Conceptualisations of care: the understanding of ‘care’ across Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars and curriculum

ABSTRACT

Set against a context where care for the person, others, and the world in which we live receives increasing attention in the policy and practice nexus, this paper sets out to explore how ‘care’ is understood and reflected in Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars and curricula. The importance of focusing on care has been further accentuated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Each source was searched systematically and following application of inclusion criteria, 616 documents were included in the sample, legislation (n = 39), policies (n = 49), active circulars (n = 179), archived circulars (n = 249) and curriculum specifications (n = 100). Thirteen per cent of the documents included in the review reflected some discussion of care. Thematic analysis of these documents identified that ‘care’ tended to be understood and reflected in five main interrelated ways: (1) care for the individual child and the related duty of care schools/teachers have for children; (2) supporting students to care for themselves and for others; (3) care presented in terms of ‘pastoral care’ or intertwined with ‘well-being’; (4) care presented from the perspective of care for the environment and finally; and (5) care presented from a structural perspective regarding care supports within the school. Some considerations and challenges are presented in terms of supporting schools to navigate these different and at times diverging policy, legislative and curriculum contexts with regards conditions for implementation of care in education.

KEYWORDS:

• Care
• Irish legislation
• policies
• curriculum
• conditions for implementation

Positioning of ‘care’ in the literature

In order to contextualise ‘care’ across Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars and curriculum, care will be discussed from a number of philosophical perspectives that include the ethics of care, pastoral care, well-being and holistic development. Bronfenbrenner (1978, p. 774) suggests that ‘in order to develop, a child needs the enduring, irrational involvement of one or more adults in care and joint activity with the child’. This duality of care is reflected in Thomas’ (1993) work through ‘caring for someone’ (carrying out caring work) and ‘caring about someone’ (having caring feelings). Noddings (1995) distinguishes between an ‘ethics of care’ and ‘natural care’. An ethics of care relates to caring relationships: ‘where ethical discussions must be made in caring interactions with those affected by the discussion’ (Noddings, 1995, p. 129). Ethics of care has to be summoned while ‘natural care’ is described as ‘spontaneous response … to another’s plight’ (ibid). An ethics of care ‘emphasises the difference between assumed needs and expressed needs’ (Noddings, 2012, p. 773). Those who function from an ethics of care perspective begin any encounter, not with the individual or the collective, but rather with the relation, where one person acts as carer and the other as cared-for (Buber, 1965).

Calvert (2009) suggests that historically the term ‘pastoral care’ rather than ‘care’ has more resonance in schools and was often provided for by various religious orders. He defines pastoral care as ‘the structures, practices and approaches to support the welfare, well-being and development of children and young people’ (Calvert, 2009, p. 267). Marland’s (1974) seminal work in the area of pastoral care advocated that pastoral care was the central task of the school, and therefore must be planned and institutionalized through the use of both pastoral roles and structures. Framed by the work of Erickson and many other educational theorists, Marland set forth that ‘the core of pastoral need’ are the questions of ‘What do I want to make of myself, and what do I have to work with?’ (Marland, 1974, p. 2). Pastoral care therefore is more than a way of supporting students’ academic achievement, but rather focusing on the total welfare of the individual (Marland, 1974). In order to achieve this mission, pastoral care must begin with the needs and lives of the students; be supported by the teacher, who is enabled and facilitated by senior management; remain cognisant of the unity of the ‘pastoral’ and the ‘academic’, therefore including a curriculum dimension (Best, 2014). This view of pastoral care is echoed by Edmond and Price (2009, p. 303) who suggest that in essence pastoral care is not an activity ‘separate from, or peripheral to, the teaching of the curriculum, but as integral to teaching practice’. Interestingly, Collins and McNiff (1999) describe previous conceptions of pastoral care in Ireland as ranging from ‘the back door for religious education’ to ‘the front door to mere humanism’.

Care can also be conceptualised as a focus on well-being. The World Health Organization (WHO, 1948) views health as ‘a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.’ Well-being has since been conceptualized in many ways (Diener et al., 2018) reflecting psychological/emotional states, commonly associated with health, including happiness and self-esteem (Tov, 2018). Two primary approaches are evident in the literature, hedonic and eudaimonic well-being (Ryan & Deci, 2001). A hedonic lens focuses on subjective well-being (SWB), and is commonly understood as the presence of positive mood and life-satisfaction, often summarised as happiness (Keyes & Annas, 2009). Eudaimonic psychological well-being (PWB) is conceptualized from the perspective that there are certain qualities or needs that are essential for one’s psychological growth and development; and fulfilment of these needs can result in achieving one’s full potential (Tov, 2018). A hedonic approach is usually about how people feel while an eudaimonic approach is about functioning well (Ryan & Deci, 2001). Finally, care can be conceptualised from the perspective of whole child or holistic development. Whole child education or holistic development has been interpreted in a variety of ways including emotional, social and moral development (O’Flaherty et al., 2019). Teachers are frequently viewed as having a ‘moral’ role due to their duty of care and the moral aspect of their decision-making that is, teaching approaches, pupil differentiation, discipline, and inclusion/exclusion strategies (Abbott & MacTaggart, 2009; Conway et al., 2009; Gleeson & O’Flaherty, 2016; Husu & Tirri, 2007; Noddings, 1997).

Noddings (2015) calls for a radical change in both curriculum and teaching to reach all children, noting that the central aim of education is in fact a moral one, that centres on nurturing the growth of competent and caring individuals. In light of increased focus on academic achievement, Noddings puts forward a view of curriculum that focuses on schools as centres of care that promote care for oneself, for others, for plants, the earth and human ideas. Key here is the notion of not placing academic achievement and care at odds with each other but rather ‘swings of the pendulum’ between traditional and progressive perspectives that place care at the centre of educational endeavours. Noddings (2015, p. 5) suggests the need for public school responsiveness to students and staff in tandem with accountability, acknowledging a ‘tyranny of opposing purposes’ at times evident in education. It is imperative therefore that schools listen attentively and respond to the care needs of students. Importantly, this requires implicitly, a commitment to progressive philosophies of education, acknowledging the value of disciplinary knowledge. Noddings (2015) suggests that disciplinary boundaries need to be ‘stretched from within’. The Irish Ministry of Education equally acknowledges the unprecedented challenge of the global COVID-19 pandemic suggesting that ‘a crisis like this affects the wellbeing of everyone’ (DES, 2020), p. 2). Carroll and McCoy (2021, p. 176) suggested the COVID-19 pandemic has ‘laid bare the fault lines underneath our education system … fault lines [that] have primarily been exposed and exacerbated by the pandemic, rather than created by it’.

Enacting care in the school context

While care can be conceptualised from a variety of perspectives, it is also interesting to consider how care can be supported and enabled as an explicit outcome in schools. Louis and Murphy (2017), amongst others (Beck, 1994; Hargreaves & Giles, 2003; Noddings, 1992, 2012) stress the importance of care as an aspect of effective schools. Therefore, ‘the primary aim of every educational effort must be the maintenance and enhancement of caring’ (Noddings, 1984, p. 172). Stoll and Louis (2007) suggest that schools work more effectively when interpersonal care permeates school life, with effective schools developing institutionalised practices and supportive structures that reflect a commitment to caring for students and staff (Louis & Murphy, 2017). Within such contexts, a culture of caring exists that is situated in long-term relationships based on trust and commitment to active care (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012). From a leadership and school management perspective, Cody (2017) investigated how school principals in high schools consider the health and well-being of students in their schools through developing ‘a culture of care’. Results indicated that academic achievement was supported when principals created an environment that values and cares for students and views health as a necessary precursor to students’ academic success. School management focused on relationships and students social and emotional needs – not just because of the benefits for academic success but also as they felt a ‘duty to care’ (Cody, 2017). Cody (2017) proposed a leadership framework grounded in a ‘culture of care’ encompassing two simultaneous roles: instructional leadership lens (prosocial relationships, student identity and voice, holistic pedagogy) and organisational leadership lens (staff development, distributed leadership and community partnership). Mayeroff’s (1971) definition of caring, as involving a core set of established attitudes and values that are rooted in helping others grow and develop while reaching their own potential as human beings, underpinned the study. This particular study was significantly influenced by Noddings (1984, 1992) and Gilligan’s concept of ‘ethics of care’, within the context of teacher–student relationships.

Reflecting an emphasis on relationships, Ellerbrock et al. (2015) perceived care as a sense of support and connections evident in relationships and actions. They suggested that care is reciprocal and described the importance of the teacher–student relationship being based on care, stating that adolescents in post-primary school need to feel that their educators care about them. Ellerbrock et al. (2015) advocated it is the teacher’s responsibility to create and maintain a safe and academic focus in the classroom. Teachers should, the authors contend, create shared norms and values for their students and advocate for open and honest communication that allows everyone to get to know one another. Focus on these areas, the authors argue could facilitate a culture of mutual respect, that encourages care and mutual responsibility. Gard (2014) reports on the implementation of an academic advisory programme in high school focused on students’ relationship within the school community. The advisory programme was implemented during the school day. Emphasis was placed on attachment building, so that students felt part of the school community and that someone in the school cared about their success, thus facilitating students to have protected time, within the school day, to work on their course work and have one-to-one time with their teachers in areas they may be struggling with.

From an experiential perspective, Das (2016) identified the ‘care aim of education’, as the all-round development of a child, that is, intellectual, physically, moral, spiritual, emotional, social and aesthetic development. The author highlights the importance of co-curricular activities in a post-primary school in India. They stress the need for the inclusion of co-curricular activities in order to increase student well-being. Results from Das (2016) study suggest that students’ engagement in co-curricular activities had a positive impact on physical, psychological, social, cultural and disciplinary well-being. The author suggests that all schools should understand the importance of such activities alongside the students’ academic learning for the overall growth of the student. Mortari and Ubbiali (2017) describe the educative project MelArete, which focuses on educating students about ethics and a pedagogy of care. Within the project care is presented as central to life, without which people cannot flourish. The pedagogical theory underpinning the project is that we must educate to care. The project therefore aims to explore the concepts of care and virtues through exploring, for example, the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle. The difference between ethics and morality are also explored. The authors reported that such a focus helped students to understand the concept of virtue and showed them how to reflect on their actions. Students were enabled to distinguish between various virtuous actions, such as thought, emotions, consequences and choice, which can all be acted and seen. Meanwhile, Dadvand and Cuervo (2019) investigated the lived experience of two girls in a post-primary school in Australia. These students experienced exclusion and othering as a result of not conforming to the school’s norms and values. This paper draws on a relational understanding of belonging along with ‘the ethic of care’ in order to understand student disengagement from school. The authors found that while care was expressed for students from staff at the school, this was only experienced by students who conform and fit in with the values of the school. The authors highlighted the need to care for all students, to foster a sense of belonging for everyone and not just students who can fit into the norms and routines of the school. They highlight how not doing so can reproduce social inequalities.

Across the reviewed literature, ‘care’ was presented as a fundamental value for effective schooling and was understood in terms of relationships, belonging, ‘ethics of care’ as well as through focusing on social-emotional aspects of students learning. Set against this particular context, this study set out to explore how ‘care’ is understood and reflected in Irish educational legislation, policies, curriculum and circulars. In the next sections, the methodology framing the review of legislative, policy and curriculum documentation will be described. This study was framed by the following research question, how is care represented in Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars and curriculum? Findings will be presented and finally some considerations and implications for practice will be discussed.

Methodology

Systematic reviews adopt a formal and structured method, with key search terms and timelines, identified in advance that frame the search (Kitchenham, 2004). Selecting literature using pre-set criteria ‘can reduce the risk of “selective”, “biased” or “partial” accounts … claims which can often be levelled at conventional literature reviews’ (Andrews, 2005, p. 404). The aim of this study was to complete a review of the documentation framed by the following research question: how is care represented in Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars and curriculum?

Search strategy

Review protocols as suggested by Glass et al. (1981) and Lipsey and Wilson (2001) were applied to the current study and follow a number of key steps: initial search to locate all possible documents; using pre-set criteria, screen all documents for inclusion; finally, code all included documents based on their substantive features. A search was conducted to explore how ‘care’ is understood and reflected in Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars, and curricula from 1937 (Irish Constitution) to 2020. This time frame was selected as it included all educational documents since the establishment of the Irish Free State up to the point of analysis. The documents were searched via the website www.education.ie, with the exception of curriculum specifications, which were located on www.curriculumonline.ie.

Documents were included if they related to either primary or post-primary schooling. Documents were excluded if they related to Higher Education or early childhood. Circulars relating to teachers’ pay were also excluded. All current curriculum specifications relating to primary and post-primary level, as available on curriculumonline.ie, were included in the corpus. Equality Legislation was also included, as was the Constitution of Ireland 1937). After initial screening (n = 1801), one author further reviewed these documents to assess for eligibility based on the inclusion criteria outlined above. 616 documents were included in the final sample. This included active circulars (n = 179), archived circulars (n = 249), policies (n = 49), legislation (n = 39) and curriculum specifications (n = 100), as outlined in Table 1 below. Each document included in the sample was searched for the key term ‘care’. All relevant ‘hits’ relating to the key term were collated in a table, with each document type (i.e. legislation, circulars) having its own table. All sources included for review were double reviewed and coded by both authors, ensuring consistency and reliability across the review process.

Table 1. Number and type of legislative, policy and curricula documents analysed.

Focus	Number reviewed
Active circulars	179
Archived circulars	249
Policies	49
Legislation	39
Specifications/curriculum	100
Total	616

Due to the size of the sample, the only search term used to analyse the documents was ‘care’. Therefore, relevant discussion that did not use this specific term may have been missed especially given the many ways in which care can be presented and termed across the literature. However, we were interested in how care as a discrete term is reflected and understood across the documentation, hence this was the search term employed within the study.

Data analysis

Once all documents were searched and the related tables completed with all relevant evidence, the authors:

1. Counted the number of documents that returned evidence for the search term.

2. Analysed, via thematic analysis, the dominant understandings and interpretations of care across the included documents. The data were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s (2013) six-phase inductive thematic data analysis framework: familiarisation with the data, generating initial codes, search for themes, review of themes, definition and naming of themes and writing the report. Using thematic analysis, each document was coded for the dominant understandings and interpretations of the search term, that is, how care was defined or presented in each document. The constant comparative method was utilised to perform data analysis and meaning making (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), which involved moving back and forth between the data sources repeatedly comparing elements (Thomas, 2018), identifying emerging themes and patterns and coding to identify and note aspects that related to the research question (Braun & Clarke, 2013).

One important point is worth noting. Any discussion of this concept in each document was noted. Therefore, we did not track the number of times care was present in a document but rather noted the fact that discussion/mention of this term occurred and the nature of this discussion. However, in the results section, we do note the documents that offer substantial discussion on care.

Findings: positioning of care in legislation, policy and curricula

In total, 616 documents were systematically reviewed and analysed. Seventy-eight documents make some reference to ‘care’. In this section, we note some of the common themes emerging in how care was understood, presented, defined and discussed across Irish legislation, policies, circulars and curriculum.

Frequency of ‘care’ across all documents

As can be seen from Table 2, ‘care’ is mentioned in 78 documents, meaning that ‘care’ is mentioned/discussed in 13% of the searched documents. It is interesting to note the low occurrence of ‘care’ within the legislation documents included in the review.

Table 2. Document type by number of documents that refer to ‘care’.

Document Type	‘Care’
Active circulars (n = 179)	9 (5%)
Archived circulars (n = 249)	27 (11%)
Legislation (n = 39)	1 (3%)
Policies (n = 49)	13 (27%)
Curriculum specification (n = 100)	28 (28%)
Total	78

Care is presented/discussed in five main, interrelated, ways within the documentation: (1) care for the individual child and the related duty of care schools/teachers have for children; (2) supporting students to care for themselves and for others; (3) care presented in terms of ‘pastoral care’ or intertwined with ‘well-being’; (4) care presented from the perspective of care for the environment; and finally (5) care presented from a structural perspective regarding care supports within the school. While strongly linked, they are presented separately below.

Theme 1: Duty of care and the importance of caring for the individual

Care for the individual child and the related duty of care schools/teachers have for children is stressed across a range of documents. A core aspect of the teacher’s and a school’s role was considered to be care for the individual child. Having said that, the only legislation to discuss care (n = 1), is the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse Act (2000a), which stresses the need to care for children and the consequences when such care is not provided. Five policy documents allude to care for the individual/student placing an emphasis on duty of care (Guidelines on the use of School Buildings outside of School Hours: Health and Safety) child care (the Report and Recommendations for an Education Strategy; OECD Thematic Review of Migrant Education – Country Report for Ireland); care needs (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools – An Action Plan for Educational Inclusion) and care for the vulnerable or at-risk. The Wellbeing Policy Statement and Framework for Practice 2018–2023 (DES, 2017) acknowledges that everyone requires care at some stage of their life and believes that care is most effective within an environment that supports a positive approach to discipline. Within such a context ‘issues are resolved with care, respect and consistency’ (p.40). This is supported by the Anti-Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools Policy (DES, 2013a) which suggested that schools take ‘particular care of at risk pupils and [use their] monitoring systems to facilitate early intervention where necessary and it responds to the needs, fears or anxieties of individual members in a sensitive manner’.

A number of both archived and active circulars refer to care for the child from the perspective of care of the child, duty of care and responsibility for care needs. Circular 18/02 views care of every young person as a central facet of any school substance use policy. Similar sentiments are expressed in Circulars M18/99, 0061/2006 and 0062/2006. Circular 0003/2018 outlines that ‘the primary purpose of school leadership and management is to create and sustain an environment that underpins high quality in student care, learning and teaching’. Circular 0013/2017 presents the class teacher as having primary responsibility for the care of all children in the class. This duty of care is echoed in Circulars 0023/2010; 0063/2010; F11/05; 0018/2015 and 0026/2015. Finally, Circulars SPED 24/03 and SPED 09/04 speak to the role of the Special Needs Assistant (SNA) in providing for the care needs of students with additional needs.

From a curriculum perspective, Curaclam na Bunscoile Réamhrá (DES, 1999), highlights the importance of the teacher’s dual role as carer and educator. The Leaving Certificate (LC) Physical Education Framework outlines the importance of learners feeling valued and cared for.

The role of schools and teachers in caring for the individual child and the expectation that they have a duty of care in this regard is evident across the reviewed documents. While, on the surface, this may portray the important role placed on care across the reviewed documents, the low mention of care within related legislation is a concern – something which is revisited in the discussion later in the paper.

Theme 2: Care supports

Care is often presented from a structural perspective regarding care supports, care teams and/or resources that schools can and/or should provide for students. Both the Review of the Primary Schools’ General Allocation Model and Charting Our Education Future White Paper on Education (DES, 1995) allude to care resources within the school (please also see Circular M37/03 and SPED 01/05).

The structures and strategies for supporting care are identified across a number of active and archived circulars. These include a whole-school approach (Circular 0027/2008), managed with effective leadership (Circular 0003/2018); and care with administrating and reading assessments (Circular 0058/2019, 0034/2015, M23/05, 0008/2007). Circular 0035/2017 outlines the requirement that ‘care should be taken in relation to the suitability of the assessment instruments that are used with students with special educational needs (SEN) or with students who are studying English as an Additional Language (EAL). Care should be taken by users to research accurately the suitability, reliability and validity of all assessment instruments selected for use, and to ensure that the versions in use are the most up-to-date. Care should also be taken when interpreting results for students who are studying English as an Additional Language (EAL).’

A number of archived circulars outline the specific recruitment requirements, function and role of the special needs assistant (SNA) with regards the care needs of the child (e.g. Circulars 0041/2015; 0035/2016; 0003/2007; 0003/2008; 0052/2008; 0005/2009; 0003/2010; 0001/2011). Circular 0034/2018 sets out offers of employment made to SNAs are made ‘subject to the SNA undertaking the full duties of the post, including any training/upskilling required to meet the care needs of the pupil(s) and fulfil the full duties of the post.’ Circular 0070/2014 outlines that ‘care support from a special needs assistant may be required where a pupil’s behaviour is a danger to himself or others or where it seriously interferes with the learning opportunities of other pupils.’ Circular SPED 07/02 outlines that ‘SNAs are recruited specifically to assist schools in making suitable provision for a pupil or pupils with special care needs arising from a disability in an educational context’. While Circular 0009/2009 sets forth how the ‘decreasing care needs of pupils arising from their maturation and development or as a result of effective interventions’ shall impact SNA posts, which can be “actively reduced and withdrawn once the pupil’s care needs have diminished. Finally, a small number of circulars identify the duty of care attached to educational boards with, for example, Circular 0002/2019 stating that the board should exercise care and act ‘with due diligence and care’.

Following the duty of care placed on schools/teachers, as per theme 1, the focus on care supports appears to provide, offer or suggest potential supportive structures and relevant resources schools can draw on to enact this duty of care.

Theme 3: Pastoral care and well-being

Care was often presented in terms of ‘pastoral care’. For example, the Report and Recommendations for a Traveller Education Strategy (DES, undated), the Charting Our Education Future White Paper on Education (Launch Copy 1995) and Attracting, Developing and Training Effective Teachers – OECD Country Background Report for Ireland (Coolahan, 2003) focus on the concept of pastoral care.

A number of both archived and active circulars refer to approaches to pastoral care within the school community that can support care of the young person, including Circular 0009/2012 and Circular 0025/2013 – which sets out the role of the school chaplain in the provision of pastoral care. Circular 0027/2008 suggests that ‘whole-school approaches to social education and pastoral care, the commitment of the principal, having an RSE policy, an SPHE co-ordinator and team approaches to social and personal education are all factors which influence the effectiveness of RSE in schools.’

The concept of student ‘well-being’ was frequently intertwined with the concept of pastoral care. From a curriculum perspective, the Junior Cycle Framework (DES, 2015) links well-being and pastoral care, as evident in the following excerpt ‘students’ engagement with learning in the area of well-being will also be supported through activities related to pastoral care and through student support systems.” (p.23). Similarly, students engaging with the Civic, Social and Political Education (CSPE) and Physical Education (PE) short courses are encouraged to ‘develop a sense of care for the well-being of others as they learn how their well-being is connected to the well-being of others and of our planet’ (DES, 2016a, p.4). As part of the SPHE curriculum (DES, 2016a, p. 3), students learn to care for themselves and others and make decisions about their health and well-being. Finally, within junior cycle Religious Education (RE) students are scaffolded to ‘explain how an understanding of care for the earth found in a major world religion promotes the wellbeing of all people and the planet and discuss its relevance for today’.

The priority placed on ‘pastoral care’ and ‘well-being’, again highlights the school’s role, as per the policy and legislative documents, in the provision of ‘care’ for their students. Conceptualising care in the form of ‘pastoral care’ and ‘well-being’ may provide schools with a vehicle through which they can achieve the duty of care assigned to them in educational policy documents.

Theme 4: Students caring for themselves and others

Care was frequently presented and understood from the perspective of supporting students to care for both themselves and others. Such an understanding of care was particularly evident within curricula.

Curaclam na Bunscoile Réamhrá (DES, 1999), reflects a focus on both a student’s care for his/her body and provides opportunities for students to explore and discuss how family members care for each other. Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) at primary level, for example, focuses on care for oneself; care for others; care for environment and ultimately aims ‘to foster in the child a sense of care and respect for himself/herself and others and an appreciation of the dignity of every human being’ (DES, 1999, p. 9).

The theme of personal care is also reflected in the Framework for the Junior Cycle (DES, 2015). Students explore the concept of ‘self-care’ within the SPHE short course at junior cycle (DES, 2016), with a focus on developing students’ ‘understanding and skills to learn about themselves, to care for themselves and others and to make informed decisions about their health and wellbeing in a rapidly changing world’. While philosophy at junior cycle (DES, 2016) aims to support students to create a caring community and to develop caring thinkers. Within Leaving Certificate Physical Education (PE), Politics and Society, Religious Education (Leaving Certificate Established/Leaving Certificate Applied, LCE/LCA) Social Education (LCA) and Childcare/community care (LCA) students are supported to feel cared for and to develop a sense of care for others. Senior cycle Politics and Society sets out to support students to develop ‘a sense of care for others and a respect for and a valuing of diversity in all areas of human life within the parameters of human rights principles’. Care for living things and care for animals is reflected in senior cycle Agricultural Science and Horticulture (LCE) and Agriculture (LCA).

The theme of students caring for themselves and others was particularly evident at the level of curricula while less evident across policy, legislation, and circulars. Perhaps developing the capacity of caring for yourself and others is viewed as a manifestation of a duty of care from a theoretical to a practical/applied curricular experience and is one way in which care can be embedded at a curricular and classroom level.

Theme 5: care for the environment

Care is also presented from the perspective of care for the environment with the reviewed documents frequently focusing on the importance of supporting students to care for their environment at a local, national, or international level.

From a legislative and policy perspective, care for the environment is presented in the Equal Measure Act and Charting Our Education Future White Paper on Education (Launch Copy 1995). This theme is largely evident within curricular documents. For example, Curaclam na Bunscoile Réamhrá (DES, 1999), highlights the focus on care for the environment. Social, Environmental and Scientific Education (SESE) at primary level focuses on ‘foster[ing] in the child a sense of responsibility for the long-term care of the environment’ (DES, 1999, p. 5) while primary geography and science, two of the SESE subjects, aim to develop environmental awareness and care as a cross-curricular theme. Finally, primary SPHE and PE also focus on care for the environment from the perspective personal lifestyle and collective environmental decision-making.

Within the junior cycle, RE explores ‘how an understanding of care for the earth found in a major world religion promotes the wellbeing of all people and the planet and discuss[es] its relevance for today’ (DES, undated, p.15). These sentiments are echoed in the junior cycle Jewish Studies short course. Junior cycle short course in CSPE and PE focus on supporting students to become aware of themselves as global citizens ‘as they learn how their wellbeing is connected to the wellbeing of others and of our planet’. This focus is also supported at senior cycle through, amongst others, Active Leisure Studies (LCA), Visual Arts (LCA) and Agricultural Science (LCE).

Again, the theme of students caring for the environment was particularly reflected in curricula. Focusing on care from the perspective of the environment may support schools to implement a focus on care within the lived reality of school and classroom life.

Discussion

This study set out to explore how ‘care’ is understood and reflected in Irish educational legislation, policies, circulars and curriculum published between 1937 and 2020. In total, 616 documents were analysed in terms of the key search term ‘care’. Seventy-eight documents make some reference to care. In this section, we note some of the common themes emerging in how care is presented, defined and discussed across Irish legislation, policies, circulars and curricula. We note some of the nuances and discuss from the perspective of implementation and enactment. Across these documents, ‘care’ tended to be understood and reflected in five main ways: (1) care for the individual child and the related duty of care schools/teachers have for children; (2) care presented from a structural perspective regarding care supports within the school; (3) care presented in terms of ‘pastoral care’ or intertwined with ‘well-being’; (4) supporting students to care for themselves and for others; and (5) care presented from the perspective of care for the environment.

At one level, the understandings of care emerging from this analysis reflect a certain level of focus on care across Irish legislation, policy, circulars, and curricula. The importance placed on the duty of care schools and teachers have towards their students is particularly important, as it places care as a central dimension of Irish education. Taken together the themes emerging from this research place an onus on schools, school management and staff to ascribe either implicitly or explicitly to the inclusion of care in the education process. Theme 2 (Care supports) presents some evidence of how schools and school communities can implement a care focus including a whole-school approach, managed with effective leadership and clarity with regards the role and function of the SNA for students with additional educational needs. Equally theme 3 presents a focus on the pastoral care role of the school and school community as well as linking pastoral care to student well-being. There appears a continuum of focus placed upon care, reflecting different agendas ‘care for self’; care for ‘others’ ‘care for planet’, particularly evident within curricula, perhaps indicating that themes 4 and 5 are ways in which care can be lived out within classroom and school life.

However, the low level of discussion on care across the documents, particularly educational legislation, is a concern. The many ways in which care is conceptualised and presented within and across the documentation highlights the potential conceptual confusion that exists as to what care is and how it can best be supported within educational settings. Clarity of meaning is important when implementing policies, curricula, or related educational change (Fullan, 2007). While care is a complex construct, the lack of conceptual clarity within the analysed documents as to the meaning of care, and how this manifests in schools, is problematic. This conceptual vacuum may lead to confusion regarding how best to support care within school life, as well as any potential efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of such efforts.

What is also unclear, across the reviewed documentation are the conditions required for implementation and transmission of messages with regards care for oneself, care for others and care for the environment. Equally, one is left to wonder how successful these successive publications have been without a focus on evaluation and set against a context of exam dominance perpetuating competitive individualism and the importance of technical knowledge (Gilleece & Cosgrove, 2012; Gleeson, 2010; Hargreaves, 1994; Lynch & Lodge, 2004; Lynch, 2012, 2018). If one returns to Nodding’s (2015) view of curriculum which focuses on schools as centres of care – these authors argue that while care is advocated across legislation, policy, circulars and curricula, schools may in fact require further support in promoting and inculcating care for oneself, for others, for plants, the earth and human ideas. This, as Nodding’s (2015) suggests requires a commitment to progressive philosophies of education, that acknowledge the value of disciplinary knowledge while stretching disciplinary boundaries from within. We would go even further and suggest the focus should emerge in terms of prioritization and implementation, as many legislative, policy and curriculum documents evidence a focus on care in education – however how students feel and experience this may be at odds with the rhetoric of the documentation presented.

Implications for policy and practice

Within this section, the authors present a number of considerations synthesized from across the literature to support the implementation of care as evidenced within the policies and practices of schools. We explore how care becomes embedded in teachers’ practices and in school culture so that it can effectively move from the level of policy, curricula or legislation into practice in schools. Many of the challenges identified around the conceptualisation of care provision with the education sector have been further accentuated by the COVID-19 pandemic (Mohan et al., 2021; Murray et al., 2021; Nelis et al., 2021). Carroll and McCoy (2021, p. 178) call for targeted evidence-based supports at classroom level, that are included in school plans and reflect ‘both intensive short-term responses and more sustainable long-term developments’. This is not to suggest that establishing a climate of care is an additional task for schools, school management and teachers, rather it positions care as ‘underneath all we do as teachers’ (Noddings, 2012, p. 777). Across the extant literature care is created within contexts where all teachers view care as an aspect of their role (Dadvand & Cuervo, 2019; Ellerbrock et al., 2015; Kissinger, 2012; Rutledge et al., 2015) and all students have access to at least one supportive caring adult within the school community (Dadvand & Cuervo, 2019; Ellerbrock et al., 2015; Gard, 2014). Noddings (2012, p. 772) describes the teacher as carer as ‘interested in the expressed needs of the cared-for, not simply the needs assumed by the school as an institution and the curriculum as a prescribed course of study’. This perspective comprises an inherent tension between fulfilling the needs of the child in any given situation and the needs of the prescribed curriculum. Equally, one must acknowledge that it is not always possible to satisfy the expressed needs of the individual and the cared-for must have the capacity to receive care (Noddings, 2012).

From a beliefs and values perspective, when all members of the community have consensus that care features as a core value of the school (Ellerbrock et al., 2015; O’Flaherty & McCormack, 2019; O’Flaherty et al., 2018; O’Flaherty, Liddy and McCormack, 2018; Solis, 2013), teachers can therefore communicate high expectations for all students including student care (Ellerbrock et al., 2015; Kissinger, 2012). Bean-Folkes and Ellison (2018) and Kissinger (2012) suggest that teachers who love the teaching profession and are happy are better able to create a caring learning environment. This observation draws some attention to pay, conditions and retention within the teaching profession. Schools that are underpinned by the ethical principles of care are more effective in this regard (Bean-Folkes & Ellison, 2018). Having an understanding and awareness of all students, their background, culture and needs, ensures that schools/teachers can provide suitable and relevant care for students (Cody, 2017). Teacher–student relationships are central to care, so priority needs to be placed on supporting and promoting this within all aspects of school life (Ellerbrock et al., 2015; Jones, 2006; Rutledge et al., 2015). It is important to note here that teacher–student relationships are ‘by their nature, not equal relations, and mutuality cannot be expected’ (Noddings, 2012, p. 772), yet it is incumbent that both parties contribute to the establishment and maintenance of caring relationships. Fielding and Moss (2011, p. 5) suggest that attentive listening for all parties ‘is one of the foundations of the educational project’. Open, clear and honest forms of communication also aid the development of caring environments (Ellerbrock et al., 2015).

Reflective of the policies reviewed above, school policies and procedures relating to care primarily focus on discipline structures and policies that care for all (Mortari & Ubbiali, 2017). Care should be a central element of such policies and should ensure that all students, even ‘troublesome’ students, feel cared for. A whole-school approach, rather than a subject specific approach, is deemed more effective to creating caring environments. Therefore, care should be evident in all school policies and classrooms. School facilities and infrastructure that foster care place an emphasis on attachment building between students and students-teachers (Dadvand & Cuervo, 2019; Ellerbrock et al., 2015); and buddy/mentoring/advisory programmes, counselling and/or allocated time slots to enable students, who are struggling, to engage with a teacher one-to-one (Cody, 2017; Gard, 2014). It is interesting to note that Marland shared a view that schools should design their pastoral care structures ‘from the bottom up’ (Best, 2014). However, Edmond and Price (2009) posit the question whether the creation of new roles in schools, contributes to a diversification of roles or a de-professionalisation of functions, thus leading to a weakening of the traditional job boundaries. They discuss the role of ‘associate‐professionals’ who support and contribute to a multi-disciplinary ‘pedagogical team’, and suggest potentially that this mechanism contributes to the de-professionalisation of the pastoral care function of the teacher. School leaders, therefore, must have an understanding of change and change processes (Cody, 2017).

While over a quarter of curricula reviewed in this study made some reference to ‘care’, how this could be lived out through student’s curricular experiences was unclear. From a curriculum and teaching and learning perspective, four principles of practice support the development of care in schools. Firstly, students are provided with opportunities to explore curriculum relating to health, well-being, confidence, self-esteem, social emotional learning and ethical aspects of life to promote caring environments (Cody, 2017; Corcoran et al., 2018, 2020; Kissinger, 2012; Rutledge et al., 2015; Sanger & Osguthorpe; 2013). Secondly, as above, facilitating time for attachment building is key (Gard, 2014). This may go some way to mitigating the ‘dangers of designing systems which invite a separation of pastoral work from teaching’ (Best, 2014, p. 178). Thirdly, pedagogical approaches are inculcated that encourage reflection, explore culturally relevant examples and cooperative group engagement to help students feel cared for (Bean-Folkes & Ellison, 2018; Mortari & Ubbiali, 2017). It is important that as educators we create and spend time speaking about the feelings we encounter, fear, anger, envy and ways in which we can manage them (Corcoran & Tormey, 2012a, 2012b). Lastly, schools provide structures/supports that enable teachers to consider and reflect their own values and beliefs before teaching a topic or a particular group of students, thus supporting teachers to be caring of all students (Hsi-Chu Hsiao & Su-Ling Yang, 2010; Ellerbrock et al., 2015; Mortari & Ubbiali, 2017). Teachers who endeavour to respond to the implicit and explicit needs of students require what Noddings (1999, p. 215) describes as ‘latitudinal knowledge’. This requires the teacher to draw upon literature across a number of domain areas in order to enrich their teaching, therefore potentially enabling multiple possibilities for students to make connections with the great existential questions as well as questions of current social life.

In conclusion, while results from the present study evidence an articulation of care in Irish legislation, policy, circulars and curricula, (78 documents from a total of 616 (13%) reviewed), the authors highlight the lack of reference to care in the majority of documents reviewed and also the general lack of clarity about how care is conceptualised or understood, something which requires further research and exploration. The authors suggest that care can be nurtured within school environments that embrace particular conditions, for example, schools that feature care as a core value; care evident in all school policies and classrooms and where teachers view care as an aspect of their role. This focus on care is evident in school structures and strategies and across the curriculum, teaching, learning and assessment experiences.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary Material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/02643944.2023.2214902

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI) [ETBI_2020_01].