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This paper investigates the perception amongst insiders of the degree of innovativeness of organisational culture in Ireland's higher education institutions. While the role of higher education institutions has expanded to include being a driver of innovation, we suggest that any such body is perhaps best suited to achieve this if it itself is innovative. We review the literature on corporate innovation, discuss a recent metric of innovativeness in culture and present the results of a large-scale survey on said culture within the higher education sector in Ireland. There is a divide between the university and institutes of technology sector, with organisational culture in universities being perceived to be much more innovative than that in institutes, despite these latter being designed to be closer to industry. We also find that STEM faculty members see culture as less innovative than others. These findings raise questions around the implicit and explicit thrusts of Irish higher education policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is set within the context of university change in the Republic of Ireland. Irish third-level institutions are increasingly situated, whilst situating themselves, in the global advance of the so-called ‘entrepreneurial’ university model. This model promotes knowledge as utilitarian and performative that, in turn, informs new organising principles that pervade mission statements, policy choices and inter-related cultural practices. Such a change force benefits from significant moral, financial and politico-ideological support at national, European and global levels. Symbolic and real links between education and the economy lie at the heart of this paradigm. Most visibly, rationalisation and innovation measures, rooted within the education–economy relation, powerfully pervade the daily life of the world's universities. These and other related cultural practices are presently legitimated by recessionary conditions and are progressively harmonised by the advance of multi-layered disciplinary technologies. Foucauldian insights into these illuminate how corporate culture is regulated within university and how teachers’ identities and work practices are shaped by, and simultaneously shape, new cultural practices. This paper concerns itself with providing a critical conceptual lens through which to explicate the power effects of corporate culture. Furthermore, this paper addresses possible resolutions to challenges and possibilities that ensue. In particular, Foucault's concept of problematisation is evoked as a direct challenge to a ‘normative allegiance’ to the cultural reshaping of the university. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a national survey of information skills training (IST) practices in Irish higher education institutions, which was carried out during 2006-2007 with the aim of documenting current practice and identifying areas in which change or innovation may be warranted. Despite an emerging picture of information literacy (IL) practice worldwide, a lack of published research has made it difficult to gain an accurate overview of IL activity in the Republic of Ireland. This paper aims to partly fill this gap. Design/methodology/approach - An invitation to complete a 26-item questionnaire was sent out to librarians in all publicly-funded higher education institutions in the Irish Republic in November 2006. Out of 154 librarians, 77 responded, giving a response rate of 50 per cent. Findings - Results showed that, while librarians spend a significant portion of their time engaged in IST activities and are enthusiastic about developing and promoting their programmes, IST continues to be delivered in primarily standalone format, using non-integrated methods. Formal assessment of IS outcomes is not commonly carried out in Irish higher education institutions. Originality/value - This paper represents the first national survey of IST practices in higher education in the Irish Republic, and serves as a baseline for international comparison and future longitudinal studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores case study research of the group process for teachers as learners in an Online Learning Module delivered in a blended problem‐based learning (PBL) environment. Blended learning, as the name suggests, consists of a blend of at least two pedagogical approaches: within the context of this research, blended learning is the integration of the PBL face‐to‐face learning in a classroom with an e‐learning environment. The 10‐week module was part of an accredited Postgraduate Diploma in Third Level Learning and Teaching for academic staff (lecturers, librarians, learning technology support staff) from a range of higher education institutions in the Republic of Ireland. This Postgraduate Diploma attracts academic staff keen to experience and implement a variety of pedagogical approaches within their own teaching. Over the four years of the module’s existence, there have been a wide variety of subject disciplines in higher education represented. This paper shares experiences and lessons learnt from the case study, and provides a set of recommendations for other teachers pursuing this form of blended PBL with students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Countries with similar levels of economic development often implement different education ICT policies. Much of the existing research attributes such differences to economic and political factors. In this paper, we examine the development of ICT policy and implementation in the two parts of Ireland and in two Canadian provinces and find that historical, social and cultural differences also play an important role in the way ICT policies develop. In particular, we see differing historical perceptions of the role of the state and church in education playing a more important role than has hitherto been recognized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introducing an educational innovation into any school context involves some challenge to existing practices. Transition Year is an innovative, optional, one-year programme taken by approximately half the 15-16-year age cohort in schools in the Republic of Ireland. Based on data from an extensive study of TY operating in six different schools, programme co-ordinators and school principals are identified as having key roles in the successful implementation of TY. However, exercising the collegiality both roles demand goes against established cultures of isolated individualism in Irish schools. Furthermore, maintaining TY's coherence and integrity in the face of threats from more established programmes offers particular challenges. For this innovation to be successful, active curriculum leadership by school principals is seen as crucial. The paper interrogates the evidence through the lens of the 2008 OECD study on school leadership and poses questions about the relevance and value of the OECD perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]