Teacher Preparation in Northern Ireland: History, Policy and Future Directions

The formation of Northern Ireland marked a sharp divergence in policy that had developed throughout the whole of Ireland in the preceding century. Local communal interests helped to drive and shape a unique model of teacher preparation. Teacher Preparation in Northern Ireland examines teacher education across the first century of Northern Ireland’s existence and contextualises this within an account of teacher preparation in pre-partition Ireland. This timely book also looks at the more recent history of the region, with a focus on how infrastructural arrangements have continued to reflect wider divisions in Northern Irish society, whilst also considering how these divisions have been counterbalanced by efforts to bridge the rifts through greater cooperation around both policy and practice. By looking at contemporary developments within the wider historical context, this book will not only be an invaluable text for educationalists, historians and policy makers in Northern Ireland, but also to counterparts internationally and comparative educationalists.