§ Sir John Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement about the project known as European Studies (Great Britain and Ireland) and promoted by his Department together with the Departments of Education in Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.
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§ Mr. Chris PattenThis curriculum development project, the planning of which began in early 1984, is to be organised and funded jointly by the Department of Education for Northern Ireland, the Department of Education, Dublin, and the Department of Education and Science, London. It will extend their long-standing co-operation in the educational field.
The project, which will begin in the school year 1986–87 will involve six secondary schools in Northern Ireland, six in the Republic of Ireland and six in Great Britain, and will attempt to encourage pupils in the United Kingdom and Ireland to explore both the common elements and the rich diversity of their heritage. History and geography will be the main subjects involved and pupil skills in these subjects will be developed by way of individual and group research as well as project work. The project will also concentrate on the acquisition of new skills and techniques in the area of information technology.