A significant increase in the paraprofessional workforce has occurred internationally, aimed at facilitating inclusive education. Within Ireland, this is evidenced in the SNA scheme for pupils with significant care needs. This paper focuses on the constructs of SNA support and pupil independence, as based on large-scale research across 20 Irish…

It is often assumed within much of the academic literature and by many of those working in higher education that universities across Europe are homogenising, converging around an Anglo-American model as a result of neo-liberal pressures and the aim of creating a single European Higher Education Area. However, drawing on an analysis of 92 policy…

The terminal examination of post-primary education in Ireland, the Leaving Certificate, is often criticised for the reliance on memory recall over higher order thinking skills in the assessment process. In order to examine the evidence base for these critiques, this article presents an empirical investigation of the intellectual skills and…

This article attempts to expand, and to add to, one important aspect of the rationale for including the study of languages as part of a liberal education. Following criticism of the profile of the vocational rationale for language learning in Irish curriculum policy, the article develops recent research on the work of L. V. Shcherba to defend the…

Across the globe, from the very wealthy continents of North America to Europe to Australia, the phenomenon of migrant and immigrant students outperforming native students are observed and documented. Some migrants and immigrants from China, the Philippines, India, Russia, Africa, and the Caribbean are reportedly achieving higher test scores than…

This article suggests that a process of de-academisation is discernible in the way the Erasmus year abroad is promoted, organised, supervised and evaluated. The article argues that rather than being a product of students' consumerist rationalities, this process is produced within the conditions of the managerialised and under-resourced university.…

The article analyzes the results of the international survey "Synthesis of Media Literacy Education and Media Criticism in the Modern World," conducted by the authors in May-July 2014. 64 media educators, media critics, and researchers in the field of media education and media culture participated in the survey, representing 18…

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) has become a common theme in both school and higher education in recent years. It suggests a model of curriculum development and practice that moves educational debate beyond teacher or student-based approaches towards a model of teaching and learning in which the endeavour is shared. This paper discusses an…

Primary geography education is an important part of initial teacher education. The importance of prior experiences in the development of student teachers has long been recognised and there is growing evidence of the nature of those experiences in areas such as geography. This paper reports the findings of research conducted with one cohort of…

This article explores the findings of a doctoral study that examined the measurement of individual progression in the Irish Adult Education Guidance Initiative. The critical constructivist stance of the study challenges the prevalence of the positivist paradigm to evaluate long-term outcomes in adult guidance. The research highlights the…

This paper examines how competing discourses about the ownership of the Irish language in an increasingly multiethnic Ireland and the extent to which it is associated with a sense of "Irishness" influence the formulation of recent Irish-language policy at institutional and national levels. As part of a broader study on the language…

This article offers an empirical critique of recent social and educational policy responses to cultural diversity in an Irish context, with a particular focus on anti-racism, integration and intercultural education policies developed during the so-called "Celtic Tiger" era. Combining ethnographic and discourse analytic techniques, I…

The factor structure of the Family Emotional Involvement and Criticism Scale (FEICS) is tested in a sample of Irish adolescents. Participants were 661 adolescents with a mean age of 15.9 years (SD = 1.26). Interpretation of both the exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis of the FEICS show support for the two-factor structure of the FEICS…