Policy Aspects of Incorporation of FE Colleges in Northern Ireland

abstract

In matters of education, including Further Education (FE), Northern Ireland usually follows any major change introduced in England and Wales. Such change occurs within 1 or 2 years. In the case of incorporation of FE colleges, however, now proposed for April 1998, Northern Ireland is acting 7 years after this development in the UK. The article explores the possible reasons for this and suggests that while educational, economic and social differences may be part of the explanation the dominant factor may relate to the nature of the decision making process within Department of Education for Northern Ireland (DENI). It is further argued that arrangements proposed for Northern Ireland are likely to be seriously flawed because of the predominant role still accorded to DENI in the running of the FE sector.