The secondary teachers' union, ASTI, has again appealed to the Taoiseach to take an initiative to bring the pay dispute to a conclusion.
In a letter to Mr Ahern yesterday, ASTI's general secretary, Mr Charlie Lennon, wrote: "There is still a short period of time before the difficulties of reorganising the examinations without the involvement of ASTI members become acute and the damage to the education service irreparable."
He concluded: "We would invite you once again to take an initiative, as a matter of urgency, to bring this dispute to a conclusion."
Mr Lennon said: "ASTI members have prepared their students for the examinations. They work with their students every day in developing their skills and attributes to help them to live successful lives. They do not wish to disrupt the process of educating their students or preparing for examinations by withdrawing their services.
"The ASTI wishes to engage in negotiations on the issues in this dispute with a view to resolving it. It would appear that the only way in which it can persuade you and the Government to provide an opportunity for such negotiations is by members withdrawing their services."
Students from schools in four counties walked out of classes yesterday to protest at the impact the continuing dispute is having on their preparations for the exams. Over 600 students protested outside schools in counties Tipperary, Wexford, Monaghan and Carlow yesterday. Some students threatened to continue their protests next week, while there were also calls for a national protest by students outside Leinster House.
Over 250 Junior and Leaving Cert pupils at the St Louis Secondary School, Monaghan, protested outside the school gates.
Spokespersons for the ad-hoc action committee, Susana Earley and Gemma Lennon, said they felt they were being used as pawns in the dispute by both sides and the protest was their way of expressing their feelings. The protest was originally scheduled to last only until the 11 a.m. classes, but the organisers said the majority wanted it to last the day to make the Government and teachers realise how serious they felt.
About 200 Junior and Leaving Cert students marched in Wexford town. They were from the local Loreto and Presentation convent schools, and the CBS and St Peter's College.
They protested separately outside their schools before joining forces in the afternoon and marching around the town. They ended up gathered in Peter's Square, disrupting traffic for a period. Leaving Cert pupils at two schools in Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, were backed by their teachers and parents yesterday when they staged their protest.
Fifty Leaving Cert students from Scoil Mhuire and a further 59 at the local Christian Brothers school left their classrooms after their 11 a.m. break yesterday and did not return until after lunch.
Final year students at St Leo's College in Carlow walked out of their classrooms pleading with the ASTI and the Department of Education to resolve their dispute in their own time - not the students'.
The protesters, numbering more than 100, made it clear they were not taking sides, but simply highlighting the threat to their Leaving Cert exams because of the ongoing dispute.
Students said they received wide support from the public, and they have plans to continue their protest on Tuesday and Wednesday next week, unless the issue is resolved.