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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY STEM EDUCATION IN THE IRISH SCHOOL SYSTEM 8 held at the Royal Irish Academy (RIA) on April 17th, 2014, was particularly useful in highlighting many of the key issues that need to be addressed in order to significantly improve STEM education in Ireland. A detailed analysis of the current state of STEM Education in the Irish School System is presented in the report. Some key observations that emerged from this analysis are as follows: n While there have been some general improvements in the performance of Irish students in international assessments such as TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) and PISA (the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment), a consistent finding across national and international tests of attainment is that primary and postprimary students find items assessing higher-order thinking skills (e.g. Applying knowledge and Problem Solving) particularly difficult – this is true for both mathematics and science. n Although the % of students taking Higher Level Mathematics at Leaving Certificate has increased significantly (from 16% in 2011 to 28% in 2016) since the introduction of Bonus CAO Points, there are serious concerns about the ‘mathematical underpreparedness’ of students entering third level and about the lack of basic skills of some students sitting the Higher Level paper. n The majority of teachers of Science subjects have a Biology qualification (more than three times as many as for Physics), as evidenced by Teaching Council Registration data. n There is a strong imbalance in the number of students studying Leaving Certificate Biology compared to the other Science subjects (>4x number taking Chemistry; >5x number taking Physics) n There are significant gender differences in the selection of Science subjects at Leaving Certificate, with the ratio of male students to female students greater than 3:1 for Physics and approximately 2:3 for Biology n Women are greatly under-represented in the STEM workforce in Ireland. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) estimates that fewer than 25% of approximately 120,000 people working in jobs that use STEM skills but are women. While recognizing that this problem may have a number of causes, it is clear that a major contributory factor is the selection of subjects and Third Level programmes by young women at postprimary level. One key barrier in this regard arises from the fact that, while parents are the main influencers when it comes to advising their daughters on how to define educational and career paths, they generally lack information about career options. n A particularly impressive aspect of STEM Education in Ireland is the highly active informal STEM education sector. This sector, which operates outside the formal curricular teaching in schools, includes initiatives such as the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition (BTYSTE), SciFest, CoderDojo, Coolest Projects, RDS STEM Learning, LearnStorm and Smart Futures. There is a concern, however, that the benefits of these initiatives are not fully realised under present conditions and that excellent work by students, and the potential for much greater engagement with STEM activities, may be underleveraged because it is not integrated into the curriculum or assessment instruments.
n Without an effective national policy on STEM education to secure and sustain a sufficient supply of high-quality scientists, engineers, technologists and mathematicians, there are serious concerns that Ireland might lose economic competitiveness and fail to realise its potential as a nation. For example, according to the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN), over the next six years Ireland will be challenged to fill an over 40,000 projected job opportunities requiring high-level skills in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). n A significant problem with ‘out of field’ Mathematics teachers at Junior Cycle level has been largely corrected by DESsupported initiatives in recent years. (‘Outof-field’ teachers are teachers who hold no recognised teaching qualification in the subject being taught.) Similar initiatives will be required in Physics and Chemistry, for example, in order to ensure that all STEM teaching in secondary schools is delivered by qualified STEM teachers (as defined by the Teaching Council). Each of the five Terms of Reference is analysed in detail in the Report, key issues are highlighted in each case, and a set of Proposed Actions is presented to address these issues. The report concludes with a set of General Recommendations. Although it is not appropriate to repeat the full set of Proposed Actions and General Recommendations in this Executive Summary, it is useful to provide representative examples here, without prioritisation, as they are indicative of the overall thrust of the Report: n The development of specialist STEM teachers (‘STEM Champions’) should be encouraged in primary schools. Such specialists would work with colleagues to disseminate insights and best practice in STEM Education. A ‘STEM Champion’ should hold a recognised postgraduate qualification (e.g. in Mathematics Education, Science Education, Technology Education, STEM Education). n All STEM teaching in post-primary schools should be delivered by qualified STEM teachers, and the imbalance in the proportions of teachers qualified in biology, physics and chemistry should be addressed as a matter of urgency. n Working with the Teaching Council, all stakeholders should ensure that a comprehensive suite of STEM CPD programmes is available to post-primary teachers as part of their professional learning requirements under the forthcoming Teaching Council Framework for Continuous Professional Learning. n Measures should be put in place to support the implementation of inquiry-based learning (IBL) as part of the revised curricula for STEM subjects. Innovative assessment that aligns with inquiry-based teaching and learning should be developed. n Support the introduction of digital technology to facilitate international collaboration in STEM subjects between schools, and between schools and research facilities (e.g. remote telescopes, remote laboratories). n Develop a suite of ‘Technology-Enhanced Learning’ (TEL) CPD programmes in STEM disciplines for teachers at primary and postprimary levels. n Ambitious targets and a sustained, multifaceted action plan to address the gender imbalance in specific STEM disciplines should be established and implemented as a matter of urgency. STEM EDUCATION IN THE IRISH SCHOOL SYSTEM 9
Page 1: MATHEMATICS TECHNOLOGY ENGINEERING
Page 4 and 5: CONTENTS STEM EDUCATION IN THE IRIS
Page 6 and 7: A VISION FOR STEM EDUCATION IN IREL
Page 10 and 11: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY STEM EDUCATION IN
Page 12 and 13: Overview Introduction The STEM (Sci
Page 14 and 15: OVERVIEW The STEM landscape in Irel
Page 16 and 17: OVERVIEW maintenance, and may resul
Page 18 and 19: OVERVIEW Figure 2 Numbers sitting p
Page 20 and 21: OVERVIEW New post-primary STEM Curr
Page 22 and 23: OVERVIEW Out-of-field teachers The
Page 24 and 25: OVERVIEW The BT Young Scientist and
Page 26 and 27: OVERVIEW having more responsibility
Page 28 and 29: TERM OF REFERENCE 1: PREPARATION OF
Page 30 and 31: In general, the low level of knowle
Page 32 and 33: TERM OF REFERENCE 2: THE BEST METHO
Page 34 and 35: ecognition of the role of the infor
Page 36 and 37: Each Leaving Certificate syllabus h
Page 38 and 39: TERM OF REFERENCE 4: THE USE OF TEC
Page 40 and 41: impact of, CPD for teachers through
Page 42 and 43: n Provide a central (cloud-based) r
Page 44 and 45: Key issues Because students’ subj
Page 46 and 47: CONCLUSIONS AND GENERAL RECOMMENDAT
Page 48 and 49: CONCLUSIONS AND GENERAL RECOMMENDAT
Page 50 and 51: COMBINED REPORT OUTCOMES: Term of R
Page 52 and 53: COMBINED REPORT OUTCOMES: Term of R
Page 54 and 55: COMBINED REPORT OUTCOMES: General R
Page 56 and 57: REFERENCES STEM EDUCATION IN THE IR
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REFERENCES STEM EDUCATION IN THE IR
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APPENDICES Appendix I: Composition
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APPENDICES Essential Subjects are:
Page 64 and 65:
APPENDICES number of ECTS credits f
Page 66 and 67:
APPENDICES Appendix IV: 21st Centur
Page 68 and 69:
APPENDICES concerns about industry
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ACRONYMS AmCham BT BTYSE CAO CPD CS
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