When harnessed well, pupil voice is a powerful way to ensure that a school community grows stronger together.
Miranda Norris
Coiste na Scoile
Pupil voice is an essential aspect of promoting a positive school culture and fostering a sense of community within our school. We first established a Coiste na Scoile in 2015 to provide our pupils with a platform to voice their thoughts and ideas.
We believe that our pupils should have the opportunity to express their opinions, offer suggestions, and relate concerns. Our Coiste allows our pupils to meet and work together to help the school in many ways, including organising events and promoting school-wide initiatives.They meet a number of times each term to discuss school-related matters and provide feedback on their experiences at school. Through this initiative, we aim to promote leadership skills, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities among our pupils.
We value the opinions of our pupils and strive to create an environment where their voices are heard, and their contributions are valued. We believe that empowering our pupils through our Coiste contributes to their overall personal and academic development.
Meetings
There are two representatives from each Class (2nd - 6th) on the coiste. The Coiste attend regular meetings to discuss important issues and offer their opinions and ideas on current issues. The Coiste also plan for new developments.
Amber Flag
In 2023 they have been involved in the Amber Flag Initiative, the Coiste had excellent ideas for our school's 'Well-being Week'. We were delighted to be awarded the Amber Flag in recognition of our promotion of positive mental health among all in our school community.
School Uniform
Our Coiste are also to be commended on their suggestions for our new school uniform, the boys wanted change and we changed to meet their needs. This new uniform is now more comfortable and suitable for sports, activities and outdoor learning. Parents were also in favour of this change and expressed their views at Parents' Association meetings. The range of uniform options in St. Mary's allows pupils a sense of individuality, if they so wish, while maintaining a common theme and identity for all.
Many years ago it was decided to close St. Mary's on Mondays as this was the Fair Day in Monaghan and the town was too busy. Instead, our school was opened on Saturdays !
(For avoidance of doubt, we no longer open on Saturdays nor do we close on Mondays ! )
St. Mary's, Our School, Our Story
