Transition Year students at Ashton School, Blackrock Road, held their Awards Night recently, where students displayed their projects, portfolios, film-work, and much more, to their parents and invited guests.  Principal Mr. Landen welcomed everyone, and congratulated students on their outstanding achievements.  Ms. Ryan T.Y. Co-Ordinator,   spoke of students ‘capacity to be flexible, willing and able to participate affectively in a diverse range of forty five subjects’.  She introduced individual students who made verbal presentations on various modules and subjects  they had participated in, done with poise, control and panache.  An excellent life-skill for any young person.  One student  travelled to DCU Dublin each week to attend Psychology lectures and completed First Year Psychology examinations to honours level, another spent a week in Kolkatta assisting with Street children.  Others made a film, some worked voluntarily in Penny Dinners or Meals on Wheels weekly, while some learned French, or German, Irish at lunchtime or Chinese.  Students wrote poetry, fiction and were published in beautiful books.  Others reviewed books for the Evening Echo and were published weekly. Just some of  the many interesting module options. The list goes on.

Guest speaker Dr. Sarah Hayden, Lecturer  in English, and History of Art at  U.C.C, and Assistant Lecturer in Visual Cultures at Goldsmiths College, University of London, and poet, facilitated Poetry workshops with T.Y. students, supported by the Arts Office of the Cork City Council.   Dr. Hayden encouraged students to ‘be creatively industrious’, as individuals will need to be prepared to change as life itself changes.  She wisely suggested that ‘paths are multiple, and the Sun shines again’ when we encounter difficulties in our lives.

Guest speaker Peter Catchpole, former student at Ashton,  spoke of dealing with failure and keeping perspective, the importance of having a plan in life, setting goals, and following them, as he has done successfully, having just completed his degree at University College Cork.  He spoke directly to students of his own positive experience of education at Ashton, of the importance of not being afraid to make mistakes, as he said, ‘You succeed, when you think it will not happen’.  He left students with a useful and timely message in relation to dealing with failure, ‘If you lose, do not lose the lesson’.   What wisdom for us all to ponder !

The evening concluded with certificates being presented to all participants in the program by Principal Mr. Landen, capably assisted by Year Head Ms. Fogarty, and Deputy Principal Ms. Hewison.  Transition Year Student of the Year Awards were  presented by Ms. Fogarty to two  students, Annie Walsh and Rachel Warren-Perry for their sense of initiative, positive energy, application to tasks, and attention to detail in projects both in and outside of school.  This announcement was greeted with warm and sustained applause.  A marvellous night full of wisdom and memories students will carry with them for life.

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