UNESCO CHAIR/UNITWIN NETWORK PROGRESS REPORT FORM
Title of the Chair/Network:
Education for Pluralism, Human Rights and Democracy
Host Institution:
University of Ulster, Northern Ireland
Date of establishment of
Chair/Network:
May 1999
Period of activity under report:
Aug 2011 – Oct 2012
Report established by:
Prof Alan Smith, B.Sc (Hons), D.Phil
UNESCO Chair
(name, position)
1. Executive Summary:
Major outcomes, results and impact of the Chair, including on national policies, in relation to its
objectives as stated in Article 2 of the Chair Agreement (between the Institution and UNESCO)
(Not exceeding 300 words)
The UNESCO Chair at the University of Ulster was established in 1999. The priority is academic
research related to children, education and conflict. The Chair has attracted £6.3 million of extrabudgetary funding, including £2.4m from Atlantic Philanthropies and a further £3.9m from a variety
of sources including the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Nuffield
Foundation, NI Department of Education, NI Office of First and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM);
Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People (NICCY); the Royal Irish Academy,
UK Department for International Development (DFID), European Union, UNESCO, UNICEF and the
World Bank.
To date the Centre has completed more than 35 research and development projects. In Northern
Ireland, projects have included government evaluations of community relations; research into the
impact of academic selection (with QUB) that has led to policy changes from 2008; research into
integrated education in NI funded by the Nuffield Foundation; research and development leading to
the introduction of citizenship education based on human rights to the curriculum for all schools.
The emphasis during the past two years has been on further development of research related to
children’s rights and education in conflict-affected countries. This has included:

Advisor to the Education for All, Global Monitoring Report (2011) on education and conflict;
preparing a ‘think piece’ paper; authoring a research paper; and participation in advisory
group meetings. http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/leading-the-internationalagenda/efareport/reports/2011-conflict/

Implementation of a research programme on the rights of children and youth in Ireland in
partnership with the UNESCO Chair, NUI Galway funded by Atlantic Philanthropies.
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http://www.unescocentre.ulster.ac.uk/index.php#&panel2-2&panel1-2

Research with UNICEF HQ which has informed a new UNICEF (€120m) programme funded
by the Government of the Netherlands to support education and peacebuilding in 14 conflictaffected countries over the next four years (2012-15).
http://www.educationandtransition.org/resources/the-role-of-education-in-peacebuilding-2/

Planning and organisation of an International Youth Forum in conjunction with Child and
Family Research Centre at the National University of Ireland, Galway, and the UNESCO
International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP), Paris. www.planwithyouth.org
2) Activities:
Overview of activities undertaken by the Chair during the reporting period
a) Education/Training/Research
(key education programmes and training delivered and research undertaken by the Chair during the
reporting period, target group and geographical coverage)
i) Education
(leading to certificate)
EDU 101 – Education for Local and Global Citizenship (53 students)
EDU 516 – Education and Conflict (35 students)
EDU 102 – Introduction to Development Studies (14 students)
EDU 103 – The Role of International Organisations (17 students)
PhD students - 9 completed, 4 currently registered
ii) Training
(short term)
International Programme on Democracy and Social Change (HECUA) – one
semester course in Northern Ireland for students from US colleges and
universities - 12 students
iii) Research
Five new research grants (£1,084,766 in total):

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Children and Youth Programme, Ireland (in partnership with UNESCO
Chair, Galway) Atlantic Philanthropies, £985,223
Child Rights Indicators, NI Office of First Minister Deputy First Minister
(OFMDFM), Monteith & O’Connor, £79,600
Child Rights Policies, Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and
Youth (NICCY), £7,327
Review of the Welfare Reform Bill (NICCY), Horgan & Monteith, £7,616
Commemorations, Community Relations Council, McCully, £5,000
b) Conferences/Meetings
(key conferences and meetings organized by the Chair or to which its Chairholder contributed)
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i) Key conferences and workshops hosted by the Chair
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Education as a Humanitarian Response, University of Ulster (21 May 2012)
Education in the Youth Justice System, Stormont Parliament Buildings (29 May 2012)
Education and Peacebuilding, INCORE Summer School, University of Ulster (20 June 2012)
The Role of Special Needs Assistants in Northern Ireland, Belfast (10 Oct 2012)
ii) Other conferences/organizational activities undertaken by the Chairholder
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INEE Working Group, Brussels (17-20 October 2011)
Global Coalition for Protection of Education from Attack (6-12 November 2011)
UNICEF Executive Board, New York (6-11 February 2012)
UNHCR Education, Displacement and Peacebuilding, Geneva (13-16 March 2012)
Children Affected by Armed Conflict, Lambeth Palace, London (3 September 2012)
UNICEF Conflict Analysis, Uganda (11-17 September 2012)
UNICEF Planning Meeting with Country Offices, New York (24-28 September 2012)
UNESCO IIEP, Youth Forum, Paris, France (9-19 October 2012)
Dutch UN Students Association (DUNSA), Groningen, Netherlands (5-8 November 2012)
GIZ Education and Conflict Panel, Bonn, Germany (27-30 November 2012)
iii) A selection of conference presentations by the Chairholder and other colleagues
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UKFIET Annual Conference, New College, Oxford (11-16 September 2011)
Education and International Development Conference, Amsterdam (28-30 September 2011)
Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Juan, USA (20-29 April 2012)
British Association for Comparative and International Education (8-10 September 2012)
c) Interuniversity Exchanges/Partnerships
(principal exchanges/partnerships between the Chair and other institutions including UNESCO
Chairs/UNITWIN Networks)
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UNESCO Chair, Youth and Civic Engagement, University of Galway
UNESCO Chair, Education as a Humanitarian Response, University of Oxford
UNESCO UNESCO Chairs Network
http://www.unesco.org.uk/unitwin_unesco_chairs_in_the_uk
Centre for International Education (CIE), University of Sussex
IS Acadamie, University of Amsterdam
UNESCO IIEP, Paris
UNICEF HQ and Country Offices Sierra Leone and Uganda
d) Publications/Multimedia Materials
(major publications and teaching/learning materials)
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Please tick relevant fields of
output and indicate volume of
output:
[tick]
[no.]
Books
Books (edited)
Books (chapters)
X
?
1
2
Monographs
1
Research Reports
4
Journal Articles (refereed)
1
Conference Proceedings
Occasional Papers
Teaching/Learning Materials
Multimedia Materials (CD-Rom)
Multimedia Materials (Video)
Multimedia Materials (Other)
Give details of major publications and materials including full citations.
i) Theses
ii) Publications (2011-12)
Novelli, M. and Smith, A. (2012) The Role of Education in Peacebuilding. A synthesis report of
findings from Lebanon, Nepal and Sierra Leone. UNICEF, New York.
Smith Ellison, C. and Smith, A. (Eds) (2012) Education and Internally Displaced Persons. Bloomsbury
Academic, London.
Smith, A. (2012) ‘Challenges for the International Aid System’ in Education and Internally Displaced
Persons (Eds: Smith Ellison, C. and Smith, A.). Bloomsbury Academic, London.
Pherali, T., Smith, A. and Vaux, T. (2011) A Political Economy Analysis of Education in Nepal.
European Commission, Kathmandu.
Smith, A. (2011) Education in Countries Affected by Fragility and Conflict: Sierra Leone Case Study.
GiZ, Bonn.
Smith, A., McCandless, E., Paulson, J. and Wheaton, W. (2011) Education and Peacebuilding in
Post-Conflict Contexts. A Literature Review. UNICEF, New York.
Smith, A. (2011) Education and Peacebuilding: From ‘conflict-analysis’ to ‘conflict transformation’?
Frient Working Group on Peace and Development, 10 Year Anniversary Series, 2011(4).
Smith, A. (2011) ‘Education and Reconciliation in Northern Ireland’ In: Education and Reconciliation.
Exploring Conflict and Post-conflict Situations (Ed: Paulson, J.), pp.55–80. Continuum Books.
ISBN 978-1-4411-5325-8
Smith, A. (2011) ESRC Series on Citizenship and Diversity: A response to Jad’s paper, ‘The PostOslo Palestine and Gendering Palestinian Citizenship’. Ethnicities, 11(2), pp.22–26.
Selected previous publications:
Smith, A. (2010) Education and Conflict. Paper prepared for the Education for All Global Monitoring
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Report 2011 The Hidden Crisis: Armed conflict and education, Paris: UNESCO.
Smith, Alan (2010) The influence of education on conflict and peace building, Education for All Global
Monitoring Report 2011 The Hidden Crisis: Armed conflict and education, Paris: UNESCO.
Smith, A. and Magill, C. (2009) 'Reconciliation. Does Education have a role?' Shared Space: A
research journal on peace, conflict and community relations, 8(1): 5-15.
Magill, C.; Smith, A. and B. Hamber. (2009) The Role of Education in Reconciliation. Report for EU
Peace and Reconciliation Fund. (129 pages)
Connolly, P., Kelly, B. and Smith, A. (2009) The Development of an Ethnic Habitus Among Young
Children in Northern Ireland, European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 17(2): 217–
232.
Kerr, D.; Twine, C and Smith, A. (2008) Local and global education in the UK. In: Arthur; Davies and
Hahn (Eds.) SAGE handbook of education for citizenship and democracy. London, Sage.
Smith, A. (2007) Conflict and Education for All. In: Jones-Parry, R. (ed) Commonwealth Education
Partnerships 2007, London, Commonwealth Secretariat, Nexus Strategic Partnerships. The official
publication for the 16th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers, Cape Town. Cht 3,
pp.65-91. ISBN: 9780954962913,
Smith, A. (2007) Review. Devolution and Pluralism in Education in Northern Ireland, British Journal of
Educational Studies, 55(2), 221-224.
Smith, A. (2007) Education and Conflict: an emerging field of study In: Leach, F. and Dunne, M. (eds)
Education, Conflict and Reconciliation: International Perspectives, Oxford, Peter Lang.
Editorial Team (2007) A Human Rights-Based Approach to Education For All, UNESCO and UNICEF;
Paris and New York, 2007. ISBN: 978-92-806-4188-2.
Vaux, T., Smith, A. and Subba, S. (2006) Education For All in Nepal: Review from a conflict
perspective, London, International Alert.
Niens, U., Reilly, J. and Smith, A. (2006) Human Rights Education as Part of the Peace Process in
Northern Ireland, Journal of Social Science Education Vol. 1, 2006.
Smith, A. (2005) Education in the Twenty-First Century: Conflict, Reconstruction and Reconciliation,
Compare, Vol. 35, No. 4: 373-391.
Smith, A. (2005) Investing in Systemic Change through Curriculum, Textbooks and Teachers, In:
Education, Social Cohesion and Diversity, Washington, DC, The World Bank, Chapter 2, pp. 2-18.
Smith, A. & O Maoláin, C. (2004) Challenging Intolerance. New Directions for Youth Development.
Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Jossey-Bass, Summer 2004, pp. 95-108.
Smith, A. & Vaux, T. (2003) Education, Conflict and International Development. London, UK
Department for International Development (DFID).
Smith, A. Citizenship Education in Northern Ireland: beyond national identity? (2003) Cambridge
Journal of Education, Vol.33, No.1, pp.15-31.
Smith, A. Fountain, S. & McLean, H. (2002) Civic Education in Primary and Secondary Schools in the
Republic of Srebia. Belgrade. UNICEF, UNESCO and Open Society Institute.
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e) Cooperation with UNESCO Headquarters, Field Offices
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EFA Global Monitoring Report, UNESCO HQ, Paris
Section of Education for Peace and Human Rights, UNESCO, Paris
UNESCO IIEP, International Youth Policy Forum
f) Other
(any other activities to report)
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Member of Irish Higher Education Authority (HEA), Working Group on the future of
Humanities and Social Science Research
Associate Editor, Irish Educational Studies
Editorial Board of Journal of Education, Citizenship and Social Justice (Sage)
Editorial Board of International Journal of Development Education (Trentham)
Journal Reviewer (Australian Journal of Development Studies; Compare; Education Review ;
International Journal of Transitional Justice; Oxford Review of Education)
American Education Research Association (AERA)
British Education Research Association (BERA)
British Association for International and Comparative Education (BAICE)
Comparative and International Education Society (CIES)
PhD External Examiner at Lancaster University, Oxford University
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3. Future Plans and Development Prospects:
Outline of action plan for the next biennium and short/medium and long-term development prospects.
Please do not hesitate to refer to difficulties that the Chair has experienced
(Not exceeding 300 words)
The specific goals for the UNESCO Chair over the next three years are:
1. Publish a single authored book on Education, Conflict and Peacebuilding (Palgrave) and
associated academic journal articles
2. Develop a new, online teaching module on Education, Conflict and Peacebuilding as part of the
MSc in Peace and Conflict Studies offered by INCORE at the University of Ulster
3. Consolidate links with the Northern Ireland government in developing child rights indicators as
part of policy development with the Office of the First and Deputy First Minister
4. Consolidate the current research programme on Children and Youth in Ireland funded by
Atlantic Philanthropies, in partnership with the UNESCO Chair, Galway and a new UNESCO
Chair at Pennsylvania State University
5. Continue involvement with UNICEF HQ, New York ; UNICEF Uganda ; and UNICEF Regional
Office South East Asia in the development of a research strategy related to the UNICEF
Peacebuilding, Education and Advocacy programme (2012-15)
6. Establish partnership with UNESCO IIEP in the development of joint research on youth
engagement in conflict-affected countries as follow-up to the 2012 Youth Policy Forum, Paris
7. Strengthen institutional partnerships with the University of Amsterdam and University of Sussex
through the development of joint EU proposal related to education and international
development
8. Further develop a communications strategy to raise profile and maximise impact of research in
partnership with the UK National Commission for UNESCO and UNESCO Chairs Netwrok
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Appendix:
1) Human Resources
The UNESCO Chair in Education for Pluralism, Human Rights and Democracy is a full-time,
permanent academic post based within the School of Education and funded by the University of
Ulster with secretarial support.
All other posts are funded by extra-budgetary resources raised from external donors. During the
current reporting period (2011-12) the number of externally-funded, full-time posts associated with
the UNESCO Chair were:
1 Lecturer
4 Research Associates
1 Communications Co-ordinator
1 Web Developer
1 Secretary
4 postgraduate PhD students
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2) Financial Resources
Please tick sources of
financial contribution
and specify the
amount in U.S. dollars
[tick]
Amount ($)
Host Institution
____________________
Partner Institution
____________________
Government Body
____________________
Other Public Institution/Body
____________________
(incl. Research Councils)
UNESCO
_____________________
Other UN Agency
_____________________
IGO
_____________________
NGO
_____________________
Industry
_____________________
Other Private
__ _____________________
Give details of financial contributions, material resources and space.
Since the Chair was established, £6.3 million of extra-budgetary funding, including £2.4m from
Atlantic Philanthropies and a further £3.9m from a variety of sources including the UK Economic
and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Nuffield Foundation, NI Department of Education, NI
Office of First and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM); Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children
and Young People (NICCY); the Royal Irish Academy, UK Department for International
Development (DFID), European Union, UNESCO, UNICEF and the World Bank.
The University provides central support services, office space, secretarial support, heat, light etc
recovered from overheads included in research grants.
During this reporting period (2011-12) the following research grants were held (£1,084,766 in total):



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Children and Youth Programme, Ireland (in partnership with UNESCO Chair, Galway) Atlantic
Philanthropies, £985,223
Child Rights Indicators, NI Office of First Minister Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM), Monteith &
O’Connor, £79,600
Child Rights Policies, Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Youth (NICCY), £7,327
Review of the Welfare Reform Bill (NICCY), Horgan & Monteith, £7,616
Commemorations, Community Relations Council, McCully, £5,000
End of the Form