TUS sponsorship gives Westmeath students free access to Studyclix learning tools
Studyclix, a teaching and learning website, has teamed up with the Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest (TUS) to provide Westmeath secondary school students with free access to its services.
Support from TUS will provide students from Castlepollard Community School with free access to Studyclix.ie packages featuring expert exam tips and access to past papers for both Junior and Leaving Certificate. The packages are worth €44.99 each.
Studyclix.ie is Ireland’s largest study and teaching website; it has 224,000 second-level students and 29,000 teachers registered as users. Its online resource simplifies the study process by breaking each subject down into topics and past exam questions, marking schemes, quizzes and videos are available for each one.
In a recent survey of Leaving Cert points attained, Studyclix users scored an average of 127 more than the national average.
Castlepollard Community School is one of 11 DEIS schools in the region to benefit from TUS sponsorship.
The university provided the schools with Studyclix licences through the Higher Education Authority’s Covid Contingency Fund, set up to make support services more accessible to vulnerable students from target areas.
TUS caters to more than 14,000 students on six campuses in the midlands and midwest. The university opened in 2021 following a merger of Athlone Institute of Technology and Limerick Institute of Technology. TUS offers undergraduate, postgraduate, vocational and professional courses in areas including business, technology, engineering and leadership.
Castlepollard Community School has almost 600 students and is funded under the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) programme.
Principal Wayne Walsh said: “The support from TUS to sponsor Studyclix access is really welcome. At a practical level, we have found that students no longer have to carry full school bags of heavy exam papers as they are all available on the platform. Our students also benefit from having high quality learning resources easily accessible. They have been able to use Studyclix to identify knowledge gaps and build on the learning that happens in class.”
Carmel Hennessy, access officer, Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands, added: “TUS was delighted to connect 11 of the region’s DEIS schools with Studyclix licenses through the HEA’s Covid Contingency Fund. This collaboration has allowed us to support local schools and students mitigate the impact of Covid in accessing this online resource that aids their academic progression whilst complementing the other supports and initiatives available through the Access Office in TUS Athlone.”
Luke Saunders, former teacher and founder of Studyclix, said that since Studyclix started more than 10 years ago, it has been important to him that all students in Ireland, regardless of location or socio-economic background, have access to the study platform. ” This partnership with TUS to provide access to sixth year students across the midlands embodies that vision. From working with many schools over the years, I can see the ever increasing role that technology is playing in how teachers deliver their classes and how students build upon their learning in a self-managed way at home.”
Studyclix has helped support over 6,000 students at DEIS schools under the ‘Sponsor a School’ programme, providing digital learning tools that can support the transition from secondary school to third level.