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Examples of topics where an Irish dimension was developed included Henry II, the Irish
Rebellion and Cromwell. The interviewee stressed that they attempted to look at these events
from an Irish and English point of view, although the term ‘Irish Rebellion’ may warrant
caution in fully accepting this assertion.
When asked about their perception of the whole curriculum they said that over the past twenty
years they had moved from a strong skill emphasis towards supporting a balance between
skills and content. When asked about English, Scottish, and Welsh as well as Irish strands
they said that they were all important. The interviewee admitted that English history
dominated much of their course. Nevertheless, they were aware of the broader implications of
the National Curriculum with respect to British history:
The National Curriculum … has made teachers think more about the various strands
that need to be present within their teaching and I think certainly from my point of
view I pay more attention to teaching British history as opposed to English history as a
result of that … many pupils do find the concept of the United Kingdom quite a
difficult one and I think it is an important job for history teachers … not to think that
England and Britain are the same thing.
When asked about black, multicultural and anti-racist dimensions their reply was much less
expansive. They said that black history was probably under represented. The idea of a clash of
cultures theme to reflect conflicts between the Saxons and Normans, the Incas and Spaniards
and the Jews in Nazi Germany was used to support the principles underlying multicultural and
anti-racist history. Overall, the impression given is that the fourth interviewee had a
conceptual impression of multicultural Britain, which included an Irish dimension. Having
said this, there is nothing to suggest that this interviewee had really developed issues related
to the nature of multicultural Britain beyond a few broadly based conceptual statements.