ABSTRACT
Home Economics curricula policy has had a chequered past with many countries witnessing the removal of Home Economics as a designated subject from schools. The demise of cooking skills and culinary knowledge has been linked to increases in diet-related non-communicable diseases (DRNCDs). This had led to calls for Home Economics to be (re)introduced in school curricula to cultivate essential food skills. In Irish secondary school curriculum policy, Home Economics is a popular choice for students at Junior Cycle level (ages 12–15); however, it has recently undergone significant curriculum reform. Using Bernstein’s Theory of the Pedagogic Device as a theoretical framework, this chapter provides insights into the development and positioning of food education within Home Economics curriculum policy in Ireland. An analysis of the development of the new Junior Cycle Home Economics Specification is set out using Bernstein’s theoretical framework. The chapter concludes by detailing lessons, at a macro policy level, learned from the Irish context and sets out implications for those promoting food education policy. Home Economics curricula can provide the holistic framework for the teaching of comprehensive, sequential food education to young people.
