Child Literacy and Social
Inclusion: Implementation
Issues: Overview
Children’s Rights Alliance
Roundtable 15 March 2010
Background
• This report was prepared by the NESF
Secretariat, Dr Jeanne Moore and the
Project Team on Child Literacy and Social
Inclusion, chaired by Professor Áine
Hyland.
• It was published in November 2009 and is
available for download from the NESF
website, www.nesf.ie
Why Child Literacy and Social
Inclusion?
1. Literacy brings with it social,
economic and health benefits to the
individual and across society as a
whole.
2. There are economic and social
costs in not dealing more effectively
with this which we can ill-afford.
3. Despite some good practice and
initiatives, in 25 years, there is little
research evidence to show a shift in
literacy levels among primary
children living in disadvantaged
areas.
Background to Project
The National Action Plan for Social Inclusion
2007-2016 set a high level goal to reduce the
proportion of pupils with serious literacy
difficulties in primary schools serving
disadvantaged communities to less than 15% by
2016.
Action Plan for Educational Inclusion - Delivering
Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) was
designed to provide a more coherent and
targeted approach to this problem (DES, 2005).
Terms of Reference
The aim of this NESF Project was to:
•Identify best practice in the implementation of child
literacy and social inclusion policies, as outlined in (the
current policy) Delivering Equality of Opportunity in
Schools (DEIS) and elsewhere; and
•Pin-point barriers and supports to effective
implementation in and outside of schools, including in
the home and the local community.
Scope of the Project
• 95 Public Submissions
• 8 presentations to the Project Team
• Case Study Research in 4 Schools and 1 Community
Project
• Interviews with stakeholders
• Commissioned research:
– Dr Eithne Kennedy- Approaches to literacy in a disadvantaged
school;
– Cynthia Deane- Mapping projects in the community outside of the
schools.
Project Team
Chairperson Professor Áine Hyland
Strand One
Michael McGrath, T.D. Fianna Fáil
Willie Penrose, T.D. Labour
Terence Flanagan, T.D. Fine Gael
Strand Two
Anna Maria Dennison (ICA)
Geraldine Anderson (IBEC)
Ms Marie Sherlock (SIPTU)
Catherine Byrne (ex INTO)
Strand Three
Marie Clarie McAleer (NYCI)
Sr Mary Reynolds (CORI)
Niamh Gallagher (CRA)
Inez Bailey (NALA) nominated by
Community Platform
Strand Four
Marie Carroll, Southside Partnership
Jim Mulkerrins, Department of
Education and Science
Dr Harold Hislop, Inspectorate of
Education and Science
Dr Áine Cregan, Mary Immaculate
College, Limerick
Michael Hallissy, Director of Learning,
Digital Hub
Gene Mehigan, Marino Institute of
Education
Secretariat
Dr Jeanne Moore
Some Findings from Case
Study Research
Evidence of excellent practice in these DEIS schools.
But there is variability, despite having similar levels of
disadvantage. Why is this?
Elements of this included:
•
Effective leadership, structured programmes bringing
results, targeted interventions, committed and focused
teachers, collaboration and teamwork, training, prioritising
literacy, drawing up action plans and targets etc.
• School culture plays a key role (distributed leadership,
welcoming atmosphere etc).
DEIS Implementation Challenges
• Some challenges in implementation included:
– Schools perceive that there is a lack of understanding
of the difficulties of disadvantage and its complexity
– Staff turnover, particularly when trained in
programmes
– Lack of integration of different aspects of DEIS
– Lack of awareness of good practice
– Perception that DEIS does not reward success
– Perception of poor guidance at start of DEIS
– Lack of clarity over designation status
– In the school- lack of leadership, no signs of innovative
school culture, negative attitudes etc.
Policy for Success? and Targets
DEIS is not perceived by some to be a policy that rewards
success. “You’re likely to work yourself out of the help”
(Learning Support Teacher, School A).
‘And that one, the problem with that, that we have found is
what do you focus on? And what areas do you target
because I suppose my biggest concern, biggest problem
is that children coming into a DEIS school are starting
with a deficit. Educationally they are a couple of years
behind their counterparts, and all of this DEIS and all the
extra supports are to try and remediate that. So there is
an assumption that you can do that, that’s number one’
(Principal, School C).
Community Initiatives
• There is excellence and variability in community
provision.
• There are gaps in the provision of initiatives outside of
school and in some cases, overlap.
• .Despite the considerable work of the Home School
Community Liaison Scheme, there is a gulf between
school and community which needs to be bridged.
• Greater leadership, quality assurance and support are
needed.
Community (Cont.)
• The role of local on-the-ground projects can complement
what is happening in the formal education system.
• Family literacy projects are strengthening but more are
needed as part of the development of a national family
literacy strategy.
• Office of the Minister for Children’s Services Committees
improving connections between agencies to achieve
better outcomes for children and families.
Main Recommendation
One central overarching recommendation, namely that a
National Literacy Policy Framework be put in place
that has a ‘life-cycle’ emphasis, with the involvement
of the various education and community
stakeholders. A Steering Committee should be
established to develop this framework led by the
Department of Education and Science. For this
purpose, the Department should liaise with other
relevant Departments, statutory and non-statutory
agencies, and voluntary agencies. This would provide a
shared vision for future action with greater policy
coherence and integration. It should be underpinned with
a strategic focus on child literacy.
Main
Recommendations:
Child Literacy and Social Inclusion
National
Literacy
Policy
Framework
ECCE
School-Base
Actions
Supports for
Schools
Implementation Issues
Community
Literacy
Practices
Institutional
Supports
Towards a National Literacy
Policy Framework
Supports for Disadvantaged
Pupils/Schools