Academic biography

Aideen Cassidy is Assistant Professor in the Institute of Education DCU in the school of Policy and Practice. She is co-ordinator of professional placement and  module co-ordinator on the  BRelEd programme: Religious Studies and Music/ English/History. Her research interests are primarily within the area of educational disadvantage, interventions to improve early school leaving and improve the life chances of those impacted by poverty, teacher training and literacy. She is part of the EQI team involved in the Horizons' Scirearly  European Project investigating successful measures to retain students in school and promote wellbeing and achievement. 

She started her teaching career in DEIS schools in Finglas - Dublin and Jobstown in  Tallaght in the early 80s. She was an assistant principal and co-ordinator of the SEN Department and adult literacy co-ordinator in Finglas over this time.

After 14 years there she took up a position in the Curriculum Development Unit as National Co-ordinator of the Junior Certificate School Programme, a programme designed and developed to support students  who were potential early school leavers.  Working in over 200 DEIS schools  nationwide during which time she provided professional development across the Junior Cycle to the staff in each school with the team of RDOs and researchers. She also  developed  the JCSP literacy strategy which was part of the National Literacy strategy and put in place the JCSP Library project where state of the art libraries were established and expert librarians put in place in 30 schools to support the literacy strategy. A bespoke librarian training programme was put in place.  The impact of the project was researched and the outcomes very positive. The project continues to thrive.

Aideen wrote several  teacher resource books and  support materials for teachers on literacy across the curriculum. Over this period Aideen conducted her EdD studies in Maynooth focusing in on the impact the JCSP  literacy strategy on literacy levels of the 2^nd level students. In 2011 she took up the position of principal in Beneavin  De La Salle College, an all boys DEIS school in Finglas and was  there for 11 years until she joined DCU in 2022.