Launch of Ireland and the European Union DVD
by Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills
Ms Mary Coughlan T.D.

European Commission Representation in Ireland,
18 Dawson Street, Dublin 2
Wednesday 12 May at 2.00pm

Tánaiste Mary Coughlan TD launches a new DVD "Ireland and the EuropeanUnion" for secondary schools.

Last year, the Irish government signed a memorandum of understanding with the EU, pledging to work together on improving knowledge of the EU and how it works, including in schools. On Tuesday 11th May, Martin Territt, Director of the European Commission Representation in Ireland addressed the Oireachtas Joint Committee on European Scrutiny on the Representation's school visits service and the range of educational facilities offered to schools

The DVD being launched gives an introduction to the EU, how it started and what it does and is designed for 12 to 18 years olds. It is 20 minutes long and is available in English and Irish. It is free of charge to schools from the European Commission Representation in Ireland.

The Ireland and the European Union DVD is one of a wide range of educational resources available from the European Commission Representation. (www.euireland.ie)

The Ireland and the European Union DVD is shown to all post-primary groups visiting the European Commission Representation. The Representation regularly hosts visits from primary and post-primary schools, universities and other groups. A typical visit involves a short talk on the role of the Representation, an overview of the institutions, and the history of the EU; a screening of the DVD, followed by an interactive quiz based on the participants' general knowledge of EU history and geography.

More about the DVD

This is the third edition of the Ireland and the European Union DVD. It was first produced in 2004 and updated in 2006.

The DVD is divided into five chapters:

Your European Union

A brief overview of Ireland's historical role in Europe and its membership of the European Union.

Practical Benefits

Concrete examples of how EU membership has improved day-to-day life in Ireland.

Development of the EU

History of the European Union over the last 60 years, from its origins in the 1950s with the establishment of the Coal and Steel Community through to the modern-day European Union of 27 Member States.

EU Institutions

Overview of each of the main EU institutions: European Commission, European Parliament, Council of the European Union, European Court of Justice, Court of Auditors, European Economic and Social Committee, Committee of the Regions, European Central Bank and European Investment Bank.

You and the European Union

This chapter explains how individual Irish citizens can have a say in the EU decision-making process (through for example, the European Parliament elections and the national elections) and also provides an overview of EU bodies based in Ireland.

The Ireland and the European Union DVD is shown to all post-primary groups visiting the European Commission Representation. The Representation regularly hosts visits from primary and post-primary schools, universities and other groups. A typical visit involves a short talk on the role of the Representation, an overview of the institutions, and the history of the EU; a screening of the DVD, followed by an interactive quiz based on the participants' general knowledge of EU history and geography.

The Ireland and the European Union DVD is one of a wide range of educational resources available from the European Commission Representation.

The European Commission Representation and the European Parliament Information Office in Ireland are working closely with the National Co-ordinator for CSPE on the roll-out of a resource for Civic, Social and Political Education teachers entitled Journey Through Europe.

The Journey Through Europe resource was originally produced by the European Studies Programme (http://www.european-studies.org) with the support of the European Commission Representation in Ireland and was launched in Spring 2009. 80 schools in the Republic of Ireland and 80 schools in Northern Ireland which are registered with the European Studies Programme currently use the resource. Feedback from teachers has been extremely positive.

Note: The European Commission Representation in Ireland is based in European Union House at 18 Dawson Street, Dublin 2 and forms part of a network of Commission Representations based in Member States. Representations are part of the Directorate-General for Communication and the role of the Representations is to:

• implement the Commission's Communication Strategy.

• follow the national, regional and local media, speaking for the Commission, providing timely and relevant information about developments within the Commission, analysing trends in the media and reporting to the Commission.

• act as an interface between the Commission and the political world and civil society in the Member State and in particular to:

•  listen and provide the Commission with in-depth, accurate and timely analysis regarding developments in the Member State and the views of the Government and civil society on issues within the Commission's remit;

• provide the Government (national, regional or local), the National Parliament and stakeholders with relevant information;

• Reinforce the profile of the Members of the Commission as the main representatives and "faces" of the Commission, by systematically contributing to the organisation of visits of Commissioners in the Member State.

• Make a positive contribution in terms of communicating with Irish people through promoting public understanding of and engagement with the European Commission and the European Union.