Post-primary insights

Chapter 4 - Post-primary insights (PDF)

During 2024, the number of students enrolled in post-primary schools reached an all-time high. Total enrolments in September 2024[1] were 425,412. This represented an increase of 8,781 students, or 2%, from September 2023 (416,631)[2].

The increasing number of special classes opened in post-primary schools during 2024 presented both opportunities and challenges for the system.

Teacher supply issues in post-primary schools continued during 2024, with challenges experienced particularly in urban settings. Pressures were reported to be particularly acute for some post-primary subject areas, as well as for Irish-medium schools and special schools.

There was significant progress in relation to Senior Cycle redevelopment during 2024. A revised Transition Year Programme Statement [3] was published in August 2024. The statement provides a flexible approach to planning Transition Year programmes for all students. In the 2024/25 school year, all schools have the opportunity to audit their current Transition Year offering and should revise it where necessary in line with the programme statement.

The programme statement and initial modules for Senior Cycle Level 1 and Level 2 Learning Programmes for students with special educational needs were published in September 2024. The programmes provide enhanced options so that students can follow the pathways that are most appropriate to their needs.

Specifications for nine new or revised Leaving Certificate subjects were published. These included two new subjects: Climate Action and Sustainable Development; and Drama, Film and Theatre Studies. A new Senior Cycle Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) specification was also published [4].

In June 2024, the department published new procedures for schools, the Bí Cineálta Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour for Primary and Post-Primary Schools.[5] The procedures are effective from September 2025.

This chapter presents data from inspections conducted in post-primary schools during 2024, main inspection findings in relation to teaching, learning and assessment, as well as some themes emerging from an analysis of subject inspections in Physical Education and Computer Science.

[1] Available at: https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/services/post-primary-online-database-p-pod/

[2] Available at: https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/publications/the-department-of-education-inspectorate-report-2021-2023-and-thematic-review-pdf-version/

[3] Available at: https://curriculumonline.ie/getmedia/5849acbf-0326-487a-beec-3db6b5878470/TY-Programme-Statement-ENG-INT.pdf

[4] Available at: https://ncca.ie/en/senior-cycle/curriculum-developments/senior-cycle-social-personal-and-health-education-sphe/

[5] Available at: https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-education/policy-information/b%C3%AD-cine%C3%A1lta-procedures-to-prevent-and-address-bullying-behaviour-for-primary-and-post-primary-schools/

The Inspectorate conducts an inspection in a post-primary school every two years approximately, using a range of inspection types. Almost all inspection types have a short notice period. This is designed to facilitate the gathering of information through the administration of surveys, meetings with children and young people, parents, teachers, school leaders and the board of management. Announced inspections, i.e. inspections with a short notice period, include the following types:

All announced inspections result in oral feedback to the school about strengths in education provision in the school and, as relevant, aspects of provision that need to be improved. In addition, a written inspection report containing the inspection findings from the announced inspection is published on https://www.gov.ie/DEInspectorate

The Inspectorate also conducts one-day, unannounced inspections known as incidental inspections. These inspections allow inspectors to observe and evaluate the quality of teaching, learning and assessment practices in everyday school situations. Unannounced inspections also result in oral feedback to school leaders and staff about strengths in education provision in the school and, as relevant, aspects of provision that need to be improved. A proportion of unannounced inspections have a thematic focus. The findings of these inspections are collated to provide thematic reports on aspects of educational provision.[6]

In both announced and unannounced inspections of post-primary schools, inspectors visit classrooms and other learning environments and engage with children and young people, teachers and school leaders. Certain types of announced inspections, such as whole-school evaluations, also involve meetings between inspectors and the school’s board of management and between inspectors and parents. Both announced and unannounced inspections are designed to encourage professional reflection, support school self-evaluation and, ultimately, to contribute to improving educational outcomes for children and young people.

[6] Available at: https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/20250630_Inspection_Policy.pdf

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Inspection numbers

During 2024, inspectors carried out 529 evaluations in post-primary settings, with 380[7] announced and 149 unannounced inspections. Inspectors observed a total of 3,045[8] lessons during the 529 evaluations carried out in post-primary settings.

[7] This figure includes only those evaluations in which teaching and learning are observed.

[8] Lessons observed as part of follow-through inspections are not included in this figure.

Announced inspection findings

The quality of teaching was found to be good or better in 88.2% of the lessons observed during announced inspections. The quality of learning was found to be good or better in 87.6% of the lessons. Assessment was found to be good or better in 83.6% of lessons. Overall, the findings indicate that most schools and classrooms demonstrated good or better practice. However, there was a need for improvement in certain aspects of practice in approximately one in seven lessons.

Unannounced inspection findings

The quality of teaching was found to be good or better in 91.3% of the 520 lessons observed during 149 incidental inspections in 2024. The quality of learning was good or better in 90.8% of lessons. Assessment was found to be good or better in 85.6% of lessons. Overall, the findings indicate that most schools and classrooms are demonstrating good or better practice. However, there was a need for improvement in certain aspects of practice in approximately one in nine cases.

A subject inspection is an inspection type that focuses on individual subject areas within a school with a view to affirming good practice and making recommendations, where relevant, to aid the further development of the area. The process typically involves an inspector visiting classrooms to observe teaching and learning, meeting with teachers and school leadership, and conducting focus group meetings with students. The inspector also reviews subject planning documentation and checks on child protection procedures. Each subject inspection results in a published report that highlights strengths in provision for the subject, identifies areas for improvement and offers specific recommendations to enhance educational provision.

Inspectors use a quality continuum to describe the school’s provision in the following areas of enquiry: teaching, learning and assessment; subject provision and whole-school support; and planning and preparation.

Overall, the findings were positive in relation to the quality of teaching, learning and assessment observed during subject inspections. The quality of teaching was found to be good or better in 89.4% of lessons, while the quality of learning was found to be good or better in 88.3% of lessons. It is worth noting that in more than half of the lessons observed, the quality of both teaching and learning was either very good or excellent. The quality of assessment was good or better in 84.7% of lessons observed.

Increasing numbers of post-primary schools are providing Leaving Certificate Physical Education (LCPE) and Computer Science. As part of its 2024 inspection programme, the Inspectorate evaluated provision in these two subjects in a sample of post-primary schools using the subject inspection model. The findings are presented below.

PE is a well-established component of the post-primary curriculum in most schools in Ireland. Provision is evolving in response to national priorities around wellbeing, inclusion and lifelong participation in physical activity. For Junior Cycle Physical Education (JCPE), post-primary schools are required to provide a minimum of 135 hours of the subject spread across the three years, with PE being provided in each of the three years as part of the Wellbeing area. For Senior Cycle, there are two main options: the examinable Leaving Certificate Physical Education, taught over approximately 180 hours, and the non-examinable Senior Cycle Physical Education (SCPE) Framework.

The number of post-primary schools offering Leaving Certificate Physical Education as an optional subject increased from 63 in 2018 to 398 schools in 2024. This growth reflects a strong interest in and commitment to the subject on the part of school leaders, teachers and students.

Subject inspections of PE were carried out in twenty post-primary schools, including 15 schools that provided Leaving Certificate Physical Education (LCPE), during 2024. This involved evaluation of a total of 113 PE lessons across those schools and included JCPE (50 lessons), LCPE (32 lessons), SCPE (27 lessons) and Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA) Leisure and Recreation (4 lessons).

Overall findings from most of the PE lessons inspected were positive. There was strong leadership of PE provision in many of the schools inspected, with strong whole-school support for LCPE as a senior cycle option. Many of the schools had well-structured PE departments with effective collaborative planning and reflective practices evident among PE teachers.

Overall, the schools inspected provided a broad PE curriculum. A small number overemphasised team sports resulting in an imbalance in depth and breadth of provision. Across the schools inspected, there were examples of strong links with local sports clubs and organisations; this extended the capacity of schools to offer diverse and engaging opportunities as part of their extra-curricular provision.

Timetabling of PE lessons was not satisfactory in a small number of schools. For example, in some schools, senior cycle students were not timetabled for the required minimum of eighty minutes of PE lessons per week. In one school, students had no timetabled senior cycle PE.

The quality of teaching of PE was good or better in 75.3% of the lessons inspected. There was scope for improving teaching in one in four lessons. Most teachers demonstrated enthusiasm and enjoyment for PE as well as good subject knowledge and pedagogical skills. In many lessons, teachers used effective higher-order questioning to challenge students appropriately and to encourage them to elaborate on their answers. They modelled key movements and used language appropriate to the age and stage of development of their students. In some of the lessons, there was a need for teachers to connect the practical activities more explicitly with theoretical concepts in order to improve students’ understanding and critical thinking.

Findings in relation to students’ learning in PE were positive in 74.4% of the lessons. The need for improved student learning was noted in approximately one quarter of the lessons. Students were generally actively involved in the lessons and showed high levels of engagement and enthusiasm. Respectful interactions between teachers and students and among students were evident. During focus groups with inspectors, students often spoke about how they enjoyed PE lessons.

Assessment practices in relation to PE were found to good or better in just 66.4% of the lessons. Examples of effective assessment noted by inspectors included students’ self-assessment of their own performance and carrying out observational analysis in collaboration with their peers. The students’ use of well-constructed classroom-based assessment booklets and health-related activity cards enabled them to take ownership of their training and improvement plans.

Inspectors identified scope for improvement in assessment practices in 33.6% of PE lessons. In some cases, there was a need for teachers to improve the recorded formative feedback that they provided to their students, particularly in relation to their written work in LCPE. While there was evidence of some use of digital technologies to support provision for PE in some schools, overall use of digital technologies was underdeveloped. The inspection findings point to a need for better digital infrastructure in PE halls or PE Labs to better support PE teaching, learning and assessment.

Many schools offer a comprehensive range of digital subjects at both junior and senior cycle, with increasing student uptake in Computer Science, which is a relatively new addition to the Senior Cycle curriculum.[9] The number of post-primary schools offering Computer Science increased from 36 in 2018 to 194 schools in 2024.

The range of digital subjects observed during evaluations included:

• Junior Cycle Digital Media Literacy Short Course
• Junior Cycle Coding Short Course
• LCA Introduction to ICT
• LCA ICT Vocational Specialism
• Transition Year Computer Science Sampling
• School-designed Junior Cycle digital wellbeing course
• ICT courses from any year group, school designed or otherwise, including special classes.

Subject inspections of Computer Science and digital subjects were carried out in twelve post-primary schools during 2024. This involved evaluation of a total of forty-seven computer science and digital subject lessons.

The overall inspection findings were very positive. The quality of teaching and the quality of students’ learning were found to be good or very good right across the computer science and digital subject lessons inspected. Findings in respect of assessment practices in Computer Science and digital subjects were similarly positive.

Typically, in most schools where Computer Science was offered, a digital learning plan was in place reflecting a broader prioritisation of digital learning across the curriculum. Teachers created supportive and respectful learning environments that encouraged student motivation and engagement, particularly in developing digital skills. Positive relationships and collaborative teaching approaches reflected real-world practices in software development.

Students were generally progressing well, showing strong computational thinking and problem-solving skills. Collaborative learning was a key feature and many schools offered a wide range of digital subjects across year groups. Transition Year programmes often included digital subjects to help inform Leaving Certificate subject choices. Many schools actively promoted digital subjects through extra-curricular activities such as coding clubs and participation in national competitions and they also fostered links with local businesses and industry. Additionally, some schools empowered students through digital leader programmes, encouraging peer mentoring and fostering a culture of digital competence.

Inspection reports identified some areas for improvement. For example, there was a need for a small number of the schools inspected to further develop specialist expertise among teaching staff, especially given the increasing demand for Computer Science. Collaborative team teaching and peer observation were suggested as strategies to enhance such expertise. A small number of schools and teachers were advised to provide more opportunities for independent learning and student autonomy, thereby reducing teacher-led instruction and increasing student-led activities.

[9] Available at: https://curriculumonline.ie/senior-cycle/