AN “AVALANCHE” of retirements by senior VEC teachers is expected early next year, placing additional burden on already strained resources, a senior figure in the sector has said.
Non-replacement of staff due to a moratorium in place since 2009 is placing acute pressure on principals and deputy principals, Irish Vocational Education Association development director Deirdre Keogh said yesterday.
At the IVEA annual conference in Cork, Ms Keogh said leadership positions in schools had become “a poisoned chalice” and vulnerable students with special needs were suffering the brunt of the cuts.
“There is good reason to believe that many with the capacity to lead schools effectively are passing up on the opportunity,” she said. “Many posts of responsibility in schools are about supporting students with special needs of one kind or another, so the effects of the moratorium on such students are obvious.”
Ms Keogh claimed the impact of the moratorium would be further exacerbated by large numbers of expected retirements from senior posts within the VEC in 2012.
“If the principal’s and deputy principal’s job is currently unattractive, it will be undoable once the avalanche of retirements occurs in the spring. This will put the management of our schools and the education of our youth at serious risk.”
All aspects of VEC school management, teaching and learning had been affected by the moratorium as the sector continued to lose staff at executive and senior management level, Ms Keogh added.
Addressing 250 delegates at the two-day annual conference in Little Island in Cork, IVEA general secretary Michael Moriarty said the flight of expertise could delay or derail VEC restructuring to include Fás training programmes.
“The integration of the Fás training sector with the VEC further education sector under the new further education and training authority Solas, represents a major reform of Ireland’s entire organisational and policy framework for supporting unemployed jobseekers and other learners,” Mr Moriarty said.
“The real threat to the reform agenda and the integration of Fás and VEC training programmes will come from the probable loss of expertise and senior management experience caused by the rush to retire ahead of the February 2012 deadline.”
The aggregation of VECs coupled with the provision of further education seemed an “awesome” task, he added.
The conference continues today, with presentations on key challenges and policy dimensions in educational leadership, by Dr Eileen O’Connor, director of Drumcondra Education Centre, and Pat O’Mahony, IVEA education research officer.
Minister for Education and Skills Ruairí Quinn will address delegates this afternoon.