Teagasc educational programmes here in Ireland have returned to normal delivery in accordance with Covid19 protocols. It has been a challenging time for both students and staff but there has been great co-operation and adherence to public health guidelines. The QQI Level 5 Certificate in Agriculture students have recently started the first block of their four week practical learning period (PLP) on host farms. All host farmers for Teagasc programmes must be registered and approved to have a student on their farm. At this time of the year, students will be involved in a variety of tasks such as preparing and assisting with
Autumn calving programmes on farms, machinery tasks and grassland management. In Ireland, there has been a very mild autumn season so cattle housing has just commenced. The favourable weather conditions have also greatly enhanced seed bed preparation and winter sowing crop conditions. Students will undertake a further 4 week block of on-farm placement in spring 2022. The PLP component allows Teagasc agricultural students to develop and practice the skills which they learn in the agricultural colleges.
Dr Anne Marie Butler commenced her role as the new Head of the Teagasc Education programme in October 2021 following the retirement of Tony Pettit. Over the coming weeks, she will be visiting each of the agricultural and horticultural colleges and regional education centres to meet with staff.
Teagasc in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine in Ireland will provide briefings in all Colleges for agricultural students to update them on current animal health issues for Irish farms. Topics will include reviewing animal health on farms in a holistic approach and eradication of diseases such as Bovine Tuberculosis (TB).
There are a number of upcoming events which you may be interested:
The Teagasc/ University College Dublin Knowledge Transfer Conference 2021 is on 14th December 2021 entitled “Back to the Future-Addressing Challenges in Agricultural Advisory and Education” and will focus on the following themes: Environmental Sustainability/ Generational Renewal and Agricultural Education/ Digital Tools in Farm Advisory services/ Interactive Innovation and support for diversification. Further details for registration are available HERE.
Acknowledgements: many thanks to Carmel Finlay and James Maher 🙂
