Schools have long been identified as important sites in terms of instilling values within the next generation. In order to develop our understanding of values, this paper sets out to explore how values are understood in Irish educational legislation, policies and curriculum. Irish Legislation, policies and curricula were searched systematically.…

Research suggests that empathy and positive social values are important drivers of youth prosocial and civic action. However, theory and research indicate that young people's civic behaviors are also shaped by their socio-contextual experiences. Drawing on a sample of 533 adolescents from public secondary schools in the Republic of Ireland, this…

This synthesis of 30 qualitative studies examined young people's views on pornography related to their sexual health. Synthesis revealed pornography use is considered normal by young people, reinforced by its usefulness as a tool for pleasure, information, and instruction in the absence of sufficient sexuality education. However, youth can become…

This article examines the perspectives of 14 primary school teachers subjected to a marriage ban in Ireland between 1932 and 1958. This oral history study provides a unique platform to examine the construction and articulation of these women's historical memories. Interrogating their perspectives on the marriage ban provides an important window…

In light of cultural and demographic changes in the Republic of Ireland, there is an important and urgent need for research on the articulation of values education in Irish publicly-managed schools. This article reports the findings from a research project on the moral, religious and spiritual values and traditions of staff and students in…

This paper draws on the Republic of Ireland as a case study of the 'new' development advocacy, i.e. government, philanthropic, and celebrity humanitarian engagement with international development and statutory efforts to deepen understanding of international development among citizens in the global North (Biccum, 2010; 2011). It outlines some of…

Internationally, citizenship education has come to the fore in the past decade. It may be particularly important within the context of societies with a legacy of political conflict, such as Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, where it is being implemented as part of the statutory curriculum. This article explores understandings of…

Human Capital Theory has been an increasingly important phenomenon in economic thought over the last 50 years. The central role it affords to education has become even more marked in recent years as the concept of the "knowledge economy" has become a global concern. In this paper, the prevalence of Human Capital Theory within European…

While "school culture" is a topical issue, there is some consensus on a knowledge deficit regarding its subterranean dynamics and influence on change effort. This article describes an exploration of the mediation of a values-related change effort by school culture in Irish post-primary schools from the perspective of a research project…

Ideas relating to identity and belonging are central to the public discourse around citizenship that has emerged in Ireland and internationally in recent years. One thread of that discourse relates to the role of national identity in societies that are increasingly diverse and multicultural. In view of the growing importance of citizenship…

This study addresses the problem of designing an appropriate learning space or architecture for distributed online courses using net-based communication technologies. We apply Wenger's criteria to explore, identify and discuss the design architectures of two online courses from two comparable online Master's programmes, developed and delivered in…

Investigates children's conceptions of the characteristic features of category members. Hypothesized that (1) children initially perceive category members in terms of individual characteristics and (2) only later do children conceive of category members in terms of shared beliefs and values. Two separate studies confirm the hypotheses. (CMK)