By Michelle Devane and James Ward, PA
The Minister for Further Education has described as “beyond unhelpful” the teachers’ union ASTI’s decision to walk away from the Leaving Certificate negotiations.
Simon Harris said all parties needed to “get in a room, get this sorted and stay in a room” until a deal is reached.
Minister for Education Norma Foley is set to meet with the ASTI on Friday afternoon in a bid to get the Leaving Cert talks back on track.
Government hopes of providing exams clarity to tens of thousands of students by next week were thrown into chaos after the ASTI withdrew at the 11th hour on Thursday.
The union said Government proposals on the Leaving Cert were “not viable”, and was unhappy that the controversial calculated grades system was being prioritised over traditional exams.
However, it has agreed to meet with the minister again on Friday to see if a path forward can be found.
1.I am both taken aback and disappointed at the ASTI's decision to withdraw from talks regarding the Leaving Certificate in 2021. At no stage of discussions today did the ASTI indicate its intention to take this action.
— Norma Foley T.D (@NormaFoleyTD1) February 11, 2021
Mr Harris said the “most sense” was coming from Leaving Cert students who were “calling it as it is”.
“They need clarity, they need a plan,” he said.
“They need this uncertainty to be taken away from them and Minister Foley is working 24/7 to deliver that.
“She’s engaging with all stakeholders very intensively and it is beyond unhelpful that anyone would walk away from that process.”
He added that he was pleased that the ASTI had accepted an invitation from the Minister to meet on Friday afternoon.
He also thanked the TUI for staying involved in the process.
“My message is simple,” Mr Harris said.
“Get in a room, get this sorted. And stay in a room until it’s sorted.
“Come on, we’ve got to get this done.
“There are no perfect solutions. Let’s be honest, this is a pandemic.
“Minister Foley is trying to find the best possible way forward to serve students well and that has the confidence of teachers.”
'Serious reservations'
ASTI president Ann Piggott told Newstalk Breakfast: “Throughout the talks, it has come to our attention very clearly that this non-examination process is a system of calculated grades without any great focus on what other alternatives were available.
“We have a problem with calculated grades because of the issues it threw up last year.
“Last year we entered into this on a one-off commitment, we were happy to do it at the time just to allow students to move forward.
“We have serious reservations about so many aspects of it.”
She said there was a lack of data available to base calculated grades upon because students have not sat their mock exams this year or fifth year exams in 2020.
The Labour Party called on the ASTI to get back around the table, saying students were suffering because of the ongoing uncertainty.
Education spokesman Aodhán Ó’Ríordáin told RTE’s Morning Ireland: “It’s not the business of the Labour Party to be criticising trade union leaders but the ASTI needs to get back around the table.
Nothing is achieved by walking away from the table.
Would encourage @astiunion to re-engage and to help find a solution to #LeavingCert2021.
No-one is pretending it’s an easy process for anyone but the students have been through enough.
— Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (@AodhanORiordain) February 11, 2021
“This isn’t helping the process.
“Students have been through far too much.
“They missed 11 weeks at the end of last academic year, they’ve missed school since last Christmas.
“There’s no guarantee as to when school is going to go back in.
“All this commentary is just hurting them and adding more to their anxiety.
“I know they’re going to go back in and discuss the reasons for leaving, but they should take this opportunity to get back around the table and come to a conclusion, very soon.
“Because, in fairness, sixth-year students cannot take anymore.”
The Irish Second-Level Students’ Union (ISSU) said it was “shocked and disappointed” by the ASTI decision to withdraw from talks.
In a statement on Thursday night, it said: “This is a time when students need cooperation between all stakeholders.
“Students have been through a horrendous year and now may face an uphill battle in the months ahead – we need to show them compassion, we need to provide clarity, and the ISSU position remains that students deserve a choice.
“This statement has caused stress, anxiety and worry to skyrocket amongst students.
“It is adding fear into an already high-pressure situation, and the delivery of clarity for students has been further pushed out due to this breakdown in talks.”
