An investigation into primary school pupils’ experiences of a shared education initiative in schools in Northern Ireland

Abstract

This thesis explores primary school pupils’ experiences of intergroup contact through participation in shared education in Northern Ireland. Shared education involves collaboration between cross-community schools to deliver joint classes and lessons. A central objective of this collaboration is to improve community relations by presenting frequent and consistent opportunities for children and young people from Catholic, Protestant and other backgrounds to meet. In view of this objective, this study considers primary school children’s experiences of shared education, focusing on how pupils interpret their own roles, develop friendships and relationships with cross-community peers, and the extent to which they have agency and voice throughout the process.

This study employs contact theory as its primary theoretical framework. It adopts a qualitative approach and employs participatory methods to examine the perspectives of a cohort of participants whose perspectives are generally under-researched in contact literature. This thesis is also guided by the new sociology of childhood framework in investigating agency for children and young people in contact initiatives. Employing thematic and participatory analysis, the study clarifies the contextual factors influencing pupils’ interpretative frameworks, as well as the issues impacting upon their experiences of shared education. The findings indicate that children’s perceptions of self and group identity and the influence of teachers’ impact on how they interpret their roles in shared education. Analysis also shows that contact settings and issues of micro-sharing lead to feelings of exclusion from shared activities for a significant proportion of pupils. This is turn impacts upon social relations and the development of friendships. Finally, it is evident that pupils rarely have agency or voice in decision-making. It is contended that provision of increased agentic roles for pupils would significantly enhance shared education experiences and promote more positive group relations.

This thesis makes an original contribution to the literature on intergroup contact, community relations and education by investigating the experiences of primary school pupils participating in shared education. The use of a qualitative approach and the employment of participatory research methods, often limited in the field of literature on contact, also reveals insights which have implications for future research and educational policy.

Thesis embargoed until 31 July 2024.

Date of Award	Jul 2022
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Queen's University Belfast
Supervisor	James Nelson (Supervisor) & Cathal McManus (Supervisor)