The Relationship Between Culture and Education in Ireland

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 How Culture Influences Ireland’s Educational System and Curriculum

An Overview of Ireland’s Educational System

Ireland fuses together public and private schools to create a robust education system, which affects how Irish citizens understand their cultural roles (“Education, 2019; Samovar, 2017, p.357). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, argued that cultural beliefs affected how countries “value and approach education” (Samovar, 2017, p.361). This idea framed education as a tool that societies use to advance their cultural traditions (Samovar, 2017, p.361). For example, Irish students may attend ten years of “compulsory education” in religious state-funded primary schools, state-funded “community colleges [or] schools, voluntary secondary schools,” private schools and “post primary curriculum” schools, which consists of a “three-year junior cycle, [an] optional transition year [and] a two to three year senior cycle” (“Education,” 2019). This diverse educational system demonstrated that Ireland values school choice and emphasizes a “child-centered” approach to education (“Education,” 2019). The article “Education” reiterated this notion when it claimed that Ireland’s school system provides “innovative education [that] allows students to achieve their full potential and contribute to Ireland’s social, economic, and cultural development” (“Education, 2019). This article suggested that Ireland values education as an integral part of preparing students to succeed in Irish society (“Education,” 2019). One question remains: how cultural values influence an Irish student’s educational experience (“Education,” 2019).

Irish Primary School Classroom 


A Typical School Day in Ireland and Topics Discussed

When Americans examine Ireland’s similar educational system, they should understand how culture influences Irish curriculum and the structure of Ireland’s school day, which reinforces their student-based educational approach (“Education,” 2019; Samovar, 2017, pp.361-363). Samovar argued that a school’s curriculum emphasizes what “is critical to the maintenance and perpetuation of that culture” (Samovar, 2017, p.361). This idea implied that how a country teaches specific subjects and how long the school day lasts, reflect their cultural values (Samovar, 2017, p.361). The Irish school day begins at 9:00 a.m. for primary students and 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. for “post-primary students” and lasts for “5 hours and 40 minutes [or] 6 hours” (“Education,” 2019). Primary students receive an education that focuses on instructing the “spiritual, moral, cognitive, emotional, imaginative, aesthetic, social and physical” aspects of their lives, which illustrates Ireland’s holistic approach to education (“Education,” 2019). This approach includes instructing students in mathematics, history, physical education, language, and art (“Education,” 2019 and “Primary”). Secondary students and “post-primary” students focus on preparing for three certificates: the “Leaving certificate, Leaving certificate Vocational Program [and] the “Leaving certificate Applied Programe” (“Education,” 2019). Within these certificates, schools provide students with course choices, such as Engineering, History, Gaelige, Hebrew Studies and German (“Junior Cycle;” “Senior Cycle”). This diverse educational system provides students with the preparation that they need to become productive members of Irish society and pursue higher education or technical and vocational careers (“Education,” 2019).

"10 Weird Differences Between American and Irish Schools"


Ireland’s Graduation and College Attendance Demographics



 This document supplies the number and percentage of new Irish citizens attending higher education institutions and those enrolled in vocational training. It breaks the numbers down by gender, age, field of study, socio-economic status, county of origin and includes “key educational trends” (“Key Facts and Figures,” 2018). It also includes access to post-graduate and graduate statistics as well.

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