Vital Signs Project

Vital Signs Ireland

Vital Signs Ireland was an ICBAN driven project funded under the INTERREG IIIA Programme for Ireland/Northern Ireland.

Vital Signs used the latest palm top technology, and software developed in the USA by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, Portland, Maine.

The goals of the Vital Signs programme were to:

• Engage students and citizens in the scientific process,
• Learn about our aquatic environments,
• Streamline field science, and
• Build a sense of community among residents of shared watersheds

Schools in the Blackwater, Carlingford, Foyle and Melvin River catchments participated in the project. An education booklet that integrates the Vital Signs programme with the curricula of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland was developed for use by the teachers to support the pupils learning.

The Vital Signs Record

Pupils chose a stream close to their school to make their Vital Signs records. They worked in pairs to record their location using a GPS receiver. Then they recorded the weather conditions on the day, using pull down menus. If they had difficulties deciding on wind strength, for example, there was i-text to help them.

Children recorded the stream characteristics: width, depth, flow rate, water temperature, air temperature, water pH and dissolved oxygen content. They recorded key features of the riparian habitat, noting mammals, birds, plants and trees as well as taking a detailed count of invertebrates found in the stream. The pupils took a visual image of the stream and record their own observations.

This record was taken on a monthly basis and uploaded onto the Vital Signs website. On the website, they could observe their own records and those taken by pupils in other parts of their river catchment and within other river catchments.

The Vital Signs Ireland project was launched officially by Mr. Brendan Smith T.D., Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, in Monaghan Education Centre on Tuesday 24th May 2005 at 11 am.

Caption:
Vital Signs Ireland is a schools project based in the Blackwater, Carlingford, Foyle and Melvin River Catchments. Children use handheld computers to monitor their local streams and this information is subsequently uploaded onto the Vital Signs website.

This Project is now complete.

Registered Office: New Hope Centre, 2 Erne Rd, Enniskillen BT74 6NN. Registered in Northern Ireland. Registration No: NI40472