News and Events
‘The PINNACLE project represents a break-through in how Irish university educators can engage with teachers in the Developing World. UCD is perfectly placed to offer leadership in this area, due to its global network of university partners. PINNACLE will offer much to development education research'.
April 2024
The PINNACLE project is delighted to be features as a ‘Spotlight’ of the UCD Global Engagement Strategy for South Asia (2024).
Congratulations to our present PINNACLE scholar Myra Afsheen who was married on 12 April 2024. We wish her and her husband every happiness in their future life together.
March 2024
December 2023
PINNACLE Scholars 2021-2022, Sister Hema Barretto and Sister Jyoti Thomas who delivered a professional development session to their teaching community in Delhi.
The North India Provincial Leadership Team organized a three days Educational Workshop entitled ‘Empowered to Empower’ for all members involved in educational ministry. Hema and Jyoti presented a session on the topic ‘Mentoring and holistic approaches towards effective education’.
September 2023
Congratulations to all our PINNACLE students who have progressed to Year 2 of the MA (Ed). We would also like to congratulate our student Ms Beena Thomas who was honoured for 25 years of service to Presentation Convent School Delhi on 8 September 2023.
In September, we were also delighted to welcome Sr Theresa Veigas to the PINNACLE office in UCD. She had been visiting the PBVM archives in Cork Before coming to Dublin to visit us.
July 2023
Thanh Nguyen Thao Tran (Miger) joined the PINNACLE team to replace Dr Magdeline Kitanova for her maternity leave. Thanh Nguyen Thao Tran earned her MA in Education from UCD School of Education, where she is currently working as a research assistant. She was a lecturer in Dong A University, and a teacher in EU-funded Erasmus+ projects located in Ireland. Her research interests encompass sociocultural issues in education, teacher education, second language education, and social justice in education. Welcome to the team!
June 2023
Publication of new Article : (opens in a new window)Female teacher identity and educational reform: perspectives from India in Teacher Development: An international journal of teachers' professional development.
January 2023
A research field trip took place in the month of January to visit PINNACLE scholars in schools in Delhi in India north and to Chennai in India South. We were delighted to meet our students again and to see them working in their with Communities of Practice. We are very grateful to all those who gave us their time and provided us with generous hospitality.
PINNACLE Education Symposium
January 2023
A PINNACLE Symposium took place in Presentation Convent Senior Secondary School, Delhi. The importance of encouraging ‘Student Voice’ was the theme which prompted general participation from the audience of educators who attended the event.
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PINNACLE Project Receives UCD Research Impact Award
December 2022
The PINNACLE project are delighted to receive a 2022 UCD Research Impact Case Study Award.
This annual competition encourages researchers across the university to write a case study about how their work has made a positive difference, making the world a better place. The PINNACLE project was commended for empowering women teachers in India and Pakistan, working to achieve progress through the Sustainable Development Goals.
IAU 2022
December 2022
Prof. Deirdre Raftery and Prof. Marie Clarke address the 16th General Conference of the International Association of Universities on the research and achievements of the PINNACLE project.
New PINNACLE Scholars Arrive in Ireland
September 2022
Congratulations to our twelve new scholars who arrived in Dublin in June 2022. We have been working with the Applied language Centre in UCD to design a Pre-sessional programme whcih will prepared the scholars for their Masters degree Mentoring Leading and Global Learning.
On 3 June 2022, we welcomed the first of our PINNACLE scholars to UCD where they were to spend seven weeks on the UCD Pre-sessional language course in preparation for their MA studies with the School of Education.
They were accommodated on campus, and settled into life as UCD students without delay. The programme was intensive but the students also had a chance to see some of Ireland. Weekend activities included a visit to MoLI and an afternoon at the Abbey Theatre and a day trip to the Nano Nagle Centre in Cork. On 19 July 2022, the group were joined by our previous scholars, who were invited to attend the inaugural PINNACLE Summer School.
The students spent a few days relaxing on Campus before they began their programme. The content covered several themes which are relevant to their ongoing studies, supporting teaching through Leading and Mentoring.
The PINNACLE team congratulate all our students who have shown great fortitude and dedication to the project. We wish all our new students every success as they begin their MA this September 2022 at UCD. We are committed to continuing our work with our past scholars and look forward to re-engaging with them in the coming months. As a community of learners we have all had a very rewarding and successful summer, Thanks to all who supported the project over the past few months.
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New PINNACLE Research Articles Published:
June 2022
- New PINNACLE research has been published in the Asia-Pacific International Journal of Education:
Ruth Ferris, Marie Clarke, Deirdre Raftery, Mags Liddy & Seaneen Sloan, (opens in a new window)https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2022.2031871
- New PINNACLE research has been published by Paedagogical Historical on the legacy and leadership of convent schools.
Deirdre Raftery, Jyoti Atwal, Mags Liddy, Ruth Ferris, Seaneen Sloan & Marie Clarke, doi.org/10.1080/00309230.2021.2004175
- This follows from the previous article published in the Cambridge journal of Education on women in leadership in schools in Pakistan.
Marie Clarke, Mags Liddy, Deirdre Raftery, Ruth Ferris & Seaneen Sloan, doi.org/10.1080.0305764x.2020.1749560
Completion of the PINNACLE Pilot Phase
November 2021
The next intake of PINNACLE scholars, who will be confirmed by the end of this year, will reflect the success of the PINNACLE pilot programme as it moves into the next phase. We look forward to welcoming 12 new scholars who will participate in a new degree programme, details of which will be announced shortly. We look forward to working with our new scholars in building a community of practice over the coming years.
Presentation Convent Peshwar Workshop
October 2021
We were delighted to hear that Ms. Jennifer Sohail gave a Workshop for some of her teaching colleagues in Presentation Convent school Peshawar. The workshop introduced teachers to some of the material which Jennifer had engaged with during her MA (Education) programme.
Hello to new scholars!
September 2021
We are very pleased to introduce our new PINNACLE scholars for the academic year 2021-2022. Ms Neha Munir is a teacher from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Sister Jyoti Thomas is from India North as is Sister Hema Barratto. The fourth scholar, Sister Liby Augustine, is from India South. We wish them every success in their studies and will provide every support possible for them on their academic journey.
Farewell to Past Scholars!
August 2021
Congratulations to our PINNACLE scholars Sr. Stemilda Cildas and Ms. Jennifer Sohail, who have successfully completed their MA (Education) for the year 2020-2021. We wish them every success in the future and look forward to re-engaging with them over the coming year.
Congratulations to Jennifer Sohail - PINNACLE MA(Ed) Scholarship Students 2020-21
January 2021
We were delighted to hear that our PINNACLE scholarship student Jennifer Sohail found time to get married just as she started her second semester. We congratulate her and her husband and wish them every happiness in their future life together.
First PINNACLE Scholar - Zabaria Peter
August 2020
We are delighted to congratulate Zabaria Peter on completing her MA (Ed.). A virtual ceremony was held with the PINNACLE team to celebrate her award. Dr. William Kinsella, Head of School, congratulated her in person, recognising her achievent.
Zabaria will be a great support to the PINNACLE team in mentoring future scholars from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the programme.
ECER 2020
University of Glasgow, August 2020 - Cancelled Due to COVID-19
An abstract titled ‘Learning On The Job’: Women Leading Schools In Developing Contexts is under review. The presentation investigates the preparation of leadership personnel within religiously managing convent schools. The current extent of leadership preparation is described, followed by an account of the needs analysis conducted with teachers working the schools in order to design an appropriate and relevant programme of continuing professional development to support their future career goals.
BERA 2020
University of Liverpool, September 2020
Our abstract titled Promotion practices in convent schools in the developing world was accepted for BERA 2020, now cancelled due to COVID-19.
The presentation examines promotion opportunities for women teachers in convent schools changing from religious to lay leadership. This changeover allows for an examination of the wider organisational culture in developing future school leaders, in these schools of religious foundation.
2020 AERA Annual Meeting
The PiNNAcle research paper titled ‘Passing the baton’: women, education leadership and convent schooling in Pakistan: findings from a stakeholder/researcher collaboration was accepted for presentation at AERA 2020.
Due to Covid-19, the conference has been cancelled. This paper will now be submitted the journal Gender and Education.
The paper ‘Passing the baton’ focuses on the engagement of stakeholders in supporting changes in leadership in convent schools, and the development of agency in women teachers who want to become leaders. We examine cultural and gender constraints, that impact on women’s ‘agency’ (Archer, 1995) in education leadership at a local level.
Cambridge Journal of Education
The paper arising from this conference has been published in the Cambridge Journal of Education and is titled Professional learning and development needs of women teachers in the Republic of Pakistan: a social realist perspective
DOI : (opens in a new window)https://doi.org/10.1080/0305764X.2020.1749560
European Conference on Educational Research
2 - 6 Sept 2019, Universität Hamburg, Germany
Conference title: Education in an Era of Risk – the Role of Educational Research for the Future
Professor Marie Clarke and Dr Mags Liddy presented on the Pinnacle research project on Wed Sept 4th during the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER). The title of the presentation was Professional Learning and Development Needs of Women Teachers in Catholic Convent Schools in Pakistan. The research has also written as an journal article of the same title and submitted for review to a leading education journal.
The PINNACLE research presentation was made in Network 1- Continuing Professional Development: Learning for Individuals, Leaders, and Organisations. It was well received with insightful questions from participants. Other presentations also focused on women’s participation in continuing professional development for school leadership.
Nano Nagle Postdoctorate Fellowship
The Nano Nagle Newman Postdoctoral Fellow, Dr Mags Liddy, was appointed in December 2018. Sister Julie Wilson, Mother General of the Presentation Order presented the Fellowship. This prestigious title memorialises Nano Nagle, foundress of the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
