English & Drama

Poetry Competition Winners

Recently our Year 8 students attended a Poetry Day in the Palace Stables, Armagh. The theme of the day was “Heroes” and the students met Living History Interpreters, “Lord Nelson” and “ Caroline Hershel” and took part in a poetry workshop led by Maura Johnston, Poet in Residence at the Palace Stables. Back at school our students entered the “Heroes” poetry competition and Rachel Cameron and Lee Grimley were winners, receiving their prizes at a special event held in Navan Fort. To read the winning poems click on the link below

Winning Poems

What are the important things in life?
Jordan Whitefield's speech from a recent public speaking competition held in Stormont.

• GCSE Drama
• GCSE English
• GCSE English Literature

“Literature is my Utopia. Here I am not disfranchised.  No barrier of the senses shuts me out from the sweet, gracious discourse of my book friends.  They talk to me without embarrassment or awkwardness.”

[Helen (Adams) Keller]

A Brief History

The English Department began its journey ten years ago under the leadership of Mrs Vicky Hastings.  At that time, however, the fundamental aims of the department were the same as they are today – to enable the students to engage with language, to communicate effectively and in so doing, to foster an enjoyment of and passion for literature, whether it be in the form of poetry, prose or drama.  Unfortunately, following illness, Mrs Hastings died near the end of the college’s second year, but the department still feels a great deal of admiration and gratitude for her initial vision and contribution.  After Mrs Hastings’ untimely passing, Ms Jill Hobson took over at the helm, leading a somewhat larger department in its job of delivering the English Curriculum.  Ms Hobson also displayed a deep passion for her subject, endeavouring to ensure the students enjoyed literature and achieved their due academic success.  She was joined in her efforts by Mrs Majella Brogan (nee Hackett) whose child-centred approach was second to none – an approach, I might add, which gained her the respect of many students and staff alike.  Ms Hobson and Mrs Brogan, both English specialists, were aided in their attempts by various other teachers in the school who undertook, under guidance, the teaching of English at both Key Stage III and IV.

As the school grew, it became obvious that more English teachers were needed, and so, in September 1999, two further teachers – Miss Mary McCaffrey and myself, joined the department.

Miss McCaffrey had taught for a year in St Joseph’s High School in Coalisland and I had come directly from The University of Ulster at Coleraine, where I had just completed my Post-Graduate Certificate in Education.  Miss McCaffrey immediately struck a chord with the students and it was clear that she would be a valuable addition to the department.  However, after one year (having travelled from Belfast daily) she decided to look for a job closer to home and so, having been smitten with the integrated bug, she moved to Malone Integrated College in Belfast, where she is still employed today.

In September 2000, then, in place of Miss McCaffrey, the college employed Mrs Anne Wilson.  Mrs Wilson, a graduate in Latin and English, furnished the department with her expertise in Ancient and Modern Literature, adding an even more diverse dimension to the work of the department.

It was during this year also, that Ms Hobson resigned from her position in the college.  I took over as Head of Department for the remainder of the year, to keep things ‘ticking over’ until a new Head of Department was appointed the following year.

Mrs Karen Campbell (nee Hughes) joined us as a substitute teacher at this time and was appointed as a permanent teacher the following year.  It was then also that Miss Louise Burke joined the Department.  Both Karen and Louise’s lively approach injected the department with a renewed sense of enthusiasm.

In September 2001, Mrs Claire Venon took over as Head of Department.  Mrs Venon, who up until this time, had been employed by the college as SENCO and Drama Co-ordinator, redirected the department somewhat as we enrolled in the Northern Ireland Literacy Strategy.  In retrospect, this was a vital move as it helped each of us to re-examine our teaching of English and evaluate the effectiveness of the students’ learning.  Since that time, the department has evolved from being good, to being extremely effective.  This is surely due to Claire Venon’s passion, vision and dedication to her job.  She has been an inspiration to all the department members.

In September 2004, following Miss Burke’s permanent move into the History department (sorry to lose you Louise!) and Mrs Brogan’s departure from the college in June 2003, Miss Nicola McManus joined the department.  Miss McManus’ hardworking, industrious approach has meant the students yet again have benefited and have been enthused in English classes.  In January 2005, I was appointed as Head of Department.  This is a challenging post but I am very proud to lead such a vibrant and innovative team.

Over the last ten years, the department has been involved in many ventures and activities outside college. We have engaged in many charitable activities including MENCAP’s Spellathon on an annual basis.  In 2002, we won the award of “Top Fundraising School” for the contribution we made to the charity.

Students from the English Class 8A receive their certificates for taking part in MENCAP Spellathon, May 2001

In addition we have taken part regularly in a ‘Readathon’ organised to raise funds for sufferers of cancer.

The students have also received ‘outside’ support with their studies through the work completed with them by visiting authors and speakers.  Notably, we have had visits from Paul Hanvey Jackson and Lynda Neilands, both published authors in their own right, who came in to describe and explain their experiences of the publishing process and give the students some very useful “tips” with regard to their own fiction and non-fiction personal writing.  These visits have proved to be very beneficial – a fact which is surely borne out by the sheer quality of some of our GCSE coursework submitted for examination.  Indeed, many of our students have gone on to study English Literature at A’ Level and degree level.

In the department, we feel that the students should be acutely aware of the wealth of literary talent which Ireland (North and South) has to offer, and so, with this in mind, famous speakers Len Graham and Jim Campbell have been invited into the college to talk to the students about Irish folk stories and songs pertaining to both traditions, Protestant and Catholic.

In addition to these speakers, trips have been made to the Seamus Heaney Centre at Bellaghy Bawn to help complement the students’ study of the works of this famous poet.

Trip to Bellaghy Bawn

On our school trip we went to Bellaghy Bawn to learn about Seamus Heaney; his poetry, his family, the way of living, what school he went to and what he used to do.  The family were not poor and they were not rich but they had enough to do them.

Seamus Heaney used to walk up and down past the forge.  We went to visit the forge.  The furnace was lit at the time of our visit.  The facts that we found out were that Heaney was born in 1939, he went to Ballynease Primary School and studied in Queen’s University, Belfast.  His first book of poems was called “Death of a Naturalist.”  He worked in Oxford University. He won the Nobel Prize in 1995; he also won the W.H. Foster and the Smith prizes.

[Liam Teague, 10C]

On an annual basis, our Year 8 English classes participate in the Poetry Week work organised by ‘The Palace Stables Heritage Centre’ in Armagh.  Each year, the workshop is led by a published poet.  In the past, our students have worked with Kate Newman and more recently, with Adrian Rice.  Following the workshop the students are invited to submit their own poetry, which is then judged by the poet.  Winners are asked to attend a poetry reading of all the winning poems submitted by all participating schools in the Southern Board area.  Needless to say, several students from ICD have achieved prizes for their outstanding work.  Indeed, in October 2004, Natasha Farrell won her section of the competition, with her poem ‘War’ – a truly commendable achievement.

World War II

He and the black-eyed Corporal Farrell
Looking down the barrels of their guns.
Two boys turned into men.
Behold a gift designed to kill.
A bomb last night fell close by,
Reminding them of their time to die.
They leapt with the shock of rifle fire
Leaving a stain of blood on the wire.
Forever at last they were dead.

By Natasha Farrell

Year 8 students receiving poetry anthologies containing their own poetry, September 2004

We like to consider ourselves as a forward-thinking and innovative department and with this in mind, we decided to organise two parent workshops, on an annual basis, which would help parents help their children with English.  One of the workshops is for parents with children in Key Stage III, whilst the other is for parents with children at Key Stage IV.  At present, we are the only department in the college which organises workshops of this nature.  In the beginning, there were few parents in attendance but over the years, the number of parents attending has risen dramatically, especially at Key Stage III level – again this is testament to the hard work Mrs Venon, Mrs Campbell and myself have put into the preparation of these workshops and the overall style in which they are delivered.

Ever keen to raise the profile of English throughout the college community, the department has taken assemblies celebrating ‘World Book Day’ and in conjunction with the History Department, recently put together an assembly commemorating the Holocaust.  Also, in conjunction with the RE Department, we have organised readers for religious services at Harvest, Christmas and Easter.

One of the most enjoyable events we take part in is the ‘Jane Eyre Programme’, organised by ‘The Argory’. This is primarily aimed at Key Stage IV students studying for GCSE English Literature.  It certainly gives the students an insight into the cultural, historical and social context in which the novel was written and feeds into other work completed on Wuthering Heights or Pride and Prejudice.

Of course, no English department would be complete without trips to the theatre.  Indeed, I feel that no play can really be appreciated until you have seen it performed. Due to this, we have seen, over the years, various productions of pantomimes for Year 8, Macbeth, The Ghost Train and Animal Farm. I must admit that some productions were more professional than others.  No doubt, my Year 12 Literature class from 2003 will never forget the erroneous rendition of the famous “Is this a dagger …..” speech they witnessed in The Market Place Theatre in Armagh.  I doubt very much if Shakespeare had a (child’s toy) plastic knife, incessantly swinging and twisting from a piece of very visible fishing tackle, in mind when he penned that one! Nor, I’m sure, did he envisage Birnam Wood being represented by 21^st century brush-shafts!!  Yes, you were right Year 12, Macbeth was never meant to be so side-splittingly hilarious! And yes Dawn, I think the theatre company were called the ‘Long Overdue for a Catscan Theatre Company’!!

GCSE English Coursework Example - Postmodern Fiction

Up until January 2005, the Drama Department was separate from the English Department.  Alongside all of the work done in English, the Drama department however, produced several school plays under the direction of Mrs Venon.  Early plays included Captain Blackboot’s Island, Red Hot Cinders and followed by Surgical Sensations at St Sennapod’s and  Bad Day at Blackfrog Creek.

‘Captain Blackboot’s Island’

These plays have undoubtedly inspired many of our students to follow Drama as a career, as well as help them entertain numerous audiences.  Colin Morgan, a student from my GCSE class in 2003 for example is currently completing a B.A (Hons) Degree in Acting at the prestigious Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, and Ylan Mackay, a student from the same class has appeared as an extra in episodes of the TV soap Hollyoaks; both great ambassadors for the college.

‘Surgical Sensations at St. Sennapod’s’

More recently, the drama students have taken part in Northern Ireland Integration Day (organised by NICIE) in Londonderry/Derry, when they performed a dance-drama entitled “Trapped in School” as part of a concert compered by comedian Kevin McAleer.

The same year, the same students had their audience in convulsions of laughter with their performance of ‘Happy Christmas Belfast’ at the annual Christmas Concert.  Who could forget the sight of Janet Kelly, Rachael Cummings and Emma Campbell prancing backwards and forwards across the stage wielding wooden spoons, wine bottles and whips!!

During the first ten years also, the Drama department entered students in local feis/festivals verse-speaking competitions – again with some great successes.  So, then, all-in-all a fun-packed decade.  The English and Drama department has come through some highs and lows but we are looking forward to the next ten years.  As Nick Carraway predicts in F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, “tomorrow we will run faster, stretch our arms out farther” ‘and one fine morning………………

James McCoy (Head of English and Drama)