Teacher's PET

An insider's guide to education

• Now that the dust has settled, the consensus is that UCD's selection committee made the right choice in nominating Hugh Brady as the next president. Brady's towering international stature as an academic and his modern management style made him the ideal choice. But his relatively young age - Brady is just 44 - is bad news for a whole generation of UCD academics who harboured presidential ambitions. His first task - when he takes over in January - will be to build his own management team. Unlike other university presidents, Brady now has carte blanche to do whatever he likes. Since he was chosen by a distinguished selection committee - he is not beholden to any particular clique. A radical shake-up of UCD management can be expected.
• The happiest men in the spring sunshine? Take a bow John Carr of the INTO and "Gentleman" Jim Dorney of the TUI. While the ASTI was tearing itself apart, both men successfully steered their unions through the tricky partnership talks. Their reward came when both unions overwhelmingly supported the new partnership deal and benchmarking in the past 10 days.
• What does Noel Dempsey make of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) the group which advises him on these issues? We only ask. The NCCA - made up of education partners and others - prides itself on its consensual approach. But the Minister told a meeting of its members last week that consensus could sometimes inhibit radical decision-taking. It may be that the NCCA has been damaged by its very cautious and poorly received paper on reform of the senior cycle. Noel Dempsey, it should be said, was lavish in his praise of the group when he met them last week. So how come some members are uncertain? ...
• Expect a big push from grassroots ASTI members as the union considers a switch to school-based ballots at its special conference next Saturday. Already, several popualr ex-presidents, including Catherine Fitzpatrick, Don McCluskey and Tommy Francis, have written to ASTI members, urging them to ensure that their views are represented at the crucial meeting. The current much-criticised system, which obliges teachers to travel to their branch to vote, can only be changed with a two-thirds majority.
• With the ASTI down and (almost) out, Noel Dempsey is set to wage battle on other fronts. There is still the third-level fees issues to address. And, in a stirring speech, last week, Dempsey signalled his impatience with the cosy consensus which bedevils the education world. Dempsey is anxious to change things and to make a difference. So you can expect radical reform of the Leaving Cert, a standardised school year, evening parent/teacher meetings, a proper system of school inspections and a push towards a new more relevant curriculum. And that's just his plans for second-level. Wait until he moves on to the sleepy and largely unaccountable third-level sector!