Building positive relationships are foundations to rebuilding lives

Janice Mullan, President of the Ulster Teachers’ Union 2025-2026, Literacy Lead Teacher in an EOTAS (Education Other Than At School Centre) supporting students who find it impossible to sustain their mainstream placement due to severe anxiety, diagnosed mental health issues or just not feeling good enough.


In the quiet classrooms and creative spaces of EOTAS centres, some of the most transformative work in education is taking place, not just in literacy and numeracy, but in relationships, resilience and hope. My class sizes are smaller than most, and for my pupils who have been excluded, disengaged or whose circumstances make mainstream schooling unbearable, our centre is a vital second chance at whose heart lies the spirit of Sustainable Development Goal 4: ‘Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’. Education should reach every learner, whatever their background, challenge or story. I tell every student that their story is their ‘superpower’; they are here, inspiring everyone around them.


All arrive in my classroom carrying emotional trauma or fractured family relationships or experiences of bullying and social isolation. All feel that, academically, life is over for them and that they will never be able to attend college or get a job; how sad is that at just fifteen years old? And so, relationship education, rooted in emotional literacy, is a central pillar to my teaching, as is the positive relationship which is necessary if the student is to not only survive, but thrive. Confidence in spelling, grammar and vocabulary increase, as if by magic, with growth in self-esteem and a sense of belonging.


At the moment in Northern Ireland, we are reviewing assessment. I hope the aspirations of SDG 4 do form part of this. The psychological and emotional needs of our students must be addressed by teaching them to question and thus understand their feelings and thereby, themselves, in order to allow them to develop and carve out a sustainable future for themselves. For these students, education is not just inclusive, it’s truly transformative.


The ideal of inclusion is practised daily by advocating and modelling empathy, sensitivity, belief and compassion. When a young person with severe anxiety finds the courage to walk into a class again, when they begin to smile, trust and offer their ideas and opinions, that is progress of the highest kind.


One of the most successful learning activities was an integration programme with a small group of 15 to 16 year-old pupils from a neighbouring special school. These pupils had moderate learning difficulties, and we met once a week for an indoor games session, usually football or hockey.


Even the most cynical and battle-scarred teenagers' emotional defences were broken down when they came into contact with pupils who were non-judgemental about designer clothes or iPhones. All pupils enjoyed learning and teaching how to dribble a ball and score a goal. This was true inclusion, built on sensitivity, empathy and fun interaction.


Like all teachers in EOTAS, we work miracles, but we need resources to effectively meet the needs of young people experiencing emotional distress and anxiety; we need counselling, therapeutic support and specialist staff on site. Mental health support must not be seen as an optional extra, but as central to education for all.


Education must be seen as teaching students to mature into caring, capable and connected individuals who value themselves and those around them. Assessment and data capture must acknowledge and value this.


Teaching unions will continue to lobby those in power that inclusion is not just a theory, but a valuable, daily practice which travels far beyond its humble beginnings in the classroom.


by Janice Mullan, President of the Ulster Teachers’ Union 2025-2026

Janice Mullan • January 19, 2026

What happens when creativity, young people, education and community come together?

By Ann Beatty • August 25, 2026
Seeds of Hope are everywhere! “I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I arrived at Stage at the Lake…” But it was special to meet all of the Calderdale team in person, who had brought this four-day event together so successfully. Sometimes an event stays with you long after the final performance has finished. My visit to Stage at the Lake at the beautiful Shibden Hall in Calderdale was one of those occasions. As UNESCO ASPnet UK Coordinator, I was delighted to be invited as a guest, but what I experienced was much more than simply attending an event. Here, in the grounds of a house steeped in history, the past, present and future seemed to meet. The English Chamber Orchestra filled the setting with music, Northern Ballet brought movement and storytelling to life, and throughout there was a wonderful sense of creativity, community and possibility. And then there were the parklets; a unique gardening festival at Shibden Park celebrating community, creativity and the power of nature to bring people together. At its heart was a specially commissioned trail of ten micro show gardens, designed and built by community groups from across Calderdale. It was wonderful to see spaces where ideas, conversations and creativity were flourishing and connecting through Seeds of Hope. I cannot wait to see them transported to their ‘forever homes’. Standing there, I found myself thinking about what we mean when we talk about education, culture and hope. 

Alfa Liv Kalkil - Math concepts for popular literacy classes in Haiti

By Chancy Jak • August 25, 2026
2025 During the annual fomasyon for Alfa monitors, Antoliyis Pye gave an extensive presentation on how best to introduce and develop basic math concepts in literacy classes. The response to his insight and enthusiasm led to our decision to create our own math book for Alfa participants.  In Haiti and around the world, illiterate market women and peasant farmers develop their own techniques for calculating and recording numbers. However, in providing literacy for the development of our people, we must also introduce the world of conventional numeracy. These skills lead to logical thinking, problem-solving, and the ability to interpret and make informed decisions on numerical evidence. For a year we worked together to draft the contents of our Alfa Liv Kalkil, seek illustrations, create layout, and finally take our product to the local printer. Funds were provided for 350 copies, enough for each Alfa participant at each of our sites at the present level of attendance. 2026 Our next step was to fully engage each Alfa monitor in the process for introduction and use of Liv Kalkil in Alfa classes. Our two day fomasyon for 2026 was dedicated to ensuring that each member of our team was familiar with the book and comfortable in implementing the concepts with Alfa participants. The sessions were a great success. Every monitor was extremely pleased with this new tool which will allow them and their classes to work together in the world of mathematics. Liv Kalkil is now in service for every participant throughout Alfa, from Limonade itself out to sites in the hills and along the river. It is with some excitement that the monitors and participants are beginning to use our very own, home-grown, math book. In the same way that we already had Goute Sel*, Lekti Netale*, Ti Koze Sou Istwa Peyi Dayiti*, we are proud to have this math book which advances our shared work for the development of our people. We are profoundly grateful to all those who have encouraged and supported us in developing this book. We want to thank our dedicated team of monitors, the Alfa support team in Columbus, Ann Beatty and the Steve Sinnott Foundation, and the many others who contribute to our literacy programme. Chancy Jak (Alfa Co-ordinator) Antoliyis Pye (senior monitor) *Goute Sel: Taste of Salt (base text for Alfa literacy classes) *Lekti Netale (reading comprehension) *Ti Koze Sou Istwa Peyi Dayiti (stories from Haitian history; Alfa second level)

Five Days, 64 Educators, One Renewed Mission

By Marie Antoinette Corr • August 10, 2026
Every teacher has a time in their career when a student needs someone to listen to them instead of just a lesson plan. Schools have been preparing for that moment for far too long. That started to alter on Friday, August 7, 2026. After completing a five-day guidance and counselling program in the RED 2 West hall in Brikama, 64 educators left with certificates and something more substantial than paper. They left with a duty: to be a support system for young people negotiating the challenging realities of school and life, a listening ear for a struggling student, and a source of advice for a colleague. Why This Training Matters During the closing ceremony, union leaders and education administrators made it clear that schools need counsellors, and they need them right now. The message is grounded in reality. Today's students face an ever-more complicated array of social, emotional, financial, and personal obstacles as they enter the school each morning. Teachers are the first to notice it. They are the ones in the classroom when a youngster needs someone to notice, when a student becomes quiet, or when grades decline for no apparent reason. Guidance and counselling have traditionally been viewed as optional extras rather than essential components of a school's operations. This instruction directly challenged that notion. Counselling and guidance are not extras. It contributes to the success of a school. Five Days of Learning and Practice Over the course of the week, participants moved beyond theory into practice, building the listening skills, guidance techniques, and support strategies they'll need to respond to real situations in real time. It wasn't just about acquiring knowledge; it was about rehearsing the kind of presence that makes a difference when a student or colleague needs it most. By the final day, the room held a shared sense of purpose. Participants reflected on what the five days had given them, not only new skills, but a renewed sense of why they came into education in the first place. They thanked the funders who made the training possible and made a collective commitment: to serve with diligence, empathy, and purpose. Taking It Beyond the Training Room The real test of this training won't happen in Brikama; it'll happen in the weeks and months ahead, in classrooms, corridors, staffrooms, and communities across the region. The 64 newly certified counsellors were challenged to carry what they learned into every one of those spaces: to notice the learner who's struggling silently, to check in on the colleague who seems overwhelmed, to be the steady presence that a school community can lean on. That's the real outcome of a training like this. Not just a certificate, but a shift in what's considered normal: a school culture where guidance and counselling sit at the centre of education, not the margins.