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the other case studies did not replicate this concern. One primary co-ordinator interviewee
indicated that in their role as history co-ordinator they had limited influence how other staff
approached the history curriculum, which limited the extent that they were able to develop an
Irish dimension. However, this issue was not raised by any of the other interviewees from
either primary or secondary schools.
Overall, it appears that an Irish dimension was by no means invisible. However, the form it
took depended on both the values and expertise of the interviewee as well as their general
curriculum pressures, which affected their role. Several of the interviewees had used a range
of resources and developed creative approaches to teaching an Irish dimension. A small
number of primary and secondary teachers indicated that teaching an Irish dimension related
to anti-racist values. In some cases it was linked to their perceptions of Britishness or links
with the local Irish community. However, several of the teachers gave pragmatic reasons –
either to prepare for work at Key Stage 4 or because it was considered less challenging than
alternative Modern World Studies. These different political and practical stances have
significance for the way in which the past is presented to pupils. The next chapter will explore
two Irish related curriculum projects and explore both the rationale behind them and the
values of the teachers involved in them in order to see how far they differed from those in the
current chapter.