Breakthrough between unions and teachers only likely close to strike day

Any breakthrough in the junior cycle reform dispute is only likely within days of a planned teachers’ strike at the country’s second-level schools in less than a fortnight.

Efforts to reconvene talks between the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI), Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI), and Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan have been under way since mid-December.

Pauric Travers was asked by Ms O’Sullivan to meet with both sides to see if there was any scope to resume previous talks that had taken place under his chairmanship in November. The unions’ withdrawal from those discussions led to them staging a one-day strike on December 2, and later announcing a second one-day stoppage at 720 schools for Thursday, January 22.

Mr Travers, former president of St Patrick’s College Drumcondra in Dublin, met separately with unions and Department of Education officials days before Christmas.

But it now appears that if the impasse is to be broken, it will be the middle of next week at the earliest. He is due to meet department officials again today, and possibly have further discussions with unions.

An ASTI spokeswoman said both unions have indicated their willingness to talk.

“We have requested that talks would address, or allow for discussion about, teachers’ concerns,” she said.

Yesterday, Ms O’Sullivan again urged unions to call off the strike, and said she has already made significant movement on the issue.

The dispute revolves mainly over teacher opposition to marking their own students for a revised Junior Certificate.

Ms O’Sullivan significantly rowed back in November on her predecessor Ruairi Quinn’s plan that all assessments be done by students’ own teachers.

But unions oppose her proposal that they mark their own students on coursework, while final written exams would continue to be assessed by the State Examinations Commission.