Cultural participation within and outside school: insights from research Emer Smyth

Introduction Exposure of young people to cultural activities, including music, can take through the formal curriculum, through school-based extracurricular activities and/or through out-of-school activities Use existing research to highlight main issues in relation to provision and participation within and outside school

Subject provision Role of school size in constraining the range of subjects provided Type of subjects provided also reflects perceived suitability for the kinds of students attending the school: gender mix and ability/social class Music is part of the primary school curriculum but time spent on it varies across schools (less in boys’ schools; more in gaelscoileanna) Second-level schools vary in provision at junior and senior cycle level

Junior cycle provision of Music (2011)

Senior cycle provision of Music (2011)

But provision is not enough Complex processes shape the take-up of subjects Can be influenced by the school approach to subject choice: Timing Packaging Subjects can be constructed in terms of gender (‘for girls’ or ‘for boys’) or in terms of ability/performance Junior cycle choices influence senior cycle take- up

Take-up of Music at junior and senior cycle (2011)

Who takes Music? Lack of large-scale research on take-up of Music Indicative patterns from the Post-Primary Longitudinal Study: Individual social class background: higher among professionals/farmers Prior achievement: higher among those with higher reading scores School social mix: much lower in working-class schools

Out-of-school activities among 9 year olds (Growing Up in Ireland data) Activity% participatingOf which % paid for Sports / fitness club Cultural activities Youth club Scouts / guides / boys brigade / girls brigade Homework club

Groups of children 1. ‘Cultural activities’: organised music and drama lessons or clubs, reading for pleasure 2. ‘Sports and computer games’: sports and exercise, videogames and ICT for fun 3. ‘Social networkers’: varied use of ICT combined with cultural activities and time with friends 4. ‘Busy lives’: involved in a wide range of activities 5. ‘TV and sports’ (unstructured activities): TV and time with friends, very low ICT use

Activities by gender

Activities by social class

Other factors influencing participation in cultural activities Family income Mother’s education Educational resources in the home Immigrant status Learning disability Neighbourhood: children are more involved in cultural activities where there are local recreational facilities

Out-of-school activities and reading scores

Out-of-school activities and maths scores

Policy implications Access to music education varies according to the school attended: implications for gender and social background differences Not just an issue of take-up but provision: how is music constructed as a school subject? Clear gender and social class differences in out- of-school participation in cultural activities Implications for educational achievement but value of music education is not just instrumental