Week in Review

Staff Picks:

Encounter on the Luas stops us in our tracks

Positions vacant – lacking talent

I’m jobless, so why am I excluded from JobBridge?

Wheelchairtaxi.ie

 

Higher & Further Education News & Views

Quarter of Fás trainees qualified at third level

Three Munster ITs want to unite as a large university

Student numbers in UK tumble 9%

Third level holds key to our recovery

A lecturer rejects the idea that his is a cushy job

University plan promises wider choice of courses

More than 750 places available on graduate ICT courses

IPA becomes recognised college of UCD

Quinn says online media as accountable as traditional media

College registration fees set to hit €3k, says Quinn

 

Disability Headlines

Top wheelchair basketball teams to use Northern Ireland event as London 2012 warm-up

They’re fighting for a real miracle…

Hiqa to assess Deep Brain Stimulation service

Cork twin (3) to be first Irish child with ‘bionic’ ear implant

 

General Education Stories

Quinn pledges to work with principals on saving schools

Quinn defends cuts to teacher numbers in smaller schools

Children’s grades get a boost from after-school activity

Quinn stresses role of parents in children’s development

Too many activities can damage school performance, says report

Denial of education to Roma child violates human rights

Art student doodles her way onto shortlist

School thrives after 60 years

Preparing for the Baccalaureate

Goodbye Mr – and Mrs – Chips

Up to 3,000 for protest over cuts which threaten future of rural schools

Schools may face litigation over poor guidance for pupils

New teaching entrants to earn 30% less than their colleagues

Protests and insults over school cuts

Parents in protest over ‘culture of fear’ at school

Teaching while the supports fall away

Teacher staffing changes to hit small schools

‘All the staff give an awful lot, nobody minds doing a bit extra’

Education gains ‘can be kept with small pay cuts’

FF condemn Quinn’s ‘sneaky approach’ to cuts

Minister still wants DEIS ‘economies’

Review of smaller schools due in months

Female principal for Rockwell College

Ministerial review won’t help 33 schools set to lose teachers

 

Mental Health in the Media

Keyes’s novel way of tackling depression.

‘Lives lost’ as mental health funds suffer cuts

Mentally ill prisoner found lying on floor of locked room

Prisons lack mental health expertise

Study finds suicide prevention strategies work

Mental health fund could get ‘hived off’ for other sectors

 

Employment Features

Job scheme helps 605 people back to work

New guide to help employers handle impact of suicide

Free tech courses set to meet job demand

Jobs centre pleads with unions for help after Fás fund cuts

Employer seeks Sudoku fans

 

Week in Review

Staff Picks:

Sports broadcaster Colm Murray’s battle with motor neurone disease, and his determination to contribute to efforts to find a cure.

MND – The Inside Track

 

Higher & Further Education News & Views

Third-level presidents oppose new university

Newspapers cleared of breaching student’s injunction

Over 50,000 apply for college places

Filling out the CAO form – Tick the Box!

University heads deny accusations of elitism

Sugar-coated bacteria may help in fight against cancer, says UCC

Third-level rift as university heads labelled ‘arrogant’

President calls for response to ‘intellectual crisis’ in society

My life started at 39 — when I finally sat my Leaving Cert

UCC withdraws far-right politician’s invitation

 

Disability Headlines

Parents now ‘less tolerant of disabled children in same class’

How An Asperger Syndrome Diagnosis Saved My Marriage

Rehab welcomes reversal of training bonus cuts

Seeing their lives change before your eyes

‘Parliament must rule on disabled man’s death bid’

How a dog’s life can transform others

UK operation may enable Cavan girl (6) walk unaided

Disability rights campaigner joins Labour

 

General Education Stories

Up to 1,600 teachers to retire before changes to pensions

Gaeltacht parents oppose teacher ratio changes in smaller primary schools

Many students cannot add without calculator study shows

Some small rural schools are being put in immediate jeopardy by staffing cuts

Synge Street – where did it all go right?

‘Raise the bar and close the gap’

Students ‘will not be hit by exodus of teachers’

‘Double whammy’ payment to rehired teachers criticised

Dáil protest at staffing plan for smaller schools

Rural schools must take ‘share of burden’

DEIS schools still face cutbacks, admits Quinn

Falling budgets see class resources cut

 

Mental Health in the Media

Powerful voice for mentally ill people

‘The depth of my depression was irrational . . . Give yourself time. Get the support you need’

TDs in calls to reinstate advocacy worker

Suicide crisis – So much more to do

Magic mushrooms ‘could treat depression’

Slow progress on mental health policy criticised

Closure of psychiatric unit ‘set in blood’

Whistleblower who raised concerns over patients’ welfare gets job back

Voluntary mental patient not being held unlawfully

 

Employment Features

77% of jobseekers lie on CV, survey finds

 

Week in Review

Staff Picks:

Attitudes towards disabled more negative in past five years – report

Ageing with dignity and disability

Social class and gender ‘have huge effect on the way pupils are taught’

Learning to cope with the job market

 

Higher & Further Education News & Views

Quinn to approve technology university in southeast

STEMs are vital if we want to grow

UCC sues ESB for €18m over damage from opening dams after heavy rains

Over 80% of UL graduates employed or in further studies, figures show

Top academics snub Quinn pay cut plea

Only college boss who agreed to pay cut lost just €1,500

NUIG lifts curtain on new degree in drama

Student seeks injunctions against newspapers in Facebook case

 

Disability Headlines

I’m 45 and have young onset Parkinson’s

Pupils in a class of their own

Teenager awarded €5.25m for injuries suffered during birth

Boy, 11, awarded €1 million after leg amputated

Plan for single welfare payment due in March

Disability Etiquette: Think Ability, Not Disability

 

General Education Stories

Parents camp out to secure school places

Hundreds to meet over risk to West Cork schools

‘Sacrificial lambs’ of education saved by volte-face

Time to get real for the Leaving

Up to 700 attend meeting over school fears

Closure of small schools is ‘death by a thousand cuts’ for communities

Exempting teachers from cuts ruled out

Schools fear parents may sue over cuts

Traditional ways of teaching still prevail, says study

Young women are the best educators

Maths teaching days vary by 18 days a year, study finds

Quality of teaching – Consistency is important

Deis protesters picket Department of Education

 

Mental Health in the Media

Festival targets stigma of mental ill-health

Lynch to hear plea over hospital closure

Thirty suicides already this year from all walks of life

Relief to fore as athlete admits his race is run

Most suicides linked to drink problems

Suicide study – 190 deaths is too many

Gambling a ‘major factor’ in suicide

Experts say mental hospital must close

 

Employment Features

New website aims to have 5,000 job pledges by June

 

Week in Review

AHEAD in the News:

UCC head’s views are ‘widespread’

Heated argument

 

Staff Picks:

Back to the future – where are they now?

Death of tireless campaigner for the vulnerable

Most influential and finest journalist of last 25 years

The Case for a Four-Day Work Week

The only way is up when you upskill

 

Higher & Further Education News & Views

Entry points for colleges to rise

Seven steps to CAO success

Colleges spend €750k on taxis in two years

Sporting chance beckons in NY

UK academic to head science body

DCU to lead €3.75m science initiative

Irish mathematician cracks immunity code

UCC head rejects criticism from staff over speech

Disabled or disadvantaged?

Jobs boost is reason to go to college

The rule is simple: list CAO courses in order of preference

Help your children in the career process

Are you eligible for a grant or a scholarship?

DARE Application Advice Clinics

 

Disability Headlines

Offering stepping stones to local manufacturing

Race against time to fund ‘bubble’ boy’s life-saving surgery

Life-changing op to help Casey dance after €30,000 raised

Cerebral palsy boy’s assistance dog banned from school

Dental care for disabled kids

I was told I’d never walk again — today I’m aiming for the Olympics

Isolated twins now talking to world thanks to student project

Hospital doesn’t have to revive disabled boy

We’ve got wheels

Hands On

 

General Education Stories

Budding boffins put projects under microscope

Science & Innovation – Embracing change is key

Opposites do not subtract

Science key to future of State – Kenny

Minister calls for review of teacher cuts at disadvantaged schools

Rabbitte leads delegation to lobby Quinn

Prioritise maths in primary school, says NCC report

At-risk school schemes improve learning

Primary school prepares for the worst

Principal offers to buy e-voting machine — for €1

Ruairi Quinn admits DEIS cuts mistake

 

Mental Health in the Media

Suicide agency names ambassador

Senator: Suicide policy not working

Suicide debate highlights mental health

I needed a break from ‘me’

HSE trains groups in suicide prevention

Mental hospital ‘should remain in public hands’

 

Employment Features

Man with a plan to get people ‘back to work’

Bruton says new initiative aims to generate thousands of jobs

Courses encourage jobless into education

Waterford firm to create 250 jobs

 

Week in Review

Staff Picks:

Disability fund will meet demand, claims department

‘That’s the thing about your death . . . it pulls in all your loved ones’

Suzy Byrne: A pause? We need more than that … we need a real discussion on disability

Dedicated to changing lives

Education cuts in the budget

 

Higher & Further Education News & Views

Who earns most in higher education?

High Earners, Low Funding

Heavy Hitters

USI warning on university fees hike

1,200 college places for jobless unfilled

Higher student fees and fewer teachers on way with €76m cuts

Fees are going up, but you can still win an achievement award

 

Disability Headlines

€2.5m intellectual disability centre planned for Clonakilty

They have pride, passion and dignity — and they deserve so much more

Cuts ‘will trap young disabled’

We’re in panic mode all the time

Link between ADHD and body clock established

BAI launches public consultation on access 

 

Budget Coverage of Disability Payments

Gilmore defends cuts to disability payments

Kenny announces review of payments to young disabled

Proposed cuts: measures would have saved €36m

Young people with disabilities to be ‘further excluded from society’

‘I thought that Enda Kenny was going to be a legend . . . Not anymore’

Suzy Byrne: We’re not talking bad backitis here … we’re talking about people with real disabilities

Dear Enda …

A U-turn that raises as many questions as it answers

Blame game on over disability pay plan

‘They did not think this through’

Climbdowns seriously undermined the previous coalition

Disability cut U-turn – In fairness, better late than never

Apology as Bill on disability pulled

 

General Education Stories

Pupil-teacher ratio change on hold until at least 2013

Building blocks to your child’s future

Pilot scheme for pupil literacy expands to eight more schools

Bus fee the main route to school economies

1,000 teachers to take early retirement

Ratio changes threaten student guidance

Quinn defends broken pledge not to increase fees

School transport appeals increase 500% in four years

Quinn told schools could have no heat

In My Opinion: Parents will have a more active role in how schools adapt to changes

 

Mental Health in the Media

Seeking answers but not retribution on subject of suicide

Column: Suicide isn’t just about depression – it’s about all of us

‘Depression can be a slow ebb’

€35m cash for mental health

Half of psychiatric admissions have a drug problem

Families protest against closure of psychiatric unit

Actor Brenda Fricker says she battled with depression

HSE sends psychiatric notes to wrong family

 

Employment Features

Employers will pay for sick leave, vows Burton

 

Week in Review

Another Friday, another week in review!

This week we want to say a MASSIVE CONGRATULATIONS to all involved in the Special Olympics Ireland Team who have been winning medals left, right and centre in Athens!

Our pick of the week showcases their achievements:

Gaining momentum: Ten more medals for Ireland at Special Olympics

 

 

 

Readers should also take a look at this commentary by renowned blogger Maman Poulet on the recent Springboard and Jobbridge Initiatives: Jobs Initiative – will be work and how it’s unattainable for some

 

Our video of the week is a pretty cool stunt in an airport in Germany – make sure to check it out!

AHEAD also launched Student Voices: Two Reports on the Experiences of Students with Disabilities in Higher Education in Ireland. Photos from the event are available on the website. If you would like a copy of these reports, please email publications@ahead.ie

Niamh Hayes & Ann Heelan (AHEAD) with Declan Treanor (Head of TCD Disability Service) at the launch of Student Voices

Siobhan Barron (NDA) with Ann Heelan & Niamh Hayes (AHEAD) at the launch of Student Voices

Niamh Hayes (GET AHEAD), Vivian Rath (UCD), Brian Power (Dept of Education) & Ann Heelan (Director of AHEAD) at the launch of Student Voices

All that remains to be said is ‘Happy Reading!’

Further & Higher Education News

Time for Quinn to prove that education is truly for everyone

University chiefs warn MLAs of £40m deficit

Higher education: Student expectations for 2012 are higher than ever

Education crisis puts us all to test

Higher Education White Paper: universities to be ranked on job prospects

Student number surge to spark funding crisis

Ex-NCAD head and champion of disability design

NUI volunteer project for Galway festival

Union defends salaries of €100,000 paid to 1,000 university lecturers

Bar raised for students hoping to get medicine

DCU journalism course to allot more time to basic writing skills

Making doctors do the rounds

Halving number of VECs will save €3m, says Quinn

Radical plan will cut number of VECs from 33 to 16

College launches media masters

 

Disability Headlines

Team Ireland to fore once again as Athens medal haul increases

Carers strategy ‘by end of the year’

Homes for 3,500 with disabilities branded ‘horrible’

Congregated Settings Report on the Transition to Community Living for People with Disabilities

SNAs vow ‘summer of discontent’

HSE report details institutional living conditions

Rate of diabetes doubles since 1980 to hit 347 million

First day goes swimmingly as Special Olympics team win gold

Most of disability funds go on wages

Silver and bronze add to laurels for Special Olympics swimmers

Special Olympics team medal tally now three

Government needs to move on mentally disabled

Homes for mentally disabled to close

€7.5m settlement for woman paralysed ‘by parrot disease’

General Education Articles

FF backs multi-faith primary schools

Irish teens’ online literacy above average

Catholic schools ‘need faith communities’

Parents criticise Minister for change to school transport

Celebrations for class act: students set attendance record

40 new schools to be built by 2017

Primary schools get nod on 2,000 temporary jobs

David Quinn: We need to know how far we’ll go to take religion out of schools

Parental demand at heart of school patronage, says Quinn

Cuts to €1m a day school bus system must go ahead – Minister

40 schools to be built to meet pupil numbers rise

 

Mental Health in the Media

2,500 young people on waiting list for mental health services

Flanagan accused of ‘suicide’ comment

Ming: I did not tell official to commit suicide

Drop in number of suicides to 8% welcomed by research group

Drugs and drink key factors in North’s suicide rate, study finds

Boy among 11 suicides in city area since April

 

Other bits and bobs

Charting the way forward on human rights

Firms urged to take on interns paid by state

 

Week in Review

Pick of the Week: I’m trying to work against the odds

Initiative of the week: http://wheelmap.org/

 

Video of the week:

 

Further & Higher Education

Minister for Education and Skills announces the providers of 1,000 additional PLC places as part of the Government’s Jobs Initiative

Is producing critically-minded citizens a luxury we can’t afford?

A socially enterprising university – a new model for Higher Education?

Certificate in Higher Education [Working with People with a Visual Impairment]

Is higher education prepared to deal with increasing complaints?

Some graduates in physics earning €100,000-plus

Welsh universities sent back to the drawing board on access proposals

A challenging, fresh take on a battered world

 

General Disability

Disability cuts: A mother’s cry for help, Mumsnet, and a media storm.

Irish athletes fly out to World Transplant Games

Stroke almost killed my grandson, Dunphy reveals

Exercise linked to reducing risk of Alzheimer’s

IFA to host a five-star display of football

Club Tropicana – providing vital social events for people with intellectual disabilities

I just want to dance, says brave Casey (5)

Discovery could fight genetic diseases

Becky can breathe again after historic lung operation

Revolutionary treatment could fulfil girl’s dream to see her mother’s face

 

General Education

‘Brains or breeding’ selection of pupils faces ban

Government shelves decision on mandatory Leaving Cert Irish

Rules for school entry face major reform

Minister may ban specific criteria for school admissions

Where problems lie when searching for the best education for a child

Our education is always worth a conversation

Stopped in his tracks

School defends record on special needs pupils

Today’s lesson: a school is not merely a building

School admissions

 

Mental Health in the Media

Increase in number of male suicide as rising unemployment linked to mental health problems

Study reveals suicide ‘cluster’ in area of Cork

SSIS project closure – Research key in tackling suicide rate

Youngsters suffering mental health issues

Get in the right frame of mind

 

And if you have some time over the weekend why not check out this blog post which is a round up of shows on the BBC featuring disability: Disability on the BBC this week