The Implementation of the Leaving Certificate Applied Programme in a School: The Complexity of Curriculum Change

The focus of this inquiry is to examine the complexity of curriculum change in the context of an exploration of the LCAP within the author’s own school. One of the principal tasks the LCA co-ordinator faces is to support teachers in implementing and delivering a radically different programme within the constraints of an existing teacher culture and organisational structure. Through a qualitative study about aspects of the dominant teacher culture in the author’s own school a deeper understanding of these constraints is sought. This study will acknowledge the existence of levels of cultural domains and attempt to seek out elements o f these in order to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the complexity inherent in a curricular change such as the Leaving Certificate Applied Programme. However the author takes cognisance of the fact that the literature highlights the complexities involved in revealing the fundamental, underlying shared convictions that guide behaviour and shape the way group members perceive, think and feel. She is aware that exploring the truly cultural level of an organisation or its underlying assumptions requires ideally a sound knowledge of the setting’s history, a considerable time commitment on site and varied methods of collecting data. Considering the timeframe in which this study had to be conducted and the nature of implementing the LCA programme- effectively constituting a second-order change requiring teachers not just to do old things differently but also to change their beliefs and perceptions-it was felt that interviews were the most appropriate choice of research tool