Geography under threat in Irish second-level education

Abstract

Recent Department of Education recommendations for a revised second-level junior cycle programme in the Republic of Ireland omitted geography from its established position in the core curriculum. This paper describes the background to the revised curricular recommendations, the efforts undertaken by geographers to defend the position of their discipline and the outcome of their efforts. The evidence illustrates that, as in several other countries, the integrity of geography as a school subject was threatened by moves to broaden the school curriculum to incorporate new areas of study including technological, social and political education. As a result of winning political support, a ministerial commitment has been received that geography will remain in the core curriculum. A lack of clarity remains about its precise status in terms of the timetabled teaching hours that will be allocated.