Anthony Gallagher

Activity theory in practice : promoting learning across boundaries and agencies

This ground-breaking book brings together cutting-edge researchers who study the transformation of practice through the enhancement and transformation of expertise. This is an important moment for such a contribution because expertise is in transition - moving toward collaboration in inter-organizational fields and continuous shaping of transformations. To understand and master this transition, powerful new conceptual tools are needed and are provided here. The theoretical framework which has shaped these studies is Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT). CHAT analyses how people and organisations learn to do something new, and how both individuals and organisations change. The theoretical and methodological tools used have their origins in the work of Lev Vygotsky and A.N. Leont’ev. in recent years this body of work has aroused significant interest across the social sciences, management and communication studies. Working as part of an integrated international team, the authors identify specific findings which are of direct interest to the academic community, such as: ⁰ the analysis of vertical learning between operational and strategic levels within complex organizations; ⁰ the refinement of notions of identity and subject position within CHAT; ⁰ the introduction of the concept of ‘labour power’ into CHAT; ⁰ the development of a method of analysing discourse which theoretically coheres with CHAT and the design of projects. Activity Theory in Practice will be highly useful to practitioners, researchers, students and policy-makers who are interested in conceptual and empirical issues in all aspects of ‘activity-based’ research.

Higher education participation in Northern Ireland

Higher education participation in Northern Ireland is higher than England and Wales and second only to Scotland. This paper charts the progress of participation and examines its social characteristics. Uniquely within the UK, approximately one-third of Northern Ireland entrants come from working class backgrounds. Catholic and female participation has also increased significantly but the participation of mature entrants is lower than in the rest of the UK. High participation levels have been achieved, however, by large numbers of entrants leaving to study in Scotland and England. There is a significant undersupply of higher education places in Northern Ireland when compared with either Scotland or Wales. With the costs of higher education being increasingly borne by individual students and their families there is already evidence that more students would prefer to remain in Northern Ireland to study. Increasing pressure on places is driving up A-level entry requirements and many students are forced to leave Northern Ireland to study or not to study in higher education. These developments threaten the advances made by particular social groups. Lifting the MASN cap in Northern Ireland is a significant policy objective.

Young people’s participation in sport in Northern Ireland

This paper reports the findings of a survey of 2295 young people aged from 7 to 17 years, who were attending 119 schools in Northern Ireland. The survey was concerned with the level, extent, antecedents and consequences of sport participation. Four sports (soccer, swimming, netball and Gaelic football) accounted for just over half of the nominated `top sports. The differences and similarities in the patterns of sport participation among students at Catholic and Protestant schools highlighted the importance of structural factors as well as personal and demographic variables in promoting and maintaining the voluntary involvement of young people in sport.

Addressing Conflict and Tolerance through the Curriculum

In the Irish Times on October 25, 2005, leading Irish journalist and political commentator Fintan O’Toole (2005) noted that Sinn Fein had called on their supporters to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of their party and prepare for the 25th anniversary of the hunger strikes and the 90th anniversary of the death of Labor leader James Connolly. All of this was but a foretaste of the looming 100th anniversary of the 1916 Dublin Rising that was to lead to Irish independence.

Education for Citizenship Education and Social Justice in Northern Ireland

Citizenship education is often focused on inculcating young people into a national community. This role is challenged in divided societies, especially where the typical symbols of national identity are often contested. Northern Ireland is one such place where education is divided on denominational grounds and society is still coming to terms with a legacy of political violence, and national affiliation varies between Britain and Ireland. The chapter outlines the innovative citizenship education curriculum that was developed as part of the peace process and examines the evidence on its effectiveness. The analysis highlights a number of tensions that have emerged, particularly around the delineation of rights and the role of justice, and the challenge for teachers in dealing with controversial issues.