After making her statement, in which she confirmed the scrapping of the 11-plus after 2008, Ms Ruane met a deluge of questions and criticism from unionists on the floor.
It is believed that the proposals may encourage a postcode lottery where community, geographical and family factors, as well as teacher and parental guidance, will be the key to decisions on post-primary education by 2010.
Ms Ruane said local area groups made up of education experts will decide the exact structures. But unionists said her proposals may come to nothing because of the need for cross-party support in the Assembly. And a group representing around 40 Ulster grammar school heads intends to meet next week to decide whether to push ahead with plans for its own alternative to the 11-plus.
The Association for Quality Education, which advocates the retention of academic selection, says it has two entrance exams "ready to go" and onMonday night it will set out the cost implications to those schools which have expressed an interest.
Ms Ruane's proposals reiterate the decision made by former Education Minister Jane Kennedy during her time in office in 2002-2004.
The local area groups will decide whether to maintain a school for ages 11 to 19 or a post-14 college offering collaboration with other institutions for more specialist training.
However, no details were offered about who will sit on the groups or what areas they will cover.
After 2010, if a school has too many applications pupils will be selected on the grounds of where they live and whether they have family members already at the school.
Under Ms Ruane's proposals pupils will take major decisions about their education at the age of 14. She said her proposals were ambitious but that they would end an "outdated and unequal education system" which labelled 11-year-olds as "failures".
The Education Minister said she did not want any academic selection and that Government may withdraw funding for any new testing procedure that some grammar schools might introduce.
Her proposals received a furious response from unionists who criticised the statement. Chair of the Education Committee DUP MP Sammy Wilson said the minister's statement contained "a plateful of platitudes but only a spoonful of substance".
He asked Ms Ruane: "Given the fact that there is going to be a gap between 2008 and 2011, how does she intend to give some assurance to school principals and to parents as to what will happen in that period?"
He also queried how much the restructuring of schools was going to cost and why she had ignored the reality of the fact that 70 per cent of the public, 65 per cent of teachers and half of the Assembly do not want this change.
"How does she expect to get this passed through the House?" he said. Ms Ruane said she understood grammar schools may need time to adjust to a new system but if they choose to run independent admissions arrangements they may not get Government funding.
She said: "Testing isn't the best way to inform key decisions at 14 about a young person's future educational and career pathway.
"Such decisions should be based on a process of formal, structured election. It will take account of the outcomes of three years of post-primary education, teacher and parental guidance, in addition to careers education, information, advice and guidance resulting in the matching of children to suitable provision."
She reiterated that with the last 11-plus taking place in 2008, never again will primary school educators be asked to disrupt or interfere with the teaching of the revised curriculum in furtherance of a transfer test.
"Children in year five, their parents and their teachers can now focus on the job in hand, educating our young people and concentrating on the curriculum in a way that allows each and every child the equal opportunity to fulfil their full potential as citizens in the future.