The government’s new policy on Gaeltacht education, published this week, has been broadly welcomed by the Irish-speaking community. Julian de Spáinn, General Secretary of Conradh na Gaeilge, described it as “thorough, far-reaching and ambitious”.
This initial enthusiastic outburst of praise for the policy from organisations seeking to promote the state’s first official language is a reasonable response from a sector that has seen continuous cutbacks, which have led to a halving of government funding since 2008. An initial €1 million dedicated to aiding Gaeltacht schools goes some way in reversing a worrying trend in recent Irish language policy. This figure is also set to increase to €7 million over the next five years. Other aspects of the policy – which gives Gaeltacht schools a role in the coordination of language policy in their localities – will ensure that any resources spent on the development of the Gaeltachtaí will be used in the most effective way.
Among the government’s justifications for the policy was the aim “to see recognised Gaeltacht schools being the schools of first choice for parents in the Gaeltacht”. This is, of course, a goal that is challenging to achieve. There has long been a dearth of teaching resources and textbooks in Irish that can afford students the best opportunities.
However, it is precisely these same challenges that face Gaelscoileanna outside of designated Gaeltacht areas. Of the 1.7 million people in the state who can speak Irish, only a little over 100,000 of these live in Gaeltacht areas, according to the 2011 census. Almost 374,000 people in Dublin can speak the language. Should schools with the potential to cater for a much wider population of Irish speakers not also be given resources to deal with the challenges of Irish-medium education?
As the face of the Irish language changes and diversifies, the government must adapt and expand its schemes to support the language beyond its traditional strongholds.
