One of the largest parent groups in the State last night told parents to send their children to school today, in defiance of the industrial action by secondary teachers.
In a sign of increasing frustration, the main Catholic parents' group broke ranks with the umbrella body, the National Parents Council (post primary), which has been advising parents to keep their children at home.
"Parents have been patient for long enough," said the Congress of Catholic Secondary School Parent Associations (CSPA), which represents parents in more than 130 schools.
In an article in The Irish Times today, Ms Barbara Johnston, their spokeswoman, says of the Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland's (ASTI) withdrawal from supervision: "It has been a particularly cruel method to employ for students."
She said their refusal to exempt exam students from this action was "the final straw". The CSPA's move follows earlier indications of parental dissatisfaction including an angry protest last week at Loreto, Foxrock, in Dublin.
Classes for up to 350,000 pupils are scheduled to be cancelled for the next three days as members of ASTI report for work as normal but withdraw from supervision duties.
Until now boards of management have told parents to keep children at home because their health and safety cannot be guaranteed.
However, Ms Johnston said the boards themselves should be available to supervise or provide a paid alternative.
"If your child is sent home from the morning session, return them in the afternoon when most schools do not have a break," she advised parents.
The CSPA is the largest single group which sends nominees to the National Parents Council (post primary). Its strong views will be an embarrassment to the umbrella group which traditionally has been slow to criticise the Government or teachers.
"Parents are at breaking point, my phone has not stopped ringing with parents of Leaving and Junior Cert students worried about their students," Ms Johnston said last night. "The refusal of the ASTI to give them an exemption during their strike action is the final straw."
The National Parents Council (post primary) has no full-time staff and has been riven by bitter internal disputes over recent months. A recent meeting of its five constituent groups was dominated by a dispute over Irish representation on a European parents' group.
A leading member said afterwards: "There has been virtually no policy debate on the teachers' dispute."
In contrast, the National Parents Council (primary) has a full-time chief executive, Ms Fionnuala Kilfeather, and is outspoken on primary education.
In a further sign of rising concern about the ASTI action, a senior school manager has also raised questions about teachers' work practices.
Mr Michael Moriarty, general secretary of the Irish Vocational Education Association (IVEA) said: "Teachers are public servants. There is, therefore, an opportunity to revisit present work practices in a spirit of open partnership." This would, he said, meet the demands of teachers and yet enhance and modernise the education sector.