SCHOOL principals have warned that "curriculum overload" in the classroom threatens to lead to deteriorating educational standards.
The introduction of new courses and duties without consultation or the provision of extra resources was creating severe problems for schools, the annual conference of the Association of Principals of Vocational Schools and Community Colleges (APVSCC) was told.
"We are being asked almost daily to introduce new programmes into our schools, such as the LCVP, LCA, CSPE, RSE, SPHE, TXP, VPTs and PLCs," the association's president, Mr Larry Kavanagh, told the conference in Malahide yesterday.
"These new and never ending additional courses and duties which are being added to teachers and principals' workloads without any form of consultation, extra resources or proper incareer development are in danger of eroding and diluting rather than increasing school effectiveness.
His comments were echoed at the conference of the Secondary School Principals' Association of Ireland meeting in Clonmel. The association's president, Mr Michael McCann, told delegates the curriculum was not "infinitely expandable". The problem of curriculum overload would have to be urgently addressed.
Mr Kavanagh also criticised the Department of Education's plans to grade schools from fair to very good under a programme of whole school inspection (WSI).
The Department was "putting the cart before the horse" by basing its plans for WSI on the school plan when no guidelines for drawing up such a plan had been issued, he said.
If VECs were to be restructured, they must be left with real power and authority, and their services must not be impaired, he warned.
Mr McCann criticised the Department for the fact that, in the first two months of the school year, teachers in accounting, civics, the Leaving Cert vocational programme and the Junior Cert Elementary programme had been taken out of the classroom for training.
Paid substitutes should be provided instead of having the principal go "cap in hand" looking for volunteers to cover classes.
Secondary school principals had written to management seeking a 100 per cent increase in allowances, Mr McCann revealed. The Government had offered the teacher unions a 28 per cent increase as part of the deal. This had been rejected by the second level unions.
Meanwhile, the heads of VECs have expressed grave concern that 16 out of the 38 chief executive officers of VECs are employed in an acting capacity, although many have held this position for up to 10 years.
The Association of CEOs called on the Minister for Education to address this "indefensible" situation as a matter urgency.
The Minister in a recent Dail reply, said 20 acting appointments had been made since the practice started in 1985. Some of these replaced existing acting CEOs in the 16 VECs affected.
Ms Breathnach said she had personally appointed 11 of the acting CEOs. Five were appointed by Ms Mary O'Rourke when she was minister. The first acting CEO was appointed in Co Dublin VEC by the then minister, Ms Gemma Hussey, in August 1985.
