Dr. Martin Gormley:

On behalf of Education and Training Boards Ireland, ETBI, I welcome the kind invitation to contribute to this meeting. ETBI is the representative body for 16 education and training boards, ETBs, nationally and it promotes their interests. I am director of schools with the Donegal Education and Training Board with responsibility for 15 post-primary schools. I have a particular interest in the STEM area of education as my primary university degree was a bachelor of technology in education and I am a former teacher of technology, engineering, metalwork, design and communications graphics and mathematics at leaving certificate higher level. I have a keen interest in this area.

To provide some context, the opportunities for children and students in ETB schools to engage in STEM education across primary, special and post-primary schools are increasing because of the variety of policies, structures and supports that have been put in place since the publication of the STEM Education Policy Statement 2017-2026. ETBI acknowledges the significant impact of this overarching policy on subsequent policies, frameworks and curriculum specifications, while also recognising the range of reforms and initiatives that informed its development. Examples of policies, frameworks and curriculum specifications helping to embed STEM education in our schools include: the digital learning frameworks for primary and post-primary schools; the Action Plan for Education 2019; Céim: Standards for Initial Teacher Education; the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027; and both the first and second iterations of the Looking At Our School documents.

On STEM in ETB schools, I will first speak about professional development and partnerships. Increased engagement in STEM education at school level is supported through a variety of professional learning opportunities and support materials for teachers. Of particular note is support available from the STEM team of the professional development support service for teachers, PDST. Resources from the various subject associations or teacher professional networks at post-primary level have also proved to be helpful. Schools note the support they have received through partnerships with other schools as well as businesses and industry, including Intel, Lego, Science Foundation Ireland, local county councils, the technological universities and libraries. Some schools also report partnerships with schools and universities. In many cases, work experience during transition year has been a key part of the STEM experiences of our students.

Regarding approaches and resources for STEM at school level, my colleague, Mr. Curtis, has clearly set out some of the requirements. Schools note the implementation of a variety of STEM approaches and resources, including concrete and active learning approaches, such as design-and-make, maths eyes, inquiry-learning approaches, scientific investigations, forensic science projects, school tours, projects, etc. Schools also note the benefits of facilitating initiatives, competitions and awards to promote interest and engagement in STEM. I recently participated in the VEX Robotics competition that was held in Atlantic Technological University. It involved teams from all the post-primary schools in the region competing in a robotics competition. I witnessed the national competition in which a local primary school from Donegal won the national award and will travel to Dallas to represent Ireland. That would not be possible without the involvement of teachers who establish the culture in schools. At the competition, I witnessed teamwork and the best elements of STEM education. I saw boys and girls working together. We sometimes associate STEM subjects with boys. The girls' engagement with robotics was visible. I also witnessed the integration of Ukrainian students into teams. They had certain expertise from their schools they were able to share with the Irish students. It was moving for me to witness that and to see STEM in action.

ETB schools note some challenges that need to be overcome in order to support the successful development of STEM education. Those challenges include the shortage of qualified STEM teachers. Many of those who graduate from degrees in STEM subjects go into private industry. We often find in schools that if we can get good teachers in to deliver STEM, students will pick those subjects because they often choose subjects on the basis of which teacher is teaching it rather than the subject itself. That is why it is important to have enthusiastic, passionate teachers who are experts in the STEM fields and their delivery.

Schools note a lack of resources and funding from the State to fully implement STEM education across the school curriculum. Some mentioned that they have relied on funding from partnerships with industry and businesses to fully develop these areas. For example, we welcome the school excellence fund which funded digital clusters. A local school in Donegal, Errigal College, was involved with that and linked with local primary schools. It was very successful. It involved a small amount of money, few resources but it was effective.

There is a training and curriculum or policy overload. Irish education is undergoing a period of reform at present. Schools are being challenged by the impact of subsequent curriculum and policy changes. Consideration needs to be given to the sustainable and manageable implementation of the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027, including curriculum areas such as mathematics, science and technology at junior cycle and revised senior cycle. Another challenge facing the future of STEM education is the need to ensure all students, regardless of their background, have access to high-quality STEM education. That is important. We must not make STEM elitist. We must ensure that all students, regardless of background, have access. This is especially important for delivering equality of opportunity in schools, DEIS, schools. There is evidence to suggest that students from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to study STEM subjects and are therefore less likely to pursue STEM careers. This can contribute to the under-representation of certain groups, such as women and people from ethnic minorities, in STEM fields. One way to ensure students have access to high-quality STEM education is to increase the use of technology in classrooms and schools. Digital technologies have the potential to make STEM education more engaging and accessible for all.

Regarding the future of STEM education and opportunities, in the post-primary curriculum, the impending revision of the curriculum at senior cycle is an ideal platform to ensure greater cross-curricular and multidisciplinary approaches are adopted for all subjects. STEM subjects are not the only place for developing the key skills of critical thinking, problem-solving, creativity and innovation. It is a whole-school responsibility. Other subjects in schools, such as well-being, social science, business subjects, arts and modern languages can be related to STEM subjects in various ways and cross-curricular approaches to education can help students see the connections between different subjects and their application.

We also need to look at sustainability and climate change. These really are a priority with regard to the programme for government and what we are doing in schools. Revision of the senior cycle represents an opportunity to address these through the lens of STEM.

Training and support in STEM for school leadership should become part of a professional development model to ensure that all leaders have the relevant knowledge to drive the STEM agenda in schools. If leadership is not coming from the top and from management, it may not happen in a school. Oide, the new body that will encompass the professional development service for teachers, junior cycle for teachers, the centre for school leadership and the national induction programme for teachers, will also provide an opportunity. The coincidence of this integration, alongside the redevelopment and implementation of a new curriculum, a junior cycle programme and a revised senior cycle, provides a significant opportunity to harness the strength and experience of these existing services to embed and fully realise STEM.

Engineering as a junior cycle subject includes a module on mechatronics. This is very powerful because it brings together mechanisms, electronics and computation. The junior cycle includes a project on a marble return machine. This involves all of these skills and knowledge that the students must pick up on and put into practice in their projects.

The digital strategy for schools 2027 and the upcoming development of the implementation plan represents another opportunity for the future of STEM. The effectiveness-----