I was delighted to meet Eithne Walsh, CEO of Féach Vision Support Services, to talk about improving supports for blind and visually impaired children in Irish mainstream schools. Eithne shares how her two children gradually lost their sight and how low expectations and limited expertise in schools pushed her to advocate for practical planning, expanded core curriculum skills, and assistive technology so her children could become independent learners. She explains Féach’s evolution from parent peer support into a charity offering school guides, webinars, SNA and teacher training, low vision awareness workshops, and VR immersive training, now supporting hundreds of schools. They discuss slow policy change, gaps in AT training, key recommendations from Féach’s access reports, and why braille remains essential for literacy alongside modern technology.

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

01:24 Eithne Story and Diagnosis

03:00 School Expectations Shift

05:13 Building Independence Skills

06:28 Why Féach Exists

07:32 Féach Services and Training

10:47 Mainstream Progress and Gaps

13:20 Assistive Tech Push

17:49 Why Policy Moves Slowly

23:08 Toolkits for Teachers

24:16 Age-Appropriate Tech Skills

24:36 Typing Progression Plan

25:36 Audit Tools and Live Resources

26:55 North-South Training Collaboration

30:13 Annual Report Key Recommendations

33:07 AI and Accessible Tech Advances

35:55 Why Braille Still Matters

38:58 Big Questions for Education

41:42 How to Contact Feach

43:09 Closing Thanks and Wrap-Up

Education Unconvention: Big Questions About ReadingI introduce the Education Unconvention as a fringe-style, discussion-based subset of my podcast, designed to complement and sometimes challenge the Convention on Education by sharing progress and inviting contributions online. The first theme is reading, explored through debates about Reading Recovery, UFLI, and dyslexia, alongside reading schools and reading classes. I describe tensions between research evidence and teachers’ lived experience, including questions about independent Irish evaluation of Reading Recovery and what should replace it if flaws are found. Teachers praise UFLI’s structure and results, while others caution against treating any programme as a silver bullet. On dyslexia, contributors argue for either specialists, stronger teacher knowledge, or expanded specialist provision, raising wider questions about inclusion. Across all topics, recurring themes include time, resources, workload, training, disadvantage, home literacy, and defining what success in literacy should look like.00:00 Welcome to Unconvention02:20 Why Reading Matters05:05 Reading Recovery Debate07:43 Research Versus Experience10:37 What Counts as Evidence15:12 UFLI Takes Off18:07 Program Hype Cycle23:33 Dyslexia Mainstream Reality25:36 Mainstream or Specialist26:54 Highest Need Critique27:36 Expertise Without Roles29:13 Every Teacher Dyslexia30:51 Reading Classes Debate31:54 Inclusion What Means34:14 Bigger System Questions36:10 Curriculum Time Squeeze38:19 Home Factors Screen Time40:09 Unconvention Ethos Wrap

In this episode of If I Were the Minister for Education, I speak with US educator, consultant and author Patty McGee about transforming grammar teaching away from dry worksheets and red-pen correction towards inquiry, curiosity and delight, connected to real writing. Patty explains how traditional grammar instruction can create discomfort and inequity, and reframes grammar as a tool for communicating with clarity and connection, noting differences between spoken, book and standard grammar and how grammar evolves. She shares practical classroom experiences: brief, frequent sessions using talk in partnerships, comparing concepts (such as simple and compound sentences), explicit instruction with accessible language (like FANBOYS), hands-on manipulatives for playful practice, and reflection to consolidate learning. We also discuss Ireland’s evolving curriculum, trust in teachers, and Patty’s wish to bring literacy practices to schools, as well as her view that literacy should be defined as meaning-making and sharing voice.

00:00 Welcome and Teaser

01:22 Meet Patty McGee

02:24 Ireland Connection

03:17 Why Grammar Gets Hated

05:54 Beyond Grammar Police

08:00 Teachers and Discrete Grammar

11:46 Three Buckets of Grammar

14:09 Playful Grammar Experiences

19:23 Irish Curriculum Reflections

21:30 Workshops and School Support

24:50 Trust and Respect in Education

26:51 Minister for a Day

29:26 Where to Find Patty

30:44 Final Thanks and Sign Off