St Mary’s students held their own “TeachMeet” in the college recently to share teaching tips, resources and best practice. Over 200 students attended, and over thirty presented work which they had developed while on School Experience. TeachMeets are a grass-roots, professional development phenomenon currently being organised by teachers and for teachers in roughly a dozen countries worldwide. They originated in Scotland in 2006 but have now spread to Canada, the USA, Ireland, Denmark, the Czech Republic and a handful of other countries. Organised and run entirely by teachers, these events are characterised by a non-hierarchical structure more closely akin to that of a flash mob rather than a formal conference. St Mary’s hosted the most recent Belfast TeachMeet, and now St Mary’s students have been inspired to hold one of their own.

“It was intended that first-year students, in particular, would benefit from hearing the advice of more advanced students”, said final-year student, Breda O’Kane, one of the event’s organisers. “However, it was a great opportunity for everyone to share their experiences and advice with one another. St Mary’s students are doing such brilliant work out in the schools, they deserve a chance to have a showcase like this for their efforts.”

The event was introduced by keynote speaker, Mr Jarlath Burns, Principal of St Paul’s High School. In celebrating the idea of a TeachMeet, as well as the students’ initiative, he noted, “The ability to share good practice is one of the key indicators of an excellent practitioner. A good idea is something that positively impacts on pupil outcomes and is good news; therefore, it should be spread. There is no room for an ‘arm around the homework’ approach in schools because this goes against the child-centred philosophy of a Catholic school. The excellent teacher will be affirmed, not by how the idea reflects positively on him or her, but how it impacts on the pupils.”


A number of sponsors donated prizes to support the event including Daly’s Hyundai, Belfast; Teacups and Trinkets, Downpatrick; Jeanpiece, Banbridge; The Fly, Belfast; and Shakespeak, an Educational IT company based in Holland.

Many of the presentations will be preserved online in a recorded format as part of a “St Mary’s Student TeachMeet Library” which future students will be able to turn to for advice and inspiration.