The report “Student Evaluation of Mathematics Learning Support: insights from a large multi-institutional survey” was launched by the Irish Mathematics Learning Support Network (IMLSN) in Dublin City University (DCU) on Friday November 21st 2014. Dr. Olivia Fitzmaurice from the NCE-MSTL was an author and editor, along with Ciarán O'Sullivan (IT Tallaght), Ciarán Mac an Bhaird (Maynooth University) and Eabhnat Ní Floinn (DCU).
Professor Duncan Lawson (Director of sigma and Pro Vice Chancellor Formative Education Newman University, Birmingham) and Professor John O'Donoghue (Professor (Emeritus) Mathematics Education UL and Associate Director of the NCE-MSTL) responded to the report from international and national perspectives, respectively and stated that it is a ‘seminal piece of work’.
Senator Mary Moran (Labour Party spokesperson on Education, Disability, Equality & Mental Health) officially launched the report and gave a parent’s perspective, having had two children pass through Higher Education in two Irish institutions.
The report was on an extensive student survey conducted by the IMLSN. The IMLSN is a network of practitioners of MLS in Ireland who collaborate and share resources to ensure best practice in the provision of MLS. The evaluation is the first of its kind to be undertaken on such a scale in Ireland, involving responses from over 1,600 first-year students across nine Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) from around the island of Ireland. A subset of the findings have been published in three journal articles to date. This report contains valuable insights about the transition from second to third level mathematics for students across a range of disciplines, as well as detailing the impact that they perceive that mathematics support services have upon their ability to cope with this challenge. The report and the presentations from the launch are available from https://supportcentre.maths.nuim.ie/mathsnetwork/IMLSNReportLaunch
For further information, please contact one of the authors.
Jim Dowling (Deputy President, DCU), Professor Duncan Lawson (Newman University), Senator Mary Moran, Professor John O'Donoghue (UL), Dr. Olivia Fitzmaurice (UL), Ciarán O'Sullivan (IT Tallaght), Dr. Eabhnat Ní Floinn (DCU), Dr. Ciarán Mac an Bhaird (Maynooth University)