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This paper examines the case for progressive unionism in Northern Ireland today. The paper locates the progressive currents within unionism and explains the forces that have frustrated their development. It contends that analysis of the leadership provided by unionists in civil society and the attitudinal profile of the pro-union electorate nonetheless signals the existence of space to cultivate more progressive forms of unionism. This challenges the largely negative appraisals of unionism in popular discourse. Unionism is shown to possess a diversity and potential that is often unrecognised. The paper therefore promotes a more sophisticated understanding of unionism and its possible political futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As President of the United States, Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel served to heighten tensions in the Middle East and instantly undermined his stated goal of bringing peace to the troubled region. This paper will argue that there are important lessons to be gained from the political process in Northern Ireland to help bolster a peace process in the Middle East. Through an analysis of Unionist politics pre- and post- the Anglo-Irish Agreement, the paper will argue that there is a need to not only encourage militants to make peace, but also to incentivise regional hegemons into meaningful negotiations. The paper will highlight the important role played by international hegemonic powers as they seek to create a Strategically Benefical Moment for all sides in the conflict as they seek to 'ripen' the conditions for peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how and why the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) and the Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA) in the Newry-area engaged in a type of violence commonly referred to as 'punishment attacks' during the first half-decade of the Troubles. A rich literature has developed to explain the use of punishment attacks, and their consequences, in Northern Ireland's two largest cities of Belfast and Londonderry/Derry. This paper builds on this work by drawing on the emerging political science literature on rebel governance to develop a resource constraint model and an internal competition model to explain the use of punishment attacks in the rural and semi-rural areas along the border with the Republic of Ireland. The explanatory models are then evaluated against newly collected quantitative data on punishment attacks reported in the Belfast Telegraph from 1974–1975 and qualitative evidence from archival and newspaper sources. The analysis suggests that the resource constraint model provides a better, although imperfect, explanation for PIRA punishment attacks during this period, while the internal competition model provides a better, although imperfect, explanation for OIRA activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines public leadership for peacebuilding in divided societies emerging from severe violence. It deploys two theories of leadership: social identity and political astuteness, to investigate peacebuilding leadership processes. The paper investigates contradictions in social identity leadership, since peacebuilding leaders reach out beyond their own group to outgroups in hostile contexts. Semi-structured interviews with 32 leaders in Northern Ireland and in Bosnia Herzegovina, reveal that leading for peacebuilding exhibits inverse processes of social identity leadership and that political astuteness is also critical to navigate integration and differentiation within/across groups. Wider implications for public leadership in societies containing division are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the 1974–79 Labour Government's attempt to introduce comprehensive education in Northern Ireland. The policy found support in, and drew criticism from, different elements within both Protestant and Catholic groups which, although transcending the usual community divide, hardly made the Government's task any easier. In fact, it carried the risk of antagonising elements from both sides. Claims that the Labour Government acted with 'fiery zeal' over the introduction of comprehensive education, in contrast with its efforts on integrated schooling, are misplaced. Proceeding cautiously, but initially with the intention of introducing legislation before the next general election, Labour never even reached the stage of issuing a White Paper. Its caution developed into near stasis, as its policy of local consultation superseded the need to act within the electoral cycle. The guiding principle soon became 'local planning, for local people, for local circumstances'. Consequently, despite its genuine commitment to the policy of comprehensivisation, Labour's only achievement in office would be its promise to replace the 11-plus examination, something which remained a mere pledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In Northern Ireland, it is widely agreed that mental health service provision for children and young people is inadequate and that there is a need for much greater prioritisation and strategic planning in this area. Successive Governments have made commitments to improve services, and although progress has been made, considerable reform is still required. Using a child rights framework, this paper provides an overview of children and young people's direct experiences of accessing mental health services or support. Methods: An online survey was used to gather respondents experience of six statutory and non-statutory health services. Respondents were asked to rate services against nine rights-based service quality statements. A likert agreement rating scale was used to gather quantitative data and qualitative information was captured using open-ended questions. Excel and NVivo were used to analyse the data. Results: Overall, 607 children and young people aged 11–21 years old shared their experiences of mental health services. The survey results show that young people are reaching out to a wide range of services to access support. However, there was considerable variation in young people's satisfaction levels with different services. Conclusions: This paper brings a child rights focus to the research that exists on the child and adolescent mental health system by assessing it against a range of rights-based statements. This study found that although many services are improving, more is required to ensure that Northern Ireland has a rights compliant system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper draws upon evidence captured from a parent consultation exercise conducted by Helen Dunn (author) and Paula Keenan on behalf of Children in Northern Ireland (CiNI) for the Department of Health as part of the Review of Children's Social Care led by Professor Ray Jones during 2022–23. CiNI is the regional umbrella organisation for the children's sector in Northern Ireland. This paper will be of interest to those who are keen to hear parents and carers views and their experiences of Social Work and Social Care in Northern Ireland. The Review also engaged Voice of Young People in Care (VOYPIC) a charity for children and young people with a lived experience of care in Northern Ireland. They formed an Experts by Experience Reference Group of young people who were currently in or had experience of the care system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two competitive approaches are dominant in the debate about the optimal strategy to cope with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Conflict-Management and Conflict-Resolution. This paper suggests looking at them as complementary. It presents four models of peacemaking. The first, the Strong Leader Model, involves drastic unilateral initiatives taken by one of the parties. The second, the Social Reformer Model, encourages domestic reforms within each of the parties. The third, the Political Elite Model, offers various forms of diplomatic interactions and is the dominant experience in Middle East peace processes. The fourth, the Public Assembly Model, proposes the creation of a major Israeli-Palestinian Public Negotiating Congress, based on the multiparty talks used in South Africa and Northern Ireland during the 1990s. This paper concludes that a multifaceted approach, which uses insights from all models in an integrated fashion, has the potential to create a momentum for a revolutionary peacemaking process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both Sinn Féin and the DUP have successfully mobilised ethnic tribune strategies in order to secure dominance in the electoral politics of Northern Ireland. Alongside this development, Northern Irish society has become markedly more diverse as a result of increasing inward migration. While immigration has enriched the array of cultural variety in the territory, it has been accompanied by increasing evidence of high profile racism. This raises questions as to how political parties that have profited from ethnic tribune strategies might adapt to the realities of a more diverse society. This paper illustrates the manner in which Sinn Féin and the DUP have approached the issue of racism against ethnic minorities, using an in-depth, qualitative analysis of party language. The data are drawn from a series of interviews with elected representatives, party literature, and from debates in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Two key findings are discussed. Firstly, the paper notes a lack of clarity in the manner in which both parties approach the subjects of racism and sectarianism. Secondly, the paper highlights the process by which varieties of racism experienced by ethnic minorities, have become absorbed by debates traditionally associated with bi-national division in the territory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the economic implications of Brexit by making recourse to original archival studies as well as the literatures concerning modern British and European economic history as well as the Two Irelands. An overriding lesson is that Northern Ireland, like the UK as whole, has suffered from weaknesses in competition and productivity that have given rise to long-run economic underperformance. Only after Brentry was this legislation reversed. Yet while European integration overall tended to improve economic performance, political instability tended to offset these benefits. Despite the political settlement in 1998, much room for improvement remains. Brexit, and in particular the Protocol, has complicated matters further. While the Windsor Framework offers greater economic opportunities than the original Protocol, seising these opportunities is far from inevitable. A better regional industrial policy is possible if the right lessons emerge from the historical evidence. Such a regional policy requires consideration of 'place-based' issues and in turn consideration of such issues return us to the importance of historical factors in determining long-run economic performance. Economic history matters more than is often understood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patterns of research funding in the UK clearly evidence unequal awarding to the detriment of applicants of African descent. This paper presents a case from 'within' this larger machine of knowledge production: a failed funding application made by two applicants to establish a social science network connecting African/ist scholars in Northern Ireland (UK) to those of its neighbouring Republic of Ireland (EU). Rated highly in the positive peer reviews of those appointed by the funding agency, the deficit cannot be readily placed on the content of the application nor on the universities of the applicants at the time, both highly positioned within the institutional stratifications in the UK and ROI. To illuminate from within this darker side of structural knowledge delegitimation in the global North, we situate this application as an insider example of the conditions which militate against advancing marginalised study areas. We do so to work against the prevailing impression of such work being impossible; turning to that which is not structurally delineated by institutions nor national funding mechanisms. In publishing this paper, we re-assert our ethical obligations and agency as intellectuals to bring to light the defunding of such endeavours and the larger genealogies of influence in our times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emphasis on test-based accountability has been linked with a recent decline in outdoor learning provision, particularly between the early and later stages of primary education. It also appears that pre-service teachers are inadequately prepared to teach outdoors. This paper reports on a project designed to equip a group of 15 pre-service teachers on one Initial Teacher Education programme in Northern Ireland to teach mathematics outdoors. The small-scale study used online questionnaires, semi-structured group interviews and individual written reflections to gather the views of the participants. Findings highlight the benefits of experiential learning for pre-service teachers: they were transformed by the experience, acquiring new pedagogical content knowledge and skills and showing increased confidence and enthusiasm for teaching outdoors. There was also recognition that further support and training would be beneficial. Such findings are important since pre-service teachers play a critical role in the future provision of school-based outdoor learning experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how governance in the further education (FE) sector in Northern Ireland (NI) has been shaped by policy frameworks implemented at local, regional, national and UK levels. Despite the unique ways in which FE policy has developed alongside the other devolved nations, very little research has considered the NI context and its complexity. In this paper we first examine the history of FE provision in NI, and the development of FE in NI in relation to the rest of the United Kingdom (UK). Following this, we examine the impact of recent FE policy on governance structures and governing practices across the six regionalised colleges operating in NI today by presenting some insights gained from ethnographic observations of governing boards in action and interviews with key policy actors. Our analysis of the empirical data reveals key challenges facing FE governing bodies in NI in relation to financial and budgetary concerns, the multiple relationships between colleges and the various government departments, and the uncertainty presented by the suspension and subsequent reinstatement of Stormont and the EU Exit (Brexit). We conclude by offering reflection on these analyses in relation to FE governance in NI going forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The legacy of the Northern Ireland conflict continues to weigh heavily on the Police Service of Northern Ireland's institutional memory and contemporary policing practices. In this paper, we argue that the tension between competing interpretations of organisational memory and the need to 'police' the past has contributed to a 'through the looking glass' phenomenon as regards the policing past and efforts to 'deal with' the legacy of the Northern Ireland conflict. The article opens with an examination of the contested memory of policing in Northern Ireland. We then explore how, on the one hand, from a policing perspective, dealing with the past has been regarded as an opportunity to 'celebrate' aspects of the policing past but on the other, has reinforced a desire to 'censure' the less palatable aspects of police conduct during the conflict. Relatedly, we then interrogate how this desire to 'secure the past' has translated into the argument that existing and prospective mechanisms of truth recovery risk 're-writing' the history of the conflict. Finally, the article considers how efforts at truth recovery have been acted upon and received by contemporary policing bodies. This part of the article lays bare both the practical challenges of 'doing' truth recovery within a policing framework and the need to 'secure' the memory of the policing past. The conclusion argues for the separation of policing and 'the past' and the removal of legacy work from policing bodies whose predecessor force was both a victim and perpetrator of that legacy of political violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Citizenship education has been a feature of the school curricula in many western democracies since the 1990s. Consequently, there is a proliferation of research which explores its efficacy in instilling political literacy and encouraging democratic engagement amongst pupils. Less is known however about how citizenship is taught in societies emerging from conflicts which are [at least in part] motivated by competing narratives around citizenship. This paper examines this issue within the context of Northern Ireland. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 18 post-primary citizenship teachers, it argues that whilst the curricular text for citizenship education has encouraged teachers to discuss 'the past' in Northern Ireland only a minority of teachers do so. The paper suggests that teachers are constrained in their attempts to explore the past by a complex interplay of factors including cultural norms of avoidance and their interpretation of the current socio-political context. The paper argues that it cannot be assumed that teachers themselves possess the critical capacities that they are expected to nurture in pupils, yet, where efforts are made to harness teachers' critical skills, they are more likely to display the confidence and skill to discuss contentious issues related to the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across the four UK jurisdictions, there are distinct disparities in exclusion rates of school students. Northern Ireland, alongside Scotland and Wales, has demonstrated over time, lower rates of permanent exclusions and temporary exclusions compared with England. This paper examines these disparities from the perspectives of representatives from various system-level educational bodies and third sector organisations representing children and families who experienced the exclusion process. The paper will also present policy and legal frameworks associated with exclusion in Northern Ireland. We interviewed 9 stakeholders, associated with practices of school exclusion in Northern Ireland, from a range of system-level education bodies and advocacy groups. Findings include positive strategies perceived to keep exclusion levels low, types of obstacles or resistance to anti-exclusion policy, participants' perspectives on unofficial exclusion practice, and perspectives on official exclusion data. What emerges from interviews is a series of tensions between implementing a child-centred approach and diminishing support services and resources. We conclude that those working within the Northern Ireland education system, are committed to an inclusive approach. However, the development and implementation of effective supporting frameworks take time and consultation, and there is evidence of tension between the perceptions of those working at a system-level and those working in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the 1 January 2021 the new Protocol on Northern Ireland (NI) regulates NI's trade with the European Union (EU) and Great Britain (GB). These rules imply divergence between trade arrangements in NI and GB creating an unprecedented situation where trade frictions arise between two regions of the same country. In this paper we use a multi-sector economic model to capture the impact that potential non-tariff barriers and tariffs will have on trade in NI. Simulation results demonstrate that a weaker relation between GB and the EU will have a greater negative impact on the NI economy. However, this may be reduced by the ability of NI firms to substitute intermediate inputs from GB for EU imports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Personal Construct Psychology (PCP) offers a powerful framework for understanding the conflict and dispute between two parties. The bulk of the literature on PCP conflict resolution addresses issues in the context of families and small groups. In this paper, we present the analysis of sociality in the context of a long-standing conflict in Northern Ireland1. We used the Perceiver Element Grid (PEG) to map the construing of representatives from the two main communities in Northern Ireland2. Following 30 years of violent conflict and a subsequent 20-year peace process, these communities remain diametrically opposed to each other. In this paper, we explore the potential of the PEG as a means by which to assess sociality among parties to the Northern Ireland conflict. In addition, we discuss how the PEG could serve as a useful tool in conflict resolution, particularly when interviewees are asked to construe from the position of an imagined future. We draw conclusions relating to how developing sociality could be used to help improve inter-community relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1998, Byrne and McKeown examined the churches’ roles in Northern Ireland’s (NI) schooling system. NI was then governed by direct-rule from the UK’s Westminster Parliament. The authors concluded that the desire of the Protestant churches to re-establish their influence in schools was ‘unlikely to succeed’. This was contrasted with the ‘success-story’ of Catholic influence in schooling. This article tracks the fortunes of the Protestant churches in NI’s educational policy developments in the last 18 years. Of particular interest are the government’s proposals to establish an Education and Skills Authority (ESA) under a new Education Bill. A careful reading of the Protestant churches’ annual education reports indicates the alarm with which these proposals were met. In the early years of the new millennium it seemed that the conclusions of the 1998 paper were prescient. However, extensive lobbying by the Protestant churches in a changed (devolved) political context secured almost all their demands. This article concludes that the ‘tension’ (claimed in the 1998 paper) between the Protestant churches and the state has largely been resolved. The article evaluates the significance of recent developments for the Protestant churches and their involvement in schooling. More critically, the propriety of these developments is questioned asking if they mark an advance for the Protestant churches and/or schooling in NI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Debates on consociationalism seek to explain how and why prescriptive power-sharing can support successful ethnic conflict management in post-conflict societies and if the differences between liberal and corporate consociationalism affect system stability. At the same time, a new and growing body of work has begun to examine the previously under-considered effects of power-sharing on "Others," that is, those communities not in alignment with the included ethnic groups. This paper adds to understandings of liberal and corporate consociational models and their impact on a specific type of Other – "newcomers" – through interviews with civil society organizations representing their interests. Current approaches to the liberal-corporate distinction do not reflect the impact of institutional design on newcomers navigation of power-sharing systems. Through a comparative analysis of newcomer engagement in (liberal) Northern Ireland and (corporate) Lebanon, this paper will reveal how institutional design cultivates path-dependent elite behaviors that negatively impact newcomers through different policy responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Administrative data sets can play a key role in informing and influencing education provision. To date, longitudinal analysis of special educational needs (SEN) in Northern Ireland (NI) has not been a visible feature of policy discourse, even though the number of these pupils has increased at a rate that is proportionally higher than the general school population. To better understand the prevalence of SEN, this paper utilises secondary educational data collected between 2010/11 and 2021/22 to interrogate trends in NI as well as relative to other jurisdictions. Findings identify the intricacy of comparative analysis, not least due to differing approaches to data collection and reporting, as well as approaches to assessment and identification of SEN. More specifically, within the NI context, the findings identify fundamental trends across school types. The association between these trends and significant policy changes in how SEN is identified, recorded and reported is critically considered. The utility of big data is discussed, including implications for generating robust evidence, contributing to forward-planning on the future monitoring of, and provision for, SEN, and reinforcing the need for accessible new data to improve the visibility of SEN in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In societies emerging from conflict, education plays an important part in instituting peace and reconciliation, and school leaders are key to this. This paper examines the complexity of school leadership in Northern Ireland. Despite the peace agreement of 1998, Northern Ireland's communities are still deeply divided, and this is reflected in education. The school leaders who were interviewed as part of this research work within school partnerships as part of 'shared education' projects which involve schools working together and with twin aims of improving both educational and reconciliation outcomes for young people. The challenges that school leaders face when working in partnership in post-conflict societies have not been given the attention they deserve in the literature, so this work is significant in that it brings a focus on how school leaders can best be empowered to be agents of change, in turn empowering pupils. While the context is Northern Ireland, the outcomes from this study will be of wider interest and significance for school leaders facing similar challenges in other divided situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the intergenerational media practice pedagogy at work in the Generation Animation project. Using a participatory action research (PAR) methodology this project developed out of a small community in Northern Ireland. In this post-conflict community, the project aimed to make space for children's voices. The project sits in a specific post-conflict context known as 'Shared Education'. In this context, primary school pupils from schools divided along denominational and sectarian geographies come together as a means of learning and understanding the other. When teachers from two such schools approached Ulster University to support them in developing a program of digital animation for their (8–10-year-old) pupils, an intergenerational learning environment was established which included staff from the primary schools, students and staff from the university and the primary school pupils. The PAR approach enabled the facilitation of learning through media practice (animation) as these pupils used the animated screen space to explore the UNICEF Rights of the Child. This paper offers an examination of the complex pedagogical interplay at work between the key participants and offers insights and conclusions on the impact of the PAR on the participants and the wider community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers women's representation in the under-explored context of the judiciary in Northern Ireland. Previous research into the experiences of women practitioners in the legal profession in Northern Ireland has indicated that women are discouraged from pursuing judicial careers for a variety of reasons associated with their gender. Further research into the gendered barriers these women practitioners face is required in order to assess the extent to which the same may impede their career progression. This paper uses a critical, social constructionist feminist approach to explore some of the gendered barriers influencing women's under-representation in Northern Ireland's judiciary. It is contended that representation can only be improved when women's retention and progression through the ranks of the legal profession is addressed. Employing gender as a lens, this paper will analyse potential difficulties faced by the women solicitors and barristers in Northern Ireland in order to assess future judicial gender parity prospects in this jurisdiction as it is these women solicitors and barristers who form the female "talent pool" from which future members of the judiciary will be selected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent terror attacks across Europe have raised concerns about the issue of "radicalisation" amongst sections of the Islamic populations and how it might be successfully prevented. Drawing on the growing literature analysing "radicalisation" and applying the experiences of Northern Ireland over the past half-century, this paper argues that there is a need to move away from current discourses around radicalism and to explain the extremism that manifests itself in violent actions within the parameters of sectarianism. Arguing that this sectarianism is grounded in long-term processes of "Othering," the paper will contend that there is a need for Western governments to recognise and address long-held grievances and fears within the Islamic community in order to reduce the threat of violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of Northern Ireland remains divided as it continues to transition from a prolonged ethno-national struggle during a period of violence known as "the Troubles" (1969–1998). This conflict resulted in the loss of thousands of lives, residential segregation and the construction of "peace walls" that separate the two ethno-national communities (i.e. "Catholic"/republican and "Protestant"/loyalist) in parts of many of its cities and towns. Residential segregation and violent national projects in cities such as Belfast not only reflect wider regional national tensions; they often are the foundation from which the ethno-national conflicts first emerged and continue to persist and reinforce the non-inclusionary fissures between two communities. Exclusionary national ideologies, narratives and practices, manifested through parading, sectarian political murals and residential segregation demonstrate how many embody a restrictive vision of national identity. However, there are a few notable exceptions to these discriminatory practices – one of which is the subject of this paper. 174 Trust is a community centre in the divided northwest side of Belfast that is designed and dedicated to providing an inclusive, safe and "shared" place to foster a new form of civic nationalism. Through an analysis of their contemporary efforts to transform exclusionary historical expressions of nationalism by fostering a shared civic nationalism, this paper interrogates nationalism by focusing on a significant grassroots effort that may be overlooked in general investigations. As I suggest, the lessons offered by this community centre exemplify the potential of a micro-political approach and serve as a powerful model for future development within this and other divided communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article responds to Dr Aaron Edwards' comments on my previously published article ‘Unionism, truth recovery and the fearful past’ (2011, Irish Political Studies, 26(3), pp. 361–382). It highlights two main areas of concern – the manipulation of the papers' findings into a broader critique of peace process narratives and that the paper ‘skews’ loyalist paramilitaries' contribution to peace-building. Both points suggest a misinterpretation of the arguments contained in my paper and its relationship to the field of transitional justice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper reports the research findings from an online survey of parents of primary-age pupils in Northern Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aims of the study were to explore how parents supported their child/ren's home learning; to ascertain the communication, guidance and resources between home and school; and to learn from the experiences of parents to enable more effective practices to be established should similar circumstances arise in the future. The survey yielded 2,509 responses and highlighted the divergence of practices in relation to home-school communications across schools as well as the challenges experienced by parents, particularly those who had one or more children with special educational needs and/or those who had Free School Meal Entitlement. The study was guided by Epstein's Framework of the Six Types of Involvement, most specifically the spheres of parenting, learning from home, communication, collaborating with the community and decision-making. Within Epstein's framework, the challenges and tensions between family, school and work are explored. Recommendations are made that will be helpful to parents, schools, teacher-educators, policy-makers and researchers in informing the shape and delivery of education in Northern Ireland and internationally both during and following the challenge of the current COVID-19 pandemic and for similar situations that may arise in the future. The findings and conclusions are relevant not only to the Northern Ireland education context, but also make a valuable contribution to global dialogue on what this experience has revealed about inequities in education systems and how these should be addressed going forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the experience of asylum seekers and refugees in Northern Ireland against the background of different periods of non-governance, arguing that consociationalism is hindering the implementation of an integration strategy. Northern Ireland is one of the only regions in the UK without a dedicated refugee integration strategy, in spite of one existing in draft form. As a devolved region, it sits outside the UK policy of asylum dispersal, but has to adhere to UK immigration legal policy. Northern Ireland has, however, the power to create and embed refugee integration policies and strategies as a devolved region. We seek to problematize the notion of refugee 'integration' within the context of a divided society, thereby questioning what it is asylum seekers and refugees are being asked to do within this discourse of integration. In a context where sectarianism continues to shape the spatial and social infrastructures, this is even more complex an aspiration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the Northern Ireland conflict (1968–1998), paramilitary groups were supported and sustained by a sociocultural apparatus that helped legitimise their position within the community and disseminate their political message. From the use of flags and murals, to loyalist and republican parades, working-class vernacular culture revealed who was in control of various districts within the Province. For many working-class Protestants, loyalist songs were a key component of this culture, connecting the past and the present. Unlike the better-known marching band scene, which is a huge public spectacle, the loyalist song scene is much more private. Performed in a closed setting, within local bars and clubs, loyalist songs are reproduced for internal consumption rather than outward expression. Yet, in addition to celebrating a particular loyalist culture, such songs also serve an important function in authenticating and legitimising paramilitary groups, connecting them to older organisations, whose legacy they draw upon. This paper focuses on one such song, exploring how 'The Ballad of Billy McFadzean' is used to connect the Ulster Volunteer Force of the 1960s onwards, with the 1913 organisation of the same name. In so doing, the paper attempts to illustrate the political utility of song and how songs can be used to launder and legitimise conflict, as well as those engaged in political violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, neuroscience and brain-based approaches to education have started to feature prominently in the rationale for radical educational reform, both in terms of policy and practice. Revelations about what way the brain works, it seems, is a common point of interest for neuroscience and education alike. Out of these common interests there are now entire disciplines in their own right, such as 'mind, brain and education' and 'neuroeducation', which are collaborative disciplines formed at the boundaries of common points of interest between the brain sciences in general and education. This paper seeks to examine the credibility of the science inherent in this collaboration, with a particular example found in the guise of the Revised Northern Ireland Curriculum, devised and implemented from 2003 onwards by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA). The paper will also invoke a philosophical notion known as the mereological fallacy, to offer a conceptual critique of the curricular changes in Northern Ireland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accepted knowledge concerning dissident splits from the Provisional IRA is that different groups or individuals broke away because of their disagreement with the political progresses made during the peace process. This paper will argue that other factors were at play. Primarily, that 'deviant' cohesion played a significant role. While the question of politicialisation offers significant insight into the political dimension of this split, this article will adopt a more sociological approach. Answers provided through this sociological perspective are not intended to undermine the political explanation, rather to build upon them and provide a more holistic understanding of the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared to US university students, far less is known about the scale of unwanted and non-consensual sexual experiences [USEs] faced by UK university students, particularly those in Northern Ireland [NI]. The Sexual Experiences Survey (Short Form [SEF-SFV]) is considered a popular tool for measuring USEs but has not been updated since 2007; there is some indication that additional perpetrator tactics may be more inclusive of students' experiences and that certain scoring strategies may impact our understanding of data. This paper examines the USEs reported by 1033 students attending either of NI's traditional universities. Participants completed a modified version of the SES-SFV that included two additional perpetration tactics: "ignorance of refusal" and "taken by surprise." Sixty-three percent (n = 650) reported experiencing at least one USE, but this reduced to 53% (n = 546) without the new perpetrator tactics. Female and non-heterosexual students reported significantly more USEs than male and heterosexual students, respectively. "Taken by surprise" was highly endorsed (81%, n = 525) and the most commonly endorsed tactic. Whilst dichotomous scoring is the most straightforward, continuous scoring affords greater analytical opportunities whilst still retaining frequency of USEs. "Taken by surprise" may be a relevant addition but further mixed-methodological research is required to assess its validity among larger and more diverse samples. SES-SFV scoring options should be also validated using male and mixed-gender samples, particularly categorical scoring to ensure current construction is reflective of the wider student experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the experience of Shared Teachers (STs) who were employed on temporary contracts across school partnerships designed to enrich and integrate the educational experiences of children in primary schools in rural and religiously diverse areas in Northern Ireland, as part of a specific Shared Education Programme. In a society emerging from conflict, where Shared Education is advocated both to improve the quality of education and contribute to more positive community relations, this paper critically explores the strengths and limitations of using a ST initiative to develop inter-school collaboration. There were clear educational benefits in sharing resources, planning and curricular enrichment but the potential to affect positive community relations was often limited. STs were used for routine tasks within individual partnership schools, rather than normalising shared experience where pupils are educated together. STs lacked the institutional support necessary to challenge the cultural and social mores embedded within a divided society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early years education is offered free to all three-year-olds in Northern Ireland, prior to starting primary school, and most parents take advantage of this offer for their children. An experience of early years education has been shown to considerably improve life chances and to be important in starting the process of building a shared society, particularly important in a divided society emerging from conflict such as Northern Ireland. This paper will examine the degree to which that provision is segregated using GIS analysis and explore the factors which influence those divisions within the wider context of a deeply segregated system of education. Pre-school education in Northern Ireland is found to be highly segregated by community background, and there is a tendency for pre-schools to be more segregated than the areas in which they are located. This may exacerbate existing divisions within education and adding a further year of segregated education may provide a further impediment to building a shared future for communities in Northern Ireland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Implementation is the carrying out of planned, intentional activities that aim to turn evidence and ideas into policies and practices that work for people in the real world—the "how" as well as the "what" (Centre for Effective Services, 2022). Whilst partnership, relationship and trust often feature in implementation, until relatively recently it has been neglected in the research and literature. This paper focuses on the overarching learning on the role of trust and relationships drawn from a large-scale evaluation of the implementation of family support services by 36 organisations in Northern Ireland. Trust and relationships were found to be important enablers of change for services and families alike. Specific behaviours were identified that contributed to the building of trusted relationships, which, in turn, created the conditions for change to happen. This learning develops emerging work on trust among stakeholders, applying it to engagement with families as integral to the implementation of effective family support services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conversation and dialogue are used as a central process within youth work. Whilst much has been written about the micro-skills of conversation, less attention has been paid to the philosophical realm. This paper examines how dialogue in youth work can be deepened when juxtaposed with the philosophies, principles and theories of conversation. Using qualitative and phenomenological methodologies, this study involved 32 youth workers from across Northern Ireland, in focus groups (N = 8) and interviews (N = 24). The findings illustrate how youth workers perceived dialogue in their practice, pointing to the connections with relationship-building, the development of critical consciousness and the equalizing of power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper systematically describes the different types of political violence that occurred in Northern Ireland between 1968 and 1972, examining how they interacted and fueled each other. To measure the level of political violence in Northern Ireland, traditional quantitative approaches use variables such as the number of conflict-related deaths, paramilitary attacks, or riots; the goal of this paper, instead, is to disaggregate acts of violent contention by actor, type, and target. Relying on Quantitative Narrative Analysis (QNA), all the violent actions perpetrated by the actors participating in the conflict have been recorded, coded, and analyzed. Three main types of violence in Northern Ireland are identified: a) protest-related violence—violent interactions among protesters, counterprotesters, and police before, during, and after mass demonstrations; b) sectarian violence—includes riots and clashes between members of the two main ethno-national communities; and c) armed conflict—violent actions by paramilitary groups and security forces. While originating from different conflict situations, these three types of violence affected each other, as they altered, and were altered by, the broader political context. Conceptual and methodological disaggregation of political violence are encouraged to better understand violent conflicts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Centred on a carefully chosen selection of Heaney’s Troubles poems, this paper explores pedagogical opportunities that the poems present in the context of upper post-primary classrooms in Northern Ireland’s divided schools. Five poems are evaluated in total. These are: ‘The Other Side’, ‘A Constable calls’, ‘The Toome Road’, ‘The Strand at Lough Beg’ and ‘An Ulster Twilight’. While these five poems represent only a small selection of Heaney’s Troubles poems, they nonetheless cover an interesting spectrum in terms of their politico-cultural perspectives. The analysis of the poems focuses on exploring how teachers could use the poems to enable pupils to examine their traditional identities and allegiances and perhaps re-evaluate them in the light of new insights provided by the poems. While suggestions for this pedagogical exploration is at the heart of the paper, the early section establishes some relevant theoretical and educational contexts and the concluding section situates the paper in the context of previous, related curricular initiatives with Northern Ireland. It is to be hoped, finally, that the curricular initiative proposed by the paper could contribute, if even in a small way, to the ongoing search for peace and reconciliation between Northern Ireland’s two main, and still divided, communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we examine the national curricula for primary mathematics for each of the four constituent nations of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales) for the estimation-related opportunities they offer children. Framed against four conceptually and procedurally different forms of estimation (computational, measurement, quantity and number line), the analyses indicate that computational estimation and measurement estimation were addressed in all four curricula, albeit from a skills-acquisition perspective, with only the Scottish offering any meaningful justification for their inclusion. The process of rounding, absent in the Northern Ireland curriculum, was presented as an explicit learning objective in the English, Scottish and Welsh curricula, although it was only the Scottish that made explicit the connections between rounding and computational estimation. In all curricula, both quantity estimation and number line estimation were effectively absent, as was any explicit acknowledgement that learning to estimate, irrespective of its form, has a developmental role in the learning of other mathematical topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines an initiative promoting collaboration between schools located in a city setting in Northern Ireland, which is broadly divided along ethnic and political lines. The schools involved, like the vast majority of schools in Northern Ireland, educate Protestant and Catholic children separately. This presents particular challenges for school collaboration as it implies the establishment of new, connected relationships in an education system, which is historically and contemporaneously more characterised by division. Since 2007, the schools in this study have been involved in an education initiative which promotes cross-sectoral shared learning in core areas of the curriculum with a view to promoting school improvement; the additional, indirect goal is also about improving community relations. However, over this period, the relationship between the institutions has deepened, leading schools to examine how they can sustain partnership and evolve collaborative practice. This paper explores how the partnership has evolved and assesses its effectiveness as a collaborative enterprise. The paper concludes by demonstrating how effective collaboration between schools in Northern Ireland mitigates the potentially negative impacts of educating children separately, but also how effective models of school collaboration are capable of providing enhanced learning opportunities for pupils and are also capable of developing the communities in which they are located. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines the state of Physical Education in Northern Ireland's schools before, during and after the Second World War with a focus on government changes and the role of one of the first organisers to be appointed there to cater for the subject. In the mid-1920s, the new Northern Ireland Ministry of Education was initially of the view that the teaching of physical education was being adequately catered for. However, a scarcity of facilities in many schools and the poor levels of staff expertise in the subject meant that standards remained low in comparison with other nations in Western Europe, despite the area being part of the United Kingdom. Following the passing of the 1938 Physical Training and Recreation Bill, the appointment of inspectors and organisers for physical education by the Northern Ireland Ministry of Education was an important step in improving the situation. Despite this, the provision of trained PE teachers remained an issue throughout the 1940s and following much discussion, in 1953, the first PE College for female students in Northern Ireland was established. Within this context, this paper explores the early career of Joan Burnett Knight, an English-born PE organiser who was employed there from 1944-1950. Through her work in the schools, and her organisation of short-term training course for teachers, along with her public activities, she was able to raise awareness of the value of the subject. This article also discusses the 1949 Lingiad Games, in which she led the Northern Ireland team. In doing so, it illustrates Miss Burnett Knight's career aspirations and her independent character before the establishment of gender equality measures in employment and at a time when many women were confined to domestic roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of specialised prison units (SPUs) as a means of countering violent extremism and radicalisation is growing in popularity in many jurisdictions. Yet, little is known about their ability to prevent radicalisation in the long term, limit the spread of violent extremism, or promote de-radicalisation and disengagement. This paper begins to explore these issues by reflecting on the over 40 years of experience that Northern Ireland (NI) has had in this area. It is argued that the international community tends to have an incomplete understanding of: a) why SPUs were created and installed in NI; b) how their regime, conditions, and underlying rationale changed over time; and c) the long-term consequences that SPUs have had on the spread of violent extremism, de-radicalisation, and disengagement. This paper seeks to make an original contribution to this literature by highlighting the role psychological, situational, social, and political factors played in shaping the effectiveness of SPUs in NI. By providing a more in-depth analysis of why SPUs in NI entrenched extremism rather than promoted disengagement or de-radicalisation, other jurisdictions will be encouraged to reflect on how these factors may affect the success of their own SPUs in countering violent extremism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a critical reflection on teacher education and professional development in Northern Ireland between 2003 and 2018. It argues that whilst there is much about teacher education in Northern Ireland that is to be commended, the unique socio-historical, political and cultural context within which it operates may be considered as a 'Wicked Problem' which currently mitigates the potential to develop the teaching profession to best effect. Two key issues which highlight the Wicked Problem are addressed: the extended process of teacher education review; and a focus on the infrastructure of the system. The paper concludes by suggesting that future policy priorities need to value and promote existing strengths and cohere around the new approach to 'Shared Education' and the 'Learning Leaders Strategy' in order to build a mature system of teacher education to meet the challenges of a changing Northern Ireland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Service user and carer involvement in social work education is a mandatory requirement in the UK. The role of service users, carers and survivors in Northern Ireland is fundamental to shaping social work students understanding of the unique life histories and experiences of others and acknowledging service user perspectives through the lens of experts by experience. This paper outlines the organic approach the authors adopted in developing and co-producing the Shared Stories Narrative Model for supporting service users, carers and survivors to participate in the direct teaching within the undergraduate social work degree at a university in Northern Ireland. The model is the product of extensive engagement with a group of young people who have experience of social work involvement. The model will be explained and applied to a case example. Reflections from the young people (experts by experience) and social work students are included. This paper seeks to demonstrate how the Shared Stories Narrative Model can be considered an effective framework for supporting meaningful service user involvement in social work education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The measurement of regional competitiveness is an important and complex issue. Previous research has mostly considered national economies. However, indicators and measures identified at the national level may not apply well to regions. This paper contributes to knowledge by providing an analytical narrative of how the concept of the measurement of competitiveness has developed over time in Northern Ireland. The various stages in the development of measurements are critically evaluated. The region's chronic competitiveness shortfall is identified and possible explanations are indicated. The conclusions assess the most recent position regarding competitiveness measurement alongside a review of future research needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper makes use of two sets of Census outputs for Northern Ireland – counts by (i) output areas (OAs) and (ii) 100 m grid cells. Population surfaces are derived from OAs using a kernel smoothing approach and the accuracy of these surfaces is assessed using the 100-m grid square product. The key contribution of this paper is in pulling together the benefits of a gridded population data source with local regression procedures to provide a more detailed assessment of surface modelling accuracy than possible in any previous studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engaging with digital media is part of everyday living for the majority of children, yet opportunities to learn about, through and with media are denied many pupils in compulsory schooling. Whilst Media Studies in the UK is internationally reputed to be well established, changes made to the primary and secondary national curriculum in 2014 included removal of existing media study elements. We demonstrate what is lost by these actions in relation to the United Nations Rights of the Child and, in particular, the right of the child to express identity. We demonstrate how media literacy had previously been included in curriculum, enabling opportunities to address children's rights, and propose that the absence of media education is part of an overall trend of the non-prioritisation of children's rights in England and Northern Ireland. The paper calls for media literacy to be reintroduced into primary and secondary curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prominent theories of ethnic conflict argue that instrumental ethnic elites incite violence in order to promote their own power. Yet this approach focuses primarily on political leaders and ignores other ethnic elites, meaning that we know little about how other influential actors think about provocation. In this paper, I present novel data from Northern Ireland on diverse elite attitudes toward polarising Protestant parades with a long history of sparking ethnic violence. Using original surveys of Protestant elected officials and clergy as well as interviews with ex-paramilitaries, this paper demonstrates that these elite groups have different, often competing, interests and opinions regarding contested parades: while politicians tend to support provocative parades, the others do not. By addressing elite actors that are often ignored, I present a more nuanced picture of elite-mass relations and ethnic mobilisation in conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]