The Minister for Education was on familiar ground – around the corner from the primary school where she taught before entering politics – to see this year’s Leaving Certs were using their computer skills to develop solutions to climate-related challenges.

Students from eight secondary schools across Galway and Mayo took over the PorterShed for this third annual PorterShed Hackathon for a full day of hands-on, curriculum-aligned learning.

As part of the programme, Minister for Education and Youth, Hildegarde Naughton, spoke to students about the importance of digital skills, innovation, and practical learning environments.

“It’s great to see Leaving Certificate Computer Science students coming together from different schools to apply their learning in a practical setting,” said Minister Naughton, a former teacher in St Pat’s NS, a few hundred yards from the PorterShed.

“This hackathon is a strong example of how coursework can develop creativity, critical thinking, teamwork and analytical skills, all of which are essential for future careers in STEM.

“As Minister for Education and Youth, I would welcome seeing this type of initiative rolled out more widely, so that students across the country can benefit from learning environments that go beyond exam preparation and focus on real-world problem solving,” she added.

Designed and delivered by the PorterShed programmes team in collaboration with Ross Conboy, Computer Science Teacher at the Bish, the hackathon is aligned directly with the Leaving Cert Computer Science curriculum.

Students worked with real-world environmental datasets to develop solutions to climate-related challenges, while building skills essential to their State Examination coursework.

“This hackathon consistently shows how engaged and capable students are when given the opportunity to work with real data and real problems,” said Ross Conboy, who is also Junior Cycle Coding lead at the Bish.

“Events like this bring the Leaving Certificate Computer Science curriculum to life and give students confidence in their own abilities,” he added.

Designed to complement classroom teaching, the hackathon provided students with exposure to environmental sensors, datasets, and climate-focused challenges including forest protection, risk prediction, and climate-smart solutions.

The winning team, TreeRoute, was made up of students from Presentation College Headford, St Joseph’s “The Bish”, Coláiste Bhaile Chláir, St Brigid’s College, and Rice College Westport.

The event was supported by the Western Development Commission and Local Enterprise Office Galway, whose continued involvement has strengthened opportunities for student engagement, skills development, and innovation-led learning across the region.

Pictured: The group of Leaving Cert students from eight schools in Galway and Mayo who took part in last Saturday’s Hackathon at the Porterhshed.