Minister for Education Mary Hanafin is to meet Fianna Fáil TDs in early March to discuss difficulties with educating autistic children.
The meeting in three weeks time, rather than immediately, will follow within days of the next round of talks between the Minister and the Irish Autistic Association.
However, it is also an indication that the worst of the political crisis may be over for Ms Hanafin, who has been severely strained by the issue.
The issue was only briefly discussed during last evening's meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party, which decided to refer the matter on to its education policy sub-group, chaired by Kildare TD Áine Brady.
A number of Fianna Fáil TDs yesterday did meet autism campaigners and they are to meet again before Ms Hanafin discusses the matter with party colleagues.
Last night some of them expressed confidence that a compromise formula could be found that would see the department recognising 12 ABA (applied behaviour analysis) schools that are currently not on its official list.
"The Minister was much more receptive to us this evening than she has been for a long, long time," one backbencher told The Irish Times last night.
Meanwhile, Ms Hanafin has refused an invitation made by Fianna Fáil TD Mary O'Rourke to visit a Mullingar school offering ABA teaching to autistic children.
Saying that she had twice visited ABA schools during her time as minister of state for children, the Minister said: "I have seen exactly the work that goes on. I am very supportive of ABA as one of the methods that is used with children with autism."
Ms Hanafin is understood to be annoyed with Ms O'Rourke, a predecessor of hers in office, for publicising the invitation before it had been sent to her.
Interviewed on Today FM yesterday, she said: "It [ autism] is probably the most sensitive issue that I deal with. Everybody wants to do what it best for children with autism. We are working very, very hard on it, fully committed."
She rejected Ms O'Rourke's contention that some officials in the Department of Education were philosophically opposed to ABA teaching methods.
"There is absolutely no blockage at all. We are very supportive of all of the methods that are used in educating young people with autism and with special intellectual needs."
