TEACHERS are increasingly expected to be behavioural psychologists, social workers and surrogate parents in dealing with disturbed students, a Kilkenny delegate told the convention.
Mr Dermot Curran was introducing a motion demanding that the Department of Education provide a home liaison officer for each school and better psychological services for dealing with disturbed students.
He said secondary teachers were given the care of children during their most difficult and traumatic teenage years. Drugs had replaced alcohol abuse, and difficulties at home now merited scarcely a raised eyebrow.
"That trinity of certainties - home, church and school - has weakened and in some circumstances crumbled. Too many children and parents have succumbed to the `don't say no' society.
"The age of innocence has plummeted; young people are more sexually active and are pressurised into being more sexually active at a younger and younger age. He had seen a teenage disco recently advertising "over-11s only".
The disadvantaged child, the under-achiever, the vulnerable child were now in every school in every class of society.
This was happening at a time when "discipline, along with respect and authority, are being consigned to the scrapheap".
Teachers were expected "to apply the Elastoplast to society's ills without being provided with the means and extra resources which would enable something approaching an adequate response".
Speaking to a motion seeking a substantial pay increase for exam markers and superintendents, the ASTI's assistant general secretary, Mr John White, said that at a meeting last week with the Departments of Education and Finance the union had been offered a 40 per cent increase for the markers of Leaving Certificate art exams.
He said this had come out of the Price Waterhouse report on the debacle of the 1995 art exam. Art examiners would also have to deal with fewer papers.
Mr White said there was a problem getting enough teachers to mark public exam papers, particularly in subjects like English and Irish which require a lot of reading.
Experienced markers tended to do it for 10-15 years and then move on to become exam superintendents.