This is What Really Happened

Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet came alive for Year 9 students at Shimna Integrated College this week. English literature classes were joined by visitors from the Dutch city of Utrecht, who are also studying this tale of young love doomed by parents' disapproval. The Dutch guests, mainly from Muslim families, shared their own attitudes to a role for parents in choosing life-partners. Although their parents' generation mainly had arranged marriages, these students expected to find their own husbands and wives in due course.
'Our regular links with Shimna College offer real enrichment for our students. Their English benefits greatly, and the cultural sharing between students from Vader Rijn and Shimna broadens everyone's outlook,' said Guler Demirkaya, the visiting teacher of English.
The Dutch visitors gave presentations in English about their home countries - Morrocco, Turkey, Iraqi Kurdistan and Surinam. They brought with them crocus bulbs which students planted as a joint memorial to child victims of racism and sectarianism.

Nobody Tells Me

Nobody tells me how they got on at the Dutch visitors invitation night out at the Kinderhaus in Killough. But they got home suspiciously late, and had a suspiciously good time. Why do I always have a Governors' meeting when there is something good on? Thanks to the parents who helped out throughout the visit.

Welcome Back Dutch Visitors

Of course our visitors are a different year group, but it is great to have our Dutch visitors again, with the rich cultural heritage they bring with them. Once again, they have contributed hugely to the experience of our Islam group. Nothing in a textbook beats actually asking the person wearing the hijab! A happy lunch out was had by all at the Strand. Back tomorrow, we hope, for another contribution to our crocus planting.

Great Start to Key Programme

This year's Key Programme cohort made a terrific start at their first residential at Killowen Outdoor Centre in Rostrevor. Our triplet schools this year are De La Salle from Dundalk and Meanscoil Feirste. I know I can see the benefits in my current year 12 class in those students who took part in last year's Key. The feedback from Shimna staff member, Joan, and the Key Programme staff this week, suggest that the new group will be equally successful.

Staff Integration

On 26th August, Shimna hosted a huge conference of staff from six other integrated schools and colleges. The key note speaker was long time friend of Shimna, Colm Cavanagh, founding parent of Oakgrove Integrated College. The turnout was great and the workshops provided a rare opportunity to interact with staff from across the integrated sector. We all got a 'bag for life' to boot, so our eco-pioneers in year 10 will be proud of those of us who remember to use them.

Palestine and Auschwitz

You may have read in the Mourne Observer about two of our A level students, Rachel Skillen and Bronagh Magee making a presentation on Auschwitz to a group of Palestinian students in Dublin. The Palestinian students were part of a group preparing for encounters with a group of Jewish students. The Shimna girls were able to present a real insight into the significance of Auschwitz within Jewish culture following their visit to Poland in June. Their presentation forms part of the follow up work they will undertake to pass on the lessons they learnt at Auschwitz.

Celtic shirts at the Twelfth

The Twelfth was in Newcastle this year, and somebody wrote to the Telegraph to say that they had seen young men in Celtic shirts out watching the parade. It's great that they want to, that they wore their Celtic shirts and that felt safe to do both. The letter writer hoped that Rangers shirt wearers would feel as safe watching a republican parade. These changes haven't happened by magic. Newcastle, as a holiday resort, has a history of welcoming all comers, but there were many years in the middle when parades of any kind were downright scary. All the people who have worked hard to get back to a shared society have won back such peace as we have, including the parents who founded Shimna. The letter made me glad that our students wear their Celtic and Rangers tops on non-uniform days.