Barrie A. Irving

Tackling Truancy: an examination of persistent non‐attendance amongst disaffected school pupils and positive support strategies

Abstract The unauthorised non‐attendance of pupils constitutes an increasing area of concern for educationalists and one which has recently received much media attention. This paper seeks to locate the practice of truancy within an educational context, considers a framework for the support of pupils at risk and offers an ‘in‐school’ approach designed to ameliorate the effects of persistent non‐attendance

Making a Difference?: Developing Career Education as a Socially Just Practice

Career education plays a crucial role during compulsory secondary schooling by providing students with opportunities to gain diverse insights into the multiple ways in which social, political and economic discourses shape and position concepts of self, career, opportunity and justice. It hence has the potential to make a difference to how young people construct their career(s), make sense of their lives and critically engage with the world but the current career development focus on skills acquisition, competencies and self-management may be limiting opportunities for wider critical educational learning, leading to a restricted conceptualisation of career(s). In this article I draw on the work of Young (1990) to explore the concepts of social injustice and injustice, to consider how these intersect with career education and to outline ways in which career education might engage in anti-oppressive practice. While the examples presented and the issues are from New Zealand, they are applicable elsewhere.

Career Education in a Changing World of Work A Preparation for Life

This article identifies the impact of a rapidly changing world of work upon the provision of career education, and considers the need to implement a radical response. Moving away from narrow definitions of career as “linear progression and work preparation”, a “new” career education paradigm is discussed that is proactive, dynamic, forward looking and critical, locating career education at the centre of the school curriculum. It is imperative for career education to develop an “organic” model that demonstrates relevancy and meaning by embracing and involving all sections of the wider community. Questions are raised about the current philosophy of career education and the extent to which it reflects and transmits the inequities of the current labour market. A critical framework is proposed that seeks to actively empower students by enabling them to review and evaluate the changes taking place, from both a social and individual perspective. Implications for practice and delivery of career education are identified and located within a lifelong learning context.

Locating Social Justice in Career Education: What Can a Small-scale Study from New Zealand Tell Us?

Career education occupies a pivotal position, relating school to the wider social, political and economic world. Yet it remains an under-researched curriculum area, with little attention given to issues of social justice. In this article I discuss the findings from a small-scale qualitative study, which consisted of an hour-long semi-structured interview with a secondary school careers teacher in a New Zealand provincial city. While acknowledging the limitations of this research, the findings do provide a degree of illumination when considered alongside the literature, thus contributing to the debate about the concept of career education, the role of career educators, and where social justice fits. Bridging the gap between theory and practice, the findings explore how social justice is understood and located within this particular setting, providing the reader with an opportunity to critically reflect on the conclusions reached, and consider these within the context of their own localised programs and practice(s).

Career education as a site of oppression and domination : an engaging myth or a critical reality?

While discussions of social justice have become more prominent in the general career literature in recent years, little attention has been given to where the topic ‘fits’ within career education and, more specifically, how it affects career advisers in schools. Drawing on the findings emerging from research in New Zealand, I examine career education from a social justice perspective, and consider whether it should be regarded as a site of oppression and domination.

Discourses of delusion in demanding times

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how critical discourse analysis can help to uncover the dominant discursive formations that underlie policy guidelines within education. Focusing on the policy guidelines for career education and guidance in New Zealand, it illustrates how these have been used by the state in an attempt to normalise ideological standpoints, shape “common‐sense” thinking and delimit the scope of practice.Design/methodology/approach – Critical discourse analysis was employed as this approach helps to uncover the hidden meanings, political imperatives and uneven workings of power/dominance and oppression that are employed in/through textual representations.Findings – Neoliberal discourse is infused throughout the policy guidelines for career education and guidance in New Zealand, and demands that career advisers/teachers should produce entrepreneurial and self‐responsibilised global economic subjects.Research limitations/implications – Although this paper is situated with...