It has been a dramatic year in Irish educationwith bitter rows and some worrying trends. It's time to take a wry look at 2006 - and offer some predictions on the movers and shakers for 2007 Seán Flynn, Education Editor

1 - The rise and rise of Mary Hanafin

It may seem difficult to credit now, but one year ago Mary Hanafin was a mid-ranking Minister well down the pecking order in the Fianna Fáil succession stakes. Her smooth, unruffled performance in education means she is now second or third in line after Brian Cowen.

Hanafin could hardly have chosen a better time to be in Marlborough Street with Exchequer cash swirling around and the awkward squad at the ASTI still in recovery mode after the strikes of five years ago. Hanafin has been welcomed as "one of our own" by the education sector and she has reaped the political dividend.

Curiously, the highlight of her year came - not strictly on an education issue - but when she reflected on the problems of "cash rich, time poor" parents in an Irish Timesinterview in April. It was a message which struck a cord in every middle-class household in the State.

What to expect in 2007?

If the opinion polls are correct, Mary Hanafin will remain at the Cabinet table after the election. She has already been linked with Enterprise and Employment, which would give her experience of an economic ministry. But at a recent dinner she joked how she could someday be finance minister. Hanafin is a deft and articulate politician with an appeal to rural and urban, liberal and conservative. She will go a long way.

2 - CAO points race ended for most students

It has long been signalled, but in 2006 it finally happened - the points race, as we have known it for two decades, finally shuddered to a halt.

It will make no difference to those chasing medicine and the like, but most students should be able to secure the third-level place they crave.

Why is this happening?

In broad terms, it is because the supply of courses in third-level colleges exceeds demand for places. A total of 360 Leaving Cert points will secure a place in the largest undergraduate course in the State, Arts in UCD. And there are scores of vacant places all across the system.

What to expect in 2007?

More of the same. Points may not continue their downward spiral - but they certainly won't be shooting upwards.

3 - UCC president Prof Gerry Wrixon decided to walk away

In a surprise move, Gerry Wrixon signalled his intention to resign next month, shortly after securing a controversial four-year extension to his term of office from the Government last May.

Wrixon won the unprecedented extension on his 65th birthday last year thanks, in part, to support from Mary Hanafin and Mary Harney around the Cabinet table. The extension was given despite vigorous opposition from many academics in the university.

Wrixon's decision to retire caught his opponents off guard, but they have regrouped and their long war against the president seems more intense than ever.

Mary Hanafin was peeved that no one told her of Wrixon's retirement plans. She has backed an inquiry into allegations of financial mismanagement at UCC. The results of this will be known shortly.

What to expect in 2007?

With Wrixon and at least one of his main adversaries due to retire, things should calm down in Cork - provided the new president is not linked to the old battles.

4 - The grinds culture continued to spread

A decade ago, the Institute of Education in Dublin was a marginal presence in Irish education. Today, it is no exaggeration to suggest that its owner, "Grinds King" Ray Kearns, is one of the most influential figures in Irish education.

About 700 students will sit the Leaving Cert in the institute this summer and thousands more take grinds on a part-time basis in Leeson Street.

Kearns's success - he earns over €10 million annually - has seen grind schools modelled on the institute opening all over the State. The top feeder school for UL is now Limerick Tutorial Centre. Other grind schools - in Cork , Galway, Newbridge and other centres - report record demand.

What to expect in 2007?

More of the same. The education establishment may hate grinds schools, but affluent parents will pay no heed. Fees of €5,000 per year are small beer for the middle classes. The grinds culture will continue to boom.

5 - UCD president, Hugh Brady came out fighting

At one stage this summer only one of the seven university presidents was on close speaking terms with UCD president Hugh Brady.

The others were infuriated by Brady's attempts to lure key members of their staff to Belfield. Mary Hanafin - and even Bertie Ahern - issued a yellow card to Brady, warning him that US-style poaching was not appropriate in our relatively small third-level sector.

Since then, Brady has put his poaching gear away, a new poaching protocol has been put in place - and relations between Brady and his fellow presidents are back on an even keel.

These days, some would argue that the poaching row worked in Brady's favour, shoring up the marketing message that UCD is a place to match your ambitions. Certainly, the Brady revolution at UCD has bedded down. Staff morale is still a problem, but there is a new air of confidence out in Belfield.

What to expect in 2007?

With strong student demand and improved status in the various university rankings, UCD appears well-positioned in 2007, provided the internal fires can be finally extinguished.

6 - The public began to ask awkward questions about education planning - and spending

It has now become part of the fabric of Irish life - the booming new commuter towns where someone forgot about schools. In Dublin west, Laytown, Co Meath, Newbridge, Co Kildare and elsewhere the crisis reached a tipping point, as angry parents demanded places for their children.

The hardship endured by these parents raised questions about the level of planning - or lack of it - in the Department of Education.

There were other changes. The public began to question the overall level of overall spending in education. Yes, individual communities were happy to secure school building after years of under investment. But, for the first time, you heard some complain about how education spending here continues to lag behind other developed states.

The ASTI's John White used every available opportunity to spread the message; the Republic, he pointed out, is close to the bottom of the OECD spending league when it comes to second-level education. And the picture is not much better at primary level. Some 20 per cent of computers in our schools don't work.

What to expect in 2007?

Questions about the overall level of education spending will not go away. The public is losing patience with large class sizes. It will be less grateful for what is received and will increasingly demand better IT, sports and classroom facilities for our children.

7 - School inspections were published for the first time

On one morning in May, the Department of Education's website crashed as teachers and parents scrambled to read school inspection reports.

To date, over 300 reports have been published and the overall picture is very positive, reflecting the high teaching standards across the State.

Critics carp that the reports are too positive. Certainly, they are very polite in tone. And the formal, official style in which they are written is hardly user-friendly. There is a shortage of the kind of hard information which could help parents in the key task of selecting the best school for their son or daughter - and no reference to exam results.

What is likely to happen in 2007?

The Department of Education's website seems unlikely to crash when the next batch of reports are published. Despite their many flaws, a lot of parents will continue to rely for some kind of guidance on the feeder school lists published in the media.

8 - The teaching conferences passed with barely a whimper

For the teacher unions, it has been a relatively quiet year. The INTO remains the strongest and most influential union in the State and its general secretary, John Carr, has used this power base to achieve real progress on special needs, teacher numbers and a range of other issues.

At the TUI, speculation is rife that veteran general secretary Jim Dorney will retire next year. Various lieutenants are waiting and watching, including John MacGabhann and Peter McMenamin. But the frontrunner remains Declan Glynn, who has been so impressive on the discipline issue.

What is likely to happen in 2007?

The teacher conferences should be relatively tame affairs, a final lap of honour for Mary Hanafin before the election. At the ASTI, expect John White's capable deputy general secretary, Diarmuid dePaor to gain a much higher profile in 2007.

9 - The Government acknowledged the critical importance of third and fourth level

Four years ago, the Government imposed a freeze on research spending at third-level - but real progress has been made since those dark days. Today, every Government minister recites the same mantra - investment in third and fourth level is critical to our economic future. The Government is matching these honeyed words with real investment in the sector. It is not as much as the colleges would like, but it still represents a sea-change in official attitudes.

A number of people deserve credit for this transformation, including the university presidents, who made such a cogent case for more spending in their Budget submission last year. The secretary general of the Department of Education, Brigid McManus, is also widely credited for this important change in official attitudes.

What will happen in 2007?

The third-level sector can expect generous funding from the national development plan and the new science strategy.

10 - The education system at second-level seemed more polarised then ever before- especially in Dublin

In Old Ireland, pupils from the various social classes were taught in the same school - if not in the same class. Yes, there were fee-paying schools, but these were the exclusive preserve of the small minority who could afford them.

Today, fee-paying schools and grind schools are helping to create a two-tier system, especially in Dublin. Many middle-class parents are moving their children into the private education sector - and turning their backs on some excellent State schools. There are over 20,000 unfilled places in non fee-paying second-level schools in Dublin. To complete the divide, some fee-paying schools cherrypick the best and the brightest pupils and exclude those with special educational needs. There is a new phenomenon in Irish education - scores of middle-class pupils now have no school interaction with those who are less well off.

What will happen in 2007?

Some free State schools could close because of a shortage of numbers. Meanwhile, the rise and rise of provincial grind schools will see the development of a two-tier education system outside Dublin.