This report provides a wide–ranging set of findings from PISA 2022 on 15–year–old students’ well–being in Ireland. Compared to OECD peers, it highlights areas of strength for Irish students, such as social connection to family and friends, growth mindset, physical activity, sense of school safety, distress from online content and cyberbullying; comparable results in areas such as psychosomatic symptoms, experienced well–being and bullying; and also highlights the need for improvement in students’ views on their health, body image, life satisfaction, relationships with their teachers and sense of belonging at school. Gender gaps were evident as female students experience poorer well–being across a large range of indicators compared to their male peers. Ensuring that appropriate systems, services, and supports are in place for adolescent well–being should remain a key policy priority.
Publication date: December 15 2025
Drawing on data from the PISA 2022 national teacher questionnaire, the present report provides an overview of post–primary mathematics teachers in Ireland, their backgrounds and professional profiles, their working life, their views on teaching mathematics, as well as their teaching practices and use of digital resources in Ireland.
The 2021 National Assessments of English Reading and Mathematics (NAMER) Context Report offers a comprehensive analysis of the factors influencing achievement in Second class English reading and Sixth class maths in Ireland. Due to pandemic-related disruptions, NAMER 2021 was postponed from 2020 and adapted to reduce the testing burden. Pupils had experienced approximately two months of remote teaching prior to returning to face-to-face instruction in March 2021.
Drawing on data from questionnaires administered to pupils, teachers, and school principals, this report situates performance outcomes within broader educational and socio-economic settings. Key variables examined include, pupil background, language, instructional time and homework, teacher professional development, digital practices in school and home, and school factors such as school gender, planning and COVID-19 impact.
Recommendations stress the need to build on existing good practice in schools as well as the strengthening initiatives to improve liking and confidence in reading and mathematics.
The National Assessments of Mathematics and English Reading (NAMER) aims to provide a snapshot of the mathematical and reading skills of Second and Sixth class pupils in Ireland, to identify areas of strength and weakness, and to inform educational policy and practice. Originally planned for administration in Spring 2020, NAMER was overtaken by the COVID-19 pandemic. The lockdowns necessitated by the pandemic led to extended school closures and the postponement of the National Assessments by a year. By the time NAMER was administered in May 2021, schools had been shut for a total of 96 days in the preceding two school years.
The National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy, originally published in 2011, set out performance targets for 2020 which were surpassed in the 2014 National Assessment. New performance targets in literacy and numeracy were set for 2020 in 2017. Although NAMER 2021 took place during a period of considerable upheaval in schools and society as a whole, the study provides an opportunity to monitor performance with reference to these targets.
