A Message from our Principal Mr. Michael Carew
Welcome to Knockbeg College. Our website will give you some information about the College and, we hope, a flavour of what life here is like.
The physical environment has been completely refurbished and we have been moving ahead apace with the installation and provision of I.T. equipment to further enhance the quality of our teaching and learning. Added to this, the staff have undertaken several days training in different active learning methodologies such as Assessment for Learning and Co-operative Learning, which now form an integral part of our teaching and learning strategies.
In relation to both of the above developments, all classrooms are now equipped with data projectors and all subject teachers have been provided with a laptop. Similarly over the last 3 years, twenty three classrooms have been refurbished and refurnished. The cessation of boarding has enabled the creation of new classrooms, notably a new Art Room, a new Career Guidance room and a Music Room. We also have a special class, in its own building, the Infirmary, catering for 6 students on the Autistic Spectrum. Part of St. Joseph's Dormitory has also been converted into a Snooker Room in which 2 full size snooker tables have been installed. Two new general purpose classrooms and a new Senior Business and Economics Room have also been created. There are two computer rooms one of which was equipped with 29 new computers two years ago while the other is now equipped with a mix of new and reconditioned computers. In addition 6 computers are available in the Library to enable students to research topics or homework during the lunch breaks. Pending the new building project which is due for completion in the summer of 2016 only necessary maintenance work will be carried out.
Other work has been carried out on a new boiler, the complete rewiring of the St.Joseph's building, the provision of fibre optic cable for the second computer room, the refurbishment of the boys' toilets the extension of the carpark, new goalposts on all 4 pitches and the painting of the entire building. Overall in excess of €500,000 has been spent in the last five years in order to enhance the physical environment in which your sons work and play.All this has had to be done while waiting for the D.E.S. to move a little faster on the new buildings. This has now been done. Stage 1 of the process has been completed and at a meeting with the DES Building Unit on 26th March 2013 approval was given to go to the Planning Stage. The approval was for a €5.2 million project of 5032 sq. metres of which half is refurbishment of the existing buildings, all of which are now under a preservation order, and approximately half of which will be new buildings. The Stage 2 a meeting with the Department of Education Building Unit will take place in October 2013. At this meeting the full detailed design for the new school will be presented to the Department for its approval and it is expected that we will be applying for planning permission immediately after that meeting.
A message to both Pupils & Parents
It is essential that while in school each pupil conducts himself in a manner that allows him to best fulfil his potential, that he respects the needs and concerns of other pupils, and that he co-operates with the staff. The grounding for good education is in the home - it is the focused and motivated student who tends to benefit most from school - and in this respect we would ask parents to work with their sons and the staff in ensuring that homework is done, that an evening,g or weekend study schedule is put in place, and that a positive attitude to school and study is nurtured. Ensuring on a daily or weekly basis that homework and study is being attended to, that the uniform is in order, that there is punctuality of, and regularity in, attendance will help the focus towards learning and complement the work of the staff.This is a relatively small school, and we feel that the spirit of co-operation that exists here between staff, pupils and parents and that is integral to pupils personal and academic development has always been a hallmark of Knockbeg. Inevitably, while the onus will always be on encouragement and the instilling of self-confidence and a sense of self-discipline in pupils as we work with them to the best of our ability, situations will occur in a school whereby disciplinary measures need to be taken, parents need to be contacted or parents need to contact us, and there is a Pastoral Care/Discipline system in the school to facilitate this. All of the staff work in the area of Pastoral Care, trying to ensure that the personal as well as the academic needs of the pupils are attended to. We stress that at the core of all interactions in the school should be Respect for one another and our expectations to that effect, as staff and students, have been written down and are displayed throughout the school.