Educational Studies Association of Ireland Conference 2026
28 - 30 May 2026 at University of Galway in Galway, Ireland
Conference Agenda
Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).
|
Daily Overview |
| 9:30am - 10:30am |
Registration |
|||||||||||
| 10:30am - 11:30am |
Conference Opening Location: O' Flaherty Theatre Official opening by Prof David Burn, President of the University of Galway. |
|||||||||||
| 11:30am - 12:00pm |
Coffee/Tea BreakTea/Coffee Break |
|||||||||||
| 12:00pm - 1:00pm |
PS1 - 01 Location: AC201 Chair: Dr Carol Kennedy Gardiner Paper Presentations: Digital Learning/STEM
Reimagining Primary Mathematics: Pre-Service Teachers’ Experiences with Minecraft Education Mary Immaculate College, Ireland SEED: Supporting Equity and Educational Design. Growing Awareness of Accessibility in Digital Classrooms in Ireland's Primary Schools 1: University of Limerick, Ireland; 2: Mary Immaculate College, Ireland From Legacy Spaces to Digital Futures: Mapping Power and Equity in Digital Learning ATU Sligo, Ireland |
PS1 - 02 Location: AC202 Chair: Sorcha Mellon Paper Presentations: Diversity and Belonging
Exploring the emerging unexpected consequences of a differentiated curriculum in Irish at lower post-primary level. Dublin City University, Ireland EKARA Project: Enhancing Equity and Awareness in Initial Teacher Education through Reasonable Accommodations/Adjustments for Students with Disabilities in Ireland 1: St Mary's University College; 2: University College Cork; 3: University College Cork; 4: St Mary's University College; 5: University College Cork; 6: St Mary's University College How the Education Doctorate Forms and Informs Future Scholarly Practitioners in Ireland and the United States 1: Dublin City University; 2: University of Pittsburgh; 3: North Dakota State University, USA.; 4: Sacred Heart University |
PS1 - 03 Location: AC203 Chair: Orla MCormack Paper Presentations: Policy and Curriculum Reimagining Arts Integration for the Future Irish Primary Classroom: Co-designing, Co-teaching & Co-creating. Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Enacting a Smartphone Ban: Student Voice, Social Well-Being, and Policy Translation in an Irish Secondary School Maynooth University, Ireland Toward an integrative model for engineering education: Exploring the responsibilities of Ireland's Technological University sector University College London, United Kingdom |
PS1 - 04 Location: AC204 ECR Paper Presentations: Teacher Education & Professional Learning Investigating Saudi EFL/ESL Instructors’ Professional Development through Reflective Teaching Framework Oueen's University of Belfast, United Kingdom Philosophical Inquiry as a Praxis with Preservice Primary Teachers in Global Citizenship Education. Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Enhancing Professional Learning through Participatory Action Learning Action Research: A Case Study of a Treoraí Teacher Education Community of Practice. Dublin City University, Ireland Health Literacy in Irish Secondary Education: An All-Island Curriculum Analysis 1: Dublin City University, Ireland; 2: University of Tasmania; 3: University College Cork |
PS1 - 05 Location: AC213 Chair: Paul Knox Paper Presentations: Teacher Education From Reform to Reality: Divergent Perspectives on Ireland’s PME Programme University College Cork, Ireland A cross-border self-study: Reframing creativity through personal testimonies of preservice teachers and teacher educators across the island of Ireland 1: Dublin City University; 2: St. Mary's University College; 3: Stranmillis University College SPARK (Stem Partnerships for Action, Relevance, and Knowledge): A school-university partnership of educators to support integrated STEM learning and understanding of societal issues Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland |
PS1 - 06 Location: AC214 Chair: Huichao Xie Paper Presentations: Teacher Education Conceptualising and Enacting Global Citizenship Education in Irish Initial Teacher Education 1: Ubuntu Network / University of Limerick, Ireland; 2: School of Education, University of Limerick, Ireland; 3: School of Education, Atlantic Technological University St. Angelas, Ireland; 4: Roinn na Gaeilge, Marino Institute of Education, Ireland; 5: School of Education, University College Cork, Ireland From Simulation to Self-Awareness: Visualising Teacher Interactions in a Virtual Reality Classroom DCU, Ireland Curricular capital acquired by teachers seconded to continuing teacher education : Where does it go afterwards and how is it harnessed ? Maynooth University, Ireland |
PS1 - 07 Location: AC215 Chair: Ian Hughes Symposium Title of Symposium: Scaling Democracy in Education: Practices, Principles and Policy Pathways from Ireland and Europe 1: Dublin City University, Ireland; 2: Trinity College, Dublin, ireland |
PS1 - 08 Location: D-Block - Room D102 Chair: Thomas Walsh Chair: Niamh Flynn Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2
Collective Knowing and Epistemic Agency: Exploring the Meaning of Professionalism in Early Childhood Education Amidst Disruption 1: University College South Denmark; 2: Marino Institute of Education, Ireland Complicity in Teacher Education: Agency as a call for Relational Accountability Dublin City University, Ireland Standardised Assessment in Primary Schools in Ireland: Teachers’ Views on Purpose, Pressure and Practice 1: Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland; 2: University of Galway, Galway, Ireland. A Rapid Evidence Assessment of Creative Thinking in Education 1: ATU St Angelas, Ireland; 2: University of Limerick; 3: University of Galway Teachers’ Perceptions of Creativity in DCU Changemaker Schools 1: Institute of Education DCU, Ireland; 2: Institute of Education DCU; 3: Institute of Education DCU The Lasting Impact of Accountability, Surveillance, and Toxic Leadership: A Retrospective Autoethnography Marino Institute of Education, Ireland |
PS1 - 09 Location: D-Block - Room D202 Chair: Maria Ryan Chair: Yvonne Naughton Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Educator Voices on Transition Support for Ukrainian Children; a Qualitative Inquiry. 1: Atlantic Technological University (ATU) Donegal; 2: Donegal County Childcare Committee; 3: Sligo County Childcare Committee; 4: Sligo Atlantic Technological University (ATU), Ireland The (In)visible Circle: Refugee Children’s Journeys Toward Educational Access in Ireland Maynooth University, Ireland Integrated STEAM and pupil informed Climate Action: Insights from the Erasmus+ PROTECT project Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Teaching for climate justice: Confronting legacies of extraction and creating futures of possibility Dublin City University, Ireland SCOPING REVIEW OF EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION: IMPLICATIONS FOR ADVANCEMENT OF SDGs 4, 13 AND 15 IN NIGERIA Ekiti State University, Nigeria, Nigeria Let’s Chat Medicine: Co-creating Youth Engagement with Genomics Across Formal and Informal Learning Spaces 1: UCD School of Education, College of Social Sciences and Law, Ireland; 2: Trinity College Dublin |
PS1 - 10 Location: D-Block - Room D301 Chair: Ailbhe Kenny Chair: Elaine Keane Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Curriculum Leadership in Practice: How Authority and Expertise Influence Enactment Dublin City University, Ireland Reimagining Play Beyond the Early Years: Playful Pedagogies for Senior Primary Classrooms Marino Institute of Education, Ireland Curricular Reform: Investigating How Curriculum Leaders’ Approaches to Learning and Change Shape the Implementation of the Primary Mathematics Curriculum (2023) focusing on the pedagogical practice of Fostering Productive Disposition Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Spark: Igniting teacher and parent confidence and competency levels in delivering quality Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) 1: DCU, Dublin, Ireland; 2: Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland Exploring teachers’ self-efficacy during curriculum reform: A study of English teachers’ perspectives on Senior Cycle reform in the Republic of Ireland. Hibernia College, Ireland Broader learning goals in a rapidly evolving world: considerations for curriculum development and enactment National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA), Ireland Designing a Structured Observation of Teaching to Empower Emerging Scholars' Reflective Teaching Practice 1: Abu Dhabi University, United Arab Emirates; 2: University of Canterbury |
PS1 - 11 Location: D-Block -Room D302 Chair: Leigh Wolf Symposium What We Talk About When We Talk About AI: Faculty Voices from One Irish Higher Education Institute University College Dublin, Ireland |
|
| 1:10pm - 1:45pm |
Presidential Address Location: O' Flaherty Theatre ESAI Presidential Address: Dr Máirín Glenn |
|||||||||||
| 1:45pm - 3:00pm |
Lunch Break 1 |
|||||||||||
| 3:00pm - 4:00pm |
PS2 - 01 Location: AC201 Chair: Sylwia Kazmierczak-Murray Paper Presentations: Educational Disadvantage Inequalities in primary education: Insights from TIMSS 2019 and 2023 for Ireland and the EU Educational Research Centre, Ireland School absence: a key driver of educational inequality? Economic and Social Research Institute, Ireland Equal education for all? Reflecting on mainstream education through students’ experiences attending alternative education programmes in Ireland University of Galway, Ireland |
PS2 - 02 Location: AC202 Chair: Deirdre Horgan Paper Presentations: Early Childhood Education Methodologies for Participatory Practice with Children Aged Birth to 5 Years in Early Childhood Education settings UCC, Ireland The National Síolta Aistear Initiative -Supporting Curriculum Enactment and Quality in Early Childhood 1: Pobal, Ireland; 2: National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, Ireland Turning Up the Volume: Amplifying Educators’ Voices on Quality in Early Childhood Education Across Ireland 1: Stranmillis University College, United Kingdom; 2: Trinity College, Dublin; 3: Maynooth University |
PS2 - 03 Location: AC203 Chair: Lorraine Gilleece Paper Presentations: Digital Learning/STEM Navigating Uncharted Waters: Implementing Ireland’s New Integrated STEM Curriculum to Explore Ocean Conservation Using Immersive Technologies Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland Artificial Intelligence (AI) Literacy and Teacher Education in a European Context: A Blended Intensive Programme approach. 1: Atlantic Technological University, Ireland; 2: Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK); 3: Hanze University of Applied Sciences MathsMinds: A Research Practice Partnership to Inspire STEM futures 1: University of Galway, Ireland; 2: University of Limerick |
PS2 - 04 Location: AC204 Chair: Rory O'Sullivan Paper Presentations: Global Citizenship Perspectives: Up Close & Far Away - Cross-Border, Place-Based Global Citizenship Education in Initial Teacher Education UCD, Ireland Embedding Global Citizenship Education in Primary Classrooms: Insights from Newly Qualified Teachers in Ireland 1: DICE/ Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland; 2: DICE/ Maynooth University, Maynooth, Ireland; 3: DICE/ Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland Embedding Global Citizenship Education through Mentorship: Professional Learning for Treoraithe in Initial Teacher Education Hibernia College, Ireland |
PS2 - 05 Location: AC213 Chair: Anne Marie Kavanagh ECR Paper Presentations: Inclusion, diversity and belonging Trauma Informed Pedagogy and the Human Right to Education for Immigrant and Refugee Youth University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States of America Belonging, Identity, and Voice of Multiracial Learners: An invitation for pedagogy, inclusion and GCE in Irish post-primary schools DCU, Ireland Sustaining Inclusion Under Pressure: Educator Agency and Structural Barriers in Ireland's Multicultural Schools Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, Ireland Navigating Heteronormativity: LGBTQ+ Post-Primary Teachers’ Identities, Wellbeing, and Professional Experiences in Ireland Dublin City University, Ireland |
PS2 - 06 Location: AC214 Chair: Siobhán Weekes Paper Presentations: Curriculum Curriculum in Transition: Exploring the Impact of Primary Curriculum Redevelopment on Teacher Agency Maynooth University, Ireland From Legacy to Futures: Reimagining RE in the Irish Primary School Curriculum 1: Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland; 2: Marino Institute of Education, Dublin A Critical Interpretation of Inclusion and Equality in Ireland’s Senior Cycle Science Curriculum Reform: Unmasking Neoliberal Tensions. University of Limerick, Ireland |
PS2 - 07 Location: AC215 Chair: Melanie Ní Dhuinn Symposium Children’s Literature, Literacy Education and effective pedagogy across diverse classroom settings- connecting theory to practice. 1: Marino Institute of Education, Ireland; 2: Bridgewater State University, MA, United States; 3: Hibernia College, Ireland |
PS2 - 08 Location: D-Block - Room D102 Chair: Máire Ní Ríordáin Chair: Ciara O Donnell Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Filling the Gap - Experiences in Supporting Disabled Postgraduate Students AHEAD/LaunchPAD, Ireland Adopting the Autistic SPACE Framework: A Roadmap for Inclusive Education 1: London South Bank University, Ireland; 2: Atlantic Technological University; 3: Middletown Centr for Autism; 4: Department of Education and Skills; 5: School of Medicine, University College Dublin Autistic Academics: The Transformative Role of Identity Representation in Third Level Settings 1: ATU Donegal, Ireland; 2: St. Angela's ATU Sligo Supporting Transitions for Autistic Students ATU St Angelas, Ireland A Retrospective Analysis of Mathematics Education Research to Exploit Potential for Maths-Centered integrated STEM Learning Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland Threads of Practice: Weaving Artist, Researcher, and Teacher Identities Through the Integrated Arts 1: Mary Immaculate College, Ireland; 2: Marino Institute; 3: Maynooth University Learning to See and Respond to the Anthropocene in ITE and Primary Education: MIC University of Limerick, Ireland |
PS2 - 09 Location: D-Block - Room D202 Chair: Greg Harris Chair: Art O Neachtain Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Exploring the affordances and constraints of ‘Mock Exams’ in a changing educational landscape – the case of Junior Cycle Science University of Limerick, Ireland Curriculum coverage in Junior Cycle Maths and Science: Findings from TIMSS (2019 and 2023) Educational Research Centre (ERC), Ireland Mathematical autobiographies and visual solution strategies: Online coursework for teachers of elementary mathematics University of Nevada, Las Vegas, United States of America City Connects: A Systematic Approach to Supporting Social Inclusion in DEIS Schools National Centre for City Connects Ireland, Mary Immaculate College Contextual factors in the formation of cultural identities in school aged children University of Limerick, Ireland Integrating GIS into Initial Science Teacher Education 1: Maynooth University, Ireland; 2: Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland; 3: Department of Public Expenditure Infrastructure Public Service Reform and Digitalisation; 4: TU Dublin The Assault of Trumpian Neoliberalism on Democracy and Education: Enter the 'Theatre of Cruelty' College of Education East Carolina University, United States of America |
PS2 - 10 Location: D-Block - Room D301 Chair: Sinéad Ní Ghuidhir Chair: Manuela Heinz Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Shaping digital parenting self-efficacy to support children’s digital learning: a qualitative study of a school-based intervention 1: School of Education, University College Dublin; 2: Access and Outreach, Technological University Dublin Advancing a Holistic Understanding of Digital Well-Being in Primary and Post-Primary Education: A Systematic Review Dublin City University, Ireland This Must Be the Place: Co-creating digital competence and criticality through staff-student partnerships University of Galway, Ireland The Education Research Summit: A Critical and Feminist Analysis of the papers presented at the Education Research Summit, Nov 2025 1: Maynooth University, Ireland; 2: University of Limerick; 3: University College Dublin; 4: Marino Institute of Education; 5: University College Cork; 6: South Eastern Technological University; 7: Mary Immaculate College Reframing the conceptualisation of ‘hard to reach’ families in early years research Dublin City University, Ireland Empowering Immigrant Parents in Ireland: Strategies for Engaging Immigrant Parents in Early Childhood Education. Mary Immaculate College Limerick, Ireland, Ireland |
PS2 - 11 Location: D-Block -Room D302 Workshop/Performance Ag Bogadh leis an Teanga: Developing fundamental movement skills through Irish in CLIL PE. University College Cork, Ireland Reimagining Teacher Induction through Co-Teaching and Collaborative Action Research: From Compliance to Community S N Fiach, Ireland |
PS2 - 12 Location: O' Flaherty Theatre Chair: John O Reilly Symposium Negotiating the Essentials for Education in Democratic Societies (NEEDS): Exploring Curriculum, Agency and Structure through Negotiated, Integrated Junior Cycle Short Courses 1: University of Limerick, Ireland; 2: Mary Immaculate College; 3: Galway Educate Together Secondary School, Galway; 4: St. Michael's College, Listowel, Co. Kerry; 5: National Council for Curriculum and Assessment |
| 4:15pm - 5:15pm |
PS3 - 01 Location: AC201 Chair: Duncan Mc Carthy Paper Presentations: Research Methodologies Design-Based Research in the Early Primary Classroom: Methodological Challenges and Opportunities Marino Institute of Education, Ireland Looking Beyond the Silence: Using ‘Draw and Tell’ to Support Young People Experiencing Socio-Economic Disadvantage in Describing Complex Educational Trajectories University College Dublin, Ireland Negotiating positionality: On blurring binaries for decolonial education research Maynooth university, Ireland |
PS3 - 02 Location: AC202 Chair: Yurgos Politis Paper Presentations: Teacher Education Research in Practice: Teachers and Early-Years Educators as Researchers 1: Froebel Department of Primary and Early Childhood Education, Maynooth University; 2: Network for Educational Action Research Ireland (NEARI) Reflections and Learnings from Three Years of Teachers Leading Mentoring: Strengthening School–University Partnerships Through Collaborative Mentor Teacher Development UCD, Ireland The STEM Preparation Paradox: Building Primary Generalist Efficacy in a Crowded ITE Curriculum RMIT University, Australia |
PS3 - 03 Location: AC203 Chair: Zerrin Doganca Kucuk Paper Presentations: Digital Learning/STEM Culturally Responsive Engineering Design Process (CREDP) for Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics(STEM) education Equity and Diversity: A Comparative Literature Review of Ireland and Tamil Nadu, India Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Navigating AI in Education: Teachers' Perceptions, Challenges, and Professional Development Needs Dublin City University, Ireland Refusing the Colonisation of Educational Futures: Towards Relational Alternatives to Platformised Learning Maynooth University, Ireland |
PS3 - 04 Location: AC204 Chair: Sandrine Peraldi Paper Presentations: Professional Learning Exploring and Enabling Creative Thinking Through Self-Study Research in Educational Practice 1: ATU St Angelas; 2: University of Limerick; 3: University of Galway From Legacy to Futures: Two Decades of Lesson Study in Ireland and the Evolution of Teacher Professional Learning Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Bridging Knowledge and Practice: Developing a Tailored Dyslexia E-Course for Irish Teachers Dublin City University, Ireland |
PS3 - 05 Location: AC213 Chair: Patricia Nunan ECR Paper Presentations: Policy, Reform & the Future Bridging Development and Enactment: Policy Actor Experiences in Curriculum Development and Enactment in Irish ETB Schools University of Limerick, Ireland The Untapped Potential of Futures Workshops in Policy and Education Dublin City University, Ireland The Conduct of Democracy: A Foucauldian-informed Poststructural Policy Analysis of Irish Biology Reform, Teachers' and Students' Democratic Assignment, and the Governance of Socio-Scientific Controversies. University of Limerick, Ireland From Legacy Practices to Future Possibilities: Teachers’ Perspectives on the redevelopment of Senior Cycle Business University College Cork, Ireland, Ireland |
PS3 - 06 Location: AC214 Symposium Chair/Discussant: Dr T.J. Ó Ceallaigh Fís agus feabhsú: How research can inform the future of Irish in English-medium schools Sealbhú: DCU Research Centre for the Learning and Teaching of Irish: Dublin City University, Ireland |
PS3 - 07 Location: AC215 Chair: Michael Flannery Symposium Artist Teacher Educator Research as Nexus: Enhancing Practice, Pedagogy and Partnerships in Art Education Dublin City University, Ireland |
PS3 - 08 Location: D-Block - Room D102 Chair: Maeve Murray Chair: Anna Mai Rooney Roundtable Session: Table 1 & Table 2 Children’s, Teachers’ and Principal Perceptions of the Value of Class Meetings and Children’s Advisory Panels (CAPs) as an Alternative to Student Councils. 1: Galway Educate Together National School, Ireland; 2: Institute of Education DCU; 3: Institute of Education DCU School leaders negotiating Black students’ racist encounters: How the curation of educational experiences enculturate subjectivities. Trinity College Dublin/Marino Institute of Technology, Ireland Methodological Reflection – Using a Hybrid Evaluative Framework to Support the Choice of the Diary-Interview Method as a Data Generation Instrument in a Qualitative Doctoral Study with Irish FET Coordinators Dublin City University, Ireland Democratic dialogue? The role of Learner Voice in adult education in Ireland. AONTAS Ireland's National Adult Learning Organisation Irish Adult Educators: Fighting the good fight for fair and equitable employment contracts and conditions South East Technological University, Ireland Fostering Sustainable Practices and Ethical Leadership in Human Resources Management: Insights from Akwa Ibom State University Akwa Ibom State University, Nigeria |
PS3 - 09 Location: D-Block - Room D202 Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Supporting Pre-service Post-Primary Teachers’ Knowledge of Global Citizenship Education in the Classroom. 1: University of Galway, Ireland; 2: Atlantic Technological University Student Teachers’ Readiness for Teaching Global Citizenship Education 1: DICE/ Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland; 2: DICE/ Maynooth University, Maynooth, Ireland; 3: DICE/ Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland; 4: DICE/ Marino Institute of Education, Dublin, Ireland SEED project – Transformative Change through Microcredentials in Zambian and Malawian Higher Education 1: Maynooth University, Ireland; 2: University of Livingstonia; 3: Mzuzu University; 4: Mulungushi University; 5: Kwame Nkrumah University; 6: University of Naples Federico II; 7: Institut de Haute Formation aux Politiques Communautaires Insights from a Survey of Irish School Leaders to Inform the Development of Coaching for Creativity in School Leadership: Beliefs, Practices and Influencing Factors Dublin City University, Ireland “Rap as Gaeilge”: Reframing Identity and Belonging Through Urban Irish Language Expression Barr na gCnoc, Ionad na Gaeilge Labhartha,UCC, Ireland |
PS3 - 10 Location: D-Block - Room D301 Chair: Barry Morrissey ECR Roundtable Session Table 1 & Table 2 Leading Inclusive Learning in Irish Post-Primary Schools: Bridging the Gap Between Policy and Practice ATU St. Angelas, Ireland Leading Change in Times of Reform: A Critical Examination of School Leadership During Ireland’s Senior Cycle Redevelopment in Science Education EPI STEM University of Limerick Ireland Leadership of Physical Education in Irish Primary Schools University of Edinburgh Trauma Informed Pedagogy for Adolescent Multilingual Learners: Student Needs & Recommendations University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States of America Collaborative Pathways in Education: School-Based STEM Intervention with Parental Support Mary Immaculate College, Ireland Caring for Ecological Futures: A Critical Analysis of the Ethic of Care in the Senior Cycle Agricultural Science Specification EPI∙STEM The National Centre for STEM Education, School of Education, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland |
PS3 - 11 Location: D-Block -Room D302 Workshop/Performance Towards new educational futures: regenerative learning through life design 1: Universty of Hull, United Kingdom; 2: University of Galway, Ireland Measuring What Matters Leadership Division, Oide, Ireland |
PS3 - 12 Location: O' Flaherty Theatre Chair: Denis Moynihan Symposium Integrated STEM in Primary Schools: A Model for Curriculum Implementation via the FIRST LEGO League Teacher Guide for Ireland Dublin City University, Ireland |
| 5:30pm - 6:30pm |
AGM Location: O' Flaherty Theatre |
|||||||||||
| 6:45pm | T& F Launch of IES Special Issue 'From foundations to frontiers: 50 years of educational research in Ireland 'Launch will take place in SULT, University of Galway, with refreshments served. |
|||||||||||