Teachers and Students Learn the Skills of Dialogue

Stranmillis University College was delighted to play host to teachers and student teachers over two days for training in the Tony Blair Faith Foundation (TBFF) Face to Faith programme.

Student teachers from all teacher education providers of RE were present for the student teacher event: St Mary's University College, University of Ulster, Queen's University Belfast and Stranmillis University College.  This in itself was a tremendous opportunity for students to meet and network with other RE specialists as well as a chance to feel part of the wider Religious Education community in Northern Ireland.  The TBFF trainers, Helen Harrison and Jo Malone, illustrated the work of the Face to Faith programme and gave participants the chance to engage in inter-faith dialogue techniques and to see the potential of video-conferencing in the RE classroom.

From left: Marian Curran (St Mary's University College),
 Victoria Harrison (Saintfield HS), Nathan McConnell (Ashfield Boys),
Francine Magill (Malone College), Jo Malone (TBFF), Helen
Harrison (TBFF), Gillian Craig (Ashfield Girls)

On the second day of their visit Helen and Jo worked with teachers from Malone College, Ashfield Boys, De La Salle, Integrated College Dungannon, Ashfield Girls and Saintfield High. This was the second Face to Faith training event for teachers in Northern Ireland (the first was in June 2011) and follows the successful introduction of the programme to schools in Omagh, Ballycastle and Newtownards.  Following a recent Video Conference with Ballycastle High School, Cross and Passion School Ballycastle and a school in Israel, a Cross and Passion pupil wrote: "We talked a little about our Christian faiths and asked the pupils in Israel about their Jewish traditions. I told them about my First Holy Communion. The pupils from the High school liked hearing about it as well. We then asked the pupils in Israel about their Bar Mitzvah. We had learned about this during our R.E. classes. I was really happy to have had this opportunity. It’s ok reading and learning about Judaism in class but to actually get to ask a Jewish boy all about his Bar Mitzvah was amazing. I also made new friends who go to the High school. I really hope our teachers let us do this again!!!"

Any teachers interested in finding out more about Face to Faith should contact Helen Harrison (unitedkingdom@facetofaithonline.org) or have a look at the Face to Faith website.