Mr. Humphrey Jones:

The Irish Science Teachers Association, ISTA, is very grateful for the opportunity to speak with the committee and the representatives from the Irish Maths Teachers Association, and the Engineering Technology Teachers Association today on the future of STEM education in Ireland.

Education in STEM plays a vital role in preparing Irish second-level students for the challenges of today's society. As our world becomes more technologically advanced, there is a growing need for a STEM-literate population that can contribute to innovation and problem-solving. The skills developed through STEM education are not only essential for success in traditional STEM careers but are also increasingly necessary in other fields such as healthcare, finance and even the arts.

Moreover, a STEM-literate population can help Ireland meet the challenges of the 21st century such as climate change, public health, clean water and food production and sustainable development. STEM education equips students with the tools to understand complex scientific and technological issues, as well as the skills to analyse data, develop evidence-based solutions and communicate their ideas effectively. Furthermore, STEM education encourages creativity and entrepreneurship, which are essential for Ireland's economic growth and development. In today's rapidly changing economy, innovative ideas and technological advancements are crucial for businesses to stay competitive. In addition, STEM education can help to address societal inequalities. Women and minorities are often under-represented in STEM fields and STEM education provides opportunities to address this imbalance by promoting diversity and inclusivity in STEM-related careers.

Earlier this month, the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, launched the second implementation plan for the STEM Education Policy Statement 2017-2026. The plan outlines the Government's commitment to promoting STEM education across all levels of education from early childhood to higher education. The policy statement highlights the importance of science education and the need to create a science curriculum that is relevant and engaging and promotes the development of critical thinking, problem solving, and scientific literacy skills. There is a commitment in the document to a continued review of STEM curriculum and assessments across all levels and to conduct research on identifying opportunities and barriers that currently exist.

It is the current view of the ISTA based on our own research and research commissioned by us as well as a review of international best practice that the current model of curriculum development and syllabus design does not meet the needs of teachers and their students and forms a significant barrier to the implementation of the STEM education plan.

It is imperative that the current flawed template of syllabus design be replaced with a template that reflects international best practice and where there is ample evidence that the template has been successfully implemented. The syllabus is the bedrock on which STEM education practice is built upon in schools and beyond. If this syllabus is not well constructed then successful implementation of the subject will not take place. Sadly, we have experienced the effects of a poorly constructed and vague syllabus on our students with the revised junior cycle science in 2016 and again with senior cycle agricultural science in 2019. The redevelopment of the senior cycle science curricula - biology, chemistry and physics - provides opportunities to address the issues with the design of these curricula.

In 2019,the ISTA published the report "Listening to the Voice of Science Teachers" after an extensive survey of our members - some 1,500 strong. This report highlighted the major problems encountered by science teachers arising out of their experience of teaching the junior cycle science syllabus. Among the problems highlighted was the lack of clarity on the depth of treatment of topics on the syllabus. It is simply not possible to compress an entire three-year science programme into 46 learning outcomes. The learning outcomes lacked clarity with teachers finding it difficult to agree on the depth of treatment required by the specification.

A second problem is inadequate training. Many teachers felt the training provided during the implementation of the new specification at the early stages in particular was not fit for purpose. Teachers were encouraged to “unpack” learning outcomes collaboratively but this further added to frustration as it was clear that the model lent itself to inconsistencies. A third problem identified was the lack of value placed on practical work. In the old junior certificate science syllabus, 35% of the total marks were awarded for laboratory practical work. The new 2016 syllabus has very few student experiments specified and no credit is given by the State Examinations Commission for student laboratory work as part of the final assessment of junior cycle science.

A fourth issue that arose with the implementation of the revised junior cycle science syllabus was the cut to the minimum teaching time from 240 hours to 200 hours. In reality, this means that in many schools, the time allocation for science was cut from five 40-minute periods to three periods. Fifth, there was concern that the standard of scientific knowledge required by the students was significantly lower than in the previous syllabus. Many felt the new course had "dumbed down" science.

The sixth issue is the wider gap between junior and senior cycle sciences. There is concern the gap between junior cycle science and leaving certificate biology, chemistry and physics has widened significantly since the introduction of the new junior cycle specification and this is principally down to the lowering of standards in science.

On senior cycle subject development, the learning outcomes model has also been used by the NCCA in the development of leaving certificate subjects such as computer science, my subject of agricultural science, and politics and society. Research has shown teachers have experienced similar problems to those encountered at junior cycle level, including a lack of clarity on the depth of treatment, lack of effective CPD, lack of clear guidance on the correct implementation of the syllabus, lack of timely sample examination papers and unexpected areas being examined on the final examination papers. STEM subjects are already perceived as difficult. We do not want to add to this perception by being forced to teach inadequate syllabi, with inadequate CPD training and support, as well as lack of alignment between examination papers and syllabi. Unless this problem is tackled and resolved, we will certainly see a decline in students opting to take STEM subjects at senior cycle.

The ISTA reiterates our commitment to supporting Ireland’s STEM education plan, but we feel the current syllabus design model is a significant barrier to achieving its ambitions goals. We would like the committee to reiterate that several provisions must be made for the successful implementation of STEM subjects. A new syllabus template needs to be developed for all syllabi at junior cycle and leaving certificate level. A full range of documentation must be available before implementation of the syllabi. This must include teacher guidelines, practical coursework guidelines, sample examination papers and sample marking schemes. We recommend an external, independent evaluation be carried out on the junior cycle framework and the leaving certificate subjects that have already been implemented using the same template. This external evaluation should be carried out by personnel from outside Ireland and by experts in curriculum design.

The ISTA wishes to once again express its sincere thanks to the committee for being allowed represent ourselves today.