The Minister for Education is to attend the national convention of teachers' union Asti next week after agreement was reached on its format.
The change in format will involve Mr Dempsey and the President and the Vice-President of Asti discussing their views on a range of education topics. The Minister will have the opportunity to respond to both the President's and the Vice-President's speeches.
"I am pleased that we have agreed to this format and look forward to engaging with Asti at the convention," Mr Dempsey said in a short statement this morning.
In a letter to the three teaching unions in February, Mr Dempsey described a "dated format" for teachers' conventions placed an onus on confrontation rather than real communication.
But the Minister backed down on his demand for a forum based on the Your Education System public meetings that have been under way for the past six weeks.
Mr Dempsey will address the INTO conference in Tralee on April 13th next. He will also debate education issues with the TUI president, Mr Derek Dunne, at its conference in Galway.
