As part of the Erasmus+ accreditation project in the field of adult education, the Gabrielė Petkevičaitė-Bitė Panevėžys County Public Library hosted a visit from a group of invited experts from the Intercultural Language Centre based in Dublin from July 29–31.
The library welcomed the school’s founder and director, Dr. Peter Sheekey, along with four volunteers. The Intercultural Language Centre is a school that supports immigrants and refugees arriving in Ireland by helping them learn English and adapt to their new environment.
During the visit, the guests shared their valuable experience in teaching English to adult groups. A creative session was held, attended by Virginija Švedienė, the leader of the library’s English conversation club “Let’s Talk”, as well as volunteers from the club. The session involved practical application of effective English language teaching methods used by the volunteers of the Intercultural Language Centre with their own students. Special attention was given to the use of storytelling, various games, and creative tasks in the teaching process.
The Dubliners also participated in a session of the “Let’s Talk” club and the Language Café, where they facilitated group discussions. During these discussions, guests introduced exercises that helped participants better understand the meaning of certain phrases or individual words in context. The club members had the opportunity to expand their vocabulary and learn more about Dublin’s history while learning a traditional Irish song.
On the final day of the visit, the guests shared their feedback, positively evaluating the creative session with the library volunteers and the meeting with language learning enthusiasts. They expressed admiration for the dedication and creativity of the volunteers, the curiosity and eagerness to learn among the club participants, and the warm atmosphere created by the library community.
Volunteer Nora shared her impressions of the people improving their foreign language skills at the library:
“It was especially wonderful to see how motivated your library visitors are to learn. The learning process brings them joy because it happens in a warm and friendly environment. We really liked the organization of the activities, especially the group discussions, where everyone feels relaxed and has a chance to speak. At our school, we strive to create a similar atmosphere, so your experience has truly inspired us.”
Dr. Peter Sheekey noted:
“Your learners are very open to new learning formats. They learned the traditional Irish song surprisingly quickly, enriching their vocabulary with new words and getting a closer look at Irish history.”
During their stay in Panevėžys, the Dubliners visited not only the main library building, but also the Juozas Miltinis Memorial Apartment and the modern spaces of the Children and Youth Cultural Education Department. During the reflection session, the guests had high praise for the library.
Dr. Peter Sheekey said:
“Your library functions excellently and carries out many innovative initiatives that we’ll be happy to talk about when we return to Dublin, especially since our school collaborates with libraries. We were genuinely and pleasantly amazed by what Lithuanian libraries are doing.”
Volunteer Carol added:
“We are incredibly grateful for the flawlessly organized visit and the wonderful tour of the library spaces, where we learned about the building’s history and the challenges the architect had to overcome to realize their vision. What left a strong impression was your community engagement, the dedication of adult volunteers, and the amazing Children and Youth Cultural Education Department. Many of us have previously worked in schools, so we truly understand how important it is for young people to come into such cozy, colorful spaces full of interesting educational activities. We also thoroughly enjoyed visiting the apartment of theater director J. Miltinis – we had never had the chance to visit such a place before, where you can feel the special aura of an authentic environment and get a deep insight into the life and creative work of a legendary personality.”
Volunteer Siobhán concluded:
“Every library is a place for acquiring knowledge, whether it’s scientific or fictional literature. But your library goes far beyond that—your visitors discover not only books here but also opportunities to learn, to come together as a community, and to experience art.”
Virginija Švedienė
Coordinator of Adult Education Activities
Photos by G. Lukoševičius, V. Švedienė
