Education conference to examine Catholic ethos in schools

Organisers of a national conference on Catholic education have set themselves the task of retrieving the foundational Gospel values which define a Catholic school.

 “There is a danger that many schools have fallen into the trap of identifying Catholic ethos simply with the delivery of classes in Religious Studies and the preparation of children for the sacraments,” said organiser Niall McVeigh, Deputy President in Cistercian College Roscrea. 

“While these remain absolutely central to the work of a Catholic school, if the ethos is not borne out in the lives of the teachers – and in the whole life of the school – it’s difficult to see how a school can be called Catholic.”

The conference ‘Re-visioning and Renewing Catholic Education Today’ will welcome speakers such as Prof. Eamonn Conway (Mary Immaculate College, Limerick), Rev. Dr Niall Coll (St Mary’s University College, Belfast) and Dr Daire Keogh (St Patrick’s College, Drumcondra). 

It will be held at Cistercian College, Roscrea, on Friday, November 13. For further see www.ccr.ie or contact 00353 505 23344.