Pioneering teacher and founding director of the Curriculum Development Unit, Dr Anton Trant, who passed away on 2 November 2023, was an extraordinary father, husband and professional who made an unparalleled contribution to Irish education .
Anton was born in Corclough on the Ellis Peninsula in 1933, the third child of John and Margaret Trant, from a family of lighthouse keepers. Anton and his six siblings moved along the coast during childhood to live near his father’s posting. He graduated from Galway University with a degree in Irish Language and History and went on to gain a relevant teaching qualification. He received his PhD from the Institute of Education, University of London in 1993.
After teaching in London and Malta in the 1950s and early 1960s, Anton returned to Dublin. In 1966, when he was just 33 years old, Anton was appointed headteacher of a new school in Ballyfermot to cater for the hundreds of young people seeking free second-level education in the west Dublin area. .
During his six years as headteacher in Ballyfermot, Anton and his innovative staff have demonstrated that progressive schools have a positive impact not only on students, but also on parents, families and the wider community. I have proven it. Outdoor education, drama and art formed part of the curriculum. Students hike in the Wicklow Mountains and take part in sailing training on board the national sailing training ship Asgard, while on-campus performances by the National Youth Orchestra and other professional arts organizations , which could be viewed by the general public and students alike.
In 1972, Anton co-founded the Curriculum Development Unit (CDU), which aimed to stimulate innovative curriculum thinking in Ireland. The CDU operated under the aegis of the Department of Education, the Faculty of Education at Trinity College and the City of Dublin Vocational Education Commission (CDVEC).
Over the next 30 years, as Director, Anton and his dynamic team pioneered many curriculum initiatives. He secured national and European funding for research into how to combat early dropouts and provide access to education for marginalized groups. Many of these initiatives, such as the Early Graduates Project and the Dublin City Center Education Project (DICE), were later taken up nationally as the New Junior Qualified Schools Program and the National Youth Support Programme.
The latter currently has more than 100 centers across Ireland, with work being carried out in 220 schools to identify and support students at risk of leaving school early.
Anton led the CDU in pioneering developments in civic, social, political and health education. These were subsequently adopted as part of the national curriculum and the CDU was instrumental in introducing both the applicable Leaving Certificate Program and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Program.
The core of the CDU project is to introduce outdoor education services across the Dublin City VEC, with a floating base at nearby Blessington Lake in County Wicklow. Outdoor education has since been added to the curriculum of many schools and centers across the country. Anton also made significant contributions to environmental education both in Ireland and in the EU, where he directed the European Community Environmental Education Network from 1977 until 1986.
Another enduring legacy of Anton’s life’s work was his involvement in peace and reconciliation efforts in Northern Ireland. From 1997 to 2004, he was an evaluator for the International Fund for Ireland (IFI)’s Wider Horizons programme. During that period, Wider Horizons provided overseas vocational training and work experience to help promote reconciliation and employment for more than 12,000 of her young people on the island.
After his retirement in 1999, Anton published a book about his work and that of the CDU, Curriculum Issues in Ireland. Anton’s pioneering perspective permeates this book and continues to inspire lively discussion and debate in the educational world.
As a husband, father, neighbor and member of the local Kilbride House community, Anton was equally special. Many people in the Kilbride estate still remember her football club ‘Kilbride All Her Stars’, which Anton founded in the 1970s with her eldest son Maurice and her local children. In Anton’s professional life, nature was more than just a passion. Her family and friends remember her frequent hikes in the West Wicklow Mountains in Zefin and Maraghrevan and kayaking on Blessington Lake. Meanwhile, her holiday in Wexford cemented her love for water-based activities for both of us for the time being. And also members of her extended family. And what the family remembers most are the holiday traditions that Anton created. That’s a swim before breakfast, no matter the weather.
During the last 15 years of his life, Anton focused his attention on the latest research in Biblical studies and shared this interest locally by organizing discussion groups on the subject. He was part of an active interfaith group in Blessington and an active member of the men’s group.
Anton was an inspirational leader in all aspects of life and encouraged similar leadership in others. In public and private life, Anton took a low-key approach. He was an attentive listener and engaging conversationalist who left a lasting impact on all who knew and worked with him.
He is remembered with great fondness by his wife, Kathy; his children, Maurice, Mary Liz, Nick and Barbara; his daughter-in-law Nuria; grandchildren Michael, Heather, Luke and Anna; extended family and many friends and former colleagues.