Migrations and Primary Schooling in the Republic of Ireland: Potential and Limitations of School Choice?
摘要
Over the past thirty years, there has been significant—albeit fluctuating—immigration to the Republic of Ireland. This immigration has had an impact on the school population. As a result, some pre-existing issues have taken centre stage, more particularly the dominant position of Catholic schools in the Irish education system, especially at the primary level. This chapter aims at analyzing how recent evolutions regarding primary school choice have impacted the schooling of first- and second-generation immigrant pupils. On the one hand, the emergence and growth of different school models, whether denominational, as in the case of the two Muslim national schools, or multi-denominational for Educate Together national schools and community national schools, has given immigrant parents more opportunities to choose a school that meets their religious and/or secular values. On the other hand, this increased school choice may actually reinforce existing forms of school segregation. This chapter will show that, even though there are instances of school segregation, it does not follow that this segregation has increased as a result of wider school choice.