Irish-language advocacy groups have given a mixed reaction to the contents of a new two-part Government policy on Irish in the education system.
While welcoming some elements of the policy, patron bodies and language advocacy group Conradh na Gaeilge said the plan lacks ambition and pointed to the Government’s failure to deliver on similar commitments in the past.
The education policy, launched this week, aims to encourage growth of Irish-medium education and also to support the learning of Irish in English-medium schools over the next two years.
Objectives include expanding the supply of teachers with a high level of Irish, enhancing professional development, and promoting the uptake of Irish-medium education.
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Under the policy for Irish-medium education, a taskforce of stakeholders and Department of Education officials will be established to explore delivery models outside the Gaeltacht.
The taskforce, due to hold its first meeting later this month, is aimed at expanding opportunities for children and young people to receive their education through Irish. The taskforce’s work is expected to take a year to complete.
The action plan for English-medium schools aims to build positive engagement with Irish and improve access to Irish. It will look at ways to effectively implement the existing curriculum, with a focus on the development of students’ oral language skills in Irish.
Speaking in advance of the launch event on the shared campus of Gaelscoil Bhrian Bóroimhe and Swords Educate Together National School, Minister for Education Helen McEntee said the department “will ensure that an ecosystem of appropriate supports and resources is available to schools and their communities”.
“We want every student in every classroom to feel that Irish belongs to them, and to have a positive and rewarding experience of learning it – one that leads to real success and enjoyment.”
However, while representatives of the Irish-language education sector welcomed some elements of the policy, it was criticised as insufficiently ambitious and unable to confront the core issues facing the sector.
“We welcome the provision of additional resources and supports for teachers, students and schools,” said Julian de Spáinn, general secretary of Conradh na Gaeilge. “However, we believe they haven’t taken the main issue into account. It doesn’t address the growing number of exemptions in schools or the curriculum students currently study.
“One in every seven students now has an exemption and they are failing those students because they’re not dealing with the elephant in the room, which is the curriculum,” he said.
Mr de Spáinn has said the department has “repeatedly” been asked to adopt a standardised European model for language learning, which he says would significantly reduce exemption applications.
“We have repeatedly asked them to establish a working group to develop a plan based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages,” he said.
“If that was done, it would provide a better experience for all students. It would cater for students with learning difficulties or with additional needs and would also cater for students who are new to the country.”
Bláthnaid Ní Ghréacháin, chief executive of Gaelscoileanna, noted that the vision outlined in the policy is in alignment with her own organisation’s core principle that Irish-medium education should be accessible to all “but only if, crucially, the department’s definition of Irish-medium education is immersion education”.
“That’s the model recognised both nationally and internationally as best practice. This question, among other substantive issues, will be the focus of a new taskforce,” she said.
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“Our concern as a member of the taskforce is that its scope is far too broad and that some of the outcomes are predetermined. Fuelling this concern is that a national survey of parents was launched by the department two days in advance of the policy, but the expert advice we and others had given directly to the Minister and senior department officials on the question related to Irish-medium education was not taken into account.”
Caoimhín Ó hEaghra, general secretary of school patron body An Foras Pátrúnachta, welcomed the supports announced in the policy.
“We also we welcome the announcement of the Minister that the aim of the policy is to provide access to Irish-Medium education to all the children in the country,” he said.
However, Mr Ó hEaghra said “little progress” has been made since a similar goal was outlined in the 2006 cross-party statement on Irish, “and our fear is that unless the Minister gives clear targets to the taskforce we will not see much more progress in the next 20 years”.
Prof Pádraig Ó Duibhir, who is chair of an Foras Patrúnachta and formerly head of Sealbhú, the Irish language unit at DCU which has advised government on education policy, said the taskforce has been established to “answer a question that has already been answered”.
“It seems that everything is being done except for taking a decision to increase the all-Irish provision.”
There are currently 151 Irish medium primary schools and 29 postprimary schools operating outside of the Gaeltacht. Several counties, including Cavan, Longford, Leitrim, Roscommon, Westmeath and Offaly do not have any Irish-medium secondary provision.
Citing the example of Wales, where a target of 40 per cent of pupils being educated through the medium of Welsh by 2050 has been set, Prof Ó Duibhir asked “Why is the Minister not setting a target?”
Main takeaways:
Policy for Irish-Medium education in schools
- A taskforce will be established to explore models of provision for Irish-medium education.
- Increased language support hours for Irish will be provided to Irish-medium schools outside of the Gaeltacht. This will happen on a phased basis, starting with Gaelscoileanna with Deis status and Gaelcholáistí for the 2025/26 school year.
- Provision of funding to support the development of resources to help parents support their children’s learning of Irish.
- The expansion of the e-Hub project to schools outside of the Gaeltacht. From the 2025/26 school year, additional subjects (currently physics and chemistry) will be made available to students through the medium of Irish through blended learning.
- Support for the Irish-language teacher-training programme in Marino Institute of Education.
- Provision of additional staff to support schools.
Action Plan for Irish in English-medium schools
- The Action Plan for Irish in English-medium Schools applies to all primary and postprimary schools that teach through English and will be implemented for the school years 2025-2026, 2026-2027.
- It will support schools and teachers to effectively implement existing curriculums for Irish, with a focus on supporting the development of students’ oral language skills.
- The action plan focuses on the elements that make a difference to language learning – attitudes, teaching Irish as a language, opportunities to use Irish, and the use of inclusive approaches that allow all children and young people to experience success in their learning.
What the critics say:
- The system is broken. Exemptions from the study of Irish are at record levels. It was reported by tuairisc.ie this week that some 73,000 current students at primary and secondary levels were in receipt of an exemption from the study of Irish last year. Critics say additional resources and learning supports should be provided for students seeking exemptions. They also say provisions are not made for students who are new to Ireland to learn the language, an issue they say would assist integration.
- The curriculum is the problem. Advocacy groups have called for the adoption of the Common European Framework of Reference, to cater for pupils with additional needs, pupils entering the system late and to provide a satisfactory learning experience for all pupils. Conradh na Gaeilge called for an expert committee to be established to develop this new system – but these are not included in the new action plan.
- More schools are needed: There are currently 151 Irish-medium primary schools (out of 3,082) and 29 postprimary schools (out of 722) operating outside of the Gaeltacht. Several counties, including Cavan, Longford, Leitrim, Roscommon, Westmeath and Offaly do not have any Irishmedium secondary provision.
- The plan lacks ambition: Research shows there is a demand for Irish-medium education, but the policy does not contain any specific targets for increasing supply. This is contrasted with the experience in Wales, where 40 per cent of schools will be Welsh-medium by 2050.
