teaching profession, including teacher shortages, and we are committed to playing our part in addressing these.”

The CAO change-of-mind period for undergraduate programmes is currently open until July 1 (5 p.m.). Find out more at www.mie.ie.