Reading Writing, Spelling and Maths

The service aimed at adults who want to :

• Return to education
• Brush up on basic skills such as reading, writing, maths and IT
• Up-skill or re-skill for work
• Gain confidence and work towards a recognised certificate
• Develop the English language skills needed to live, work and study in Ireland

Digital skills are essential to actively engage in society.

Together with reading, writing and Maths, digital skills are foundational skills that enable full participation in life, work and leisure.

Without digital skills , people face big challenges in all aspects of their lives, for example in their family life, employment, health, finances, shopping, accessing services, learning new skills, living safely and getting involved in the community.

In the City of Dublin ETB Adult Education Service, we aim to help people address these gaps in their digital skills at whatever stage they are at.

Free Digital Skills Programmes

• Get Smartphone Ready
• Driver Theory Test
• Digital Skills for Jobseekers
• Internet Skills
• Word Processing Skills
• Computer Literacy
• Upskill in Digital Skills for the Workplace
• Digital Skills for English Language Learners
• Digital Skills in Preparation for College
• Accredited QQI programmes in Word Processing, Excel and IT Skills.

Contact your local area for further information about classes.

Community Education

The Adult Education Service runs classes in City of Dublin ETB centres and in various community centres and other locations throughout D6W, D8, D10 and D12.

All our courses are free and are suitable for beginners and improvers.

We have courses in:

Health & Well-being including:

• Yoga
• Fitness – Circuits (walk, light weights, mat based)
• Tai Chi
• Mindfulness

Arts & Crafts including:

• Dressmaking
• Art
• Knitting & Crochet
• Mindful Stitching/Embroidery
• Jewellery-Making
• Macramé

Skills Based and Certified courses including:

• Gardening
• Irish
• Beginners Computers
• Getting to know your mobile device
• Medical Terminology
• Community Development
• Local History
• Psychology
• Community Development

Throughout the year we may offer new courses based on feedback from our learners and the needs assessments of our community partners.

Contacts:

Crumlin

Community Education Coordinator:

Mary McKevitt 

Email:  [email protected]   

Tel: (01) 709 0250

Community Education Development :

Alan Byrne

Email: [email protected]

Tel: (01) 709 0249/709 0250

Ballyfermot

Community Education: Facilitator

 Catherine Twomey   

Email: [email protected] 

Tel: (01) 623 9716

English Language Classes

The City of Dublin ETB Adult Education Service provides English (ESOL) language programmes for people who have come to live in Ireland, including asylum seekers and refugees, EU and non EU economic migrants.

English for Speakers of Other Languages or ESOL focuses on building the communication skills of the learners. We use cross-cultural approaches that recognise a learner’s other languages/cultures.

We provide a range of free, flexible, part-time English Language classes at a wide range of levels.

• Beginner
• Elementary
• Pre-Intermediate
• Intermediate
• Business English
• Skills for Work Programme
• English language and literacy

We offer courses which have accreditation and more informal courses without accreditation. Our accredited courses are at QQI Levels 2, 3and 4

We prioritise learners who:

• are getting a social welfare payment;
• asylum seekers and people with refugee status;
• people who have less than Leaving Cert standard of education in their country of origin.
• people who do not have literacy in their first language

Contact:  

English Language Coordinator: Eithne Mc Grath

Email: [email protected]

Tel: (01) 709 0250

What does the Adult Education Guidance Service Offer?

The Adult Education Guidance Service helps people to make informed education, career and life choices by providing impartial and confidential Guidance Counselling and Information to adults in relation to their education, training and career options. Our service is free of charge.

You can meet with a professional and qualified Guidance Counsellor or Guidance Information Officer in a confidential setting to discuss your education and training needs. We also provide group information and guidance to adult education classes.

Take a look at our video:

The Adult Education Guidance Service is for adults who:

• Are uncertain about their future.
• Are considering returning to or continuing with education.
• Are having difficulty in finding or keeping suitable employment due to a lack of appropriate education qualifications.

The service is open to both students of the Adult Education Service and the general public.

Our Service is:

• Free of charge
• Impartial – showing you all the options available not just in the City of Dublin ETB.
• Friendly and supportive
• Dedicated to enabling people to realise their full potential in life

The Guidance Counsellor will help you to:

• Identify your unique strengths, experiences and potential.
• Support you to make decisions about your future education.
• Take a step by step approach to achieve your goals.
• Reach your full potential in life.

The Guidance Information Officer can:

• Provide you with all the education options available that suits your needs.
• Research your education and training options.
• Help you understand the funding supports, entry requirements and qualification levels.

How to Contact us

Dublin South Central (Crumlin / Ballyfermot):

Guidance Counsellor: Maura Conway 

Email: [email protected]

Guidance Counsellor: Nicola Gilsenan

Email:   [email protected]

Tel: 01-4547193 / 087-386 1620

Guidance Information Officer: Geraldine Dunne

Email: [email protected]

Tel: (01) 454 7193

The Back to Education Initiative (BTEI)

The Back to Education Initiative (BTEI) is a service which provides: 

• opportunities for young people and adults, who have not completed the Leaving Certificate or equivalent, to participate in a range of part-time accredited educational programmes 
• education and training opportunities for low skilled people in employment to upgrade their skills and gain qualifications 
• a link to full-time further education and training and a progression route from basic education programmes 
• a chance to combine education and training with family, work and other responsibilities through a wide range of flexible options. Childcare support is available where necessary. 

Back to Education Initiative courses are free to people

• with less than upper second level education 
• in receipt of social welfare payment 
• who have a current full medical card 

All courses offer certification usually at Junior Certificate, Leaving Certificate or QQI Levels 3, 4 and 5 on the National Qualification Framework (NFQ). The BTEI allows people to study part-time. A programme may be offered for anything from 1 hour to 17 hours per week for up to 33 weeks per year. 

If you do not qualify for free classes you will be charged a small fee.  

Courses offered include: Childcare, Office Skills, Computing, English, Business Studies, Horticulture, Cookery and Art. 

Contact your local adult education service for more details.

Study Skills Service for Apprentices

The aim of the Study Skills Service in Ballyfermot Training Centre is to promote educational and social equality by providing access to a range of literacy and numeracy supports and by developing content-related literacy materials, to enhance participation of all learners.

It is indicative of a whole centre approach in recognising the need to integrate literacy into everyday training and instruction. The objectives of the service are as follows:

• Provide literacy and numeracy support on a one-to-one or small group basis
• Provide fortnightly study skills sessions to all apprentices
• Facilitate additional drawing support
• Offer Maths support classes
• Assist individuals whose first language is not English
• Assist apprentices in their use of IT where required
• Create learner-friendly resources to aid revision and exam techniques
• Establish links with other services and employers to offer ongoing supports once Phase 2 is complete

The service is widely recognised within the centre as having a fundamental role in supporting apprentices and trainees alike.

Contact:

Gwen Redmond

Email: [email protected]

 01-7090241

Workplace Education

The City of Dublin Education and Training Board is a leader in  workplace education.

We offer a wide range of programmes to develop skills in the areas of literacy, digital literacy and English language.

We provide both public and private companies with programmes tailored to meet the needs of employees, These programmes can be accredited by QQI if that is what the employees need. 

We work collaboratively with employers, employees, local government, unions and organisations in Dublin such as Dublin City Council, An Post, Irish Rail, Mondeleze, Boots and Arnotts.

We help organisations identify the training needs of their staff and to promote, design, deliver and evaluate workplace education courses.

Organisations may be eligible for government funding up to 100%.

Who do I contact:

City of Dublin ETB Workplace Education Co-ordinator:
Joan Devlin
Tel: (01) 862 3828
0877419805
Email: [email protected]

Skills for Work: What our students say

 “We entered into an agreement a few years ago for the provision of the Skills for Work programme for SIPTU members at SIPTU College. 

The feedback from learners has been exceptional.  Not only have they acquired much needed skills but the achievement of those skills has also made a major contribution to their self-confidence and has encouraged further study.  Several have progressed to the Level 5 programmes at SIPTU College and elsewhere. I highly recommend this service.”

Dr Tish Gibbons, Head of  SIPTU Training College

“Derrycourt Cleaning Specialists have found the Skills for Work Programme invaluable to assisting our employees and managers with better communication and IT skills.  We initially started with a group of cleaning operatives working within a healthcare environment attending the communication skills through English course. This group of employees benefitted so much from the training that they completed further training, with a number of the staff getting their portfolio officially accredited at QQI Level 4 on the National Qualifications Framework.  Following the success of this initial course, word soon spread about the benefits of the courses. We held further training for Cleaning Operatives in three other healthcare facilities in Dublin that Derrycourt provide contract cleaning.  In each location the hospital personnel noticed a significant improvement in the communication from our operatives and were delighted with the outcome.

A group of our operational managers completed a Business English with IT Skills course and found the skills and knowledge they learned hugely beneficial and put the success of the course down to the expert tuition skills of their teacher.  Other managers within the business commented without prompting the improvement in their level of verbal and written communication.

Derrycourt Cleaning Specialists would wholeheartedly recommend the Skills for Work Programme for any employer.” Anna Heather, Learning & Development Manager, Derrycourt Cleaning Specialists

I would like to thank you for the supports you arranged for me throughout the course I did in Pottery and Health Safety in the Workplace. Because of the support I got it was the first college exam I ever did. I would never have had the courage before and I received a distinction today for my work.

Christina, Adult Education Service Learner

Learner Handbook

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News from Dublin South Central Adult Education Guidance Service

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Adult Education Guidance Presentation