Ó Breacháin, Anníe and O'Toole, Leah (2013) Pedagogy or politics?: cyclical trends in literacy and numeracy in Ireland and beyond. Irish Educational Studies, 32 (4). pp. 401-419. ISSN 0332-3315

Preview

Download (289kB) | Preview

Abstract

In 1999, the primary curriculum was published in Ireland, with emphases on ‘breadth and balance’, recognition of the role of language and the arts and commitment to each child’s potential and holistic development. In 2011, the Irish government published a strategy aimed to improve standards of literacy and numeracy among children and young people in Ireland, ‘Literacy and Numeracy for Learning and Life: The National Strategy to Improve Literacy and Numeracy among Children and Young People 2011–2020’. The approaches to address concerns over literacy and numeracy in Irish schools, taken by the Strategy, require deconstruction, and in this paper, we argue that the focus on literacy and numeracy to the exclusion of other educational objectives in Ireland at present threatens the holistic ethos of the curriculum. We challenge those involved in education in Ireland to ensure that pedagogical rather than political concerns motivate our strategies and policies.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	PISA; primary curriculum; literacy; numeracy; standardised testing; politics;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Froebel Department of Primary and Early Childhood Education
Item ID:	12838
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.1080/03323315.2013.851441
Depositing User:	Leah O'Toole
Date Deposited:	30 Apr 2020 11:31
Journal or Publication Title:	Irish Educational Studies
Publisher:	Routledge
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

Repository Staff Only(login required)

Item control page

Downloads

Origin of downloads