The proliferation of Irish language study within educational institutions is in jeopardy, according to Dr Aisling Ní Dhiorbháin, Head of Hold, the Research Centre for Instruction and Education in the Irish language at DCU. The distress signal reflects ongoing observations regarding the standing of the Irish language within our school system.
Dr Ní Dhiorbháin raises concerns over educational bodies and Irish language agencies being worried about alterations taking place within the Primary Language Syllabus, conducted absent any scrutiny of the present curriculum’s execution. There’s also worry stemming from decisions that contradict findings from international studies, she notes.
The demotion of the language’s status could be seen in the recent announcement of this year’s school-leaving exam results, indicating a rise in the count of learners refraining from taking the Irish examination. Specifically, there were 13,695 school leavers who abstained from the test in June, accounting for 23% of the 61,000 total examinees this year; this figure has hit a new high.
Speaking about the decline in test-takers for the Irish language exam, Dr Ní Dhiorbháin expresses deep concern: “Exemption processes have entirely spiralled out of control,” she warns.
Provided the exemption rate from Irish under the restructuring system approved by Education Minister Norma Foley gets a revision, the school years 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23 saw 11,097, 13,710 and 19,882 post-primary pupils respectively getting exempted.
The future of the Irish language within the educational system is under scrutiny with education experts and language activists highlighting a crisis in the standard of achievement. Concerns have been voiced by individuals such as Dr Ní Dhiorbháin who stated that an immediate task force is needed to bolster the presence of Irish across all educational levels, from infancy to postgraduate study.
She emphasised that children are entitled to a positive learning experience with the Irish language and for this to be successful, each child’s unique learning needs need to be taken into account. Offering diverse methods of engagement with the language should be a right all children are granted according to Dr. Ní Dhiorbháin.
Julian de Spáinn, the secretary general of Conradh na Gaeilge, also voiced concerns around the issue of special educational needs, stating that the existing system lacks flexibility and could benefit from the introduction of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (FTCE) which is a globally recognised set of language learning objectives and a tool for language assessment.
De Spáinn noted that the system could be more inclusive and less exclusionary if the FTCE were adopted, and failure to address the current issues may have a detrimental impact on students’ success with the language, describing the situation as an “emergency”.
A proposal for a comprehensive and well integrated strategy for the teaching of Irish, including a reevaluation of curriculum and assessment, was submitted to Minister Foley in July last year, emphasising the urgency of the matter. It was further suggested that a specialist working group on Irish teaching should be formed by April of this year.
Despite receiving the proposal more than a year ago, there’s no indication the minister has taken any action on the matter, according to de Spain. He warned that lack of intervention would only worsen the situation, as the issue deteriorates each year. Recent developments have sparked a controversy amongst teachers and educators, following a newly revealed policy to implement modern foreign languages in primary schools.
According to this policy, time designated for teaching Irish in English-medium schools will decrease from 3.5 hours to merely three hours per week. Dr Ní Dhiorbháin criticised the move as directly contradicting existing research on minority language instruction. She argued against curtailing both the time allotted for teaching Irish and by extension, the learners’ opportunities. She believes the necessity lies in endorsing the existing system.
Dr Ní Dhiorbháin suggests that Irish teaching in English-medium schools requires increased time allocation, secure informal usage of Irish and adoption of some or other subjects via Irish language instruction. She implored the Education Minister to reconsider the decision, emphasising that a move contradicting international research and other national policies holds no merit. Particularly with young children, she contends that ample time and a multitude of learning opportunities are crucial for acquiring a new language.
She further argued that without adequate time, the youngsters would fail to achieve satisfactory standards of Irish, let alone excel in it. The cutback on teaching duration could potentially wreak havoc on the kids’ learning outcomes and their proficiency level as they transition from primary to post-primary school.
A country’s heritage and cultural fabric is intertwined with the nomenclature of its towns, rivers, and mountains. It serves as an insightful learning chance for immigrants to comprehend the nation better, provided relevant support is available. Despite the distinctive status of Irish in relation to community identity, it receives insubstantial motivation for learning. “It’s essential to facilitate those children who immigrated to Ireland at primary level, enabling them to reap the advantages of learning Irish,” stated Dr Ní Dhiorbháin.
She underscored the pressing need to enable new learners to commence Irish studies at post-primary level. Dr Ní Dhiorbháin deemed it irrational that children can undertake learning French, Spanish, or German at post-primary level yet are deprived of the same opportunity for Irish, the country’s first official language.
Pupils with a familiarity of numerous languages often excel at mastering the Irish language due to their adeptness in multilingual techniques which aid their linguistic studies. Julian de Spáinn has pinpointed a lack of support provided by authorities to new communities, leading to a hindrance in their integration rather facilitating it. He highlighted the neglect shown to those who migrate to Ireland due to rigid and unsuitable systems.
Irish-medium education outside of the Gaeltacht is an issue that has been awaiting implementation of a policy. Despite substantial research and work deployed on it, progress still remains elusive. De Spáinn has emphasised the responsibility of the local government and the Education Minister to react to this concern. He added that leadership should be exemplified, ideally from the Education Minister himself. Although it couldn’t be accomplished swiftly, the urgency to resolve the issue increases as the situation deteriorates annually.
Dr Ní Dhiorbháin emphasised that learning the Irish language bestows numerous advantages such as cultural appreciation, cognitive development, social and educational enhancement, and linguistic benefits. She advocates for every child’s right to these advantages. Having research-based solutions, the necessity to act immediately is apparent.