The establishment of the Good Shepherd National School AEC marks an important milestone in Irish primary education. For the first time, teachers and schools in Dublin will have access to a well-equipped advice and support centre, structured training courses and a ready-made network of contacts to help them in their work with children and computers.
The Dublin AEC is also an important development for Acorn Computers, reinforcing Acorn's dominance in educational computing and the company's commitment to investing in the infrastructure of education worldwide.
Mr Pat Rabbitte, Minister for Commerce Science & Technology, Ireland, comments:
"It is important and valuable for primary school pupils to receive a good introduction to the use of technology as a learning resource and as a way of accessing and manipulating information and knowledge. The recent White Paper on Education includes as an objective for junior-cycle, post-primary education 'competence and understanding in practical skills including computer literacy and information technology'. The transition to post primary and the insight of pupils will be aided by an introduction to technology in the primary school. I wish Good Shepherd School every success as an Acorn in Education Centre and in helping other Irish schools develop structured and effective IT policies to enhance our children's education."Sam Wauchope, Managing Director of Acorn Computer Group plc, said:
"Access to the latest information technology systems is vital for every child's education today. But the provision of technology alone is not enough. Sound advice and guidance for teachers is essential if they are to help children gain the maximum advantage from computers in the classroom.The Good Shepherd AEC offers three key services to schools in the Dublin area: training courses, details of which are provided in regular mailings, a telephone helpline which is open during school hours, and an opportunity for teachers to drop in after school hours to try out software packages for themselves. Anyone wanting further information should contact John Curran at the Good Shepherd National School AEC on the helpline number: (353 1) 2989475.Acorn understands the importance of good IT support for teachers. We are firmly committed to delivering this through investing in AECs like the Good Shepherd School and will continue to develop our AEC network in order to provide the appropriate educational IT infrastructure."
Equipped with 22 networked Acorn computers and portables, including the top of the range Risc PC, the Good Shepherd AEC is one of the best equipped primary schools in the Republic of Ireland in terms of IT provision. Printers, CD ROMs and software are shared by all the computers across the network.
The Acorn in Education Centre initiative was established in 1992 to provide teachers with educational IT support and to raise awareness of the true value of technology in schools. There are now 65 Centres in the UK, the Republic of Ireland, Australia and New Zealand which teachers can visit to ask questions, try out computer systems, investigate and research new developments in educational IT to keep development plans up to date, view software and curriculum materials and participate in scheduled and tailored training courses.
Founded in 1978, with 1994 revenues in excess of £50m, Acorn Computers is one of the world's leading providers of IT to education and was the first supplier of low-cost 32-bit RISC based personal computers in 1987. Acorn works closely with a strong community of industry partners, users and software developers to provide innovative technology solutions for the education, consumer, publishing and international markets.
Acorn Computer Group plc is the holding company for Acorn Computers Limited, Acorn Australia, Acorn New Zealand, Acorn GmbH and Online Media. Acorn Computer Group owns 43% of Advanced RISC Machines Ltd. Online Media, a division of the Acorn Computer Group, was launched in 1994 with the objective to design interactive multimedia products.