Maeve O'Connell (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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248. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her policy on the need for primary and post-primary schools to establish classes or workshops for students on recognising misinformation and AI-generated online content, following the increased prevalence of these issues in recent times. [8910/25]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I am committed to the provision of digital skills and literacy within early childhood and care and school settings. Existing curriculum at each level offers multiple opportunities for the development of digital skills and digital literacy.

Digital skills and literacy are also supported through:

o Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy 2024-2033

o STEM Education Policy Statement 2017-2026

o Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027

In addition, reform of the curriculum at all levels is already underway which aims to ensure that our young people are equipped with the necessary digital skills and literacy to recognise mis and dis information and AI-generated online content.

Details are set out below of where digital skills and literacy are covered in the curriculum and various strategies.

Primary

• The Primary Language Curriculum highlights the importance of digital literacy which supports the child’s ability to locate, select and critically analyse relevant information in text, visual and audio.

• The Primary Curriculum Framework, outlines ‘being a digital learner’ as one of seven key competencies. This seeks to support children to become curious, creative, confident, and critical users of digital technology while fostering responsible, safe and ethical use of technology.

• The Primary Mathematics Curriculum provides for children to apply their mathematical knowledge and skills in flexible, efficient and creative ways to solve problems; conduct investigations; and develop and share their computational thinking.

• The Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Curriculum specification, to be published in September 2025, places an emphasis on developing children’s awareness and appreciation of the nature of STEM, while engaging in scientific inquiry, computational thinking and the design thinking process.

• The Wellbeing curriculum, due to be published in September 2025, has learning outcomes related to the Media and Digital Wellbeing promoting the safe and ethical use of technology, which includes learning about the benefits and challenges of digital technology use and the role and influence of media and popular culture have in children’s lives.

Post-Primary

Learners continue their digital literacy journey in post-primary education.

• Each key skill in Junior Cycle includes digital elements, while the key skills for senior cycle incorporate numerous elements of digital literacy. The redevelopment of senior cycle will continue and further develop a focus on learners' digital literacy skills.

• For learners in post-primary education digital literacy includes the ability to be media literate, recognising and counteracting misinformation/disinformation.

• The Framework for Junior Cycle – which underpins all learning in the first three years of post-primary – has an explicit focus on development of digital skills. At Junior Cycle the student is expected to use technology and digital media tools – to learn, to communicate, and to do so in a responsible and ethical way.

• Short course in Digital Media Literacy – students learn to use digital technology, discriminate between multiple sources of information and to participate safely and effectively in an online environment. This was recently reviewed with an updated version due for introduction in September 2025.

• Short course in Coding - aims to develop the student's ability to formulate problems logically; to design, write and test code through the development of programs, apps, games, animations or websites; and, through their chosen learning activities, to learn about computer science. This was recently reviewed with an updated version due for introduction in September 2025.

• in Junior Cycle English, the course highlights the use of non-literary texts such as media texts (advertisements, media broadcasts) and opinion pieces (articles, speeches, social media posts) to interpret meaning, compare, evaluate effectiveness of, and respond to media and digital media

• Many Classroom-based assessments at Junior Cycle require students to conduct research and reflect on their findings and of course digital literacy is in play there

• Leaving Certificate Computer Science is the study of computing and algorithmic processes. It includes how programming and computational thinking can be applied to the solution of problems, and how computing technology impacts the world around us. Resources and information on professional learning are available on Compsci.ie and Oide.ie.

• At Senior Cycle similarly there are opportunities to learn with and about digital media literacy in subjects like history, English, politics and society.

Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy 2024-2033

• The new strategy and 5 year implementation plan was developed between the Department of Education and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth,

• The strategy is set across all stages of the learner's journey from early learning and care to post-primary school. It aims to promote the development of essential literacy, numeracy, and digital literacy skills, knowledge, and dispositions including successfully navigating the digital world.

STEM Education Policy Statement 2017–2026

• The Department of Education’s STEM Education Policy Statement 2017–2026 recognises the need to nurture STEM in our learners from a young age so as to ensure they have the required skills such as curiosity, inquiry, problem-solving, creativity, ethical behaviour and persistence to operate in an increasingly digital world.

• Ongoing work includes:

o Partnership Research Ireland to support education and public engagement projects in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) through the Discover Programme including digital literacy projects.

o STEM related curricular reform which has been implemented since 2018 include Junior Cycle Mathematics, Leaving Certificate Applied Mathematics, Leaving Certificate Art, Leaving Certificate Agricultural Science and Leaving Certificate Computer Science and primary mathematics.

o Ongoing support from the Department of Education of a number of informal STEM education projects, along with support for Scifest, such as BTYSTE, Science Blast and iWish.

Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027

Key to the Digital Strategy for Schools to 2027 is that all learners are given the opportunity to use digital technologies in their learning to reach their full potential and provide them with the necessary digital skills needed for an increasingly digital world. Oide, the Department of Education funded Integrated Teacher Education Support Service, provides a variety of professional learning to teachers. Its dedicated Technology in Education Team (TiE), together with its digital technology team of Advisors, design, develop and deliver a comprehensive range of teacher professional learning (TPL) programmes to support the embedding of digital technologies in teaching, learning and assessment to support and foster the development of digital skills, knowledge and understanding in our student population as provided for in the curriculum.

Online safety and the safe and ethical use of digital technologies

Online safety and the safe and ethical use of digital technologies is a key component of the Digital Strategy. Support and resources in the area of online safety and digital citizenship are provided by Webwise. Webwise promotes the autonomous, effective and safer use of the internet by young people through a sustained information and awareness strategy targeting school leaders, teachers, parents/guardians and learners themselves with consistent and relevant messages. Misinformation and fake news is also addressed across a range of resources developed by Webwise for teachers including the Connected post-primary resource, digital citizenship online courses and through the provision of advice for parents, teachers and young people via the Webwise Parents, Teachers and Youth Hubs.

AI

Information for schools on AI in education can be found on the Oide TiE website which has a dedicated AI Hub and Webwise also have specific resources relating to online safety and AI AI Hub -

The Department, with the support of Oide, is currently developing guidance on the use of AI in teaching and learning which are expected to be circulated to schools in quarter one, 2025.