Ms Arlene Forster:

I thank the Chair and committee members for the opportunity to speak today. I am the chief executive of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, NCCA. I am joined by my colleague, Mr. Diarmuid Mooney, acting director, curriculum and assessment.

The council is a representative structure. It advises the Minister on the curriculum for early childhood education, primary and post-primary schools, and the assessment procedures employed in schools and examinations on subjects that are part of the curriculum. From a curriculum perspective, STEM education goes beyond individual or groups of subjects, courses, modules and units. It contributes to young people’s education and their lives by enabling them to acquire knowledge and understanding about how the world works; developing their critical thinking and problem-solving skills; fostering their curiosity and nurturing creativity, innovation and risk-taking; and empowering them to use all of this to respond to real-world problems. The STEM area features strongly in NCCA's work from early childhood to senior cycle education. This work is informed by research, close engagement with schools and settings, public consultation and by deliberation with the education partners, as well as by Government policy on STEM education. NCCA's current work involves the redevelopment of the curriculum for 11 years of a young person’s educational journey - their primary education and the senior cycle of their post-primary education. Today, I would like to highlight the STEM-related work planned as part of this redevelopment.

Looking first at primary education, Ireland’s first curriculum framework for primary education was launched by the Minister, Deputy Foley, on 9 March this year. The framework sets out a clear direction for the redevelopment of the full primary curriculum.

It builds on children’s early experiences supported by Aistear, the early childhood curriculum framework, and the current primary school curriculum, which dates from 1999, through introducing science, technology, engineering and mathematics education for all children from junior infants to sixth class. The framework also introduces seven key competencies, some of which relate to STEM: being mathematical, being a digital learner and being creative. These competencies will be integrated across the full curriculum and extend learning in STEM as children are supported to be curious, creative, confident and critical users of technology as well as developing and applying mathematical thinking and logic to solve problems.

Informed by the framework, the NCCA recently completed a new primary mathematics curriculum, which is with the Minister for consideration. This new curriculum is designed to foster children’s productive disposition, encourage playfulness with mathematics, emphasise mathematical modelling, use cognitively challenging tasks to stretch and challenge children’s conceptual understanding and promote "maths talk", encouraging children to express their mathematical strategies, thinking and ideas. Current plans would see this new mathematics curriculum being introduced in schools in the 2023-24 school year with work on the wider STEM curriculum area being completed in 2025.

Turning to post-primary education, a range of curriculum components including subjects, modules, short courses and priority learning units support STEM education in second level schools. As part of junior cycle, the 2015 framework supports learning through eight principles, 24 statements of learning and eight key skills, all of which play a crucial role in the development of STEM education.

Senior cycle has seen a number of developments that support STEM education now and into the future. These include the introduction in 2018 of leaving certificate computer science and a redeveloped applied mathematics curriculum in 2021. As part of the leaving certificate applied programme, STEM-related modules were recently redeveloped. These include mathematical application and information and communications technology along with a precursor module, introduction to information and communications technology.

Following the Minister, Deputy Foley’s announcement last year and her response to the NCCA’s senior cycle review advisory report, the redevelopment of senior cycle is currently a key priority for the council. As part of this, the NCCA is currently developing a schedule for the review and development of senior cycle specifications, which will include STEM curriculum components. These developments will be supported by a key competency framework, which will include key competencies that support the development of learning across senior cycle as a whole and which will contribute significantly to STEM education. Further information on the NCCA’s work on STEM education is provided in our written submission. My colleague and myself are happy to answer questions members may have.