The department of Education has defended its decision to recruit third-level students as potential examiners of this year's Junior Certificate examination.
It said the recruitment of under and postgraduate students to a reserve panel was necessary because there might not be enough teachers available to mark scripts this summer.
"The Department's confidence in the quality of the marking process is demonstrated by the fact that we are one of the few countries in the world to allow students to scrutinise their own marked scripts," said a spokeswoman for the Department.
Fine Gael is planning to raise the issue in the Dail today. It said the idea of using students "will send shivers down the spine of pupils taking their exams".
The Department said the students might not be needed, but if a shortage emerged they might be asked to mark scripts. It said the subject they were most likely to be marking was Civic, Social and Political Education (CSPE), which is taken by all 60,000 Junior Certificate students.
The decision to involve third-level students applies only to the Junior Certificate. Because new subjects have been added to the exam - such as CSPE - the need for examiners has grown.
According to teachers' unions, their members are not coming forward to mark scripts in large numbers because pay rates are too low. A teacher can expect to earn between £800 and £1,000 for marking papers. It can often take a fortnight to three weeks to complete the task.
The president of the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI), Mr Joe Carolan, said the current shortage of examiners would continue until rates were increased. A Department spokesman said it would try to recruit teachers first; only if an insufficient number came forward would students be appointed. The Department is uncertain of the number of teachers available.
Fine Gael last night said the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, was being "cavalier" by considering using students as examiners. "These marks will determine a person's career. Students cannot possibly have the experience or sensitivity that a teacher has," said the party's education spokesman, Mr Richard Bruton.
The Department said major quality control procedures were in place in the marking process. All examiners had to answer to a supervisor who monitored their work, said a spokeswoman.