April 2011 Launch of New Adult and Community Education Resource DVD

Michael D. Higgins will officially launch a new documentary film, Bridging the Gap, in which leading academics in Irish higher education discuss contemporary social and economic issues in an engaging and accessible way. Two of the NUI Galway contributors to the film, Dr Su-Ming Khoo, School of Political Science and Sociology, and Dr Vinodh Jaichand, Irish Centre for Human Rights, will also speak at the launch and the event will include screening of excerpts from the film. The launch, hosted by Galway City VEC, Campus Engage and NUI Galway, will take place on Wednesday, 13 April at 11am at the Galway City Museum. The aim of the film is to 'bridge the gap' between higher education and adult and community education, by making available the knowledge, expertise and perspectives of academics to students learning in community-based settings. The film consists of two DVDs which contain a number of short programmes on topics such as human rights, globalisation, education, democracy, gender and racism. Ann Lyons, Project Manager at the Community Knowledge Initiative, said: "The experience of adult and community education has demonstrated that students learn best when a variety of teaching methods and media are used. The DVDs will provide a visual and audio tool which will be a user-friendly resource for teachers, tutors, and educational facilitators in the field of adult and community education and beyond. The producers of the film hope that the various programmes will stimulate discussion and be a catalyst for social action. While the primary objective of the film is to be a resource for adult and community education it will also be of interest to individuals, other organisations and learners in general." The production of Bridging the Gap is a partnership between County Wexford VEC, Roots Reel Films and the Equality Studies Centre at UCD and supported by funding from Campus Engage. The film has won an Aontas Star Award as an outstanding learner centred adult and community education project and represents a very productive collaboration between institutions of higher education and community-based education. It will make a valuable contribution to the adult and community education sector and be a useful resource for teachers and learners alike. For further information on Bridging the Gap contact Ann Lyons, Community Knowledge Initiative, NUI Galway at 091 492228/087 7677080 or email ann.lyons@nuigalway.ie -Ends-