Introduction
Education is an essential aspect of a person’s development. It allows people to obtain knowledge, various skills, and social identity. Social factors of education include the building of confidence, compassion, and the ability amply to communicate one’s thoughts and feelings. It allows pupils to obtain a wide-encompassing perspective of the world and teaches them to draw educated conclusions about it. Different countries approach education differently, depending on the country’s social, cultural, political, and economic factors. To understand the privileges and disadvantages of one’s country’s education system, it is necessary to analyze, contrast, and compare the systems of various other countries.
The Levels of Education in Ireland
There are several levels of education in Ireland, which include pre-school, primary school, and post-primary education. Generally, pre-school starts when the child becomes six years of age, and attending any form of pre-primary education facility is not mandatory. These facilities are not run by governmental institutes but are rather managed by the community, private, or voluntary organizations. However, these organizations must follow a specifically devised curriculum framework which is called Aistear (“Education,” 2019). It employs four points to reflect children’s progress: identity and belonging, communicating, well-being, thinking, and exploring.
Primary schools in Ireland have an eight-year cycle that includes such steps as junior infants, senior infants, and classes from one to six. Every Irish primary and post-primary school has a patron who influences the school’s philosophy. The patron also appoints the school’s board of management, who takes that place along with the children’s parents and teaching staff. Classes in primary school usually start at 8:30 or 9:30 and last for 5 hours and 40 minutes. A post-primary school is attended by children of age from twelve to eighteen. The curriculum for post-primary education consists of a three-year-long junior cycle which is followed by a two or three-year senior cycle (“Education,” 2019). The senior cycle is the time when pupils choose one of three available examination programs.
Students’ Performance
In terms of student performance, Ireland is one of the leading countries. In 2018, Ireland was ranked eighth of 76 countries in reading performance among 15-year-olds with 518 points on the PISA rating scale. Girls were better than boys in reading by 24 points. Reading proficiency levels in Ireland are accordingly high, with only 11.8% of Irish participants being below proficiency level two. In the criteria of low-performing students in at least one subject, the Irish education system boasts exceptional results: 23.1%, ranking Ireland at number 67. In addition, Irish students ranked high in aspects of confidence and engagement (OECD, 2018). Through surveys, it was established that 73.9% of them had high levels of drive and aspiration.
Special Needs Education
The Irish education system provides inclusivity and support to children with special needs. Some of those children study in classes with able-bodied students, and others comprise special classes where the teacher-to-pupil ratio is much lower. The National Council for Special Education aims to give students with special needs every learning opportunity that they deserve. However, due to monetary constraints, certain reformation measures are considered by the government. It is suggested to merge the funding system of special needs and able-bodies students to install clarity in the process of funding (Banks, 2021). This creates concerns for parents and teachers, who worry that a generalized system would allow special needs students to slip through the cracks.
The Issue of the Irish Language
The inclusion of the Irish native language in the curriculum is an appropriate policy since it allows children to develop a stronger sense of cultural identity and learn more about their native culture. The Irish language has been through a practically century-long period when it was placed on the outskirts of the education system due to British rule. As a consequence, the Irish language itself has become a token used in the nationalistic narrative (Walsh, 2021). It is important to recognize that nationalistic thinking patterns have influenced the teachings of the Irish before praising the system for its cultural support and inclusivity.
The Subject of the Irish Sign Language in the Education System
As has been mentioned previously, native language contributes to one’s cultural identity and allows one to feel a closer connection to their heritage. In the case of deaf people, obtaining these aspects has been a tremendous struggle. For all the time that the Irish Sign language needed to be properly established, it was officially recognized only in 2017. The Act that allowed its authorized establishment declared that deaf people had the right to access information and public services through means of the Irish Sign Language (Conama, 2019). Despite having been in action for five years, the Act is still subjected to inadequate treatment, as many government officials are not aware of its existence or the responsibilities it imposes, which leads to it being ignored in the education system.
Conclusion
In conclusion, a country’s education system is capable of showing its society’s battles and struggles, both historic and modern. The education system of Ireland is a complex structure that has its advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, it provides greatly in the area of knowledge and personal skills development, as exemplified in the statistical data of Irish students’ performance. On the other hand, it faces problems in the realm of special needs education, such as the issue of separate or generalized funding. In addition, the cultural and social aspects of the Irish language pose several issues. First of all, there is the problem of nationalistic agenda in curriculum development. Second of all, the Irish Sign Language still struggles to be recognized and respected.
References
Banks, J. (2021), A winning formula? Funding inclusive education in Ireland. In Golden, J., Lambrecht, J., and Loreman, T. (Eds.) Resourcing inclusive education (International perspectives on inclusive education, vol. 15). (pp. 7-19). Emerald Publishing Limited.
Conama, J. B. (2019). “Ah, that’s not necessary, you can read English instead”: An ecological analysis of state language policy concerning Irish sign language, Irish and English and its effects. In M. de Meulder, J. Murray, and R. McKee (Eds.), Recognizing sign languages: An international overview of national campaigns for Sign Language legislation and their outcomes (pp.19–35). Multilingual Matters.
Education (2019). Government of Ireland. Web.
OECD (2018). Ireland Student Performance [Data Set] Web.
Walsh, T. (2021). Revival or bilingualism? The impact of European nationalist thinking on Irish language curricular policy around the advent of political independence in Ireland. Paedagogica Historica, 1–14.