The Mission of the ERC is to enhance learning outcomes for all students by conducting high-quality research and by developing effective assessment tools that will support better learning and inform policy.
What's New
Read all NewsResearch Areas
In line with the ERC Research Strategy, the current research programme of the ERC includes the following workstreams:
NAMER
National Assessments of Mathematics and English Reading
NAMER stands for National Assessments of Mathematics and English Reading. The Educational Research Centre (ERC) has designed…
Read moreERC Tests
Test Development
The ERC has a long history of developing assessment supports and standardised tests for use in schools. Today we are the leading supplier of these tests to schools in Ireland…
Read more
PISA
The OECD’s PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) is the largest international study of education…
Read more
PIRLS
The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) is a comparative study of reading literacy of Fourth grade pupils..
Read more
TIMSS
TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) is a project of the International Association for the Evaluation…
Read moreData analysis
Data analysis
The ERC provides ongoing support to the Department of Education in the analysis and modelling of data for specific programmes.
Read moreRecent Publications
Read all PublicationsThe National Assessments of Mathematics and English Reading and 2021: Context Report
Environmental knowledge and attitudes in Ireland’s schools: Findings from TIMSS 2023
Trends in students’ school experiences and attitudes towards mathematics and science: TIMSS 2015–2023
About the ERC
The Educational Research Centre (ERC) is an internationally recognised centre of excellence in research, assessment and evaluation in education. The Centre carries out research at all levels of the education system. Research is undertaken on behalf of the Department of Education, at the request of other agencies and on the initiative of the ERC itself and its staff. The ERC provides an assessment support service to schools, supplying a range of standardised tests to primary and post-primary schools. The ERC Drumcondra tests are the leading standardised tests used in Irish schools.
The ERC also publishes the Irish Journal of Education.
Read more about what we do