Kinsale Community School Wins Prestigious European Innovative Teaching Award – Only Irish Secondary School Recognised 

Kinsale Community School has been named the sole secondary school in Ireland to receive the prestigious European Innovative Teaching Award (EITA) 2025, recognising its pioneering Erasmus+ project BEAG: Being European, Acting Globally. 

Launched by the European Commission in 2021, the EITA celebrates teachers and schools who bring innovative, interactive, and inclusive practices into classrooms across Europe. Out of 117 projects recognised this year, Kinsale Community School proudly represents Ireland on the European stage. 

The award-winning project, BEAG, tackled the challenge of fostering a European identity among students whose perspectives were often local or insular. Drawing inspiration from the Irish word beag (“small” in Gaelic), the initiative highlighted Ireland’s place as a small nation within Europe while empowering students to see themselves as active citizens in a wider European and global community. 

Through multidisciplinary learning, cultural exchanges, and critical exploration of themes such as identity, democracy, migration, and sustainability, the project gave students transformative experiences both inside and outside the classroom. Collaborations included schools in Prague and Austria, alongside University College Cork’s Dr Emmanuelle Schon- Quinlivan and the Hub in Active European Citizenship, ensuring the impact of the project extended into the wider community and forged links between 2nd and 3rd level education. 

Sadhbh Napier reflected: 
“Participating in an Erasmus+ project significantly enhanced my understanding of how cultural practices and values shape my European identity. The project deepened my appreciation for the diversity within Europe and the common threads that unite different cultures.” 

The initiative promoted: 

  • Global citizenship and sustainability 

  • Inclusion through cross-cultural teaching 

  • Interdisciplinary collaboration 

  • Empowerment of student voice 

  • Teacher professional development 

Principal of Kinsale Community School, Mr. Fergal McCarthy, said: 
“This award is a recognition of the creativity, collaboration, and commitment of both students and staff in fostering a European identity that values diversity, inclusion, and global responsibility. The BEAG project demonstrates how small steps taken locally can have a lasting impact on our students’ place within a wider European and global community.” 

The European Innovative Teaching Award 2025 not only celebrates the success of the BEAG project but also reinforces Kinsale Community School’s role as a leader in Global Citizenship Education and its commitment to shaping the Europeans of tomorrow. 

For more information on the European Innovative Teaching Award and Kinsale Community School’s BEAG project, please visit: https://innovative-teaching-award.ec.europa.eu/index_en  

Please see the video of Kinsale Community School and their project here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddna2dHkmzk  

 Front row left to right: Ruairi O Daltuin, Sadhbh Napier, Deputy Principal Mr Iggy Dineen, Principal Mr Fergal Mc Carthy, Deputy Principal Mrs Kathleen O Brien, Teacher Mrs Aoife Houlihan, Amy Hayes, David Tobin.  
Second Row Left to Right: Mrs Brid Kearney, Ms Ita O Donovan, Shea O Connor, Sarah O Sullivan, Maeve Causer, Catherine Murphy, Erin Ridgeway, Holly Murphy, Aine Cahalane, Sarah Galvin, Matthew Murphy and Teacher Ms Mairead Dullea.  
Back Left to Right: Ben Long, Eva Coughlan, Liam Kirwan 

 

Gemma Cooper