Annual Report 2001~ 2002 - Belfast Education & Library Board

The board recognises that, to make the greatestimpact on learning in the city, it needs to work inpartnership with other organisations. This sectionoutlines what the board has achieved through thedevelopment and strengthening of thesepartnerships during the yearStrengtheningPartnershipsPartnership with Lille - fromstrength to strengthIn May, the board signed two historic agreements withBoston, Dublin and Lille to promote learning acrossthe cities. Both agreements mean that young people,teachers, youth workers and other specialists willbenefit from sharing experiences, conducting jointresearch and developing co-operative programmes.Environment and SocietyDuring the year:■ Inter-board collaboration between theEnvironment and Society teams resulted in thecreation of a ‘Promoting Literacy in Historythrough ICT’ CD ROM and accompanyingteachers’ handbook.■ 150 people attended an inter-board one-dayconference for geography teachers of Key Stage3 and Key Stage 4. The conference was openedby Mr Chris Durbin, adviser and inspector withStaffordshire Local Education Authority.■ A two-day fieldwork residential was held inMagilligan Fieldcentre in April for 19 beginningteachers of Geography.At a ceremony in board headquarters, a memorandumto develop the provision of education, youth and libraryservices in Belfast, Boston and Dublin was signed.Building on initial contacts made during 2000, theboard placed a strong focus on formalising andconsolidating its links with the Académie de Lille inNorthern France. A charter outlining the aims andobjectives of the partnership between the board andthe Académie was signed on 22 May 2001.A delegation, including the Recteur of the Académie,visited the board in February 2002. Their itineraryincluded Aquinas Grammar and Wellington College,both in South Belfast.The partnership has led to:■ A link between 17 Belfast post-primary schoolsand 25 schools in Lille■ Communication between history, geographyand science teachers in the Belfast and Lilleschools using English as the medium.✓Romania ProjectFollowing on from the Millennium Project to Romaniain 2000, youth services, in partnership with Express AidInternational, offered 20 young people from across Belfastthe opportunity to travel to Romania to work for 10 days.The aims of the project were to:■ Renovate dormitories in Placement Centre No2 Arad - home to 50 young people■ Run an activity-based summer project for theresidents and for boarders at the Therapeuticaland Educational Centre for HIV positive children■ Promote the ethos of volunteering among olderresidents and encourage the development ofpeer-led projects■ Work with small groups as identified by theDirectorate of Child Protection in AradDuring the ten days the participants decorated theinterior of the placement centre and organised tripsfor the children. Time was also spent at the HIV clinic.A group of staff and 10 young people from Romaniapaid a return visit to Belfast in October. They enjoyeda packed programme of outdoor pursuits activities,shopping and a tour of Belfast, where they werewelcomed by the Lord Mayor. The group also visitedseveral youth and community projects in the city.Strengthening Partnerships19