Primary school principals are seeking an urgent meeting with the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, to discuss a crisis in the number of teachers applying to be principals.
A new survey shows that 67 per cent of teachers do not intend to apply to be a principal at any stage in the future.
The survey by the Irish Primary Principals' Network (IPPN) also showed that last year there were on average only 3.5 applicants for every post of principal. This compared with 5.4 in 1996 and 4.5 in 1998.
The IPPN said that if teachers did not start coming forward, the whole education system could be undermined. It has compiled figures from school management bodies and found that last year 10 schools received no applications for the post of principal, despite widespread advertising.
Over 30 schools received only one or two applications. The IPPN said that years ago there might be up to 30 applications for such a post. The latest figures echo findings of shortages generally of teachers at primary level. Large numbers of schools depend on unqualified teachers to fill their staffing gaps.
Last year saw the lowest application rate in many years for posts as principals. The IPPN, which began its national conference in Galway last night, called on Dr Woods to introduce measures to deal with the crisis.
The organisation said the alarming figures were likely to worsen. Only seven per cent of teachers said they were more likely to apply in the future for a principal's job than in the past. Many deputy principals said they would not be applying.
The absence of support and professional development for principals was cited as the main reason for the lack of interest. The next most common reason was lack of preparation for the job.
About 80 per cent said the salary level was the reason they would not apply. Stress and the combining of the work of a principal with classroom teaching was also cited.
"This independent survey, backed up by information provided by the management authorities and the statistics from the Department of Education, clearly points to a crisis at the heart of our primary education system. The post of principal must be perceived by teachers as an attractive promotional prospect," said the IPPN national director, Mr Sean Cottrell.
"IPPN will be asking for the speedy implementation of all the recommendations in the Department's report on the role of the primary principal to help solve this current crisis," he added. The survey was conducted among 245 teachers over the last week by Mercator Market Research. The IPPN conference continues today, when Department officials and Mr Cottrell will be among the speakers.