Eolas magazine Education & skills report Jan 2022

Education and skills report

education and skills report

Minister Simon Harris TD:

Education, skills, and lifelong learning

Education, skills, and lifelong learning are the most robust, transformative and lasting means to future-proof our country’s economic and social wellbeing, writes Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris TD.

Our education and skills system needs to be flexible to meet the needs of the learner, of the economy and of society, in order that Ireland can retain its advantage in the global war for talent by retaining and building on its skilled workforce.

The education and skills system must encompass everyone and must validate everyone’s path on their skills and career journey. The truth of this is borne out by recent experience. It is fair to say Covid-19 has upended each of our lives in different ways. From an economic and societal point of view, it exposed many divides in our society.

One of the most glaring divides was in the area of digital skills. When the world moved online in March 2020, a whole cohort of people were left behind.

One-in-six of us struggle with reading and understanding everyday text. One-in-four adults have difficulties using maths in everyday life. Half of us do not have the basic digital skills we need.

While most of us could work online, do our shopping, our banking online, there was a whole sector of society struggling to get by.

Ireland prides itself on being a knowledge-based economy but until we can tackle the digital divide, we risk leaving a whole generation of people locked out of the economy and society.

This is why my relatively new department is working to address this challenge.

We want to ensure that every single person has the tools to reach their full potential in life. We need to broaden the conversation beyond what people should do in life to what they want to do and how we help them meet those goals.

One of the most important initiatives we have launched this year is a new Adult Literacy for Life Strategy. This is one of the most important things we will do.

This really important piece of work will see significant investment and resources allocated to ensuring people have the ability to read, to write,

Credit: Merrion Street

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to go online. From next year, we will place 16 regional literacy co-ordinators in each Education and Training Board (ETB), across the country. This will mean one person will oversee the literacy services and supports that are available throughout the region and can be offered to each person to ensure they have the best chance in life.

What will this mean in practice? Well, I was lucky enough to meet with some women in Kilkenny recently. They told me they felt ashamed of their inability to read and write for years. Because of the work they have done in the ETB, they were able to type me a letter explaining how much it meant to them.

The truth is Ireland will never fulfil its potential if each of our citizens cannot participate in society and that is why inclusion is key in addressing the challenge of ensuring we have a highly skilled workforce. Otherwise, we risk missing out on the skills and talents of a whole cohort of people – and this is bad for the individual, bad for enterprise and bad for society.

My department has achieved a lot in its first year, and we have plans to do a lot more.

Since November 2021, school leavers who have logged on to the CAO webpage can see all of their options including further education, training and apprenticeships.

This is so important. Because across dinner tables over the next few months, our fifth and sixth years will start wondering what is next for them. For far too long, that is a conversation that has focused on the university they want to attend, rather than the career they wish to have.

Increasing the visibility of further education and apprenticeships will rebalance the scales, we hope, and send a strong message that there is no right or wrong way to learn. There are different ways.

Our evolving apprenticeship system reflects this. The Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025 will bring about a unified and coherent system of programmes, which will make apprenticeship a more recognised and valued qualification. It will be easier for

“Until we can tackle the digital divide, we risk leaving a whole generation of people locked out of the economy and society.”

Minister Simon Harris TD with John Fitzsimons, CEO of St Andrews Resource Centre, and Dermot McCarthy, Chair of St Andrews, at the graduation for the Construction Skills and Retrofitting programme at Dublin Port. Credit: Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science.

education and skills report

both learners and employers to engage with and present further opportunities within our overall skills offering.

The pace of change in the world of work is exponential and Ireland’s future sustainability and success depends on the achievements of learners, researchers, and innovators, on their specialised knowledge, expertise, on their capacity to progress their own development, and on their collective capacity to widen and deepen social and economic progress, regionally and nationally.

As we enter 2022, there are some key challenges we must get to grips with.

The first is lifelong learning. We know that Ireland in general does a good job of educating our young people. We know though that we tend to stop learning when we enter the workplace. I want to do better on this. How can we best

empower and encourage individuals to manage their own career journey, and best support them to do so?

We are thinking a lot about this challenge already, including considering a set of guiding principles for how we develop skills policy around lifelong learning and how we can build on our already strong partnerships with enterprise to embed a culture of lifelong learning across all kinds of businesses.

We know that in a dynamic and evolving economy, there will always be skills shortages. The imperative is to ensure agility and responsiveness in the system to respond to shortages as they emerge.

As our work advances, it will be critical to ensure that this system continues to meet the standards of responsiveness, flexibility, and adaptiveness that we need, now and into the future.

“Increasing the visibility of further education and apprenticeships will rebalance the scales.”

Minister Simon Harris TD and Minister Simon Coveney TD at Munster Technological University's Bishopstown campus in Cork, in November. Credit: Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science.

Léargas: Supporting innovation for both teachers and students

“By collaborating with other professionals in other European schools, we can learn so much from each other and Erasmus+ is an ideal opportunity for teachers to bring those practices home to their own schools,” said Brian Dillon, Assistant Principal of the County Limerick school.

The eTwinning National Quality Label is presented to teachers with eTwinning projects that show excellence in using Information and Communication Technology in their classrooms, using a variety of teaching methods, and putting pupils at the centre of their work.

As Ireland’s National Agency for European Union programmes like Erasmus+ and eTwinning, Léargas have managed international and national exchange programmes in the adult education, school education, vocational education and training, and youth sectors for almost 35 years. These exchanges connect people across different communities, counties, and countries, and bring a European dimension to Irish organisations.

In the last two years, many Irish education and training organisations have had to adapt and innovate as they have found new ways to bring their educators and learners together. In November 2021, to recognise their work, Léargas brought together three key European award schemes into one celebration of the most creative and inspiring communities, organisations, and teachers at the forefront of teaching and learning across Ireland.

The Léargas Innovative Learning Awards (LILAS) ceremony celebrated winning projects in three different but interlinked European exchange and learning initiatives: the European Language Label; the new European Innovative Teaching Award; and the eTwinning National Quality Label.

Award-winning European Language Label projects all supported learners at school or university to deeply engage with other languages, from English as a second language to Spanish to Lithuanian. One of the winners, the University of Limerick, created immersive virtual exchanges to ensure their Erasmus students could develop their language and digital skills in new ways.

Florence le Baron-Earle, teacher of French and Technology at University of Limerick said: “We wanted to make sure that virtual exchanges are maintained in the future… because it’s been proven that virtual exchange can really help students. Even if they go on exchanges after (travel) resumes, it’s a great way to prepare them. So, the overall results of the project are very positive. We could see really strong engagement from students, and the main goals of developing their linguistic skills, their intercultural competencies and digital literacy have been achieved.”

Three Irish schools were among the recipients of the first European Innovative Teaching Award which highlights outstanding teaching practices in Erasmus+ projects. In 2021, the Award focused on projects that used distance learning, alongside teaching practices and related digital tools and other forms of blended learning, to provide effective and inclusive education, a theme that is particularly relevant in the current Covid-19 context. Castleconnell National School worked with partners across Europe to create an inclusive model of special education in their school.

Gairmscoil Mhic Diarmada, Árainn Mhór, County Donegal won an eTwinning National Quality Label for their project ‘The Multilingual Book’.

“My favourite part of the project was creating my character and coming up with the story for her,” said one of the pupils at Gairmscoil Mhic Diarmada.

As we head into a new year of Covid uncertainty, Léargas and our programmes will continue to support teachers and learners to find innovative ways to work and learn together with their peers across Europe. To find out more, visit leargas.ie.

Léargas Points of Contact:

www.leargas.ie Programme Support & Development Team psdt@leargas.ie eTwinning etwinning@leargas.ie Languages languages@leargas.ie

Twitter: www.twitter.com/Leargas

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Leargas.ireland

Instagram: www.instagram.com/leargas.ireland

Students at Castleconnell National School, County Limerick, celebrate Erasmus+.

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Education at a crossroads

Ireland boasts more third-level graduates than the EU average, but the Oireachtas has been told that second-level education is not equipping students for the future. With the immediate threat to the sector of Covid-19 still looming, Irish education finds itself at a pivotal crossroads.

‘Bold’ action is needed to halt the failure of the Leaving Certificate to prepare Irish students for the challenges of the future, the Oireachtas’ Joint Committee on Education has been told. Emer Smyth of the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) told the committee that the focus on exams in the Irish education system is having a “significant negative effect” on both teaching and learning.

“The exam-focused approach is seen by students, parents and teachers as leading to rote learning, with a focus on memorising material at the expense of authentic understanding and a neglect of the development and assessment of broader skills,” Smyth said. “Exam marking schemes have become a key driver of student engagement in exam preparation. Levels of stress tend to escalate in sixth year with students finding their schoolwork even more difficult. Many students, especially female students, report feelings of strain and loss of confidence in sixth year.”

Smyth was speaking to committee as it considered submissions around the topic of Leaving Cert reform, a topic that has defined Irish second-level education for over a decade now, culminating in the first of the modern Leaving Cert reform measures in 2012, when maximum points achievable were increased from 600 to 625. In its current form, the Leaving Cert is having a “pernicious” impact on the learning and lives of young people, Anne Looney of Dublin City University told the committee, with Tom Collins of Maynooth University adding that it was “stacked against poorer students and less well-resourced schools”.

Speaking on the challenge facing those working to reform second-level education, chairperson of the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs Tony Donohoe told the committee: “We’re trying to prepare young people, who will still be in the workplace in 2070, 2075, so it’s impossible to predict. It is not a precise science. Who would have predicted the pandemic, for example, and its impact on digital skills?”

The Minister for Education Norma Foley TD has said that there is “more to progression beyond senior cycle than just CAO points and higher education” and pledged to reforming the Leaving Cert so that it works for “all” students in the coming years. Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris TD told the committee that the “current system does not prepare a student for life beyond education”, “does not teach students about financial literacy, digital skills, sex education, or climate skills” and that “such skills would help our students transition to the thirdlevel system or employment”.

Further CSO data for 2021 shows the 25-34 age group continuing to have the highest levels of third-level education qualifications, with three in every five possessing a tertiary qualification. Regionally, these rates can differ, with 61 per cent of people in Dublin aged 24-64 having a qualification, a rate that drops to 44 per cent in other areas.

A possible explanation for the education system’s focus on getting students to third-level could also be seen in the data: women were shown to be three times more likely to be employed if they possessed a third-level qualification; men aged 25-64 with a qualification had an employment rate of 90 per cent compared to 38 per cent for those without a qualification.

Two-thirds of school leavers between 18-24 were found to be economically inactive in 2021, compared to 35 per cent of others in the same age bracket, pointing to the possibility that reform of the Leaving Cert and third-level system may well depend on reform of an economy that demands its workers have third-level qualifications.

However, the Covid-19 pandemic has created more urgent problems for the education system once again, with masks now introduced for primary school children and primary school aged children accounting for 19.6 per cent of all Covid cases. With demands for increased ventilation that does not sacrifice heat during the winter months in schools, the Department of Education and Minister Foley have found themselves under increasing pressure as the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation calls for increased protection for its members, such as the return of contact tracing.

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That third-level system turns out a significant number of graduates greater than the EU average according to recently released Central Statistics Office (CSO) data. A CSO study conducted in 2020 found 58 per cent of 25–34year-olds in Ireland to have a tertiary level qualification, compared to an EU average of 41 per cent.

More than half of people in Ireland aged between 25 and 64 were found to possess a third-level qualification, 53 per cent in total, reflecting the steady increase of participation in the third-level sector over time. Whether this acts as vindication for the Leaving Certificate system or a validation of the criticism that it simply facilitates progress to third-level without equipping students with required with skills, however, would likely depend on a given viewpoint.

Both the Government and NPHET had previously insisted that schools were safe zones during the pandemic; with that now evidently untrue, the onus will be on the Department to protect staff and students while avoiding a return to the lost hours of education seen in 2020 and the first half of 2021.

Credit: Merrion Street

Curriculum change: What is and what might be

education and skills report

Last year, in eolas issue 43, we introduced the work of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) in an article titled ‘Crafting curriculum and assessment for this generation and the next’. Since then and despite the tumultuous challenges of Covid-19, we have been progressing our consultative and developmental work across early childhood, primary and post-primary education in support of the Department of Education’s Statement of Strategy 2021 2023.

In this article, we’re putting the spotlight on curriculum developments in support of greater curriculum alignment and continuity across primary and early childhood education. We begin by outlining the consultation process on proposals for a Redeveloped Primary Curriculum before moving onto the rationale and the process for NCCA in updating Ireland’s Early Childhood Curriculum Framework.

Primary

What children learn and how children learn in primary school is changing, and

we are asking the public for their views on the proposals published in the Draft Primary Curriculum Framework. The current Primary School Curriculum is 22 years old, and since it was launched in 1999, Ireland has changed considerably. Primary schools are more dynamic and busier than ever, and teachers and principals respond to a greater diversity of children and families. There have also been many policy developments such as universal preschool education, and the publication of a number of strategies which have specific actions related to the primary curriculum. In

addition, society has growing expectations of the purpose of a primary curriculum reflecting, to some extent, changes in societal values, globalisation, technological advancements, and commitments to sustainability, social cohesion, and inclusion.

Taking all of this into account, we need to ensure that the primary curriculum continues to do the best for children, especially when we think of how children born this year will begin primary school in 2026 or 2027, start their working lives in the 2040s and retire in

the 2080s/2090s. All of this creates an important opportunity to think about the purpose of a primary curriculum when we think of the years ahead.

As well as using research information, we have worked directly with schools and preschools to develop the draft framework. This has included working with a network of 60 schools, called the ‘Schools Forum’, consisting of different types of primary, post-primary and preschools from across the country. The public consultation on the Draft Primary Curriculum Framework is looking at the main changes proposed for the primary curriculum. These include:

• supporting transitions between primary school and the home, preschool, and post-primary school;

• introducing seven key competencies from junior infants to sixth class to enable children to adapt and deal with a range of situations, challenges, and contexts in support of broader learning outcomes;

• using five broad curriculum areas for junior infants to second class that support subject-based learning from third to sixth class: language, mathematics, science, and technology education, wellbeing, arts education, and social and environmental education. The curriculum will continue to include the Patron’s Programme of the school which can be religious education, ethical and/or multibelief education;

• having more focus on physical education (PE), social, personal and health education (SPHE) and digital learning, along with the introduction of modern foreign languages (from third class), technology, learning about religions and beliefs, and a broader arts education;

• giving schools more flexibility to decide, with some guidance, how their time is used across the school day and week. For example, a school might decide to allocate some time to a project or initiative in their local community; and

• promoting learning experiences that involve children being active, interacting, collaborating with each other, thinking creatively and problem-solving, and feeling a sense of belonging in their school.

The consultation process

Taking account of the pandemic and the challenging circumstances in schools, consultation on the Draft Primary Curriculum Framework was re-designed into two phases. Phase one took place from February to December 2020 and focused on engagement with national stakeholder organisations and groups, while phase two, open from October 2021 to February 2022, prioritises working with teachers, school leaders, the general public, parents and, importantly, children.

Early Childhood

Now turning our attention to early childhood, we have initiated an updating of Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework, which is now 12 years old. The framework supports adults in providing appropriately challenging, motivating, and enjoyable learning experiences within nurturing relationships for children from birth to six years. Early childhood is a time of being and becoming, a time which provides important foundations for children’s learning and for life itself. Aistear is underpinned by twelve principles and unlike the curriculum used by schools, it describes learning and development using four interconnected themes: well-being, identity and belonging, communicating, and exploring and thinking. The framework can be used in a range of settings, including day care, playgroups, naíonraí and preschools.

While Aistear is only 12 years old, much has changed in Ireland since 2009 and this impacts on children’s lives. These changes include a society that is now more socially, ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse; developments in national policy such as First 5: A Wholeof-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and Their Families, as well as curriculum and assessment developments. New research, particularly research on babies, continue to raise awareness and emphasise the critical importance of this period in a child’s life. Given these and other changes, it is timely that we update Aistear to ensure its continued relevance and impact in enhancing quality curriculum provision for our youngest children. This is an opportunity to revitalise and update the framework by incorporating learning from practice and research with the overall aim of enhancing children’s lived experiences in Ireland.

The consultation process

Public consultation on updating Aistear is taking place over two phases. Phase one began in May 2021 and is ongoing to gather responses to two key questions:

• What is working well with Aistear?

• What might be enhanced or updated?

Children are at the heart of Aistear, and a strand of the consultation is dedicated to gathering the views of babies, toddlers, and young children. This is being undertaken by a team led by Maynooth University. Additionally, a team from Dublin City University Institute of Education is conducting a literature review to update the research base for Aistear’s themes.

The findings from these activities will be used to develop proposals for updating Aistear, and these will be the focus for Phase 2 of the consultation which will be initiated later this year.

Conclusion

Curriculum is central in ensuring continuity and progression in children’s learning within and across early childhood and primary education. Highlevel, sectoral consultations, such as those described in this article, don’t happen often. The aim of our consultative processes is to hear the views of all stakeholders, including children, on how future curriculum frameworks in both the early childhood and primary sectors can best support children’s learning, development, and wellbeing. The findings from both consultations will influence each other and thus ensure that there is strengthened curriculum policy alignment across early childhood and primary education which supports appropriate learning experiences for children.

You’ll find details on how you can have your say on the NCCA website at https://ncca.ie/en/updates-andevents/consultations/

T: 01 661 7177

E: info@ncca.ie

W: ncca.ie

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education and skills report

Joint Committee on Education, Fur ther and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science

Established following Orders of Dáil Éireann and of Seanad Éireann on 31 July 2020 and 16 September 2020 respectively, the Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science agreed its Work Programme in January 2021.

In conducting its work, the Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science informs debate and examines matters pertaining to the education system, including early education, primary, secondary, further education and training, and higher education. Simultaneously, it examines matters relating to research, innovation, and science.

Meanwhile, the Dáil Select Committee on Education was established by order of Dáil Éireann on 31 July 2020. The Select Committee is responsible for considering legislation relating to both the Department of Education and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, as well as proposals contained in any motion, estimates for public services, other matters as referred to the Select Committee by the Dáil, annual output statements, and relevant value for money and policy reviews.

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

Clerk to the Committee:

Tara Kelly

Chair: Paul Kehoe FINE GAEL

Vice-chair: Fiona O’Loughlin FIANNA FÁIL

Carol Nolan INDEPENDENT

Senators: Aisling Dolan FINE GAEL

Jim O’Callaghan FIANNA FÁIL

Eileen Flynn INDEPENDENT

Pádraig O’Sullivan FIANNA FÁIL

Marc Ó Cathasaigh GREEN PARTY

Rónán Mullen INDEPENDENT

Pauline O'Reilly GREEN PARTY

Deputies:

Rose Conway-Walsh SINN FÉIN

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire SINN FÉIN

Alan Farrell FINE GAEL

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin LABOUR PARTY

KEY POLICY AREAS

Key policy areas identified for examination by the Joint Committee are divided into three categories.

1. General: progress on the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals set out in the United Nations 2030 Agenda; requirement for a Citizens’ Assembly on the Future of Education; addressing discrimination of minority communities facing exclusion from all levels of the Irish education system; decent work for people working within each level of the education sector; progress on the implementation of relevant recommendations within the Report of the Oireachtas Special Committee on Climate Action; the impact of Brexit on Irish education; and the adequacy of the Department of Education’s Digital Strategy.

2. Primary and secondary level: Implementing protocols for at risk students and staff; school bullying and mental health repercussions; homework in primary schools; school completion, and home school community liaison; educational disadvantage; special needs provision; Leaving Certificate reform; the RSE Programme; the Retention of Records Bill; the relationship between the education system and child and youth mental health; the future of Irish language education; a new modern languages in primary schools initiative; school patronage at primary and post-primary level; class sizes and the pupil/teacher ratio; introduction of a healthy eating programme; reducing school costs; the School Building Programme and Energy Efficiency Upgrade Pilot Programme; feeder schools and school catchment area challenges; provision, content and delivery of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and

Continuous Professional Development (CPD); and school transport for 2021.

3. Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science: The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on further and higher education institutions; reopening colleges and future funding reforms; rising accommodation costs; a National Student Accommodation Strategy; expansion of technological universities; higher education’s ability to acquire and retain international research funding; the apprenticeship model; future funding of higher education; future of ERASMUS; reforming scientific and innovation research models; developing pathways to further and higher education for STEM talent; reviewing Innovation 2020; establishing a National Innovation Council; the Higher Education Public Private Partnership (PPP) Programme in the Technological University/Institute of Technology sector; progress on New Decade, New Approach commitments on higher education provision in the north-west; supporting a north-south programme of research and innovation; a proposed Connaught/Ulster Alliance in Higher Education; progress on measures to challenge sexual violence and harassment in higher education; education challenges facing asylum seekers and those in direct provision; a new literacy, numeracy and digital skills strategy; National Strategy for Further Education and Training; and engagement between higher education institutions in Ireland with Chinese universities.

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RECENT REPORTS

Recent reports published by the Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science include:

1. The Work Programme 2021: Outlining the Work Programme of the Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science for 2020.

2. The Report on the Impact of Covid-19 on Primary and Secondary Education: A compilation report examining the safe and sustainable opening of schools; 2020 Leaving Certificate calculated grades and 2021 Leaving Certificate preparations, and other issues such as the use of reduced timetables in schools; cyberbullying and educational disadvantage.

3. The Annual Report 2020 of the Joint Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science: A report outlining the procedure and role of the Joint Committee, including the minutes if its proceedings for the period between 30 September 2020 and 31 December 2020.

4. The Report on School Bullying and the Impact on Mental Health: A report covering the nature and impact of bullying on mental health, the nature and impact of cyberbullying on mental health, developing a whole school and community culture, and international evidence and best practice.

5. The Report on the Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the Higher Education Authority Bill 2021: A prelegislative overview and assessment of the General Scheme of the Higher Education Authority Bill.

6. The Report on Visit to Cork and Limerick, Thursday and Friday, 25 and 26 November 2021: A report covering the Joint Committee’s delegation study visit to Cork Centre, Munster Technological University, and Technological University of the Shannon.

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The Covid context

For almost the last two years, the world, the country and education and training have been severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. QQI was well served during this challenging time by a focus on the integrity of the National Framework of Qualifications and confidence in the quality and reputation of the qualifications included in the framework.

The value of collaboration and engagement was highlighted during the pandemic when all partners – further and higher education institutions, institutional and learner representative bodies, funding agencies, IT service providers, the Department, and the Minister – worked together to provide a system-wide response to the challenges posed by Covid-19.

We prioritised the importance of analysing the impact of measures taken to maintain and improve the quality of education and training for the benefit of learners. This was never more important than when QQI was called upon by government to undertake an analysis of the steps taken to maintain the quality, integrity and reputation of further and higher education when the institutions offering these services were physically closed in March 2020.

Quality and qualifications in Ireland: A collaborative approach

Quality and Qualifications

Ireland (QQI) is the state agency responsible for promoting the quality, reputation and integrity of Ireland’s further and higher education and training system. Chief Executive Officer Padraig Walsh outlines the importance of strategic partnerships in the development and delivery of the organisation’s direction and priorities for the next three years.

A refocus on qualifications

As we worked over the past year on the development of our new statement of strategy, we sought to build on the priorities of previous strategies. Since our establishment, we have placed much emphasis on our quality assurance functions:

• the importance of agreeing new quality assurance procedures with our many further and higher education providers;

• the development of an integrated model for an institutional review of quality across the entire public higher education sector via the CINNTE model; and

• the first-ever review of quality in our education and training boards.

Our strategic planning called for a renewed emphasis on our role in the qualifications system, both as the custodian of the National Framework of Qualifications and as an awarding body in our own right.

In 2019, we also received new powers through amending legislation:

• to widen the range of awarding bodies that can have their

qualifications included in the National Framework of Qualifications;

• the power to regulate the provision of English language education on a statutory basis for the first time; and

• the authority to protect the integrity of education and training by highlighting the danger to academic integrity posed by the proliferation of global contract cheating services and so-called ‘essay mills’.

All these considerations fed into the development of QQI’s new statement of strategy.

A new strategic direction

Our new strategy is guided by a focus on four key priority areas:

Information

Better information on the progression pathways across and between further and higher education is vital for schoolleavers and for all those seeking learning opportunities. In our strategy, we commit to upgrading our information platforms and services – the introduction of a new corporate website; redevelopment and modernising of Qualifax, the national learners’ database; and positioning of the Irish Register of Qualification as the

authoritative source of quality-assured qualifications included in the National Framework of Qualifications. We will increase learner choice and opportunities by including more qualifications in the NFQ from other recognised awarding bodies and increased access to flexible and innovative micro-credentials.

Protection

The implementation of strengthened regulation to protect our learners will see QQI continue to work with the provider-led National Academic Integrity Network to promote and maintain awareness of academic integrity and the monitoring of those seeking to undermine it.

A statutory learner protection fund will provide security to learners in independent private education and training providers offering QQI awards. Tthe awarding of the International Education Mark to qualifying English language and higher education providers will provide greater confidence to international students coming to study in Ireland.

Development

Support for provider development will be enabled through engagement with community education providers to ensure that their learners continue to have access to education and training qualifications in the NFQ, and with the education and training boards to drive capacity-building for flexible and agile programme development. Specifically, we will facilitate increased autonomy and flexibility for mature independent providers of higher education by enabling them to pursue delegated authority to make their own awards.

Insight

Drawing on our extensive data and knowledge, we will publish authoritative analysis and insight of benefit to the wider tertiary education and training sector. Through our significant networks of peer agencies, we will continue to evaluate the experience of remote and blended learning, contributing to and influencing national policy.

In this year, the 10th anniversary of QQI’s establishment, we will reflect on the achievements of the past decade

with a series of publications and events which will celebrate the successes to date and the challenges and opportunities in the decade ahead.

Partnership and excellence

None of these challenging objectives can be achieved without the enabling contribution of excellence and partnership.

Over the last year, we have been building organisational excellence through the recruitment of new staff to deliver on our new regulatory functions and investment in all our staff to develop an agile, engaged, responsive and motivated workforce. This will be underpinned by embedding sustainability in our work processes and facilitating more flexible work practices.

Finally, if there is one thing we learned during the past 20 months, it is the importance of strengthening strategic partnerships to create system change, whether through the efforts of the National Tertiary Education System Covid-19 Steering Group or the information provided by individual further and higher education providers and learner representative bodies that allowed QQI to analyse the impact of

Covid-19 on teaching, learning and assessment.

We will continue with this spirit of collaboration through the establishment of the Irish Quality and Qualifications Forum to harness the concerted efforts of a multitude of actors to preserve the strengths of our existing systems and implement change for the better.

We hope that our many partners across the tertiary education and training system recognise themselves in our new strategy and we look forward to delivering on our common vision of an Ireland that offers diverse high-quality further and higher education opportunities and enables learners to reach their full potential through qualifications that are widely valued nationally and internationally.

and

Tel: +353 1 905 8100

https://twitter.com/QQI_connect

www.linkedin.com/company/qualityand-qualifications-ireland-qqi

www.facebook.com/QQIreland

education and skills report

Digital inclusion in Ireland

McGauran recently authored a report that looked at connectivity, devices, and skills in relation to digital inclusion in Ireland and argues that a digital inclusion strategy would help address the digital needs of groups who remain poorly engaged with digital technologies, namely those who are older, poorer, and with lower levels of education.

McGauran stresses that a focus on the needs of people in these key groups would build on Ireland’s large investment in broadband connectivity and critically, would help to combat social exclusion in the long term.

“Aiming for full digital inclusion is the next logical step to build on Ireland’s large investment in broadband connectivity, and in eGovernment.

International studies show that the return from such investment in digital inclusion is high. From a social cohesion point of view, such investment aims to ensure that digital divides do not persist, and so

helps to combat social exclusion.”

Explaining the premise of digital inclusion, the policy analyst says that everyone can contribute to and benefit from the digital economy and society. For the individual, this means having “convenient, reliable access to affordable, accessible digital devices and an internet connection”. For businesses, it is about the spread of digital transformation to all enterprises.

The pandemic has added an additional layer to the importance of digital inclusion, accelerating the reliance on digital and its importance for social inclusion. This accelerated reliance has occurred against a backdrop of greater digitalisation in the form of the fourth industrial revolution and Ireland’s large investment in broadband.

“Everyone needs to be enabled and equipped to work in this new labour market and those least-well equipped are most likely to be left behind,” says

McGauran, highlighting research from the UK, which suggests a £15 return for every £1 invested in digital inclusion.

McGauran outlines the main dimensions of digital inclusion and some of the challenges associated with them, namely:

Connectivity: An improving issue across Ireland but one which remains a problem in rural Ireland and poorer communities;

Skills: Content literacy and technical skills, both of which require constant updating;

Devices: Cost is a major factor in either device absence or outdated models; and

Confidence: The confidence to engage with the digital world.

While the pandemic has accelerated use of the internet, obvious gaps remain. McGauran’s research shows

Secretariat to the National Economic and Social Council (NESC) Anne-Marie McGauran discusses the council’s recommendation for a national strategy for digital inclusion.

that in 2020, 25 per cent of over 60s hadn’t used the internet in the last three months, a similar picture for 16 per cent of those on the lowest income quintile. On connectivity, only 79 per cent of the west of Ireland had fixed broadband connection in 2020 and 73 per cent in the border region.

Assessing public services, the NESC report shows that even amid the pandemic, only half the population seek government information or download government forms online. For businesses, a stark figure is that 40 per cent of companies, mainly indigenous SMEs, completely lack digital technologies, while a further 30 per cent have few digital assets.

McGauran points to a range of existing policies and programmes, ranging from an upcoming renewal of the National Digital Strategy, the implementation of the European Electronic Communications Code to domestic law, and the recent National Strategy on Adult Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy. Domestic policies and programmes are supported by a range of EU programmes, such as WIFI4EU and the EU’s web accessibility directive.

“The report highlights that there are several State policies focused on digital technologies. There are also a range of state agency, business, and community programmes. There is a need to coordinate across these policies and programmes if digital inclusion is to improve,” she says.

Highlighting that a review of Irish policies and or international best practice suggest an agenda for policy action to address the varying levels of digital inclusion in Ireland, McGauran believes that pursuing this agenda will help to “better prepare individuals, the economy, society and the public service for a more digitised future”.

The five overarching recommendations outlined by the NESC report are:

1 develop a national strategy for digital inclusion, with a key focus on coordination, and with a strong commitment to fine-grained measurement of progress;

2 create a comprehensive framework for digital skills progression;

3 support digital inclusion at community level;

4 deliver targeted supports for material access to key groups; and

5 enhance guidance for digital and assisted-digital public services, and ‘complementary’ channels.

The policy analyst welcomes the use of DigComp, the digital reference framework developed by the European Commission setting out 21 competences, grouped in five key areas, over eight proficiency levels, to best describe what it means to be digitally competent, in the National Adult Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy published in September 2021. Other commitments in this Strategy will help address the recommendations in the NESC report on creating a comprehensive framework for digital skills progression.

Concluding, McGauran says: “The council believes that, while digital inclusion should be part of a national digital strategy, there should also be a stand-alone Strategy for Digital Inclusion. Such a strategy can provide a shared direction and responsibility, coordinate existing work, highlight and address gaps, and allow for collaboration of statutory bodies, businesses, and communities. It could include specific targets and target groups, and a focus on connectivity, skills, material access, and the provision of public services to those who are not digitally engaged.”

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Tackling the retrofit skills shortage head on

education and skills report

The Laois and Offaly Education and Training Board (LOETB), National Construction Training Centre in Mount Lucas, County Offaly is aiming to meet the challenge of training the huge numbers of skilled workers needed for Ireland’s planned housebuilding and deep retrofitting programmes, writes John Kelly, Manager of the National Construction Training Centre.

Following the Government’s ambitious target to retrofit 300,000 homes by 2030, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris TD established the LOETB National Construction

Training Centre in Mount Lucas as one of four centres of excellence, with the anticipation of training 2,000 people in retrofit skills, including near zero energy buildings (NZEB) skills. Facilities at the training centre include a large purpose-

built deep retrofit hall of 600 square metres. The retrofit training hall includes full-scale rigs representing the gamut of situations encountered on most projects, everything from roof, wall and floor insulation to airtightness application, ventilation installation and commissioning, and renewable energy installation. It is truly a showcase in terms of state-of-the-art upskilling facilities for those involved in delivering deep retrofits.

With the target of 2,000 people in mind, the National Construction Training Centre at Mount Lucas, launched an extensive suite of courses, which focuses on both retrofit and new build all of which are fully funded for people in employment under the national Skills to Advance initiative. Three different course types are provided.

The first are short, City and Guilds assured courses, which focus on delivery of NZEB.

These courses include the very popular NZEB Fundamentals (one-day course), NZEB Retrofit (two-day course) and NZEB Ventilation (three-day course). There are also trade-specific courses for carpenters, bricklayers, plumbers, electricians, and plasterers as well as a more detailed programme for site supervisors.

The second include practical programmes which are industry recognised, the objective of which is to ensure learners, including new entrants, have the skillset currently required by employers to contribute to the Government's retrofit targets. Examples of such courses include external wall insulation, internal wall insulation and airtightness.

The third category of programmes are longer QQI accredited courses, including Thermal Insulation Installation and Construction Skills. These courses typically run from five to eight days and include a formal assessment on completion.

The National Construction Training Centre at Mount Lucas has also commenced delivery of the Certified Passive House Tradesperson course. Passive house buildings are energy efficient buildings that provide users with high levels of comfort and excellent air quality around the clock. They may not look any different from other buildings, but good planning as well as careful execution of the details is essential in the construction of such projects. This ensures that the high requirements for the building envelope and technology can be met. As a result, building professionals need additional expertise

“The facilities, programmes and educational resources needed to deliver a growing pool of retrofit experts is now in place. At the LOETB

National Construction Training Centre, there is an exciting multi layered training programme for every level, from entry to expert.”

which can be acquired and substantiated with the Certified Passive House Tradesperson course. This twoday blended learning course is delivered online (one day) and onsite in the National Construction Training Centre at Mount Lucas (one day).

All programmes are delivered in a flexible manner to ensure convenience and accessibility to all. With provisions for day, evening, and weekend courses. Many courses offer a blended approach, with both online and on-site delivery.

The key attraction for learners attending the National Construction Training Centre at Mount Lucas is the quality of training rigs which provides for a deepimmersion experience. As well as learning about deep retrofit from a theoretical perspective, learners get to grips with the very latest products, details and application methods from expert tutors who are deeply passionate about delivering deep retrofits at scale.

Tony Dalton, Director of Further Education and Training at LOETB adds: “The facilities, programmes and educational resources needed to deliver a growing pool of retrofit experts is now in place. At the LOETB National Construction Training Centre, there is an exciting multilayered training programme for every level, from entry to expert.

“2022 will see further investment in the training site, increasing NZEB and Retrofit capacity, and developing future construction training facilities including construction simulation and BIM.”

E: nzeb@mountlucas.ie W: www.mountlucas.ie

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Teaching and fostering the skills of the future

As the world’s economy seeks to emerge from the damage wrought by Covid-19, more than 80 per cent of businesses “face critical gaps in the skills needed to build resilience amid ongoing uncertainty”. With skills development now critical, apprenticeships and online learning once again come into focus.

Two new reports from McKinsey and Company – Reviving the art of apprenticeship to unlock continuous skill development and Setting a new bar for online higher education – make the case for the modernisation of both the apprenticeship and online higher education worlds. Cognisant of the 80 per cent figure for skills gaps in business, McKinsey notes that only 42 per cent of employees are taking up employer-supported reskilling and upskilling opportunities and that “there is simply too much to learn and not enough time for formal learning to meet all of an organisation’s reskilling needs”.

Modern apprenticeships

Modern apprenticeships are a “learning model that distributes apprenticeship skills and responsibilities throughout the organisation” that “represents a focused effort to intentionally build the same specific skills, habits of mind, and actions as those of a domain expert”.

The McKinsey imagination of these roles places them in all workplaces, not just in the vocational occupations typically associated with apprenticeships.

Organisations, the report says, can take four steps towards introducing apprenticeships into their organisations as a “powerful skill-building tool and to begin to reshape culture around the idea of continuous learning”:

1. Create a clear organisational expectation for both learning and teaching.

2. Build apprenticeship skills in every employee.

3. Identify the skills that individuals need to build.

4. Be broad and inclusive about who can apprentice.

McKinsey’s model recommends that the manager in the apprenticeship situation models “how to approach the work instead of giving prescriptive directions

to be followed”, gives the apprentice manageable tasks to complete individually, provides samples of work as supports, asking the apprentice questions, provide opportunities for the apprentice to articulate their thinking on the subject, offer coaching and feedback throughout the process and assess the apprentice’s progress and add complexity over time.

The report states that learning environments “flourish in organisations with strong learning cultures because those cultures emphasise the importance of every person taking ownership for their development and growing their skills” and advises that the “teacher does not have to be the direct team lead, the senior leader, the ‘guru’, or expert faculty”, but rather can be “anyone in an organisation, even peers or junior colleagues who possess a skill that others need to build”. Steps recommended towards reaching a culture of continuous learning with an organisation include: visibly positioning a CEO or senior leader who “values learning and teaching”; supporting learner agency within the organisation; and creating incentives to encourage individuals to both teach and learn.

Online learning

As a result of the worsening of the already existing skills gaps across worldwide industry, learning methods will have to modernise to equip both the workforce of today and of the future with the skills that have been found to be lacking. Key to doing this, along with the development of a modern apprenticeship system, will be the utilisation of online learning, as McKinsey and Company illustrates in the second of its reports.

Research conducted via a survey of more than 30 institutions, “including both regulated degree-granting universities and nonregulated lifelong education providers” and ethnographic market research, following 29 students in the United States and in Brazil (two of the largest online higher education markets in the world), found that the most successful online higher education institutions place their focus on eight dimensions of the learning experience. These eight dimensions were then classified under three principles by McKinsey: create a seamless journey for students; adopt an engaging approach to teaching; and build a caring network.

1. Create a seamless journey for students: The first step towards building a seamless journey for students is the building of an education road map, due to McKinsey’s finding that online students “may need more direction, motivation, and discipline than students in in-person programmes”. The second step is enabling seamless connections, with it advised that courses and programme content “be structured so they can be accessed in low-bandwidth situations or downloaded for offline use”.

2. Adopt an engaging approach to teaching: The first step within this principle is that institutions should offer a range of learning formats, with examples given including Zhejiang University in China, where instructors use live videoconferencing and chat rooms, and the University of Michigan’s Center for Academic Innovation, which uses its custom ECoach platform to help students in large classes navigate content when one-on-one interaction with instructors and also “sends students reminders, motivational tips, performance reviews, and exam-preparation materials”.

Ensuring the captivation of audiences and utilisation of adaptive learning tools such as AI and analytics used to address students’ needs and offer real-time feedback and support are mentioned as next steps. Inclusion of real-world application of skills is the final step within this principle recommended, with pioneers said to make use of virtual reality, laboratories, simulations, and games for students in this regard.

3. Create a caring network: The two steps listed within this principle are the provision of academic and non-academic support, such as Southern New Hampshire University’s system that detects low student engagements and offers alerts and nudges, and the fostering of a strong community, which again offers SNHU as an example due to their Connect social gateway, which offers an exclusive social network to over 15,000 members.

and skills report

education and skills report

Supporting adults with literacy, numeracy and digital needs

Over the last 18 months, the National Adult Literacy Agency saw a surge in calls to its freephone. They were from people who had just lost their jobs, parents who struggled with information from schools, and older people who wanted help using technology. NALA’s CEO, Colleen Dube, speaks about the critical importance of literacy, listening to callers and designing services that meet their needs.

Listening to callers

A lot of callers during the lockdown rang us as they were reflecting on their own lives. They felt very different to their friends who could work from home. When the pandemic happened and they lost their jobs, they felt their lives had come to a sudden full stop. This happened to people in all age groups. Many were also very annoyed and dejected that they were being left behind. We spent a lot of time on these calls as they needed to know someone was listening. We took the time to talk to them and discuss what options they would have if they wanted to return to education.

For some, this meant directing them to the Adult Literacy Service in their local Education and Training Board. ETBs provide a unique service that is completely free. They offer a range of learner-centred, unaccredited, and accredited courses, as well as guidance and progression to further education and training opportunities.

For others, we offered tutoring over the phone to resolve a particular issue. For

example, there was a caller who had been out of work for five weeks during the pandemic. They decided they would like to do a Special Needs Assistant course but felt their spelling was holding them back, so they mightn’t be able for it. We set them up with one of our tutors who taught them over the phone for a few weeks until they had the confidence to do the course.

Sometimes it’s that small intervention that gives people the confidence and courage to go on to learn and do new things.

Pilot prison programme

This year we were involved in an inspiring literacy project with Portlaoise Prison. We did it in partnership with the Prison’s Education Unit, Laois and Offaly Education Training Board, Dublin Adult Learning Centre and Waterford Institute of Technology.

Not many people realise that over 40 per cent of incarcerated people in Ireland left school before the age of 14. As a result of educational and wider inequalities, the average literacy level of prisoners is

much lower than the general population.

In this pilot programme, six incarcerated men were supported to graduate as literacy tutors and are now qualified to support other men improve their literacy.

The participants call themselves ‘The Peers’. They have normalised education and learning in the prison so now it is a good thing to have books under your arm. The positive impact of ‘The Peers’ is confirmed by teachers from the Education Unit who say that the numbers of people turning up for support has increased.

This quote sums up the project best: “I took part in the training because I understood how difficult life could be for people without literacy skills. I discovered many prisoners wanted to write letters to their families, especially their children, and could not, due to literacy issues. I had the desire to help these people.

“People say we are doing the right thing using our time here like this, using it to be educated. Many see it as the best way to do time.”

Training online

Like many organisations we moved all our training online over the last two years, which has been a very positive experience for us. While we normally held about five events annually with 900 tutors attending, last year we organised a diverse programme of training and workshops online, supporting over 1,500 tutors’ professional development and knowledge sharing. While we hope to have some face-to-face events next year, there’s no doubt that we’ve been converted to online delivery. Literacy tutors are incredibly busy and it just suits more people not to have to travel.

Plain English

In Ireland, one-in-six people has difficulty understanding written text, so a lot of our work involves helping organisations to be more accessible to people with literacy needs. There are huge benefits and cost savings of doing this, such as fewer customer complaints and mistakes.

One step in the right direction is for organisations to use plain English and last year we trained a thousand employees in how to write in plain English. We also supported one hundred public and private sector organisations in editing their documents in plain English so that they are easier for all people, but especially people with literacy needs, to read and understand information.

There is a growing demand from the public for clear information and we

recommend that anyone producing public information write it in plain English. After all, both citizens and governments benefit from clear information. Citizens are more likely to understand their rights and governments are more likely to make better use of their resources.

10-year strategy

In Ireland, the supposed land of saints and scholars, over 500,000 adults have low levels of literacy. Even more have low levels of numeracy and digital skills. This has a devastating impact on individuals, families, and communities. This year, after many years of advocating, we were heartened to see the Government’s commitment to develop a new 10-year strategy for adult literacy, numeracy and digital skills. Beyond its intrinsic importance as part of the right to education, literacy empowers individuals and improves their lives by

expanding their capabilities to choose a kind of life they can value.

Now, more than ever, it will be vital that we support people with literacy needs, so that they can understand information, make constructive choices, selfadvocate and ultimately respond to external pressures and change.

So, have a look around you — one-insix people has a literacy need. They could be your customers or valued members of staff. Think about how you could support them through training or making your services more accessible.

We’re here to help in any way we can and would love to hear from you.

T: 1800 20 20 65

E: info@nala.ie

W: www.nala.ie

Twitter: @nalaireland

“In Ireland, one-in-six people has difficulty understanding written text, so a lot of our work involves helping organisations to be more accessible to people with literacy needs. There are huge benefits and cost savings of doing this, such as fewer customer complaints and mistakes.”

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