ERIC Number: EJ1025203
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-Oct
Pages: 22
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0141-1926
EISSN: N/A
The Contribution of "Shared Education" to Catholic-Protestant Reconciliation in Northern Ireland: A Third Way?
Borooah, Vani K.; Knox, Colin
British Educational Research Journal, v39 n5 p925-946 Oct 2013
Northern Ireland has achieved political stability and its devolved government is now tackling public policy issues neglected during periods of sectarian violence. Notwithstanding the prevailing political optimism, one legacy of the conflict is a deeply divided society. This is particularly manifest in the education system where around 90% of children attend either state (controlled) schools ("de facto" Protestant) or Catholic (maintained) schools, with integrated schools accounting for less than 6% of the school population. In an attempt to address this duplication of services, in the context of 85,000 empty desks, external funders have piloted an initiative entitled "The Shared Education Programme" (SEP) where schools working in cross-community partnerships deliver shared classes and activities in order to improve education outcomes. This paper attempts to: quantify the educational returns for pupils participating in the SEP; articulate the qualitative reconciliation benefits from the perspective of teachers, parents and pupils; and, locate the findings of the research in the ongoing policy debate about restructuring education provision in Northern Ireland at a time of budget retrenchment and declining school rolls.
Descriptors: Catholics, Protestants, Religious Conflict, Conflict Resolution, Foreign Countries, Program Descriptions, Pilot Projects, Partnerships in Education, Public Policy, Catholic Schools, Public Schools, Outcomes of Education, Declining Enrollment, Budgets, Retrenchment, Parent Attitudes, Student Attitudes, Teacher Attitudes, Educational Strategies
Wiley-Blackwell. 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148. Tel: 800-835-6770; Tel: 781-388-8598; Fax: 781-388-8232; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2429/WileyCDA
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A