An insider's guide to education

- THE STARTING gun has been fired in the race to succeed John Hegarty as Trinity Provost next year.

The plum job pays a handsome €200,000 salary.

Better still, the winner gets the best address in Ireland – 1 Grafton Street, Dublin 2, a lavish residence fit for a provost.

The election among Trinity’s 1,000 academics will take place around this time next year but, as the academic year draws to a close, various candidates are getting organised.

Internally, TCD has been reviewing the various statutes governing the election. There is a possibility that senior management staff and students could be given votes in the election.

One thing is for sure – the electorate this time round is younger and more volatile than on previous occasions. There is a clear opening for a young, vigorous candidate with a strong anti-Government message.

As for the contenders, TCD’s vice provost and engineer Paddy Prendergast is still the front runner.

But others who may run include historian Jane Ohlmeyer, Colm Kearney from the school of business studies, arts faculty dean Michael Marsh from politics – and at least one other faculty dean.

DCU president (and former head of TCD’s business school) Ferdinand von Prondzynski is also being mentioned. He steps down from his Glasnevin post in July.

Several of those who applied for the post a decade ago may return to the hustings, although TCD will want to avoid a repeat of the UCC saga where former president, Gerry Wrixon, was given a controversial extension of service after reaching retirement age while in office.

In recent years, virtually all university presidents have been drawn from the science faculties. Experience in helping to win research funding appears to be a sine qua nonfor aspiring presidents. As one wag put it: "The main job of a university president these days is to rattle the can for money.''

After John Hegarty’s low profile leadership, some in the college favour a high profile appointment for the next decade. There is widespread criticism among the fellows that Trinity punches below its weight in the media, despite its status as one of the world’s top 50 colleges.

- THOSE ROBUSTDepartment of Education reports on Gormanston College and Educate Together in Ennis, Co Clare reflect the determination of the inspectorate to raise standards.

Both reports were prepared last year during the tenure of former chief inspector, Eamon Stack.

His successor, Harold Hislop, is just getting his feet under the desk in the department but we hear he has the same determination to publish the full unexpurgated truth about schools.

- THE ECONOMICand Social Research Institute (ESRI) is rightly lauded for its economic forecasting. But does its work in the education sphere merit the same praise?

Last week, it published two reports both on important subjects – early school leaving and the Leaving Cert Applied. The institute did present some important new research on school drop outs. But its conclusions hardly broke new ground. The reports told us that kids from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to drop out of school. And the Leaving Cert Applied has still got an image problem.

In response, one trade unionist commented: “Tell us something we don’t know.’’

The other “findings” were also less than earth-shattering. A positive relationship between pupils and teachers will boost retention rates while streaming has a negative impact on school completion.

Is there anything here we didn’t already know? Or anything which will influence policy makers?

Just a thought!

• Got an education gossip? E-mail us, in confidence, at teacherspet@irishtimes.com