Yishun Secondary School

School Closure Simulation Exercise Sec 3E Geography & Social Studies Sample SEQ: Northern Ireland
Name: _______________________________(____) Class: Sec 3E(____) Date: 4 August 2011

1.

Instruction Read the sample answer on causes of conflict in Northern Ireland below. Sample Question & Answer To what extent is the conflict in Northern Ireland due to the education system? Explain your answer. [12]
Education System The education system is responsible for the conflict in Northern Ireland . The Protestants go to public schools that cater for Protestants only and the Catholics attend private schools that cater for Catholics only. This meant that the Protestants and Catholics rarely meet and get to know each other. Thus they become distrustful of each other and generations of children grow up feeling hostile towards each other. Thus, the education system was divisive and it resulted in Protestants and Catholics seeing themselves as different. As a result, misunderstandings between the two were common and lead to various types of conflicts. Divided Loyalties Another factor that contributed to the conflict in Northern Ireland is divided loyalties. The Protestants see themselves as British and want the country to continue as part of UK. They are very afraid of union with the Republic of Ireland as they believe that the Catholic government would not tolerate their Protestant beliefs. The Catholics see themselves as Irish and wants the country to be reunited with the Republic of Ireland. Divided loyalties mean that Protestants and Catholics remain intolerant of each other. They desire citizenship with different countries and still hate each other for past conflicts. This hatred led to more conflicts as they regard the other religion as enemies. Unequal employment opportunities Another factor that led to conflict is the unequal job opportunities. The Catholics believe that they do not enjoy equal opportunities although they may be just as academically qualified as the Protestants. The Catholics felt unjustly treated and this stirred up feelings of unhappiness and hostility. Their lack of employment opportunities also mean that they are less able to afford the things they wanted. Thus in order to fight for their rights and fair treatment, conflicts occurred between the two religions. Unequal allocation of housing Another reason for the conflict is the provision of public housing by the city councils. As the city councils consisted of Protestants, many Catholics felt that it was unfair as most of the housing were allocated to Protestants. The Catholics were angry as public housing were partly subsidised by the government and they had to wait a long time before they get their own houses. The Catholics complained that they were being discriminated against and blamed the Protestants for the unfair treatment. As a result, the Catholics hated the Protestants and they expressed their unhappiness by asking for rights from the Protestants-dominated government. When those demands were rejected, conflict occurred in Northern Ireland. Conclusion Divided loyalties is more important than the education system because divided loyalties was the basis for the conflict and impossible to change. With divided loyalties, the people do not share a common destiny and see no reason why they should work together. The government could change the education system but tension would still continue. For example, equal voting rights

were given in 1968 but tension still continued. That is, divided loyalties was the basis for the conflict and it was shown in every aspects of life; jobs, education, employment and allocation of housing.

Other causes that you could write to replace paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 Lack of voting rights Another reason for the conflict is the unfair voting system. The voting systems favored the Protestants and big companies (tend to be owned by Protestants). Thereby, the Catholics were unhappy as few companies were owned by them and thereby their wants were often drowned by the larger Protestants and the unfair voting system. Although, the voting system was revised to one where everyone is given one vote, the Catholics remained unconvinced. Lack of opportunities for social interaction Another reason for conflict is the lack of opportunities for social interaction. This meant that schools and housing estates were exclusive and they catered to their respective groups. For example, government schools were for Protestants only and there was no common syllabus to build a common identity. Similarly, the Protestants and Catholics lived in separate residential areas. Certain districts were largely Catholic and some largely Protestants. This meant that there was no opportunity for social interaction and they viewed each other as strangers. Lack of avenues for interaction therefore made them intolerant of different way of life and it worsened the bad relations between the two groups.

School Closure Simulation Exercise Sec 3E Social Studies Name: _______________________________(____) Causes of Conflict in Northern Ireland Instruction: Use information in the sample answer given above to complete the template below. Categorise the sentences in each paragraph into PEEL (Point, Elaborate, Example, Link). This is a form of notetaking. By breaking up your paragraphs into bite size points would help you remember them better. Question: To what extent is the conflict in Northern Ireland due to the voting rights? Explain your answer. [12] Class: Sec 3E(____) Date: 4 August 2011

Point Education System

Elaborate

Example

Link

Divided Loyalties

Unequal employment opportunities

Unequal allocation of housing

Lack of voting rights

Lack of opportunities for social interaction

Instruction Use the information that you have written in the template to help you answer the question. Question To what extent is the conflict in Northern Ireland due to the voting rights? Explain your answer. [12]

Type here