Welcome to Keep on Track Project Blog, the first of NCTE Project Blogs Sites.
This Project took place between January and June 2011. The aim of Keep on Track was to link fifteen Rail Stations on the Galway-Dublin Railway Line.
The Project was supported and sponsored by Irish Rail, the NCTE, the Empowering Minds Group and formed an exciting new alliance between Galway, Athlone, Portlaoise, Kildare and Drumcondra Education Centres.
The Keep on Track Project was a collaborative, cross curricular project connecting 16 schools from Galway to Dublin along the Inter City Rail Line.
Each school adopted a station to tell the rich story of that station in a variety of formats. Classes from Senior Infants to Sixth class took part in the project, researching materials and engaging in learning experiences relevant to their own curricular level.
Schools compiled their work across all curricular areas and presented project materials and outcomes on a joint project blog, the first project of its kind in the country using the Scoilnet Blogs platform. www.keepontrack.scoilnet.ie
Irish Rail (www.irishrail.ie) as Keep on Track Sponsor offered huge commitment and support. Irish Rail made archive materials available to aid the implementation of the project and facilitated Railway Station visits from each school.
The project was also supported by the Education Centres in the relevant catchment areas:
Galway Education Centre
Athlone Education Centre
Portlaoise Education Centre
Kildare Education Centre
Drumcondra Education Centre
A Workshop Day for Teachers took place in Athlone Education Centre on the 20th of January 2011. Each Education Centre facilitated their schools with regards to attendance on the day.
NCTE, the National Centre for Technology in Education ( www.ncte.ie ) committed to the project through the use of Scoilnet Blogs and also through access to Scoilnet Maps www.maps.scoilnet.ie This was the first opportunity for Primary Schools in Ireland to access this resource.
A launch day was held in the Radisson Hotel in Galway on June 9th 2011 where schools presented their Project Findings. A Special Irish Rail train brought all schools involved to and from Galway for the day of celebration.
Keep on Track offered huge opportunities for teachers and students to engage with ‘real life’ learning experiences in a cross curricular manner. It also cemented the collaboration between schools, Education Centres and the NCTE and provided a model for co-operation between schools and industry.
