Another triumph for Irish-medium schools but Aitheantas wants to do more
August 8, 2011
The Aitheantas campaign welcomes the announcement by the Department of Education and Skills that at least three of the 14 new post-primary schools to open within the next three years will be designated as Irish-medium Gaelcholáistí in Dublin and Cork, and wants to ensure that Coláiste Ghlór na Mara in Balbriggan is numbered among the all-Irish secondary schools.
Owing to a dearth of new all-Irish schools opening in recent years, Irish organisations Comhluadar, Conradh na Gaeilge, Foras Pátrúnachta na Scoileanna Lán-Ghaeilge and Glór na nGael joined forces to form the Aitheantas campaign to redress the situation, and in particular to support the parents of Gaelscoil Ráth Tó in Ratoath, Co. Meath when their request for recognition for the all-Irish primary school was refused in 2010.
Foras Pátrúnachta na Scoileanna Lán-Ghaeilge has been very active in the Aitheantas campaign since its formation and An Foras Pátrúnachta is the patron for Coláiste Ghlór na Mara in Balbriggan, Co. Dublin, as well as for other primary and secondary schools. A founding committee has also been working to gain recognition for Coláiste Ghlór na Mara over the last five years, and an official request to recognise the secondary school was lodged with the Department of Education and Skills two years ago.
Patrons for the new secondary schools have yet to be decided by the Department of Education and Skills but Caoimhín Ó hEaghra, General Secretary of Foras Pátrúnachta na Scoileanna LánGhaeilge, is encouraged by the fact that the Gaelcholáiste in Balbriggan has both a patron and a development plan: “An Foras Pátrúnachta welcomes the good news that parents in Dublin and Cork looking for an all-Irish second level education for their children will have their needs met, and we hope that Coláiste Ghlór na Mara will be recognised owing to the fact that there is a long-term development plan in place and widespread support for Irish-medium education in north Dublin. There will be no trouble filling places in Balbriggan’s Gaelcholáiste!”
Feargal Ó Cuilinn, Director of Comhluadar says: “The Irish-medium education movement is widely recognised as one of the most successful and important factors in the promotion of Irish in the community in the last 20 years and as such, the announcement by the Department of Education and Skills that three all-Irish secondary schools will open between now and 2014 is great news for the language in general. Aitheantas hopes that this is a sign of the Government’s long-term commitment to meet the needs of parents looking for Irish-medium second level education for their children, and that other Gaelcholáistí across the country will gain recognition in coming years as well.”
Aitheantas is also calling on the Department of Education and Skills to include the provision of Irish-medium education in the criteria used when selecting areas for all types of new schools in future, primary and secondary schools alike, to ensure that the national demand for all-Irish education is catered for.
Published on Gaelport.com 08 Lúnasa 2011
Taighde ar shealbhú na Gaeilge i measc daoine óga
August 2, 2011
An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta (COGG) has agreed to fund a 3-year studentship towards a PhD in the UCD School of Psychology under the supervision of Dr. Tina Hickey.
Research Area: Later stages in the acquisition of Irish among monolingual and bilingual children.
Deadline for application: 8 August 2011 (6 pm)
Eligibility Criteria: Required
1. A First or upper Second-class honours primary degree in Psychology and/or Master’s degree
2. Fluent spoken and written Irish (ideally native speaker-level) and excellent written communication skills in English.
3. Evidence of ability to analyse data with SPSS, and excellent computer skills
Desirable
4. Experience in testing children sensitively; evidence of interest in language acquisition and interest in/understanding of the sociolinguistics of Irish, and of the Gaeltacht context.
Preference will be given to those who can show academic excellence in Psychology, high levels of proficiency in Irish, and interest/experience in the area of language acquisition research.
Research Study: This study will look at aspects of the later states of Irish acquisition within a crosslinguistic research framework which examines how the features of a particular language interact with the child’s developing cognitive system and how the features of the input facilitate or delay acquisition of particular systems in one language compared to another. The successful candidate, under the supervision of Dr. Tina Hickey, will be expected to conduct an extensive literature review of crosslinguistic research on later stages of child language acquisition, particularly of endangered languages, to develop child-friendly tests of children’s and adults’ performance on particular aspects of Irish grammar, to collect data from children and adults using these tests, and to analyse the results using SPSS, considering the implications of convergence phenomena in the input to children acquiring a threatened language (Hickey 2009).
COGG Studentship: The scholarship is valued at €15,000 per annum, from which postgraduate fees must be paid. The successful candidate will also be eligible to apply (subject to certain conditions) during the studentship for a Tutor/Demonstratorship in UCD School of Psychology which carries a half-fee waiver as remuneration for contributions to the undergraduate teaching programme. All students are obliged to pay the Student Centre Levy.
Applications: Applicants should apply by email to Dr. Tina Hickey at the School of Psychology tina.hickey@ucd.ie. All applications will be acknowledged within 48 hours so if you do not receive an acknowledgement, please re-send.
The application should take the form of ONE Word file attachment saved as ApplicantSurnameFirstnameCOGG.doc:
1. an up-to-date CV in English with details of the courses studied and grades obrained. Include telephone and email contact details of two relevant referees. Applicants must also supply a telephone number where they can be contacted in August; and
2. a detailed letter as Gaeilge outlining how the candidate’s experience matches the eligibility requirements.
Deadline for applications: 6 pm on Monday 8 August 2011
Foilsithe ar Gaelport.com 28 Iúil 2011
Coalisland Gaelscoil to open doors to more students
August 2, 2011
Official recognition for TEG Exams
July 15, 2011
Teastas Eorpach na Gaeilge (TEG) Level B2 has been given official recognition by the Department of Education. This qualification now satisfies the Irish language entry requirement for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in education in the Colleges of Education in Ireland.
TEG is an examination and qualifications system for adult learners of Irish which has been offered by the Language Centre at NUI Maynooth since 2005.
This is a wonderful opportunity for those who wish to pursue primary school teaching as a career but who do not meet the necessary language criteria. Unlike the Leaving Cert Irish syllabus and exams, TEG syllabuses and exams are designed and delivered with the adult learner in mind, providing a more rounded learning experience.
TEG exams take place once a year, in April and in May in ten centres in Ireland and preparatory courses are run in several education centres throughout the country. The Language Centre provides teaching materials and supports free of charge to teachers and learners on our website www.teg.ie or call 01 7086417 for further information.
www.gaelport.com
Campa Samhraidh do Ghaeilgeoirí óga Ard Mhacha
July 15, 2011
Increase in number of Irish language Pre-schools
June 28, 2011
The number of Naíonraí or Irish language pre-schools in Ireland has dramatically increased over the past few years. At the moment there are many vacancies available in this field and many opportunities have arisen working in naíonraí all over the country in places such as Offaly, Kilkenny, Co. Kildare, Dublin, Tralee and Wicklow.
A naíonra is a playgroup for children who come together daily in a pleasant, cheerful and safe environment, under the guidance and supervision of a Naíonra Leader. It is run solely through the medium of Irish.
A significant amount of naíonraí have opened around the country in the past two years. In 2009 five new naíonraí opened, last year seventeen new naíonraí opened and this years it is expected that over twenty new naíonraí will be opened by September in towns and villages around Ireland.
Speaking about the huge increase in the number of newly established naíonraí which have opened in recent years the Development Officer with Forbairt Naíonraí Teoranta Seán Ó hAdhmaill says that there were two main reasons for this increase in new naíonraí being opened in recent times.
He attributes much of that increase to the the Early Childhood Care and Education Scheme which was introduced in January last year along with changes in the recruitment of Naíonraí Directors.
Forbairt Naíonraí Teoranta, (FNT) which is an all-Ireland voluntary organisation that supports the promotion of education and care services in Irish for children from birth welcomed these two significant changes.
The Early Childhood Care and Education scheme (ECCE scheme) assists parents who wish to send their child/children to play-school or naíonraí for a year free of change. This scheme is aimed at children who would be attending primary school the following year.
This new scheme created a demand in pre-schools and naíonraí and opened a new window of opportunity for naíonraí in towns and villages all over Ireland.
Under recent changes to recruitment practices, all applicants who are undertaking an interview to become a Naíonra Director must now undergo an Irish language interview, therefore the standard of Irish in the naíonraí is at a very high level.
In recent years there have been more opportunities to establish a naíonra in various areas around the country. Some naíonraí grew from demand in areas which have Gaelscoileanna as some Gaelscoileanna require that new pupils entering their school have previously attended a naíonra and have a sufficient level of Irish. This leaves a greater demand for naíonraí as more and more people wish to educate their children through the medium of Irish.
For further information on naíonraí and and employment opportunities in the sector on Forbairt Naíonraí Teoranta: www.naionrai.ie.
© Gaelport.com 28 Meitheamh 2011
Choice of Irish language courses in Irish Universities
June 28, 2011
Those who sat this year’s state examinations are now celebrating since the exams came to an end last Friday. However, there are some who still have some thinking to do as those who wish to change their CAO choices previously submitted in February have until 5.15 on 1 July to do so.
The past few years have seen an increased demand for Irish language speaking employees with the enactment of the Official Languages Act 2003, Irish being recognised as an official language in the EU and the growth in the language media sector not to mention teachers at both primary and secondary level. As a result of this demand, there are many Irish language orientated course on offer to students that aim to cater for this demand.
Students may wish to study Irish as an Arts subject in many third level institutions including National University of Ireland Galway, University College Cork and University College Dublin. Those interested in business or journalism may wish to pursue a BA in Business & Gaeilge or a BA in Journalism & Gaeilge with FIONTAR DCU (www.dcu.ie/fiontar) FIONTAR operates completely through Irish and has outstanding language resources for students which prepare them for working through the medium of Irish.
It provides students with the opportunity to combine Irish with contemporary life. Students may also be interested in a range of courses offered by Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, National University of Ireland Galway.
Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge offers courses in translation, business administration and communications. Students of Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge benefit from being located in the Gaeltacht heartland of Connemara or Donegal which helps develop their language capability both on and off campus.
©Gaelport.com 28 Meitheamh 2011
40 scoil tar éis páirt a ghlacadh i bhféilte peile Ghael Linn
June 7, 2011
Irish to remain as Leaving Cert core-subject- for now
April 5, 2011
Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn TD has confirmed that there will be no change to the official status of Irish as a compulsory examination subject.
This follows an undertaking made in the Programme for Government which promised improvement in teaching methodologies at second level and that no review of the status of the language in the education system would take place until such steps had been made.
Speaking in Dáil on 24th March, he affirmed that a review would take place but he didn’t indicate a timeframe for this review.
“We must face up to the fact that many children who commence school with a positive attitude toward Irish do not, for reasons I do not fully understand, retain that attitude. We must examine why that is the case,“ he said during questions on the future of Gaelscoileanna.
“We must consider, for example, the amount of time teachers spend teaching Irish relative to and in the context of the outcomes achieved and the ability of young people to speak the language in an enthusiastic fashion. We must approach this issue honestly”, he added.
Foilsithe ar Gaelport.com 05 Aibreán 2011
Deiseanna oibre le Gaeilge pléite i gCeatharlach
March 29, 2011
