a huge success for Fota House at the team at The Irish Heritage Trust.

We were delighted to be asked to attend by our friends Jennifer and Kevin at the Trust and celebrate the great work they have carried at out at this wonderful Irish Historic Attraction in our hometown of Cork.
The speeches by Minister Jimmy Deenihan and especially Lord Puttnam were enjoyable and very thought provoking.

Below is the official Press Release released for this event.

Fota House, Arboretum and Gardens logo

Lord David Puttnam, a champion of digital education in the UK & Ireland, will be keynote speaker at Fota House. Wednesday, 24th August at 10am

Fota House, Co. Cork, August 2011: The Irish Heritage Trust is mark the first anniversary of Fota Learning Zone with the announcement of a dynamic new partnership with Promethean, a global leader in interactive learning technology. The Irish Heritage Trust will celebrate the anniversary of Fota Learning Zone during Heritage Week 2011 (August 20th-27th), with the launch of three new learning modules which tie in with the curriculum. One of these, ‘Politics or Parlour Maids’, will encourage students to analyse and decide which historical source tells us more about life in a big house: social or political. Lord David Puttnam, a champion of digital education in the UK and Ireland, will be keynote speaker on the day and the new learning module will be officially launched by Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht.

Under the partnership, Promethean has worked with the Irish Heritage Trust to develop educational resources to increase the interactive elements of the new modules. Promethean has created tailor made classroom materials such as downloadable lesson plans, as well as access to online workshops through Promethean Planet, the world’s leading interactive teacher’s resource site with over one million members. The Fota Learning zone will benefit from having a partner site on Promethean Planet to hold these resources, allowing students and teachers to access learning materials after their visit in the classroom and at home, and enabling Fota Learning Zone to enhance its visibility to Promethean Planet’s online community.

Promethean has also donated ActivExpression Learner Response Systems, handheld devices which enable students to work remotely and answer questions while on the go. These will enable students to learn interactively throughout the different rooms of Fota House.

Fota Learning Zone is a free digital resource for teachers and students based on Fota House & Gardens in Cork (www.fotalearningzone.ie). Funded with the aid of a grant of €28,000 from The Heritage Council in 2010, it is multidisciplinary in approach and has been designed to appeal to teachers and students of Transition Year and Leaving Certificate History, History & Appreciation of Art and English.

Jennifer McCrea, Learning & Access Officer with the Irish Heritage Trust, explains its appeal: “Teachers and students can enhance classroom-based learning by collecting and analysing on-site evidence via self-directed learning and project work. It enables students to learn in context in an historic house and generic cialis online helps them to understand abstract concepts on