Welcome to EARU
The Educational Assessment Research Unit (EARU) is located within the College of Education at the University of Otago. It comprises a dedicated team of researchers and technical staff, whose purpose is to measure student progress and achievement and other contextual factors that influence teaching and learning, so that results can be used to shape policy and inform classroom practice.
EARU was established in 1995 by Professor Terry Crooks and Dr Lester Flockton as the home of the National Education Monitoring Project (NEMP).
From 2012–2023, EARU managed the National Monitoring Study of Student Achievement (NMSSA), a collaboration between the University of Otago and the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) under contract to the Ministry of Education.
From 2023, EARU has been delivering the Curriculum Insights and Progress Study, also under contract to the Ministry of Education. The study is a collaboration with NZCER, and builds and expands on NMSSA. This new study is aligned with the New Zealand Curriculum refresh and includes new study components to measure progress in literacy and numeracy, and provide rich contextual information about teaching and learning.