The educational community appreciates the editors of "Irish Educational Studies" for making the Interview with Sean O'Connor, in Dublin, Ireland available to a wider audience in 2014. The interview was originally in Sean O'Connor's home in Dublin on 8 September 1986. By that time, O'Connor had retired as Secretary of…

This paper presents an argument for the development of an Irish Chartered Teacher initiative which would acknowledge and accredit the professionalism of experienced and accomplished teachers. It begins by examining the current position of teaching as a profession based on findings from Irish and international research studies. Issues surrounding…

This article considers the conceptualization of physical education as a Leaving Certificate Examination subject and the place of physical education in a liberal education. Special attention is given to the conceptual evolution of physical education and its intrinsic educational values and to the developments in the idea of a liberal education over…

This essay presents the theoretical framework and main results of a research on intercultural mediation which has been performed in eight multicultural classrooms of Italian secondary schools. Intercultural mediation is conceived as a form of dialogic communication which should empower empathic and equal relationships between the participants by…

The concept of children's rights evolved during the 1980s giving prominence to the role of children as active participants in the construction of their lives. The rhetoric of children's rights has emerged as an important consideration in all policy and practice relating to children. Implementation of children's rights in practice is necessary to…

The decline of religious observance in Irish society has coincided with the strengthening of the exclusionary prerogatives of state-funded denominational schools. The implementation of a "Catholics first" policy in many schools, as underpinned by legislation, suggests that increasing religious diversity in the State has led to an abandonment of…

A number of different languages or discourses are evident in contemporary Irish educational policy, debate and theory: the grammar of commodity and marketisation, the poetry of "Bildung" and culture, the prose of Christian formation and revelation together with the ubiquitous rhetoric of personal developmental psychology. These are among the…

This article argues that an overhaul of undergraduate education in Ireland is needed. It asserts that at present most students leave university short-changed, never having been exposed to the riches of discovery and research. A framework founded on research and inquiry is designed to stimulate learning and innovation through action. It is argued…

A discourse of marketisation prevails in recent publications on higher education in Ireland. Higher education is urged to heed the call to the markets and to become the driver of Ireland's future economic success, as Ireland seeks to build a knowledge-based economy. This article questions the dominant marketisation discourse in higher education.…

One of the central challenges for a school is the creation of a public discourse which expresses the shared purpose of the school community, without losing the multiple and different voices within the teaching staff. In this article we report on the generative potential of educational conversation, when it is structured around questions which…

This paper addresses the issue of educational leadership through a critique of the Misneach programme for first-time principals. This programme entails preparation for the leadership of professional staff, namely of teachers as professional educators. The demands that this places on the leadership curriculum are onerous. The Misneach programme, as…

The school operated by David Manson in 18th century Belfast was a centre of learning which represented a critical approach to traditional forms of education. Choice instead of coercion; encouragement rather than ridicule; achievement and recognition for all learners were the hallmarks of his method. Enjoyment in teaching and in learning was not…

The following papers dealing with education in Ireland are presented: "The Fortunes of Education as a Subject of Study and of Research in Ireland" (John Coolahan); "The Irish Charter Schools: The Grand Design in Principle and Practice" (Kenneth Milne); "Quaker Education in 18th and 19th Century Ireland" (Cyril G. Brannigan); "Images of Women in…

The following papers dealing with education in Ireland are presented: "The Educational agenda: A View of the Future" (H. T. Sockett); "Curriculum and Policy in Irish Post-Primary Education" (B. O'Reilly); "A Response to Barney O'Reilly on Curriculum and Policy in Irish Post-Primary Education" (D. G. Mulcahy); "Constructing and Testing a Geography…