Home Economics Education in Irish Secondary Schools:
Its Position in Secondary Education and the Contents of the Curriculum
2016 Volume 67 Issue 11 Pages 627-637
Details
2016 Volume 67 Issue 11 Pages 627-637
The purpose of this study is to clarify Home Economics education in secondary schools in Ireland.
The study is based on a survey of the Home Economics curriculum and interviews with teachers involved in a Home Economics course while on a visit to Ireland in May 2016.
The results were as follows:
1. Home Economics as a subject is an optional choice in secondary schools in Ireland; it is not a compulsory subject. National education institutions provide various resources such as worksheets and slides for teachers and schools.
2. Five areas, that is to say, “Food Studies and Culinary Skills”, “Consumer Studies”, “Social & Health Studies and Consumption”, “Resource Management and Home Studies” and “Textile Studies” make up the core curriculum of Home Economics in the early years of secondary school. Another three areas, “Food Studies”, “Resource Management and Consumer Studies” and “Social Studies” comprise the core curriculum in the final years of secondary school.
3. Final year students have to take a national examination in all subjects including Home Economics in June of every year.
