Creating a modern educational system? International influence, domestic elites and the transformation of the Irish educational sector, 1950-1975

Abstract

The educational sector in the Irish state, which had been notable for the enduring power of traditional institutions and values in the first generation of the independent Irish state, experienced a far-reaching transformation in the mid-twentieth century, linked to governmental intervention on an unprecedented scale. A dramatic change in government policy towards higher education, designed to produce a more highly qualified labour force and meet increased social demand for post-primary and later higher education, stimulated a long-term transformation of the educational sector in the 30-year period from the 1950s to the 1980s. Government policies incorporated expansion of participation at post-primary and higher level; rationalisation of traditional structures and institutional patterns; curriculum reform and the development of traditionally neglected strands of education, which took on greater importance for economic development. Far-reaching policy changes were driven by changing attitudes among domestic political elites, linked to the influence of international ideas mediated through the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). This chapter sets out to explore the origins of the most significant policy changes in this period, underlying influences that shaped policy change and the long-term implications for the modern educational sector in the Republic: a comprehensive discussion of all of the many policy developments that occurred in this period falls outside the scope of this work.