The ASTI has come out against teachers assessing their own students' work as part of a reformed Junior Certificate examination system. One reason given is that teachers could find themselves held legally accountable for the marks they award.
However, the union has suggested that by extending the school year to include four church holy days, a period could be freed to allow teachers work as external examiners on oral, aural, practical and project-based Junior Certificate work.
The Minister for Education and Science, Mr Martin, and senior Department officials are known to be anxious to expand these less academic elements of the Junior Certificate exam, and to see them examined to a greater degree by teachers in schools, rather than by external examiners. This is the practice in many other European countries.
In a submission to the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment's Junior Certificate review group, however, the ASTI has strongly opposed teachers assessing their own students.
It says "a major strength" of the Irish education system has been the perception by pupils that teachers are "advocates" rather than "judges" when it comes to certificate examinations. If that changes, and they become judges, they may find themselves being held legally accountable for the marks they give in such exams. "It would also open the door to possible distortion of results in response to potential pressure emanating from competition among local schools for pupils."
Assessment by teachers would also divert their time and energy away from teaching towards preparing students for certificate exams and dealing with exam-related issues like appeals and professional consultations.
ASTI says externally-assessed certificate exams provide "well-established reference points for employment and training". Teacher assessment "could undermine the credibility, status and perceived integrity of the certificate obtained".
It also believes that the cost of teacher assessment would be much higher than the present externally-based system. Teachers would look for "significant remuneration" for the extra heavy duties involved; their class contact time with students would have to be greatly reduced; and an "extensive" bureaucracy would have to be put in place.
Instead the ASTI proposes a greater flexibility in conducting oral, aural, practical and project-based external examinations between February 1st and June.
Regarding its suggestion to extend the school year to include four church holy days, the union warns this would mean schools opening during days previously regarded as holidays, and that sufficient teachers might not be willing to work as external examiners during such periods "unless the remuneration was attractive".