Rockboro — An education that goes beyond the classroom
Rcokboro- an inclusive and happy community.
Rockboro School takes pride in providing a caring and supportive community that brings out the best in their pupils, both academically and as developing individuals. “We believe that learning should be an enjoyable, challenging and rewarding experience,” said Trustee of the Rockboro School Association, Sinéad Byrne.
Founded in 1969, Rockboro School is an independent, co-educational, multi-denominational primary school in Cork. It was established as a charitable trust and the school continues to grow under the guidance of committed staff in partnership with each generation of parents. As a Parent’s Association, Rockboro remains within a small group of primary schools in Ireland in that it is neither owned by the state or religious order.
Rockboro takes a holistic approach to education and seeks to educate the whole person. “At Rockboro we focus on the academic, physical, emotional, and spiritual development of our pupils. Specifically, we endeavor, through our enhanced curriculum, extensive co-curricular and extracurricular programmes, extensive afterschool activities, and our strong sense of school community to encourage each child to reach their own potential with a strong sense of personal self-worth and acceptance,” said Sinéad.
Central to their approach is an acknowledgment of the importance of maintaining a small class size in which pupils can thrive and in which teachers have the time and space to best address each student’s individual needs. Being a multidenominational school, Rockboro welcomes students from all religious backgrounds and none.
“We encourage our pupils to celebrate cultural and religious diversity in an environment where each individual is valued, thereby fostering an appreciation in our students for traditions and beliefs other than their own. Traditionally, we have been very fortunate at Rockboro to welcome, over many years, several international families which further enhances our understanding and appreciation of cultural diversity. This has enriched our school community hugely over the past fifty years,” said Sinéad.
Rockboro's core values are responsibility, tolerance, consideration of others, perseverance, kindness, and integrity.
Together they provide a framework to help them think clearly and know themselves, behave positively, be well and contribute to the wellness of others, ask questions and question answers and think freely and purposefully with a respect for others and for society.
Rockboro values the ability, identity, heritage, and culture of every student. “We acknowledge the uniqueness of every student with each having his or her own blend of interests, talents, challenges, needs, and aspirations. We believe that learning is questioning, exploring, understanding and sharing,” said Sinéad.
At Rockboro they aim to nurture an understanding of the challenges of learning as an enjoyable lifelong process. “We believe that teaching must stimulate, encourage and excite our students in a safe environment where every student feels accepted."
"We reflect constantly on how we educate and learn so that we facilitate and inspire engaged learners. Most of all our teachers understand that the true reward of teaching is having a positive, lasting impact on the lives of our students,” she continued.
An important part of a Rcokboro education is that their students experience a school community that reflects the larger community in their city, in their country, and in their shared world.
At Rockboro they have an established reputation for welcoming international students and their families. “We enjoy several events including the Halloween and Harvest Festival, The Christmas Gathering, The Easter Fair, Sports Days and Taispeantais which allows families, friends, and alumni to reconnect in Rockboro,” said Sinéad.
Being an independent school allows Rockboro the autonomy to determine its own curriculum. They follow the official curriculum for Primary Schools in Ireland as devised by the Department of Education and set down in the Education act in 1998. The programme is enhanced through co-curricular and extracurricular activities, extensive afterschool activities, and clubs.
The National Curriculum is followed in the areas of language, Maths, Social and Environmental Studies, Science, Arts, Physical Education, and Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE). Rockboro’s Curriculum is augmented in the areas of language offering French, Italian and Spanish, Physical Education, Maths, Science and Computer Science.
“At Rockboro we are very fortunate to have wonderful outdoor space and committed teaching staff who adopt a ‘sport for all’ mantra. We encourage our pupils to strive for their personal best, but most of all to enjoy their sport every day, acknowledging its importance for health and a sense of wellbeing, fair play, and teamwork,” concluded Sinéad.
Rockboro offers a wide range of co-curricular and extracurricular activities such as Music, French, Science, Computer Science, Music-Artly and Tennis.
- Visit www.rockboroschool.ie
- Call 00353 21 4314324
- Email reception@rockboroschool.ie
