TUI calls for measures to tackle teacher supply crisis as serious concerns expressed around system capacity for Senior Cycle redevelopment
The findings of a new survey of over 1,000 Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) members outline a range of concerns around the teacher supply crisis, the affordability of the profession for new entrants and unsustainable workload.
Serious concerns have also been expressed around the capacity of schools to successfully implement Senior Cycle redevelopment due to a lack of appropriate facilities and the threats posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) to fairness in assessments.
Alarmingly, in the middle of a teacher supply crisis, the survey shows that of those who entered the profession in the last ten years, just 26% received a contract of full hours on initial appointment while only 11% were offered a permanent position when starting their career.
The TUI is calling for a significant increase in education funding and targeted measures to ensure that the profession remains attractive.
The Union’s Annual Congress will be attended by 500 delegates and guests in Whites of Wexford this week. The online survey of 1,038 members was carried out between 21st March and 11th April. See end of statement for full findings.
Comments below from TUI President David Waters:
Teacher supply crisis – profession becoming too costly for many
‘Students lose out the most as a result of teacher shortages with larger class sizes and less access to the full breadth of subjects, but the Government still refuses to grasp the nettle and the crisis is worsening.’
‘Our survey results show that of those employed since 2015, just 26% received a contract of full hours upon initial appointment, while just 11% were offered a permanent position upon initial appointment. This is completely unacceptable at a time when the sector is experiencing a recruitment and retention crisis. Improved teaching allocations are required at second level to ensure that more than fragments of jobs can be offered.’
‘It is alarming in the extreme that 78% of those who entered the profession before 2015 said that they could not afford to become a teacher today given impediments such as the accommodation crisis and having to survive on contracts of low hours. The extension of the Professional Master in Education (PME) to a two-year programme since 2014 has severely limited access to the profession for many in our society, who cannot afford to get into significant debt to pursue their ambition of teaching.’
‘It is also of worry that one in three recent appointments would consider leaving Ireland to teach in another country.’
The results of chronic underinvestment – poor facilities for Senior Cycle redevelopment
‘The effects of a generation of underinvestment in our education system on school facilities is laid bare in the findings. A majority (56%) do not believe that their school has the required facilities for student project work as part of the redeveloped Senior Cycle, while half believe that their school does not have the required laboratory facilities for the revised Biology, Physics and Chemistry specifications which will be introduced from September.’
‘It is also utterly unacceptable that 67% do not believe that their school has the required supports to assist all students in the school with special educational needs.’
Unsustainable workload and the questionable value of the ‘Croke Park’ hours
‘89% believe that bureaucratic or administrative workload deflect from their core role of teaching, while 91% believe that this burden has increased since they began their career. A majority believe that such duties are not of benefit to teaching and learning in their schools.’
‘Three out of every four respondents believe that the so-called ‘Croke Park’ hours are not of value to school communities.’
‘At a time when teachers are leaving the profession for other employments, we need to ensure that they are given the freedom to teach and not demoralised by form-filling and box-ticking.’
Lack of urgency on Artificial Intelligence (AI) a serious concern
‘There is growing concern at a lack of adequate guidelines and training on AI, particularly in the context of Senior Cycle redevelopment.’
‘85% believe that AI poses a threat to fairness, particularly in relation to assessments, while 86% believe it would be difficult to differentiate between what is a student’s own work and what has been generated by AI.’
‘93% believe that the Department of Education/DFHERIS need to provide training to teachers on the area, while 95% believe that more information and guidelines are required.’
Posts of responsibility must be restored to pre-recession levels
‘Posts of responsibility provide a pastoral framework for students and help with the smooth running of schools.’
‘A majority (64%) do not believe that there are enough of these posts to match the educational and pastoral needs of their schools, and this is at a time when 90% believe that the range of challenges faced by young people has increased in the last five years. In terms of making the profession more attractive, of those who don’t hold a post of responsibility, half (48%) believe that they would be more likely to remain in the profession if there were more such posts available.’
Volunteerism of teachers
‘Involvement in volunteerism among teachers remains extremely high, with more than half (51%) involved in extracurricular activities outside of school such as sports, drama, music and debating. Of these, 39% spend between two and four hours per week on these activities while 18% spend more than four hours per week.’
CAO system and resulting ‘points race’
‘69% of respondents believe that the CAO system needs to be overhauled for the benefit of students.’
Full survey findings:
TUI pre-Congress 2025 survey of members in Post-Primary and Further Education and Training sectors
Survey of 1,038 TUI members – carried out online between 21st March and 11th April
What sector do you mainly work in?
65% work in Post-Primary, 35% work in FET
Senior Cycle & School/centre facilities
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘My school/centre has facilities that are suited to modern teaching and learning methodologies.’
47% agreed or strongly agreed; 41% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 12% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘My school/centre has modern facilities that fully facilitate student work on additional assessment components (AACs) project work as part of Senior Cycle Assessment within my subject area(s).’
20% agreed or strongly agreed, 56% disagreed or strongly disagreed. 24% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘My school has the required facilities and resources - including laboratories - suitable for providing revised specifications for Biology, Physics and Chemistry from 2025/26.’
50% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 25% agreed or strongly agreed; 25% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘The CAO system and resulting ‘points race’ needs to be overhauled for the benefit of students.’
69% agreed or strongly agreed; 14% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 16% neither agreed nor disagreed
‘Croke Park’ hours
Do you believe that the so-called Croke Park hours are of value to school communities?
74% believe that they are not of value; 13% believe they are of value; 13% don’t know
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘The Department of Education/DFHERIS need to provide continuing professional development (CPD) to teachers in relation to Artificial Intelligence.’
93% agreed or strongly agreed; 3% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 4% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘The Department of Education needs to provide more information/guidelines on the usage of Artificial Intelligence in education.’
95% agreed or strongly agreed; 2% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 3% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘AI poses a threat to equity and fairness in education, particularly in relation to assessments.’
85% agreed or strongly agreed; 5% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 10% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘In terms of Senior Cycle project work or FET portfolios, it will be difficult to differentiate between what is a student’s own work and what has been generated by AI.’
86% agreed or strongly agreed; 8% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 6% neither agreed nor disagreed
Posts of Responsibility
Do you believe there are enough Assistant Principal I and Assistant Principal II posts in your school to match the educational and pastoral needs of the school community?
64% did not agree; 15% agreed; 21% neither agreed nor disagreed
Do you believe the range of challenges that young people face has increased in the last five years?
90% agreed; 7% disagreed; 3% didn’t know
If you do not currently hold a post of responsibility, indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘If there were more Assistant Principal positions available in my school, I would be more likely to remain in the profession because of the potential for further career progression.’
48% agreed or strongly agreed, 15% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 37% neither agreed or disagreed
Do you believe that the extension of the free school book scheme to Senior Cycle will require additional posts of responsibility?
64% agreed; 12% didn’t agree; 24% didn’t know
If you hold a post of responsibility, have you ever considered resigning from it due to excessive workload?
77% have considered resigning due to excessive workload; 23% have not
Bureaucratic workload and Extracurricular activities
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘Bureaucratic duties/paperwork regularly deflect from my core role of teaching.’
89% agreed or strongly agreed with this statement; 3% disagreed or strongly disagreed; 8% neither agreed nor disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘Bureaucratic duties that deflect from teaching have increased since I commenced my career.’
91% agreed or strongly agreed with this statement; 7% neither agreed nor disagreed; 2% disagreed or strongly disagreed
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘Bureaucratic duties/paperwork are ultimately of benefit to teaching and learning in schools.’
62% disagreed or strongly disagreed with this statement; 16% agreed or strongly agreed; 22% neither agreed nor disagreed
Are you involved in extracurricular activities in your school – outside of timetabled hours – such as sports, drama, music debating etc?
51% are involved; 49% are not
Please only answer this question if you answered ‘Yes’ to the previous question. If so, how many hours on average did you spend engaged in such activities per week?
43% spend less than two hours per week; 39% spend between two and four hours per week; 18% spend over 4 hours per week
Housing/Accommodation issues
Are you aware of colleagues who have ceased employment at your school/centre due to the accommodation crisis?
30% are aware of such colleagues; 70% are not
Do you believe that the housing/accommodation crisis has had an adverse effect on the lives of any students in your school or centre?
76% believe the accommodation crisis has had an adverse effect on the lives of students in their school/centre; 6% do not; 18% do not know
AEN supports
Do you believe that your school has the required supports to assist all students in the school with special educational needs?
67% do not believe that their school has the required supports; 26% believe that their school has the supports, 7% don’t know
Recruitment/retention & attractiveness of teaching profession
‘Affordability’ of teaching profession
Please only answer the following question if you entered the profession before 2015 (i.e. ten years ago)
Do you think that you could afford to become a teacher today, given cost-of-living issues, the likelihood of starting on a contract of low hours and the accommodation crisis?
78% of this cohort do not believe that they could afford to become a teacher today; 6% believe that they could; 16% don’t know
Section for post-2015 teachers only – please only complete the remaining questions if you commenced employment on or after 1st January 2015
Were you offered a permanent position upon initial appointment?
11% were offered a permanent position upon appointment; 89% were not
Did you receive a contract of full hours upon initial appointment?
26% received a contract of full hours upon initial appointment; 74% did not
If you answered ‘No’ to the previous question, how many years did it take you to receive a contract of full hours?
Of those who did not receive a contract of full hours upon initial appointment, it took 55% more than three years to receive a contract of full hours
Would you consider leaving Ireland to teach in another country for a period of time?
34% would consider leaving Ireland to teach in another country for a period of time; 55% would not; 11% don’t know
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statement: ‘Teacher recruitment and retention difficulties in my school/centre have had a negative effect on the service to students.’
75% agree or strongly agree with this statement; 8% disagree or strongly disagree; 17% neither agree nor disagree