The Life Channel is launching its groundbreaking school television network at Davitt College, Castlebar, the first Irish school to implement the satellite TV channel.
The VEC has broadly welcomed the bespoke network, to which more than 1,000 schools have signed up since its launch by former UK prime minister Tony Blair in February 2007. The Life Channel’s innovative network gives schools and colleges the unique opportunity to communicate key messages of health and well-being directly to students, teachers, and parents.
“I am very happy with The Life Channel’s content,” said Ioseph McGowan, principal of Davitt College. “The Life Channel has fantastic programmes on issues like healthy eating, sex education, and fitness. It is all very well-produced and informative.” Much of the content is produced in-house in response to teacher feedback and is also supplemented by appropriate third party programmes.
Education professionals can download any programmes from The Life Channel website’s unique online portal to be shown on their interactive whiteboards. Helping teachers and students to become more ICT-competent, the network also allows schools to upload their own information and content onto the screens to be shown in between The Life Channel’s programming. “I would recommend The Life Channel to other schools,” said Mark Jordan, ICT co-ordinator at Davitt College. “It is a very effective way of communicating.” The Life Channel plans to roll out the network across all schools in the Republic of Ireland over the next two years.
