As part of a major move towards the introduction of a new inspection system in schools, the Department of Education is preparing to withdraw its inspectors from selection panels for teaching posts.
The inspectors who sit on selection panels for jobs at hundreds of vocational and community/comprehensive schools will be needed to operate the new inspection system, Whole School Evaluation (WSE), which is expected to come into at least some schools in the next school year.
A Department of Education spokesman said it was reviewing the position of the inspectors and evaluating whether their presence on selection panels was necessary any more.
Because a selection panel must contain a Department inspector for jobs at vocational and community/comprehensive schools, there is often a delay in convening the panel when an inspector is involved in other work. This has led to delays in the appointment of some teachers.
The teacher unions and the second-level management bodies for schools regard the inspectors as bringing a guarantee of independence to the interview process. However, sources said the inspectors have become too busy to continue their role on the selection panels.
The inspectors are involved in a wide range of areas, including preparing examinations, inspecting schools and insuring various circulars are enforced.
The long list of new initiatives which has been introduced by the Department in recent years has put considerable strain on its inspectorate, particularly at second level. At primary level, the inspectors do not sit on selection panels for ordinary teaching posts.
The Department is currently in negotiations with the management bodies and teaching unions about the composition of selection panels.
A circular governing the introduction of WSE is being prepared by the Department. However, a recent warning from the Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI) that it would not implement the system unless its special 30 per cent pay claim was dealt with represents a major obstacle to its introduction.
The other secondary teachers' union, the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI), has also yet to accept WSE.
WSE does not involve the individual assessment of teachers' work but an evaluation of the school's overall performance in terms of the service provided to students. This includes inspection of buildings, facilities and classroom materials. It also includes inspectors entering classrooms where they are entitled to talk to students and inspect their work to see if they are receiving the proper level of education.
The inspector then sits down with the school principal and discusses any shortcomings identified in the school's overall performance. It specifically rules out individual reports about a teacher's performance.
While the ASTI and TUI are reserving their positions on WSE, the Department is understood to be pressing ahead with its plans. It is understood the inspectors told the Department's top management group that it would be impossible for them to continue their role on selection panels and also operate WSE, which will be a serious undertaking in terms of manpower.