Mind your language – how learning Irish can help us to prosper in the global marketplace
THE fact that almost 40pc of people indicated in the latest census that they could speak Irish is to be welcomed, and shows the importance of both our education system and of providing opportunities beyond the classroom for Irish speakers to use the language in daily life.
This includes the value of teaching of Irish as a core Leaving Cert subject. Recent articles in this paper claimed that President Michael D Higgins had “questioned the effectiveness of making Irish a compulsory part of the school curriculum”; this is not the case at all. These inaccurate claims were based on a false report which was later amended in the ‘Irish Times’.
The debate itself is old, having been discussed during the 2011 General Election as a policy for Government. This policy was later dropped after the backlash from the general public in constituencies across Ireland, both in Gaeltacht areas and beyond.
The basic argument in Ita O’Kelly’s article, however, was to highlight the importance of learning foreign languages in schools. Conradh na Gaeilge agrees wholeheartedly that learning languages is hugely important, and we believe that we should live up to the European Union aspiration of having a mother tongue, plus fluency in two other languages. To this end, we agree that the teaching of other international languages should start at primary level. However, we believe that this should be done in addition to the teaching of the core subjects of English, Irish and maths.
Conradh na Gaeilge is not alone in supporting Irish as a core Leaving Certificate subject either. Findings from focus groups, carried out recently, emphasise the personal connection many secondary school students have with the language, especially in terms of identity. The students felt an ownership for Irish, a connection that they did not have with other languages or other school subjects.
In fact, 65pc of the 15-24-year-old age group surveyed by Ipsos MRBI were in favour of retaining Irish as a core Leaving Cert subject. What is important to consider are the reasons why the other 35pc are not in favour, and what can be done to address their concerns.
We asked that question. Some thought that the subject was too hard, something that is being addressed by the recent change of focus from the written exam to oral competencies. Others thought that Irish held no advantage for them. This last point should be addressed, not only with regard to Irish, but with regard to all language learning in our schools. We have proposed that there should be a language awareness course for schools that would inform students as to the benefits of learning languages, including improved problem solving skills (which help with employability, job progression, etc.); and improved listening skills and a heightened ability to monitor the environment. It would also include improved aptitude for third/subsequent language acquisition; improved job opportunities (careers for those with a good command of the Irish language include positions in law, media, medicine, business, translation, education, etc.); and improved protection against dementia and Alzheimer’s in later years.
When it comes to languages, our national language has as much a place in the modern multilingual world as any other. If we are serious about encouraging multilingual children that are equipped for commerce and communication in a globalised community, we should embrace Irish as an opportunity to cultivate a better linguistic skillset, a better sense of self-confidence, and a better appreciation of other languages and cultures. It is not either/or – we can teach Irish and other languages, and they can complement each other.
Nearly two million people on this island have some level of Irish and a lot of the credit for this is due to the educational system. Moreover, according to an annual independent survey run by Kantar Millward Browne, almost 30pc of respondents
Our national language has as much a place in the modern world as any other
in each of the last three years have indicated that they are confident in their spoken Irish.
International interest in Irish – always stronger than we understand at home – is constantly growing too, with many universities around the globe teaching Irish, from Canada to China.
Launched in 2014, 3.7 million people have since started the Irish-language course on Duolingo’s language learning app.
You can Google as Gaeilge as well as use Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram in Irish.
More than 10 million snaps with geo-filters in Irish were sent on Snapchat within one month of their release, and third-level Irishlanguage societies have some of the largest memberships of any societies in their respective colleges.
Our young people have shown us that they want to engage with Irish, they want to use Irish, and they want to learn Irish. Let’s recognise Irish as part of our core education that gives our students all the benefits that accrue to multilingual speakers.
As President Michael D Higgins says: “Déanaimis iarracht níos mó ar son na Gaeilge.”
Aontaím go hiomlán leis – let’s do more for Irish.