Probation
Circular 0058/2010 (pdf, 130 kb)
Probationary Requirements for Registration Purposes for Primary Teachers
August 2010
- Click here for information on applying for probation
| Page | Contents |
| 1 | Service Requirements Professional Requirements |
| 2 |
Notification to the Inspectorate What to expect when an inspector visits your classroom Benefits of Probation |
| 3 |
Probation for Teachers Qualified outside the State Teaching in Mainstream Classes Probation and Special Education Posts |
The probation of primary teachers is a key element in their professional recognition, as successful completion of the probationary period is a pre-requisite for becoming a fully recognised primary teacher. Teachers may achieve this through completing the probationary process outlined below, or furnishing certified evidence of the completion of an acceptable probationary period or its equivalent in another jurisdiction to the Inspectorate of the DES.
Details of the probationary process are set out in Circular 140/2006 and Guidelines for the Probationary Process in Primary Schools
There are two aspects to the process:
1. Service requirements
a. As a general rule, service in a permanent, temporary or substitute teaching post in a primary school may be reckoned for probationary purposes, subject to the conditions in paragraphs (b) and (c) below. This service may be in a mainstream, special class or special school setting or in a post as a full-time resource teacher (low incidence disabilities).
b. In general, a probationary teacher must give continuous service of not less than 178 school days (excluding school closings) in a 12-month period from the date on which he/she was first appointed to a post recognised for probationary purposes in a primary school. This equates to the normal school year minimum requirement of 183 school days, with allowance for breaks between periods of employment of up to 5 school days in total. This service will normally extend over a single school year. Significant absences from duty, for whatever reason, may require that the probationary period be extended into a second school year.
c. In the case of broken service (i.e. where there are breaks between periods of employment totalling more than 5 school days in the 12 months from the date of first appointment) a probationary teacher must give satisfactory service of not less than 300 paid days in total from the date of first appointment to a post recognised for probationary purposes. Such service must include at least two periods of 60 consecutive school days, or two school terms, whichever is the longer.
2. Professional Requirements
An inspector will visit a teacher on a number of occasions during the probationary period in order to monitor progress, to provide advice and guidance and to report on his/her performance in teaching the range of curricular areas and subjects appropriate to the teaching setting.
In the case of continuous service, the inspector will normally complete an interim report (Beagthuairisc) on the teacher’s work during the first half of the probationary year. The Beagthuairisc, which is discussed fully with the teacher, highlights areas of strength and areas for development in broad categories of the teacher’s work and records the advice given to the teacher by the inspector. A General Report (Mórthuairisc) following a General Inspection will normally be furnished in the second half of that year. The Mórthuairisc provides more detailed evaluative commentary on the teacher’s work, identifies strengths and aspects for further development and provides an overall rating of the teacher’s work (“Satisfactory” or “Not satisfactory”).
In the case of broken service, the Beagthuairisc will be completed during the first 60-day period (or school term, whichever is the longer) and the Mórthuairisc during a subsequent 60-day period (or school term, whichever is the longer).
Only in exceptional cases may a general inspection be deferred, at the discretion of the inspector, where a teacher has been absent from duty for a significant length of time, or in the judgement of the inspector, there are significant and fundamental weaknesses in the teachers work, and where the teacher requires additional time to develop additional skills.
Probation must be completed within a period of five years accumulated service from a teachers first appointment to a post recognized for the purposes of probation in a primary school in a permanent, temporary or substitute capacity.