THESE ARE CHANGED times for the Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland (ASTI) whose conference begins in Killarney this afternoon.

Whereas several dozen reporters travelled to the ASTI conference during the industrial action five years ago, the union tends to attract little media attention these days.

There are suggestions that the bitter internal divisions - which surfaced during the industrial action - have not gone away. There is also the sense that the group which opposes the current general secretary, John White, is watching and waiting.

White, a former English teacher from Dundalk, Co Louth is a measured and articulate figure.

He has accomplished a great deal since taking over from Charlie Lennon five years ago. While the media might complain about the union's low-profile, White has worked quietly to restore the union's battered image. Despite opposition from some, he guided ASTI back to the ICTU fold and he is seen a calming, moderate voice who has steadied the ship.

He has also pushed through a series of procedural changes, designed to ensure that the voice of the ordinary teacher in the staffroom is heard. White is working to ensure that the union is genuinely representative of all its members.

One of his challenges is to build up the ASTI branch network. Many second-level teachers appear reluctant to get involved in their union.

With White's eventual retirement on the horizon, the jockeying is already under way in the succession stakes.

White's deputy Diarmuid dePaor is the obvious front runner.

But others may have different ideas. The battle for the ASTI vice-presidency at this year's conference should signal the future direction of the union.

The two candidates are Joe Moran from Tipperary and Bernard Lynch from Dublin.

Moran looks to an ASTI where there is the "active engagement of the new generation of teachers. He wants to defend "core ASTI values and policies like collegiality". He talks of "making alliances, fostering solidarity . . . and acting co-operatively in progressing our teachers' interests.

Lynch favours a more robust approach. He wants to encourage teachers to take "meaningful action" to end the ongoing scandal of underfunding in our schools, overcrowding in our classrooms and the deliberate neglect of children with special needs."

He also wants to "challenge the consensus on national pay deals" and "defend teachers from ongoing sustained attacks in the media and from other wealthy quarters".