Minister Murphy presents Blue Star award to Blackrock School

Minister for European Affairs, Dara Murphy T.D., presented the Blue Star award to St. Augustine’s school in Blackrock, County Dublin this morning. Participating schools from across Ireland will be awarded the Blue Star in this fourth year of an EU awareness programme that seeks to foster better understanding and knowledge of the European Union and how it affects the lives of Irish primary pupils and their communities.

Speaking this morning, Minister Murphy said:

"I am delighted to present the Blue Star award to the students and teachers from St Augustine’s in Blackrock and to raise the Blue Star flag at the school. This is St. Augustine’s first year participating in the Blue Star programme and it is wonderful to see that pupils and staff have embraced it with such enthusiasm and success."

"It is vitally important that we cultivate an interest in and understanding of European history, culture and the EU institutions among Irish people. The first step is getting children involved and I believe that the Blue Star programme provides an excellent resource for this. I have visited and met with many of the schools involved, and I have been very impressed with the creativity they demonstrated as they engaged with the Blue Star programme."

The objectives of the Programme, which has been running since 2011, are to foster better understanding and knowledge, among Irish primary pupils, of how the European Union affects our lives, through participation in classroom projects and activities. The Blue Star programme introduces participants – pupils, teachers, parents and the wider community – to the EU, what it means and how it works. It has already been rolled out in over 400 schools and the intention is to increase this number over the coming years.

Minister Murphy added “It’s wonderful to see Irish children getting to know Europe – the history, the culture and the community of nations that Ireland is a part of. To appreciate the differences and similarities between our country and our European neighbours, and to gain some understanding into the mechanisms and institutions that make up our modern day European Union, will give Irish children an educational edge. The Blue Star programme is an excellent resource for our teachers and our children and I hope to see even more schools across the country getting involved next year.”

ENDS