Education in Ireland is unique in being a “state-aided” system rather than a “stateowned” system. All primary schools and the majority of secondary schools are privately owned and managed, mostly by church groups. They receive state support in respect of capital expenditure, teacher salaries, and running costs. Approximately 60% of secondary schools pupils attend schools owned by a religious congregation. The Education Act (1998) enshrined the right of the patron of the school to defi ne “the characteristic spirit” and to appoint Boards of Management to run the schools according to that spirit. Ironically, this power has come at a time when religious congregations are considering their future in education. They no longer have the personnel or the resources to manage the schools from within, and the changing secular culture raises questions about the state’s dependence on Church patronage for its schools. The religious congregations are conscious of the gospel mandate to preach the gospel, even in unfavourable or hostile conditions. To date, the schools have been a privileged place for evangelisation. The congregations are committed to preserving Catholic education as a strong, viable option within the national system. They are seeking ways of handing over the enterprise of Catholic education as a vibrant and desirable concern.
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Tuohy, D. (2007). Celebrating the Past: Claiming the Future. In: Grace, G., O’Keefe, J. (eds) International Handbook of Catholic Education. International Handbooks of Religion and Education, vol 2. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5776-2_15
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