Injunction stops Minister from implementing circular
An injunction has been obtained to prevent Minister Mary Hanafin from applying her policy on the teaching of English in all-Irish schools.
The High Court has granted a temporary injunction to two Gaelscoileanna and An Foras Pátrúnachta, restraining the Minister for Education and Science Mary Hanafin from implementing a circular issued by her in July 2007.
The Minister's circular directed gaelscoileanna to begin teaching English to pupils not later than the second term of the junior infants year, and to set aside at least two-and-a-half hours a week - or half an hour a day - for this purpose. It stated that this policy should be adopted by gaelscoileanna in the current school year, except in the case of schools with a long-standing practice of total immersion, when a year’s grace was allowed.
However, two schools - Gaelscoil Mhic Easmainn in Tralee and Gaelscoil Nás na Rí in Naas - along with An Foras Pátrúnachta, the patron body to 54 all-Irish primary schools, have jointly and successfully taken a case seeking a judicial review of the Minister's circular. As a result, the Department of Education is prevented from enforcing its new policy, pending the outcome of the review. The case is expected to be heard in the coming weeks.
According to Dónal Ó Conaill, secretary of An Foras Pátrúnachta, “total early immersion is the method of teaching practised and recommended worldwide as a beneficial, effective approach to acquiring a minority language without harming acquisition of the mother language." The Minister should encourage this approach in Irish schools instead of hindering it, he said.
Meanwhile, Minister Hanafin continues to believe that all children should be given equal access to English and Irish lessons from as early an age as possible. (Irish Examiner)
November 15th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
I think the minister is right actually even though I fully endorse Gaelscoileanna. The level of English grammar currently presented by students in secondary level is dreadful and hinders the acquisition of foreign languages. This needs to be addressed in the primary system and soon!! Where’s the harm in 30 mins a day English learning? I think teachers are unreasonable to think otherwise. One can get too precious about one’s own subject in my opinion, whatever that subject is. Surely we all want a rounded education for all our students?
November 15th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
The above comment unfortunately misses the point of total early immersion.
The most effective way of acquiring a new language, as any linguist will testify, is by being immersed in it.
This can be very difficult for minority such as Irish in Ireland, Welsh in Wales, or Basque in the Basque country, as the majority language, English in Ireland saturates all aspects of life.
The naíonáin or Infant classes in gaelscoileanna provide the atmosphere for children to efficiently and effectively acquire Irish. Without this immersion period, usually a year or two depending on the pupil, and the linguistic support given at home, we rob those children of the right to acquire literacy skills first in Irish and then have those skills transferred into the majority language. This transfer from minority to majority language is easier for the child as there is an obvious societal pressure on the children to acquire literacy skills in English. This could explain why children who attend national schools don’t generally finish their primary schooling fluent in Irish as well as English.
Personally, I have gone through Immersion education for a period of 4 years, which was then the norm in the north of Ireland (3 years is now the norm). I believe I was given a rounded education and as a result I now speak three languages with a high degree of fluency; English, Irish and Spanish. Multi-lingualism is also a fairly normal by-product of children who have come through Irish-medium immersion education system.
Ironically, I might have to move back north of the border, to have the parental choice of immersion education that my parents had.