National Vocational Qualification (NVQ 3) Certificates in Irish Sign Language (March-2009)
In January 2008 St. Mary's School for Deaf Girls in Dublin and Hands That Talk in Dungiven joined forces to provide the first ever NVQ 3 course in Irish Sign Language (ISL) in the Republic of Ireland.
Eight students participated in the course which was accredited by the CACDP, the Council for the Advancement of Communication between Deaf and Hearing People in the UK. The Course co-ordinator was Dorothy Hegarty of Hands That Talk and Helena Saunders was appointed as the Course Assessor. The Internal Verifier for the course was Liz McCorkill and she was assisted by Dr. Pat McDonnell. Between January and June 2008 frequent meetings were held in Dublin and Dungiven, including planning meetings, induction meetings for students, sampling meetings to assess students' progress and meetings with the external verifier from CACDP. The students were required to compile a portfolio of evidence of their skills in ISL, through the use of DVD's, webcam, broadcast reports etc. It was hoped to complete the course by the end of June, which was a huge challenge for all those involved in the provision of the course and for the participants. Funding for the course was provided by the Special Education Support Service and supported by the Department of Education and Science. Through the on-going support and commitment of Hands That Talk and the hard work of the Course Assessor and the students, all of the course work was completed on time. On 31st October 2008 all eight students were awarded the NVQ3 in ISL Qualification by CACDP and it is hoped that these will be the first of many to receive such a highly regarded and internationally recognised award in the future. Congratulations to these eight staff members on achieving this qualification, and also to the twelve other staff members who achieved CACDP Level 1 and 2 awards. On behalf of the staff and pupils of St. Mary's School for Deaf Girls I would like to commend Dorothy Hegarty and Hands That talk for facilitating the course and for providing invaluable assistance. Their input and co-operation is greatly appreciated and will continue to be of great benefit to the students of St. Mary's for very many years to come. Eight teachers from St. Mary's are currently studying at the University of Birmingham for the Diploma for Teachers of the Deaf. We wish them the best of luck in their assignments, teaching practice and exams, and look forward to their graduation in November. Regina O'Connell M. Ed. Principal
