How Can We Identify Elite Schools (Where They Do Not Exist)? The Case of Ireland

Abstract

This chapter reports on a study conducted in Ireland, a country where despite staggering social inequalities, conversations on class and elites are scarce. Based on a study of the Who’s Who, school fees and data on progression to university, and taking into account the historical, cultural and geographical context, it proposes a flexible typology of private schools in Ireland. In contrast with the Swedish case presented in this section, data on the socio-economic profile of students is not publicly available. In addition, due to local specificities, the criteria established by researchers in the UK and US contexts to separate out elite schools from other private institutions are not directly applicable. While acknowledging the importance of global perspectives and methodologies in research on elite education, the chapter makes the case for establishing fine-grained criteria that account for local specificities and rapid changes in the field.