337 primary schools receive 2026 Curious Minds Awards
Minister James Lawless announces schools across the country honoured for excellence in STEM learning
Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, James Lawless TD, has today announced that 337 primary schools across Ireland have received a Research Ireland Curious Minds Award for 2026.
Funded by Research Ireland, the Curious Minds Awards recognise schools that adopt a hands-on, inquiry-based approaches to science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) in their teaching. The initiative is open to all primary schools and supports educators and students at every stage in their STEM teaching and learning journeys, from those starting out, to those adopting whole-school approaches.
Announcing the 2026 Curious Minds Awards, Minister Lawless said:
I am delighted to announce that 337 schools have won Research Ireland Curious Minds Awards this year. What makes these awards so special is their focus not just on what children learn, but on how they learn. Through Curious Minds, schools across Ireland are helping young people to ask questions, explore ideas, and develop the confidence to experiment and problem-solve. I want to thank the teachers and school leaders whose passion and dedication are inspiring the next generation to engage with STEM in creative and meaningful ways. Their commitment is helping to foster a lifelong curiosity in our young people. Congratulations to every school recognised this year on this wonderful achievement.
Commenting on the awards, Dr Diarmuid O’Brien, CEO of Research Ireland, said:
The Curious Minds Awards showcase the enthusiasm and creativity of school communities across Ireland. The programme is built on a simple but powerful belief – that every child is born curious and every teacher can nurture that curiosity into a lifelong love of science, technology, engineering and maths. By supporting teachers and embedding these curiosity-centred approaches in everyday learning, the programme is making a real difference in helping to develop skills that will benefit students both now and into the future.
Through the programme, students are encouraged to ask questions, test ideas and apply their learning in meaningful ways. Across participating schools, students explored STEM through practical activities including biodiversity studies, chick hatching projects, experiments exploring forces and materials, programming and coding, and design-and-make activities. These awards highlight the work of teachers and the wider school communities in creating learning environments where curiosity and exploration are at the core.
To mark the announcement, a Research Ireland Curious Minds Awards Ceremony is taking place this morning online in hundreds of classrooms throughout Ireland, hosted by TV presenters Gráinne Bleasdale and Phil Smyth, to celebrate the awardees.
Schools participating in the Curious Minds Awards initiative apply for one of three award tiers:
- The Silver Award: for schools beginning their STEM journey, involves a minimum of two classes.
- The Gold Award: for schools further along their STEM journey, involving at least half of the classes in the school.
- The Platinum Award: for schools that have already achieved the Gold Award and want to further integrate STEM into their school culture.
This year, 24 schools received the Silver Award, 295 schools received the Gold Award, and 18 schools received the Platinum Award.
For more information about the Research Ireland Curious Minds programme, the Awards, CPD and inquiry-based resources, please visit https://www.researchireland.ie/curious-minds/ or contact the team at curiousminds@researchireland.ie.
Award summary (2026):
- Total number of schools awarded in 2026:337
- Platinum Awards: 18
- Gold Awards: 295
- Silver Awards: 24
- DEIS Schools: 95
- Gaelscoileanna: 12
- Special Schools: 4
