Education

The Intel Education Initiative

The Intel® Education Initiative partners with educators around the world to improve the quality of science and mathematics education and to help students develop the higher level skills they need to participate and succeed in a knowledge-based society.

Last year, Intel Ireland contributed more than €1 million to local and national education programmes including the Science in Schools programme, the Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition, post-graduate research projects and equipment donations to schools and universities.

Objectives of Intel's education policy include:

• To support science, mathematics and technology education
• To support strategic research in third level colleges
• To support the professional development of educators in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in the classroom.

These are some of the education programmes Intel Ireland is pleased to be involved in.

Volunteer Grant Matching
Under the Intel Involved Matching Grant programme, Intel donates US$200 for every 20 hours of Intel employee volunteer time at a school or qualified education activity. During the 2006–2007 school year, over 150 employees volunteered 1,840 hours at 24 schools, which resulted in US$18,400 being donated.

Science in Schools
Intel's Science in Schools programme consists of a number of curriculum interventions at post-primary level. These are designed to encourage more students to take the physical sciences and engineering subjects as leaving certificates.

'Intel Junior Physics Investigations' is an online tool featuring investigations from the junior certificate science curriculum. This tool has been developed in association with the Department of Education's Junior Science Support Service.

'Design and Discovery' is an exciting new hands-on, project-based course for transition year students. The module encourages inquiry by encouraging students to identify and design creative solutions to everyday problems in the world of design and engineering.

The Science in Schools programme also promotes science and engineering at primary level through the Intel Mini-Scientist Competition and the K'nex Challenge for local primary schools.

Science fairs
Intel is a Gold sponsor of the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition. The Intel award, for the best-placed project in the chemical, physical and mathematical category, is an all expenses paid trip to America to compete in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Intel provides similar sponsorship for the Young Innovators Fair organised annually in Northern Ireland. More recently Intel has launched its SciFest initiative in association with Discover Science and Engineering. This festival of science is open to all second-level students.

Intel® Teach
The Intel® Teach programme is a worldwide initiative to address the barriers teachers face in effectively applying computer technology to improve student learning. 7,500 teachers have benefited from this curriculum in Ireland.

Higher education
Intel supports university-based research in nanotechnology, ICT, manufacturing technology and Digital Health research. Intel funds over 50 PhDs in Irish and European universities and has close research links with the CRANN Nanoscience Research Centre in TCD, the Tyndall National Research Institute in Cork and the Innovation Value Institute in NUI, Maynooth.

Our Ireland site is home to two research centres, the Technology Research for Independent Living Centre (TRIL) and the IT Innovation centre. It was here that the award winning schools portal website www.skoool.ie was developed.

Get more information on Ireland education programmes