This article offers an overview of further education and training (FET) in Ireland in 2024 and details a year of steady growth and expansion for the sector. It describes the key achievements in FET and apprenticeship during the year and over the lifetime of the FET strategy, and it looks ahead to the future possibilities.

This article explores the shift to online education during the Covid-19 pandemic, highlighting both challenges and opportunities for further education and training. Key challenges include the digital divide, lack of learner engagement, quality assurance, and the need for additional support systems. Opportunities include increased access, personalised learning, global collaboration, innovation in teaching, and lifelong learning. The article emphasises the importance of addressing these challenges to create an inclusive and adaptable education system for all learners.

This article offers a snapshot of developments in further education and training (FET) in Ireland. It details how SOLAS and key partners have driven the transformation and reform of FET and apprenticeships during delivery of the FET strategy, Future FET: Transforming Learning (2020–2024).

This article reflects on the expansion of the national apprenticeship system in Ireland since publication in 2013 of the milestone report Review of Apprenticeship Training in Ireland. It offers a summary account of the major developments during that decade of transformation, and it points to the resilience and innovation at its heart, continuing to shape the apprenticeship system into the future.

Irish education has had many inspirational female leaders. The Women in Learning & Leadership (WILL) Network was set up to share their leadership stories and provide networking opportunities for future leaders in the system. This article describes the importance of sharing leadership stories and the power of networking to inspire future female leaders in education.

Good progress has been made in introducing a universal-design approach to the further education and training (FET) sector, but significant gaps remain in the provision of more individualised support services for disabled learners. This article shares the findings of research by AHEAD and ETBI on reasonable accommodations in FET and explores a programme of work to address the recommendations made.

This article outlines the new national tertiary programme and the partnership between the National Tertiary Office, Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board, and Technological University of the Shannon. It highlights some challenges, milestones, and achievements to date, and some factors for consideration in tertiary development, including universal design for learning and recognition of prior learning. Transversal skills and competences are increasingly recognised and coveted in the workplace, and the article concludes with some of their salient features.

Qualifications are valuable as a critical outcome in education practice, based on their predictive power for learners’ future. To leverage learner success, attaining qualifications must be combined with developing personal and psychological resources. This article highlights the potential of psychological capital as a robust framework for providers and practitioners to support measurable outcomes of learner success .

This article explores the concept of learner voice in adult education, highlighting its importance in allowing learners to shape their educational experiences and decisions. It looks at learner voice initiatives, both local and national, in the further education and training sector, and it illustrates the value of partnerships in fostering meaningful learner involvement.

Immersive virtual reality is increasingly a feature in education and training. It is therefore important to understand the role it can play in facilitating learning. This article reviews a case study from Waterford and Wexford Education and Training Board, with learners performing tasks in a virtual hospital room and providing feedback on the experience.

The recently published position paper ‘Learner Support in Further Education and Training: Towards a Consistent Learner Experience’, and its accompanying framework, present a valuable opportunity to reshape supports for adults in further education and training (FET) in Ireland. This article looks at the potential next steps on the journey.