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In February and March 2009, the Inspectorate carried out a pilot area based inspection in the Ballymena area to evaluate the quality of education and training. The Inspectorate visited a sample of education and training providers, which included five pre-school centres, four primary schools, three post-primary schools, the alternative education provision, a special school, a training organisation, the local further education college and three youth settings.

This summary sets out the main findings of a survey of the provision for pupils with dyslexia since the publication of the Report of the Task Group on Dyslexia (Report) in 2002. The 2002 Report made a number of recommendations to improve the quality of provision in schools and to inform and clarify strategic planning and policy across the Education and Library Boards (ELBs). The Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) carried out the survey between October and December 2011 visiting 26 schools and observing 90 lessons, and holding interviews with relevant members of staff in schools and with various officers across the ELBs.

The safeguarding proforma and how it is used by early years settings, including at the point of inspection, has been subject to a comprehensive review over the past year.  This review has been part of the development of inspection consultation process.

This area-based inspection assesses the extent to which a range of organisations in the West Belfast area work together to provide coherent and relevant educational pathways for learners. This inspection model has been developed mainly to inform policy and provision at a strategic level in order to assist the Curriculum Advisory and Support Services, the employing authorities, and the relevant government departments to plan for and provide an education system which meets the demands for a flexible, appropriately trained workforce in a rapidly changing employment market.

The Dissolving Boundaries Programme has been in existence since 2000 and is managed by the Schools of Education at the University of Ulster and the National University of Ireland at Maynooth. 

In November 2010, the Inspectorate evaluated the provision for essential skills in the workplace provided to employers by the six area-based further education colleges through the colleges’ own economic engagement or by the Union Learning Fund administered by the Northern Ireland Congress of Trade Unions. 

This is a report on the evaluation of the quality of pre-school education provided by Irish-medium pre-school settings across the North of Ireland which were inspected by the Education and Training Inspectorate from 2008 -2012.

Over June 2011 - February 2012, twenty-four special schools accepted an invitation from the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) to work collaboratively on a joint curriculum project of their choosing with a neighbouring mainstream school or setting and to explore the process, benefits and shotcomings of this activity. The projects were monitored by ETI and a composite report written to inform the schools of the impact and value of the activity.

In June 2011, the Education and Training Inspectorate undertook an evaluation of the quality of the provision for pupils with a visual impairment in a random sample of pre-school, nursery, primary and post-primary schools.

The computer-based assessment (CBA) of literacy and numeracy has been a statutory requirement for primary schools in Northern Ireland since the introduction of the Education Assessment Arrangements Order (NI) (The Order) in 2007. 

The ETI review evaluates leadership development programmes for school principals in Northern Ireland, a particular focus on the professional qualification for headship (PQH NI) and makes recommendations with a view to promoting discussion, and a wider consideration of the policy options.

The follow-up report to an Evaluation of the Quality of Special Educational Needs Provision in Special Units attached to Mainstream Schools published on 10 June 2013 found a stronger focus, since the original survey, on assessment and tracking of learning outcomes and a greater emphasis on encouraging collaborative working between unit and mainstream staff. Nonetheless, strategic planning across the ELBs has not been achieved and the evidence suggests that agreeing a clear strategy is the most important factor in reducing the variation in provision and developing a shared and common approach.

This report was commissioned by the Department of Education (DE) to find out if the guidance issued to schools for medication was sufficient and appropriate and if any improvements were necessary. 

This evaluation report of the Certificate of Competence in Educational Testing (CCET) pilot was commissioned by DE to help develop the capacity of SENCOs in schools and pre-school settings to identify, assess and make appropriate interventions for pupils with SEN. Over a two-year period, 296 schools participated in the pilot.

This report summarises the findings of a survey into the nature and extent of good practice in environmental education and / or sustainable development within a range of schools in Northern Ireland.

This report contains the findings of the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) on the impact of the Community Relations, Equality and Diversity Policy in a sample of schools and youth organisations. The report identifies the characteristics of good practice in relation to current practice and makes a set of recommendations.

This survey sets out the findings of an evaluation of the arrangements in place for providing early years specialist (EYS) support to voluntary and private pre-school settings funded by the Department of education (DE). It considers factors which impact on the delivery of this service and makes recommendations on how to improve the current arrangements.

The Education and Training Inspectorate appointed two Nutritional Associates in December 2006 to monitor and promote improvement in the implementation of the Catering for Healthier Lifestyles programme and the approaches schools and employing authorities are taking to the promotion of healthy eating.

The Education and Training Inspectorate provides professional evaluation services for a number of government departments: this report on the implementation of the Delivering Social Change: Improving Literacy and Numeracy Signature Programme is the result of commissioned evaluation work undertaken at the request of the Department of Education (DE). 

The Education and Training Inspectorate’s (ETI) report sets out the findings of an evaluation of the arrangements in place to build the capacity of practitioners in the participating settings to be able to identify more effectively and to support children with special educational needs (SEN) and/or a disability earlier in their pre-school year, considers factors which impact on the provision and makes recommendations on how to improve and further develop the current arrangements.