Patrick Nulty
Riversdale Community College
The role of the Irish language in our education system is an issue sure
to spark controversy in the teaching profession and the political sphere.
In recent weeks the Minister for Education announced plans to remove the
compulsory basic knowledge of Irish for teachers who do not use the language
in their day to day work. This is a positive step but is only a drop in
the ocean compared to the radical changes needed in our approach to our
native tongue.
Before I discuss my proposals for the future I would like to discuss
the historical context in which Irish has been given such a prominent
role in our education system. The foundation of the Gaelic league in 1893
attempted to restore the Irish language as the first language of the people
and since then Irish has been linked with Irish Nationalism and Republicanism.
Even today the notion that those who speak Irish are more patriotic and
proud is still a common perception. In reality knowledge of Irish neither
increases nor decreases one's sense of being Irish. The Catholic Church
has also promoted Irish in a very big way. During the penal laws many
lessons were given in Irish and as Irish became linked with Catholicism,
English was linked to Protestantism. In my opinion many peoples trenchant
defence of Irish is born, not out of a great love for the language, but
from a belief that to criticise Irish is in effect treachery.
Despite the historical baggage linked to Irish it's time our education
system reflected the realities of the classroom and the wider world. In
many schools Irish is far and away the most unpopular subject and this
is caused to a large degree by a well founded belief that learning Irish
will not be of any use to students in the future. However this does not
mean that Irish should not be on the curriculum. It is the compulsory
nature of Irish and the fact that entry to all but one of our major universities
requires a pass in Irish which must be addressed.
I believe that at the very least Irish should be made an option at Leaving
Cert. level and the requirement to pass Irish to enter our National Universities
should be removed. This may require Constitutional change to be implemented
as Irish is the first language but that may not be a bad thing since the
Constitution will then reflect reality and not the aspirations of the
people who wrote it.
To conclude, I am not against the Irish language. I believe that all
citizens of this country should have the write to learn and speak the
language. What I am against is the importance given to the language in
our Education system, which does not reflect modern day Ireland and I
believe that must be changed.
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