Category: News

On September 11th, the ERC published the latest report on the evaluation of the School Support Programme under DEIS. As part of the evaluation, large-scale assessment of reading and mathematics achievement has been carried out on four occasions since 2007, most recently in 2016. Previous evaluation reports have summarised the achievement outcomes from each roundsRead more…

The fourth report in the ERC’s Research Series was released on August 16th 2018. The Research Series is designed to provide regular and accessible reports on aspects of the research carried out by the Centre. The new report is titled PIRLS and ePIRLS 2016: Test content and Irish pupils’ performance, written by Eemer Eivers andRead more…

The third report in the ERC’s Research Series was released on June 27th 2018. The Research Series is designed to provide regular and accessible reports on aspects of the research carried out by the Centre. The new report is titled Inside the post-primary classroom: Mathematics and science teaching in Second Year, written by Aidan Clerkin,Read more…

The ERC is currently standardising new reading and maths tests for primary school pupils (from 2nd to 6th class). A small number of free tests are available on a first come, first served basis to interested schools. The tests have to be taken before the end of the current school year (i.e., June 2018), withRead more…

A collaborative research team from the ERC and the DCU Institute of Education have completed a second report on the Educational Experiences and Outcomes of Children with Special Educational Needs. The report was published by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) on Monday, 26th March 2018. Peter Archer, Caroline McKeown and Jude Cosgrove (ERC)Read more…

Temporary positions available for the scoring of student responses on reading, mathematics and science assessments About the Positions In April, May and June 2018, the Educational Research Centre (ERC) will be involved in scoring student responses on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). PISA isRead more…

The ERC publishes a new review of the international evidence on strategies identified as effective in addressing educational disadvantage, updating a similar review carried out by the Educational Research Centre in 2005 (Archer & Weir, 2005). The literature relating to each of six main strategies identified as effective in addressing educational disadvantage is summarised andRead more…

The second report in the ERC’s new Research Series was released on December 18th 2017. The Research Series is designed to provide regular and accessible reports on aspects of the research carried out by the Centre. The new report is titled Inside the primary classroom: What happens in Fourth Class? and was written by AidanRead more…

Ireland’s national report on PIRLS and ePIRLS 2016 has been released, to coincide with the release of the international reports on the two studies.  PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) takes place every five years and examines the reading achievement of pupils in Fourth Class.  The 2016 cycle also saw the introduction of anRead more…

Gerry Shiel and Cathy Kelleher (ERC) have completed an evaluation of the impact of Project Maths on performance in Junior Cycle mathematics on behalf of the NCCA. The report draws on achievement data from international assessments and national examinations, as well as interview data involving mathematics teachers,  to identify strengths and weaknesses in students’ mathematicalRead more…