Teaching about the past in Northern Ireland: avoidance, neutrality, and criticality

Abstract

Citizenship education has been a feature of the school curricula in many western democracies since the 1990s. Consequently, there is a proliferation of research which explores its efficacy in instilling political literacy and encouraging democratic engagement amongst pupils. Less is known however about how citizenship is taught in societies emerging from conflicts which are [at least in part] motivated by competing narratives around citizenship. This paper examines this issue within the context of Northern Ireland. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 18 post-primary citizenship teachers, it argues that whilst the curricular text for citizenship education has encouraged teachers to discuss ‘the past’ in Northern Ireland only a minority of teachers do so. The paper suggests that teachers are constrained in their attempts to explore the past by a complex interplay of factors including cultural norms of avoidance and their interpretation of the current socio-political context. The paper argues that it cannot be assumed that teachers themselves possess the critical capacities that they are expected to nurture in pupils, yet, where efforts are made to harness teachers’ critical skills, they are more likely to display the confidence and skill to discuss contentious issues related to the past.

KEYWORDS:

• Citizenship education
• teachers
• post-conflict
• Northern Ireland
• avoidance

Notes

1 Data collection also took place prior to the 2016 Brexit Referendum and the breakdown of devolution (2017–2020). Whilst this time period has witnessed dissension between nationalist and Unionist communities and parties it has, more recently resulted, in a growing rejection of traditional identity categories- something that emerged strongly in the data below (see Hayward and McManus 2018).

Additional information

Funding

The research undertaken for this paper was funded by Atlantic Philanthropies.

Notes on contributors

Caitlin Donnelly

Dr Caitlin Donnelly is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Education, Queen’s University Belfast. Her research interests lie within the areas of school ethos and intergroup relations in schools and she has published in these fields.

Clare McAuley

Clare McAuley is a Lecturer in the School of Education, Ulster University Coleraine. Her research interests include the role of education in promoting social cohesion; teaching History in contested societies; Citizenship education and teaching controversial and sensitive issues.

Danielle Blaylock

Dr Danielle Blaylock is Lecturer in the School of Psychology, Queen’s University Belfast. Her research focuses on intergroup relations, intergroup conflict and social change in divided societies and is closely associated with social identity and contact theory.

Joanne Hughes

Professor Joanne Hughes is Director of the Centre for Shared Education in the School of Education at Queen’s University Belfast. Her main research interests are in the role of education in divided societies and inequalities in education.