It is understood that employers of classroom assistants have agreed to allow talks to go to the mediation body.

The news was last night welcomed by Nipsa rep and classroom assistant Janette Murdock, who sounded a note of caution.

"For two weeks we've been calling on management to talk to us, so it's nice that they're actually going to be called in to talk," she said.

She added, however: "Classroom assistants have been burnt before by management promising to talk.

"While this is a good step forward and we welcome it... management need to realise that they need to come to the table with a serious negotiating head on."

Yesterday marked the fifth day since the beginning of the indefinite walkout and was the ninth day pupils with special needs have been caught up in the industrial action.

Meanwhile, education committee member Basil McCrea last night called for clarification on some points in the deal currently being offered by management.

He said there is a misunderstanding around the offer and called on Education Minister Caitriona Ruane to intervene.

"When the unions and (education) boards were in talks, Ms Ruane said she could not get involved because she was not the employer," he said.

"If that is the case, then there is no reason why she cannot get involved now and speak to Nipsa. She is best placed, in fact she is the only person who can do this, and I am calling on her to speak to Nipsa in order to clarify many of the points in the offer."

While three of the four unions are considering the offer, public service union Nipsa rejected the September 28 offer outright.

Representatives from the union have said they are willing to enter into arbitration with management involving the Labour Relation Agency, but the Education and Library Boards have said they cannot continue negotiations with Nipsa while other unions consider the offer.

Meanwhile, the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) urged members to stand in solidarity with the thousands of classroom assistants staging an all-out strike.

A spokesman last night said the union had discovered some principals are asking teachers to telephone parents whose children have not been at school because of the strike, to request they return on Monday.

However, the spokesman said that INTO has instructed its members not to get involved in this practice and asks them to stand in solidarity with their colleagues in Nipsa.