Department of Education Research Project

Dear Parents/Guardians,

This school year we’ve been chosen to be part of a Department of Education-funded research project to support the teaching and learning of reading. There are over 15,000 children in Northern Ireland who will be part of this project, and our school is very pleased to be participating. 

The study, to be conducted by Oxford Brookes University, will evaluate the impact of a service called Amira Learning; which provides personalised, research-based reading support to help every child grow as a reader. 

This project will run throughout the year, in P3, P5, P7, and Year 8.

The following classes will be part of this research from our school:

- Mrs Harley/Mrs Duffy (P3)  &  Mrs McKinney (P3)

- Mrs Wilson (P5)   &  Mrs Mitchell (P5)

- Mrs Forbes (P7)   &  Mr Herron (P7)

Decisions - about which schools and year groups are involved, and how the research is run - have been made by the Department of Education for all the schools involved: to ensure the findings are most useful to guiding policy, but also to ensure equity.

The ‘active’ phase of the research will take place between Autumn and the end of the Spring Term. All children in these classes will take a benchmark assessment, so we can see how much impact Amira has in developing Reading at the end of the research.

Your child’s class will be in one of two groups:

• Study group:  Using Amira from this term until the end of the school year. Pupils will read with Amira for 10–15 minutes three times a week, and will complete a short assessment at the end of the spring term, so we can see progress.
• Control group: Pupils will complete the same assessments at the start and end of the study. Following the assessment in March, your child or children will have full access to Amira until the end of the school year.

This project does not involve researchers coming into school, as everything needed can be gathered remotely and managed by us at the school.. 

Please note that neither your children nor our school staff are being assessed, evaluated or inspected by this research project. This is about testing how much impact Amira Learning, and this approach to reading, can have. In all other ways, school will carry on as normal. 

What is Amira Learning?

Amira Learning is a digital tool for schools that helps children practise reading. It uses specialised technology (powered by AI) to listen as children read out loud and features an avatar (character) called Amira. It gives helpful feedback and shows teachers how their class is doing with things like reading speed, understanding, and how they tackle tricky words. Amira also helps teachers see how their reading is improving and what support they might need.  

Is it safe to use?

Yes. Amira is built with safety and privacy at its core. Everything Amira says to your child is safe and checked by privacy and reading experts. Amira does not use open models like ChatGPT, and does not use the open web to make decisions. It was made just to work with children, so it does not make things up, or say anything that it shouldn’t. It just helps with reading in a safe, guided way.

What happens to your child’s information?

Your child’s reading data stays private and secure. Beyond our existing data arrangements, this data will be shared with the research team, and anonymised so that they can report to the Department of Education. Amira Learning and Oxford Brookes University follow UK data laws, including UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, to keep children’s information safe.

Your support makes a big difference—thank you.

Should you have any questions, please contact Mrs Forbes or Mrs McCafferty by email or phone:

02871 348446

info@goodshepherd.derry.ni.sch.uk

Sincerely,

Mrs M. Forbes

Literacy Coordinator