The state's 60,000 primary and secondary school teachers resume deliberations at their Easter conferences today.
Special needs, English language difficulties, class sizes and school discipline are dominating the agenda for the annual meetings of Asti, the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) and the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO).
The trade union conferences in Ennis, Tralee and Killarney will also discuss the funding of education.
Education Minister Mary Hanafin yesterday defended the Government's record on overcrowded classrooms and said an additional 1,500 primary school teachers have been hired in the past year to help cater for children with special needs.
She pointed out that 3,400 extra teachers have been employed in schools since 2002 and 500 more teachers were being hired for September to reduce class sizes.
The minister told INTO delegates in Killarney that a strategy to cater for the needs of non-English speaking children was being developed.
