There are many groups in Irish society suffering from negative impacts of the lockdowns imposed by the government to try to control Covid-19.  One group for whom such lockdowns have not just immediate, but potentially long term consequences are primary schoolchildren in DEIS schools.  These are children whose families may not be able to afford the technology needed to maintain their learning, development and engagement on-line until such time as they can get back into real school. When students fall behind at primary level, this can hamper their ability to proceed to secondary and higher levels of education with lifelong consequences. 

 

So when Siobhan Weeks, principal of Scoil Chaitríona, a DEIS Band 1 school in Dublin, appealed for assistance, the  Rotary Club, Dublin set out to acquire 30 laptop devices for the children in the school. As we worked on organising funding, we were approached by a donor (who wishes to remain anonymous) who offered to provide the devices for free. We are delighted to say that the computers have now been delivered to Scoil Chaitríona and are already in use. We hope that these laptops will not just help the children keep up with their education and development during the pandemic, but will continue to contribute to their education well into the future, even after they are back in the classroom again.

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Rana

Chair-New Generation