Irish Educational System Analysis - Essay Example

Irish Education - Discuss the importance of the Irish educational system for transmitting important social values to Irish children In July 2005 the Irish minister for Education and Science, Mary Hanafin, published the interim report of the Task Force on Student Behavior in Secondary Schools. The task force reported on then current best practice and how to better foster an atmosphere in which learning can best take place. The group recognized that any problems perceived in Irish schools also occurred elsewhere and so they looked at the way other countries tackled similar difficulties. One thing they group reported was that behavior that would once have been considered as a major disruption seems over time to have been down graded to be considered by staff as only a minor problem. This is a situation that could escalate unless dealt with. They also say though that the situation is so variable from place to place that it is difficult to generalize either as to the current situation or ways to deal with any problems. The Irish educational system is many ways very similar to that found in other western European countries. It provides primary, secondary, further and higher or tertiary education with children spending 6 hours a day or more in school 5 days a week, a high proportion of a child's waking hours, though they spend even more time out of school than in it. Nevertheless it has a massive influence upon the way children think and behave, especially if the values a child finds at school are reflected in their family and in the wider society. Education is compulsory for those between the ages of 6 and 15, though many 5 year olds attend school and further and higher education is on the increase, with some 50 per cent of students going on from school to further studies varying from adult literacy courses and those for the unemployed to formal university courses. Education in primary schools follows the 1999 Primary School Curriculum as described on the Irish Education web site. This curriculum document is unusual in educational circles in that it does not provide a religious curriculum, but leaves this to the churches that control the various schools. Its aim is to make the most of each individual's character:- as it is expressed in each child's personality, intelligence and potential for development. It is designed to nurture the child in all dimensions of his or her life -- spiritual, moral, cognitive, emotional, imaginative, aesthetic, social and physical... This idea of making the best of each child is contained within the Constitution of Ireland as laid down in 1937. In article 41 section 1 it states clearly that the people of Ireland feel that the family is 'the primary and natural educator of the child' and that it is both the right and the duty of parents to see that their child recieves an education religious, moral, intellectual, physical and social. There is provision for education at home, but rather oddly no minimum standards for this are laid down, though there is provision for the state to see that a child recieves education when , for whatever reason, the parents are unable to do this. If one looks at the curriculum in an Irish Primary School it is clear that social education is given its place alongside such traditional subjects as mathematics, languages and science. In fact it appears twice in the list provided on the Education Ireland web site. There are a number of different types of primary school - state-funded primary schools, special schools and private primary schools. State funded schools include religious schools, non-denominational schools, multi-denominational schools and Gaelscoileanna i.e schools which operate in the Irish language, but which are outside the usual Gaeltacht, i.e. the area where Gaelic is the first language. Social education is linked to environmental studies and science as well as to personal and health education. It is of course in the earliest years of a child's school life that correct behavior and values must be reinforced if a positive school career is to follow. A child allowed to push and shove in the reception class will soon become a real bully unless the situation is dealt with in a proper and sympathetic way. When it comes to further education, although students may be taking specialist courses such as computing or construction, their social education continues. The mission statement for the Limerick Institute of Technology for instance states LIT will prepare its students for productive and challenging careers. LIT will do this by providing an environment that fosters the professional, intellectual and personal development of students and staff. LIT will support this with the highest quality courses delivered in the best possible manner using all appropriate technology supports. Yet despite such ideals we read statements such as that by Olwyn Enright in the Irish Times of 27th February 2007, 'By its lack of foresight, Fianna F'il has allowed standards to fall and condemned our children to an uncertain future.' How much this is a statement of fact and how much to political expediency is hard to decide for Ms Enright is the opposition spokesperson on education and science. In a statement dated 2007 she talks about the problems of over centralization which tends to elongate the time between the identification of any problem and the implementation of a possible solution. She feels that giving schools more autonomy they will be better able to respond quickly to a child's needs. A fund is proposed to allow schools to draw on resources, cut class sizes and allow room for innovative solutions. Murray et al, writing in 1997 on the subject of Irish education, say:- There is a general acceptance that education is likely to be the most powerful instrument in increasing mutual understanding and perhaps increased co-operation within and between the two parts of Ireland.' It is hoped that pupils of today will be able to appreciate that others, whatever their points of view, are equally to be valued. In Ireland it seems that time given to the social sciences is rather uneven. An inspectors report for a Cork secondary school notes that some pupils receive 3 history lessons a week and others only two, and this also happens in other subjects, despite the fact that the pupils do not opt 'in' or 'out'. The inspectors also noted that though the school library had a number of history books the budget made no special provision for books on the social sciences. What ever kind of school a child attends of course he receives some social education every day whatever the lesson designated. He learns to communicate with his peers and with adults outside his family. He learns to work with a partner or group, small or large. The simplest of tasks can involve a number of social skills such as listening to the opinions of others and responding. He must learn to take turns in a conversation, picking up on the silent cues as to when someone else has finished speaking and also when it is time to remain silent. He will learn to play and come to realize that rules are necessary in life and in play. Playing in a team requires a sense of responsibility and comradeship. He comes to realize how distracting it can be if people chatter all day or if work cannot proceed because one member of a group does not work as hard as the others, for example a group report cannot be presented because someone has failed to do their homework or is working much more slowly than others. He soon realizes that a disruptive pupil means less teacher time for others and even if he starts out with a positive attitude to learning, he may be discouraged by a negative and disruptive atmosphere. Learning the rules for classroom life is part of a social education and one soon realizes how important this is when one sees the chaos that ensues when someone fails to keep even the unwritten rules and does not share common social values, as when a teacher is ignored or there is blatant refusal to obey a reasonable request. These are learnt in other ways than just a printed list of rules. He learns from the stories told and read for instance what is and is not acceptable behavior. This is most obvious as when stories from the Bible are taught as in the story of the Good Samaritan, but similar values are contained in non-religious literature as in Aesop's fables. These will have their most positive influence if similar values are present in the lives of staff and other people. A child who is appreciated as a class mate and as part of the wider school society will develop a positive attitude to life. As a child studies he will widen his view of his own place in society - realize that he is the latest member in a long line of ancestors and a member of an ancient race living on the very edge of Europe. As he listens to the opinions of others he will hopefully learn that because someone has a different opinion to him they are no less a person. He will learn the English and Irish languages, with their accompanying stories, poems and histories. He learns to communicate his ideas and to learn from the ideas of others. Opinions and habits will be formed that may be adhered to for the rest of his life. This includes his religious and moral education and this places huge responsibility upon the educators, whether family, wider society or professional. If for instance religion is taught in a boring and officious way a child may fail to realize its possible significance in his life. If he fails to understand the culture of his own country he is less likely to grow up to be a good citizen able to make a positive contribution to society as a whole. Religion will be an important part of a child's upbringing in almost every case. School links will include the church. Ireland, despite having some larger cities, has a huge rural community. The schools have huge social significance and values will be held in common with the people in the immediate vicinity. However they are of course also influenced by the wider nation and the world. The problem of negative influences is perhaps even truer today than previously with the easy access to information of all kinds. For example This as well as society's general devaluation of such things as the family, with an increase in divorce, one parent families and so on must have a negative impact. Educationalists can only hope to balance this by promoting positive values. Values are the positive parts of someone's personality that society in general appreciates about a person. Those who have positive social values are more likely to be able to successful in their relationships, both in their school life and later in the world of work and adult life. They are more able to get involved in wider society in positive ways. If a child has learnt at school to take responsibility for their own actions they are more likely to come up with solutions that will work when problems arise. This needs a rather different attitude in staff members than has sometimes been present in the past. In 2006 the Irish minister of Education and Science Mary Hanafin, pledged government support for schools where discipline was a problem. The situation concerned the wider community and needed to be tackled by parents, inter-agency support by and professional input into school communities. Teaching moral values is about much more than seeing that rules are enforced. There are no easy solutions. The Irish Education system has as its official aim the betterment of each and every child and in this recognizes the importance of the transmission of positive social skills and values. Electronic Sources Enright, O. Let's restore the vision thing, Irish Times, 27th February 2007, retrieved 28th April, 2008 from http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/education/2007/0227/1172185164494.html Hanafin,M,19th April , 2006, Minister pledges support for schools with discipline problems, Ireland on Line retrieved 28th April 2008, from http://breakingnews.iol.ie/news/'c=ireland&jp=cwojeysneyoj Irish Education Retrieved 28th April 2008 from http://www.educationireland.ie/index.php'option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=18 Irish Law retrieved 28th April 2008 from http://www.ucc.ie/law/irishlaw/legislation/ Martin, M. ( chairman) Interim report , Task Force on Student Behavior in Second Level Schools ( June 2005) retrieved 28th April 2008 from http://www.education.ie/servlet/blobservlet/tfsb_interim_report_2nd_level_schools.doc Read More