Education of Irish Traveller children: Some social issues

Abstract

The Irish Travellers are a nomadic culture living on the fringes of organized Irish society. Unlike Gypsies found in many countries, Irish Travellers are indigenous and share the nationality, race, language and religion of the majority settled Irish society. Travellers are frequently the victims of prejudice and discrimination in Ireland. They have been educated in either segregated Traveller only schools or inte grated into the settled Irish schools. The history of the education of Travellers, the current educational system and conflicting educational values are reviewed.