Secondary schools face threat of industrial action after ASTI rejects Leaving Cert reform package

Second-level schools face the threat of industrial action in the autumn after the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) voted to reject a package of supports aimed at easing the roll-out of Leaving Certificate reforms.

ASTI members rejected the measures by a margin of 68 per cent to 32 per cent. The turnout was 73 per cent.

The vote means second level teachers are now divided after the Teachers’ Union of Ireland last week voted to accept the package.

The reforms will see students awarded a minimum of 40 per cent for projects or practical work across all subjects.

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In a separate ballot, ASTI members voted by 67 per cent to 33 per cent in favour of industrial action, if necessary, up to and including strike action, in opposition to the accelerated implementation of the controversial Leaving Cert reforms.

Commenting on the outcome, ASTI general secretary Kieran Christie said it was clear that second-level teachers have “real and significant concerns” about the implementation of the accelerated Leaving Cert reforms.

He said ASTI research published this year shows that a “key concern is the lack of resources and capacity in schools to introduce such radical change in an effective manner”.

Mr Christie said the supports on offer “do little to provide a Senior Cycle experience for all students that addresses the core inequalities that are in place in the second-level system”.

He said the ASTI research also finds that the majority of second-level teachers are concerned about developments in AI and teacher training in some subject areas. “The support package available from the Department (of Education) fails to sufficiently address these concerns,” he said.

Last week, members of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) voted by a margin of 73 per cent to 27 per cent to accept the package of supports.

The vote was seen at the time as paving the way for curriculum changes which seek to broaden assessment and ease pressure facing Leaving Cert students.

Minister for Education Helen McEntee, who has pushed ahead with the reforms despite calls for a pause from teaching unions, had welcomed the outcome of the TUI vote.

She thanked the union for its “positive engagement” during recent negotiations and for its “commitment to finding a shared path forward to the continued implementation of senior cycle redevelopment for the benefit of all students”.

Teaching unions’ annual conferences at Easter heard concerns that laboratories were ill-equipped for the volume of new research projects for physics, chemistry and biology.

It was also stated that the changes would benefit affluent schools with access to more resources.

During subsequent negotiations with teaching unions, the Department of Education announced a support package aimed at easing the roll-out of the reforms, which begin for fifth year students in September next.

The package clarified that pay increases of up to 5 per cent, due under the public sector pay deal, were contingent on co-operating with senior cycle reforms.

It also offered pledges of flexibility in relation to so-called Croke Park hours and a shorter qualifying period for teachers to attain job permanency by way of a contract of indefinite duration.

In a statement on Friday evening, the Minister said the ASTI ballot result would not halt the implementation of the planned changes.

“The implementation of the programme will continue with the introduction of the first tranche of new and revised Leaving Certificate subjects in September 2025 as previously announced,” Ms McEntee said.

“The package of additional supports contains a number of significant measures aimed at supporting students directly. I am absolutely committed to delivering on those measures as we proceed with implementation of this programme.”

A Department of Education statement noted that under the terms of the Public Service Agreement, ASTI members had committed to co-operating with the reforms.

“In addition, in engagements before the ballot process, the ASTI confirmed to department officials that their members will teach the new and revised specifications from the next school year. So, senior cycle redevelopment will continue as planned,” the statement notes.