MANY people on the fringes of education will happily admit to being confused about the plethora of certification bodies in this country.

The fact that we have the National Council for Educational Awards (NCEA), the National Council for Vocational Awards (NCVA), CERT, FAS and Teagasc all making educational or training awards is a source of constant confusion that has been recognised at Government level.

Even the White Paper on Education acknowledges "the need for a more coherent and effective system of certification for the non-university sector of higher education as well as for the vocational training sector." For many of us the launch of Teastas on an interim basis in September 1995 has only added to the confusion. However, the good news is that it is intended that Teastas will become the single authority responsible for the certification of all non-university third-level, further and continuing education courses and training.

"The fact that we have so many bodies separately certifying courses in the field highlights the need for a more coherent, comprehensive and comprehensible system," comments Chris Connolly, chief executive of Teastas. "This can be done in a much better way under a single authority."

Teastas currently consists of a small secretariat and a board, which consists of members of the VECs, the universities, the unions, students, business and industry, under the chairmanship of Dick Langford, chief executive of Cork VEC. Its remit is to advise the Minister for Education on the best means of putting in place a single, national certification body.

The new national certification authority will have full responsibility for the development, implementation, regulation and supervision of certification in the institutions under its care. It will be responsible for quality and standards within these areas and will work to improve the international standing and recognition of Ireland's educational and training qualifications.

IMPORTANTLY, Teastas is committed to facilitating student progression through a structured system of graded education and training qualifications to ensure progression from basic attainments and qualifications up to PhD level. Teastas intends to build on the achievements of the NCEA, the NCVA and the National Tourism Certification Board and on the certification functions of other bodies such as the DIT, FAS and Teagasc, a Teastas discussion document reveals.

According to Connolly, Teastas is currently involved in "a major consultation" with all of the certifying agencies. Teastas will want to utilise the examples of best practice that already exist. "We would not want to change situations where there is good practice," he says.

However, all the signs are that both the NCEA and the NCVA will become part of Teastas and the likelihood is that they will eventually lose their individual identities. Teastas is to have responsibility for the plans, programmes and budgets necessary for the achievement of its own functions and for those of the NCEA and the NCVA. These latter two organisations will be reconstituted as sub-boards of Teastas.

Meanwhile, Teastas anticipates that its staff will be drawn from the staffs of existing certification and award bodies and from exercising certification functions in other organisations.

The discussion document states that the Teastas board will have two key advisory and consultative sub-boards - one for higher education (including the RTCs, the DIT, other publicly funded higher education institutions and relevant private colleges) and another for further education and training $including VEC and other schools, FAS, CERT, Teagasc, other bodies and the relevant private colleges). In order to develop and maintain standards, Teastas is considering the establishment of national standards committees which would make recommendations on the definitions and standards needed for all qualifications in a particular field.

THESE committees would have access to extra, specific expertise when necessary. "It is considered vital that awards in the national qualifications framework should be based on national standards," the Teastas discussion document says.

Teastas is examining the question of delegating its authority to institutions or groups of institutions. The RTCs are particularly concerned that, under a new national certification framework covering higher, further and continuing education and training, their qualifications will be viewed as unambiguously higher education awards. A mechanism whereby they would be granted a delegated authority subject to criteria laid down by Teastas could well suit them. However, all qualifications awarded at all levels will be those of Teastas.

Chris Connolly views the work of the interim board of Teastas as complex and intricate. Fitting the awards of all training and certification bodies into a national framework is a slow process but he is optimistic that the first phase of the work will be completed by the middle of next year.