Session Information
26 SES 08 A, Lessons Learned from Researching Leadership and Policy in Different Countries
Symposium
Contribution
This paper’s national perspective comes from Ireland, a small country on the periphery of Europe. Education is widely acknowledged as being highly valued in Irish society (Drudy and Lynch 1993; Harford 2010; Dolan 2012; Quinn 2012). The education system is a high-performing one and like many education systems around the world it is now closely aligned with the economy and viewed competitively and as a way of attracting foreign direct investment (McNamara et al. 2022). A notable feature of the Irish school system is the high-level of involvement of the Catholic Church. The paper offers the perspective of an Irish researcher as part of a reflection on the lessons they have learned from their time researching education policy and leadership in Ireland.The author has researched a broad range of policy and leadership areas in Ireland and will share four key lessons learned from doing this work: it is important to pay close attention to context when doing research in education; it is possible that some interviewees are too interview ready; it can be very valuable treating researcher subjectivity as a key asset in your research; and you are not always listened to—being critical sometimes means being ignored. Although these lessons have been learned by the researcher in Ireland, their relevance and usefulness are not confined to this country. It is envisaged that these lessons will resonate with, bring reassurance to, and be of value to many others beyond Ireland.
References
Dolan, A. M. (2012). Reforming teacher education in the context of lifelong learning: the case of the BEd degree programme in Ireland. European Journal of Teacher Education, 35(4), 463-479. Drudy, S., and Lynch, K.(1993). Schools and Society in Ireland. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan Ltd. Harford, J. (2010). Teacher education policy in Ireland and the challenges of the twenty‐first century. European Journal of Teacher Education, 33(4), 349-360. McNamara, G., Skerritt, C., O’Hara, J., O’Brien, S., & Brown, M. (2022). For improvement, accountability, or the economy? Reflecting on the purpose (s) of school self-evaluation in Ireland. Journal of Educational Administration and History, 54(2), 158-173. Quinn, R. (2012). The future development of education in Ireland. Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review, 101(402), 123-138.
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