Effective continued professional development (CPD) is critical in preparing teachers for implementing curricular changes. Utilising the professional design framework [Loucks-Horsley, S., Stiles, K. E., Mundry, S. E., Love, N. B., & Hewson, P. W. (2009). "Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics."…

The curriculum development process is complex and developing a worthwhile process to support curriculum inception is a valuable endeavour. This paper explores the experiences of the curriculum development process through the lens of an expert advisory committee charged with developing a post-primary curriculum for publicly managed schools in line…

The internationalisation of the population of Ireland in recent decades has created a more culturally diverse society. Hence teachers need to have the necessary skills to teach in ethno-culturally diverse classrooms. In addition, teachers need to have required tools and knowledge to teach in increasingly multicultural classrooms. This article…

Through the lens of contrasting curriculum cultures, the author considers the evolution of Irish curriculum policy and reform. Whereas our curriculum thinking and practice are grounded in an Anglo-Saxon/American culture, Didaktik curriculum culture and Stenhouse's Process model provide valuable alternative perspectives. Our prevailing…

This study is concerned with the analysis of mathematical textbook tasks at the second-level in Ireland, in the context of the introduction of the revised curriculum entitled 'Project Maths'. A total of 7635 tasks on the topics of Pattern, Sequences and Series, and Differential Calculus were analysed; these tasks were selected from editions of…

Internationally, second level curriculum policy for STEM education is concentrating its efforts on promoting curriculum-making pedagogies, with enquiry-based teaching and learning at the forefront of this change. Policy aspirations have not translated well into practice, evidenced by science practical lessons consistently being delivered as…

The aim of this article is to offer an approach that can be used to develop Decolonial Critical Awareness (CDA) and Decolonial Critical Reflection (CDR) in student language teachers at post-Primary level as part of their Initial Teacher Education (ITE). The article contextualises the rationale for such provision in ITE programmes in the wider…

This article is a reflective, research-informed, commentary on educational disadvantage from two lecturers in Education who have spent large proportions of their professional lives working in 'DEIS' school settings before transitioning into teacher education. This reflection intends to problematise the concept of educational disadvantage and will…

The educational value of internationalisation in higher education is of critical importance for both domestic and international students. While national and institutional policies globally are increasingly prioritising internationalisation, the resultant consequences for the teaching and learning context are not adequately being explored.…

"Musical Futures" is an approach to music education grounded in the principles of informal learning. Research has shown that "Musical Futures" has profoundly impacted teaching and learning in music, pupil engagement and educational strategies for music (Green, Lucy. 2002. "How Popular Musicians Learn: A Way Ahead for Music…

This paper presents findings from a study into children's media and information literacy (MIL). The purpose of the study was to understand English primary school children's (ages 8-11) attitude toward the internet as well as their ability to find, use and evaluate information. This then informed the development of a MIL programme of learning for…

Curriculum, while often narrowly defined, is a contested space that stimulates continuing international debate, yet the importance of curriculum studies is frequently overlooked across the continuum of teacher education. Within the Irish context a technicist interpretation of curriculum studies, focusing primarily of subject knowledge and…

The prominence afforded to literacy in the Irish Primary School Curriculum has received considerable attention in recent years, spurred by Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) rankings, governmental priorities, public commentary and academic debate. At times, this discourse has presented literacy as a separate and distinct entity…

The process of curriculum making and educational policy development is contentious, and, as such, is emblematic of societal values as a whole, and, more significantly, the power relations and economic trends within that. Recent education developments in the Republic of Ireland pertaining to primary level have seen a marked shift away from a broad…

Building on the various works of theorists pertaining to curriculum negotiation, the Negotiated Integrated Curriculum (NIC) initiative detailed in this article attempts to redress the imbalance within curricular decision-making whereby student voice and learner agency is largely absent. The NIC initiative enquires into students' concerns about…