Search

Arts partnerships involving teachers, artists and arts organizations continue to be popular as a means of delivering arts education. Acting as an intermediary between schools and artists, arts brokers can be crucial to the successful implementation of these partnerships. Characterized as individuals who can act as channels for innovative practice, arts brokers can potentially support teachers to take risks, build capacity for reflection and develop agency as arts practitioners. This article examines the role of the Creative Associate -- an arts broker within an Irish arts partnership ("Creative Schools-Scoileanna ldánacha"). Data was collected using semi-structured interviews in a purposive sample of eight Irish primary schools. Using a framework put forward by Sinclair et al., the support provided by the arts broker is critically analyzed. The establishment and development of stakeholder relationships is explored while emerging challenges are debated and discussed. Findings from this study indicated that the success of the arts broker is underpinned by their ability to build and nurture relationships. By 'bridging the gap' between teachers, schools and artists, this article argues that arts brokers can ensure partnerships have a sustained, meaningful impact on the enhancement of arts education in schools.

A synergetic partnership of the Maynooth University Department of Adult and Community Education and the Further Education Support Services identified an educational need among Further Education and Training (FET) staff. The outcome was a jointly developed and delivered Level 9 blended learning Postgraduate Certificate in Programme Design and Validation in Further Education and Training (PGPDV). The delivery of the pilot course was significantly challenged by COVID-19's sudden arrival in March 2020, forcing the course fully online. This article gathers feedback on lessons learned and offers practical steps to guide adult educators in pivoting courses for online delivery

Teacher-Artist Partnership (TAP) programmes in Ireland have, historically, tended to be ad-hoc, short-term, and underfunded. They have, moreover, lacked an explicit focus on teacher CPD. In 2014, a Government of Ireland funded initiative was set up to address these shortcomings and to explore how TAP, as a model of CPD, could support arts education in Ireland's primary schools. The initiative involved six teachers and six artists collaborating on arts projects in six schools across the country. In this article, the authors examine three of these partnerships, focusing, specifically. on the professional development enabled by TAP for the three teachers involved. In their analysis, the authors draw on data from an initial week-long residential summer course and the ensuing in-school partnerships. Data sources include teachers' and artists' diaries, classroom observations and focus group interviews. The authors found that TAP enabled considerable professional development for the three participating teachers, all of whom were highly motivated and had significant expertise in the arts/arts education. In this article, they consider the implications of their findings for the role of TAP in developing a sustainable approach to arts education in Ireland's primary schools.

In recent years, arts partnerships have gained increased popularity as a means of delivering arts education and art-in-education in schools. Creating opportunities for both teachers and artists alike, arts partnerships can enhance a shared sense of purpose and mutual respect, while also developing creative skills, knowledge and expertise. Although many studies on both national and international levels have identified the successes and challenges of arts partnerships in schools, a gap in how these partnerships can enhance teachers' professional development regarding arts education still exists. Therefore, this article discusses the potential impact of arts partnerships and whether these collaborations can act as a professional development initiative, to potentially enable and support teachers in their enhancement of arts education. The evidenced impacts, possibilities and indeed, challenges of such arts partnerships in schools are explored while arts partnerships approaches, policies and directions on a both national and international level, are also discussed. Literature is also critically reviewed regarding the facilitation of, and teacher professional development in, arts education.

Pathological demand avoidance (PDA) is contended to be a distinct presentation within autism characterised by extreme levels of anxiety in response to the demands of everyday life, manifested in excessive levels of demand avoidance. This results in complex interactions with service providers in education and health settings, impacting on outcomes for individuals and their families. This national study sought to gather the viewpoints of individuals who experience PDA, families, and practitioners, with the intention of determining levels of knowledge, recognition and understanding of PDA; exploring current pathways to assessment and diagnosis; capturing experiences of access to education and healthcare services; identifying effective intervention and support strategies; and illuminating education and health outcomes for individuals and families. This mixed-method study collates survey responses from N = 264 parents, N = 9 life partners, N = 6 individuals experiencing PDA and N = 54 practitioners, and in-depth individual and focus group interviews from these cohorts. Findings suggest that a flexible, informed and individualised approach to assessment and service provision for individuals presenting with a PDA profile is essential. Practitioners universally referred to the necessity for a streamlined, integrated and multi-disciplinary approach. The reported disconnect between education and health systems indicates a need for access to services on an equitable basis.

The HEI FET Forum was established in 2012 for the eight Higher Education Institutions who provide initial teacher education qualifications for those wishing to work as accredited teachers in the Further Education and Training (FET) Sector. Its remit is to advance teaching, learning and research in the FET sector and to widen the Forum's engagement with stakeholders across FET. The article describes the origin and purpose of the Forum and its aims amongst others to promote and strengthen the professional development of practitioners, and design and conduct relevant and useful research for the sector.

Accommodation centres for those seeking asylum present particular contexts in which to facilitate music making. Contextual and systemic difficulties abound. An exploration of a music project within six asylum seeker centres in Ireland is presented with a focus on the experiences of the four facilitators involved. Data are presented from facilitator reflective logs, researcher observations and recorded professional development sessions to uncover the complexities, dilemmas and opportunities that working in such contexts brings. While the facilitators adopted flexible and responsive ways of working, this was not always an easy process for them. Findings reveal some struggles the facilitators had with negotiating new ways of working and 'letting go' that actively involved the singers in the process. This often challenged their previous experiences, beliefs, assumptions and knowledge of learning relationships and pedagogical approaches. The importance of place-based and process-centred approaches to working in such difficult contexts is thus highlighted. The study calls for professional development structures and reflective practice to be embedded within such projects from the outset. Therefore, the findings are particularly important for the design and delivery of projects that seek to engage marginalised communities in meaningful ways.

This article troubles the notion of "disturbance" in relation to teacher-artist identities within partnerships delivering arts education in schools. As such, a visiting artist/teaching artist entering an educational setting "alters" the space and forces the negotiation of professional (and personal) identities. These "disturbances" can be advantageous for schools, teachers, children, young people, broader communities as well as the artists themselves in offering key learning and development opportunities. Too often however, such partnerships lack critical debate and examination. This article offers findings from an in-depth teacher-artist partnership study in order to contribute perspectives on understanding how teacher-artist identities are negotiated so as to potentially transform policy and practice approaches to arts education in schools. The Irish government-supported partnership initiative involved a residential summer course, in-school work, as well as review days with six teacher-artist pairs over 22 months. Data was collected and analyzed from across interviews, reflective diaries, in-school observations and evaluations to illuminate the partners' learning journeys and negotiated identities within the initiative. Thematic findings reveal three overarching themes relating to (re)forming, inhabiting and projecting identity. It was found that both teacher and artist skills, knowledge and understandings can complement each other successfully where meaningful, sustained partnerships are invested in. The significant value of a dialogical and relational approach within the partnership holds interesting insights for policymakers, schools, arts agencies, teachers, and artists to inform future arts education partnership initiatives and policy approaches.

Open Space Technology is a cumbersome name for a participative conference model that enables dynamic inclusive engagement and challenges traditional, highly structured hierarchical conference formats. Based on self-organising systems, (Wenger, 1998) Open Space Technology conferences have an open process, start with no agenda and empower the most equitable outcome determined by those attending. This article describes the author's participation in an Open Space Technology conference, discusses the principles underpinning Open Space Technology methodology and considers its application in adult learning engagement settings.

This article examines the musical lives of children of asylum seekers living under direct provision in Ireland. Direct Provision is a controversial state system of communal housing for asylum seekers while they wait for their refugee applications to be processed. One third of all asylum seekers living under Direct Provision in Ireland are children. A knowledge gap exists on the cultural rights and needs of these marginalised children. Through participatory methods, the research presented examines the role of music for these children within one of the direct provision settings as well as their musical values, identities, and types of musical participation engaged in. Data was collected through six participatory music workshops, video observations, a researcher reflective log and focus group interviews. There were 11 children involved aged between 7-12 years, representing six nationalities and both genders. Findings reveal the importance and relevance of the contexts of music-making within temporary accommodation settings as well as the broader national and international contexts of children living within asylum seeking systems.

This article will discuss the findings of a single explanatory case study on the model of whole school guidance counselling in the Irish secondary school system, which was carried out during a turbulent period of policy and practice changes in the delivery of guidance counselling services to students from 2012 onwards. Although the case study is positioned within a single voluntary school, the findings may be typical of similar secondary schools settings in Ireland and abroad. Particular focus is given to explicating the key findings of the case study through the specific themes of: concepts of whole school guidance counselling, the Irish integrated model of guidance counselling, stakeholder roles and responsibilities, and the effect of resource re-allocations by policy makers funding guidance school services.

Numerous research papers have used Irish-only data to test for the presence of an investment gap for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In this paper, we use cross-country firm-level survey data from the World Bank Enterprise Surveys to explore the investment patterns of Irish enterprises in a cross-country context and test whether an investment gap is present when compared to other countries. We use an accelerator model of investment which links capital expenditure to firm output growth and test the sensitivity of investment to this key fundamental for Ireland and other countries. We then estimate whether Irish firms face an investment gap relative to their European peers. We test whether any differences in cross-country patterns are driven by variation in financial factors (such as credit access or indebtedness) or firm quality (managerial experience, website usage, operating profitability). We find that Ireland's investment in fixed tangible assets is relatively well explained by these factors whereas a clear underinvestment in research and development expenditure emerges. Factors associated with investment in research and development include the degree of foreign technology usage, digitalisation and internationalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within a rapidly changing higher education landscape, there is an increased need for universities to look beyond their 'ivory towers' and into their surrounding communities in preparing students for the 'real world'. Findings from an Irish case study explore a children's choral university-community initiative within an urban area of socio-economic disadvantage. The choral initiative involved 14 student volunteers and 150 children. Qualitative research, carried out over two years, involved student focus group interviews and reflective surveys. The research illuminates the multifaceted nature of the learning experience for students and examines to what extent such an initiative can build choral leadership capacity to work in school and community settings.

This discussion paper considers the identification and definition of the 'characteristic spirit' of publicly managed schools in the Republic of Ireland. Some international approaches to values in publicly funded schools are introduced along with relevant contextual aspects of Irish education including the cultural diversity and secularisation of modern Irish society. The Irish Education Act (1998) gives ultimate responsibility for school values and 'characteristic spirit' to the school 'patron', a role legally separate from that of school ownership and school management. The underlying values of privately managed faith-based schools are well established. However, the 'characteristic spirit' of publicly managed Education and Training Board schools remains largely undeveloped. Appropriate responses to this challenge are identified and discussed.

This study examines pre-service primary teachers' first engagement with music education at university level in the Republic of Ireland. Data from focus group interviews and coursework present voices from the students in prolematising their learning journeys with music education. These qualitative research methods are used to investigate student values, assumptions, participation, learning and identity formation in order to illuminate how the pre-service teachers made meaning from their collaborative musical experiences within their first module involving music education. Findings reveal the importance of participation in active, creative and reflective musical experiences as a group of learners on initial teacher education programmes. Through such experiences, the study suggests that students are enabled to construct knowledge collaboratively, shape their values, build pedagogic methodologies, and inform their emerging identities with a view to influencing their approach to music education as future teachers.

There is a high prevalence of depression among college students, which is linked to lower levels of help-seeking intentions. However, there has been a lack of research examining variables that may help explain this relationship. The present study aimed to address this gap by examining whether psychological resources (optimism and self-esteem) mediate the relationship between depressive symptoms and help-seeking intentions, and whether this relationship is moderated by perceived social support. Participants were 8121 college students (66% female) aged 17-25 years (M = 20.42, SD = 1.90), who completed the My World Survey Post-Second Level, a national survey on youth mental health. Linear regression analysis confirmed that depressive symptoms predicted lower informal help-seeking intentions. Moderated mediation indicated that social support moderated the direct relationship between depressive symptoms and informal help-seeking intentions and that optimism and self-esteem mediated this relationship, when gender was controlled for. Findings indicate that social support and psychological resources help further our understanding of the relationship between depressive symptoms and help-seeking in young people. Campaigns promoting help-seeking in college students should focus on the beneficial role of social support and on fostering optimism and self-esteem as facilitators of help-seeking intentions.

This paper explores PhD students' perceptions of their entrepreneurial and commercial capabilities, their attitude towards university supports and the extent to which they engage in external collaboration. The study concentrated on current PhD researchers at one university in Ireland as a unit of analysis and provides encouraging evidence from the PhD student perspective. There is a strong base to work from, considering the level of absorptive capacity in terms of industrial experience and the desire to increase business/entrepreneurial capability. This capacity sits alongside a realism on the part of the students, who openly acknowledge their skills deficit but believe that education modules can close this gap. There was a willingness to invest in entrepreneurial up-skilling to a point, with the students wishing to maintain a balance between mastery of their discipline and the development of entrepreneurial capability. However, no evidence was found that individual capability combined with university supports is a predictor of research commercialization activities or of collaborative research endeavours.

This article examines the development of a "community of musical practice" (CoMP) which emerged within a research case study in Limerick, Ireland. The case study was a music education partnership between a third level institution, a resource agency and a primary school. Using a "community of practice" (CoP) theoretical framework to underpin the study and data analysis, the research seeks to "unpack," problematize and interpret the development of a community of musical practice, as well as the complexities that surround issues such as membership and role within partnership initiatives. The study provides a means of exploring musical practices within a socio-cultural process where learning is "situated" and "shared," in this case within a community of musical practice. The inter-relatedness of musical and social interaction as well as favorable models of meaningful musical and "community" experience are highlighted.

Peer observation of teaching (POT) has become common practice in many universities. However, it could be argued that existing models often have limited scope for understanding the student experience. This study presents a modified approach to POT in which the researchers adopted the roles of (1) lecturer, (2) peer-participant and (3) peer-observer. Four lecturers in a university in Ireland were involved as participant-researchers in the study with an external observer acting as an "outside eye" to the process. Findings reveal that the process provided opportunities for reflection on own and other teaching styles, strategies and contexts. In particular, lecturers noted the value of sharing the student experience more authentically or being "in the students' shoes". The study demonstrates that modification of the traditional POT model, where the lecturer adopts several roles (lecturer, peer-participant and peer-observer), creates multiple perspectives into the teaching and learning process and therefore may allow greater scope for the development of professional practice.

Online music communities offer a new context and culture for musical participation globally. This article, employing a socio-cultural theoretical lens, examines how the Online Academy of Irish Music (OAIM) functions as a teaching and learning online community for Irish traditional music. Findings from qualitative case study research present observations of practice from the OAIM website, forums, video tutorials, and Facebook posts over a 9-month period. In addition to these collective insights, findings from participant logs and interviews with the tutors offer individual insights into the online case study. Questions are posed regarding the pedagogy of e-learning, the development of a "shared practice" and the influence of roles and relationships within the community. The online medium of interaction raises important issues for the growing technological culture of music teaching and learning and the study seeks to understand this new context for musical participation.

Recent years have revealed local government to be a fundamental stakeholder in the development of arts and music communities. This article provides a context for an exploration and study of the issues, themes and dilemmas that surround local government and music communities. In particular the article provides this examination from an Irish perspective and focuses on recent research to provide insights from local government music practice. Key themes, questions and issues are raised concerning the impact of local government on the development of music communities, how arts agendas are integrated into local government, the tensions between artistic aims and political remits, as well as the ways local government is enhancing musical participation and development amongst communities.

This article addresses the distinctive role that artists play in education. Although there has been a growing body of research internationally into artists involved in teaching and learning processes, the practice of artists in education in Ireland has developed in an uneven and sometimes disjointed manner. The field of "arts in education" and issues surrounding its policy and practice in Ireland are investigated here. This article takes music as a focus in examining musicians' engagement in educational partnerships. Discussions around the role of artists in educational settings, successful partnerships and professional development are presented. Interviews carried out with a purposive sample of eight musicians are thematically analysed to provide meaningful insight into these debates drawn from actual practice. In this way, the article contributes to developing research into arts in education and, more specifically, music in education. In doing so, it hopes to underpin future policy, practice and stimulate further research in this area. (Contains 4 notes.)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences of students with intellectual disabilities gaining access into a university setting, specifically Trinity College Dublin. The topic is important as gaining access to a university setting for students with intellectual disabilities is not commonplace. The study was qualitative in design and aimed to understand the phenomenon of inclusion by collecting multiple sources of peoples' understanding of what was happening for the students with intellectual disabilities completing a 2-year certificate course entitled, Certificate in Contemporary Living. The perceptions of the students, family members and tutors were captured through focus groups, questionnaires, and use of Photovoice and document analysis. Triangulation of the multiple sources of data was used as well as open, axial and selective coding for thematic analysis. The student voice echoed by that of family members and tutors found that inclusion within a university setting led the students to see themselves more alike than different to their peers. They felt more accepted, more competent and more socially networked. Vital to the development of friendships was a mentoring programme. The aspect of the certificate programme that supported students to participate in a range of undergraduate classes will be described, and how this strategy is continuing to be researched will be outlined. Being included within a university setting opens up a whole new way of being for students who have previously experienced marginalisation. Such inclusion is a cogent way to promote ability. The safeguards to ensure that inclusion within university settings does not become another form of segregation will be touched upon.

Active learning facilitated through interactive and adaptive learning environments differs substantially from traditional instructor-oriented, classroom-based teaching. We present a web-based e-learning environment that integrates knowledge learning and skills training. How these tools are used most effectively is still an open question. We propose knowledge-level interaction and adaptive feedback and guidance as central features. We discuss these features and evaluate the effectiveness of this web-based environment, focusing on different aspects of learning behaviour and tool usage. Motivation, acceptance of the approach, learning organisation and actual tool usage are aspects of behaviour that require different evaluation techniques to be used. (Contains 2 tables and 1 figure.)

This paper considers the construction and experience of racisms among a sample of primary school children in Ireland during a period of intensive immigration. Placing children's voices at the centre of the analysis, it explores how children's constructions draw upon discourses of "norm" and "other" in relation to national identity and cultural belonging. Constructions of minority ethnic groups are located within a context that defines what it is to be Irish, such constructions carrying with them assumptions related not only to skin colour but also to lifestyle, language, and religious belief. Drawing on key concepts related to power, social identities and child cultures, the findings highlight the significance of ethnic identity to children's negotiations around inclusion and exclusion in their peer groups. Name-calling in general, and racist name-calling in particular, was shown to be an important tool used by some children in the assertion of their status with one another. The sensitivity displayed by the majority ethnic children to skin colour only, in their discussions around racism, highlights the salience of colour to many of these children's typification of themselves as white Irish, and of many black migrant children especially as "other". It also indicates, however, the limited understanding these majority ethnic children had of racism in contrast to their minority ethnic peers (including Irish Traveller children), all of whom were able to recount their own experiences of being racially abused for colour and/or culturally-based differences. The need for teachers to be sensitive to the dynamics of children's social world is stressed, as is the importance of developing clear procedures for the monitoring and tackling of racist incidents in schools. (Contains 2 tables, 1 figure, and 4 notes.)

Special educational provision in the Republic of Ireland has experienced significant changes in the past decade. A combination of interrelated factors including litigation, legislation, parental advocacy and international developments has radically altered the landscape of special education. As a result of these changes the move towards establishing inclusive learning environments appears irreversible though many critical issues remain to be addressed at this time of transition. This study examines how key stakeholders in primary education perceive the challenge of responding appropriately to increased diversity. The results indicate that many barriers remain in the development of inclusive learning environments. The conceptual understanding of special educational needs (SEN) was seriously deficient and this affected the coherence of policy and service delivery. The system lacked strategic leadership, according to participants, and this restricted the capacity to support schools. School capacity to deliver quality education for children with SEN was constrained by the serious shortfall in the range and level of skills required and opportunities for professional development available. There was strong support for the principle of inclusion into mainstream though this was principally perceived in terms of the development of socialisation skills. It was concluded that in this transition phase schools required strategic leadership from policy-makers to address the many challenges that remain in the establishment of inclusive learning environments.

Despite recurring concerns about the role and appropriate support of informal carers, little is known about the parental experience of caring for children with learning disabilities in Ireland. This study describes and analyses the nature and consequences of care and coping among parents of children (fewer than 16) with learning disabilities living in the Greater Dublin area. Participants (n = 32) completed the Caregiver Strain Questionnaire and an adapted version of the Carers Questionnaire which assessed: care tasks/behavioural difficulties; caregiver attitudes; service provision; and coping strategies. Qualitative analysis examined factors affecting carers' ability to cope. Participants showed high levels of objective and subjective caregiver strain and most were receiving inadequate support. However, parents employed a range of strategies to help them cope more effectively. The qualitative data highlighted the difficulties and rewards of caregiving and the inadequacies of current service provision.

Within a European context, facilitating the increased participation of marginalized groups within society has become a cornerstone of social policy. In higher education in Ireland this has generally involved the targeting for support of individuals representing groups traditionally excluded on the grounds of socio-economic status. More recently, people with disability have been included in this consideration. This approach has tended to focus on physical access issues and some technical supports. However, access is multi-faceted and must include a review of pedagogic practices, assistive provision (technological and personal), student's engagement with their workload (e.g. recording) and evaluation procedures: achieving accreditation levels commensurate with ability. This small-scale Irish study examined the experiences of two groups of young people with physical disabilities and with dyslexia in two higher education institutions. It was apparent that for students with physical disabilities and with dyslexia, assessment practices were fraught with additional limitations. Assessment practices were mediated for these students through the physical environment, the backwash effect of assessment on curriculum, the availability and use of assistive technology, and through the attitudes of staff and students. It can be concluded that access issues within higher education have been inadequately conceptualized and as a result failed to address fundamental issues around assessment for students with physical disabilities and with dyslexia.

The aim of this article is to present the reader with an accessible and practical account of evaluation as a mode of inquiry within the broad domain of social science. The starting point is the presentation of a general outline of the main milestones relating to the emergence of evaluation as a mode of inquiry and some of the prominent advocates of contemporary evaluation. Particular attention is directed towards what is termed as "programme evaluation". Then the author endeavours to explore whether evaluation as a mode of inquiry is practice or theory led. A definitive answer to this question is not presented here in this short article; instead, the author makes assumptions based on his interpretation of the reviewed discourse within the field and personal reflection from practice. The case of the European University Association's quality review of the seven Irish universities and the Dublin Institute of Technology is cited as an example of evaluation in practice in the Irish higher education sector. Issues such as the politics and power, decision making, and the use, misuse or non-use of findings of evaluations are briefly introduced. (Contains 7 tables and 14 notes.)

This paper examines, in their social context, the origins and history of TG4. It notes that TG4 broadcasts mainly but by no means exclusively in the Irish language, being one of the Republic of Ireland's four national terrestrial television services and one of three operated under the umbrella of the state-owned RTE. The paper focuses on the purposes and functions of TG4 and analyses the cultural assumptions that lie behind it. It considers the development of TG4 as an aspect of Irish language policy generally and assesses the channel's significance for contemporary Ireland.

In the past decade Ireland has witnessed substantial changes in policy and provision for children with general learning difficulties as government policies and legislation increasingly underpin the move towards more inclusive provision. Despite this series of policy initiatives parents of children who experience Down syndrome and general learning difficulties can encounter serious obstacles in gaining access to mainstream education for their children. This research project was a study of the experiences of a small sample of parents of children who experience Down syndrome and general learning difficulties in relation to their efforts to access appropriate education and education supports for their child in the mainstream school setting. These parents had to invest extraordinary levels of time, energy, and resources in their struggle to get these children into mainstream school and to support their progress there. At local school level these parents and children had positive experiences, but life has taught them that society offers acceptance as a favour, so they cannot confidently expect acceptance by schools and teachers as a right.

Exposure to air pollution is a known risk factor for asthma exacerbations and hospitalisations. This study aimed to identify if COVID-19 transport restrictions led to improvements in air quality in Dublin and if this had an impact on asthma-related hospital admissions. This was a population-based retrospective cohort study. Daily concentration levels of particulate matter (PM 2.5 and PM 10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2) were obtained from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Hospital In-Patient Enquiry (HIPE) system provided the daily number of asthma-related hospital admissions in Dublin. The figures for 2018–2019 were compared with the period of transport restrictions (from March 2020). During the period of transport restrictions, there was a significant decrease in mean daily concentrations in both PM 2.5 (8.9 vs 7.8 μg/m3, P = 0.002) and NO 2 (24.0 vs 16.7 μg/m3, P < 0.001). There was also a significant reduction in the mean number of daily asthma admissions (4.5 vs 2.8 admissions, P < 0.001). Only NO 2 showed a statistically significant correlation with asthma admissions (r = 0.132, P < 0.001). Transport restrictions introduced to mitigate against COVID-19 led to lower pollutant levels and improved air quality. Previously described associations between pollutants and asthma would indicate that these improvements in air quality contributed to the reduction in asthma-related admissions. The complex nature of PM is the likely explanation for the lack of correlation between its concentration and asthma admissions, unlike NO 2 whose primary source is vehicular emissions. Public Health needs to advocate for transport policies, which can improve air quality and hence improve human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An information technology course was provided to people with physical disabilities in their Ireland homes, using computers and modem links. The course included modules on business applications software and specialized applications. Nineteen of 20 participants completed the course successfully and were awarded an internationally recognized certificate, which was a motivating factor. (Author/JDD)

This feasibility study examined 11 teleworking arrangements for people with severe physical disabilities in Ireland, over periods ranging from 6 to 18 months. Outcomes suggest teleworking is a feasible form of employment for such persons provided they are appropriately selected and trained and suitable work is identified and managed by employers. (Author/DB)

Summary: In this first na tional survey of public hospitals in The Republic of Ireland, we found fracture liaison services (FLS) to be heterogeneous, limited in many cases and poorly supported. A national strategy is urgently needed to support the implementation and operation of an FLS, and thus help reduce the burden of fragility fractures for patients and the healthcare system. Introduction: Fragility/low-trauma fractures are a global concern, whose incidence is rising as the population ages. Many are preventable, and people with a prior fragility fracture are at particularly high risk of further fractures. This patient group is the target of the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) Capture the Fracture campaign, advocating global adoption of fracture liaison services (FLS), with the aim of preventing secondary fragility fractures. We wished to determine the current availability and standards of an FLS in Ireland, ahead of the launch of a National FLS database. Methods: We devised a questionnaire encompassing the thirteen IOF standards for an FLS and asked all 16 public hospitals with an orthopaedic trauma unit in Ireland, to complete for the calendar year 2019 in patients aged ≥ 50 years. Results: All sites returned the questionnaire, i.e. 100% response rate. Nine hospitals stated that they have an FLS, additionally one non-trauma hospital running a FLS responded, and were included. These 10 FLS had identified and managed 3444 non-hip fractures in the year 2019. This figure represents 19% of the expected non-hip fragility fracture numbers occurring annually in Ireland. Implementation of the IOF standards was very variable. All sites reported being inadequately resourced to provide a high-quality service necessary to be effective. Conclusion: The existence and functioning of FLS in Ireland are heterogeneous and suboptimal. A national policy to support the implementation of this programme in line with international standards of patient care is urgently needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the use of smartphone technology is becoming increasingly popular in the agricultural context, there is a need to consider how farmers have adapted to this form of technology. The current study examined the factors which influence Irish farmers' engagement with smartphone use and new smartphone apps and explored the supports required by farmers to successfully engage with smartphone apps for agriculture use. Seven focus groups were conducted with a total of 41 farmers from four regions in the Republic of Ireland. Findings revealed that factors such as poor broadband internet availability, coupled with a lack of comfort with emerging technologies, technology trust issues, and a perceived lack of sufficient benefits deterred farmers' engagement with smartphone technology and agricultural apps. Perceived benefits of smartphone engagement also emerged including an enhanced sense of empowerment, a more flexible lifestyle, a reduction in stress, an improvement in time efficiency, an enhanced level of communication between farmers and their respective governing bodies and, an ability to make data-driven decisions on the farm. Perceived support networks to aid farmers in using agricultural apps included farm advisors, family members and peers. The findings outline the importance of understanding the barriers and enablers of farmers' engagement with smartphones and agricultural apps in Ireland. The findings are of interest to researchers in the field of smart farming technology, as well as developers and providers of agricultural smartphone apps, since this research is one of the first studies to provide information about the underlying factors driving or preventing smartphone and app use among farmers. • Multiple factors influence farmers' engagement with smart technology. • Barriers include poor internet availability, a lack of comfort and trust with new technologies and a perceived lack of benefits. • Benefits include a more flexible lifestyle and an ability to make data driven farm decisions. • Farm advisors, family and peers were listed as support networks who could help farmers with using smartphone apps. • Findings outline the importance of understanding the barriers and enablers of farmers' engagement with smartphone technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A substantial body of literature points to the necessity of a ‘Great Food Transformation’ requiring an urgent shift towards sustainable food systems across multiple levels. A key part of this transition is the need to reduce food waste and food loss by 50 percent and where charitable surplus food redistribution is regarded as making an important contribution to this target. Surplus driven charitable food provisioning is now part of the food environment in many countries and is influencing the diets of a significant number of people. Its proponents argue that such work contributes to a more sustainable food system by reducing food waste and food insecurity. However, few studies have examined the factors influencing the governance of food within the charitable food system. This paper seeks to fill this gap in the literature through an examination of recent developments in charitable food provisioning in the Republic of Ireland. Using Cork city as a case study we explore Ireland’s charitable food system by examining the motivations, ideas, and practices of key organisations. The paper highlights the growing role of surplus-driven charitable food systems and argues that the redistribution of surplus products for the purpose of reducing food waste and improving economic efficiency requires re-evaluation within a wider appreciation of sustainable diets, and, ultimately, with regard to strengthening the right to food for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to explore 'collaborative creativity' within the musical and social practices of a local jazz ensemble in Ireland. Within this study, concepts of creativity are firmly rooted within socio-cultural contexts where practices are 'situated' and 'collective'. Through investigating aspects of 'collaborative creativity' practices such as privileging improvisation, maintaining challenge, and building knowledge through leadership and collaboration, the research explores the connections between creativity and collaboration within a genre-specific ensemble. This qualitative case study gathered data from observations, video recordings, interviews and participant logs over a nine-month period. Thus, the varied research methods allowed for both group and individual perspectives to inform the data analysis. The findings illuminate the distinct creativity practices of the jazz ensemble within shared learning processes. Key features of how creativity was led, encouraged, facilitated and negotiated within the jazz ensemble are presented. The case study provides theoretical perspectives rooted in everyday group music making experiences about an important socio-cultural perspective of creativity, both as a musical and social practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the legislations related to separation of the child from their parents and the protection of the rights of family reunification. It further states that separation from the parents must be with the consent of the child and must consider the best interest of the child. It discusses Ireland's policies on reunification, the impacts of separation on children, rights of refugee children and the obligations by the states for tracing the parents of such children in detail.

The article discusses the issues surrounding the status change of the 26 countries into the Republic of Ireland in 1946. It states that John A. Costello, the Taoiseach of the Inter-Party Government, has declared the Eire to be a Republic in October 1948 at the Commonwealth Conference in Ottawa. In addition, the coming of the Republic has changed the protocol over the letters between the "southern Unionists" and the monarchy.

Abstract: Carbon footprint models are increasingly being used to manage personal and household carbon dioxide emissions. Six models were compared for their suitability for use in Ireland using typical data for a household of three people. The annual household energy and transportation emissions ranged from 10,540 to 17,361 kg CO2 yr−1 (mean 12,886; sd 2135) rising to a total footprint of 12,053 to 27, 218 kg CO2 yr−1 (mean 18,117; sd 5106) when aviation emissions were included. This represents a potential range for individual CO2 emissions of between 4018 and 9073 kg CO2/person/annum, a variation of over 5 tonnes/person. The information provided by these models proved to be inconsistent and often contradictory. The high variability between models was due to a number of anomalies. When these were corrected mean household energy and transportation emissions fell to 12,130 kg CO2 yr−1 (sd 805), with a total household footprint of 16,552 kg CO2 yr−1 (sd 1101). Models vary in their complexity in terms of what is included in the overall estimation of emissions making a full analysis of the primary carbon footprint very difficult. When compared to current Irish conversion factors the corrected models either underestimated or overestimated CO2 emissions by approximately 10%. Current carbon footprint models excluded emissions from CH4 and N2O underestimating CO2 emissions for the household by 1.8%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]