Exam Diary: Irish a thorn in my side, but I love it
June 13, 2012
I may not be a history student, but I do know the Irish language has changed utterly since the days of oppressive British intruders and fiery Irish rebels.
These days, Irish is suffering an entirely different kind of onslaught, not from contemptuous English nobility but from resentful Leaving Certificate students.
Nothing destroys a perfectly good mood like a 40- minute Irish class.
While Irish never has been – and I can safely say, never will be – my favourite subject, as a spoken language, few surpass it in my eyes.
I’ve abandoned civilisation on many an occasion to immerse myself in Irish, detox myself from my mobile phone and willingly engage in activities that, outside the walls of Connemara, would be considered absolutely mortifying.
If the Gaeltacht isn’t valuable life preparation, I don’t know what is.
But, as we are all aware, the influence of the Irish language doesn’t extend much further than our Emerald Isle.
It may not be a particularly significant language on an international level but who among us hasn’t taken pleasure in the bemused faces of French and Spanish onlookers as “ciúnas bóthar cailín bainne” is delivered with the gravity of a death sentence?
The Irish language gives us back some of the charm that pale faces and a propensity for pints distract from.
So why then has it been turned from a widely spoken language into a subject dependent on rote- learning? Irish Paper 2 is centred around Irish literature, filíocht, prós, litríocht breise, and is a thorn in my side!
But whatever differences I have had with Maidhc Dainín or the mind- boggling story of ‘ Dís’ ( still not entirely sure what’s going on there …) were forgotten in the wake of a paper that can only be described as “sound out”.
Of course Lísín in all her self- adoring conceit would make an appearance and noone could begrudge Mártín Ó Díreáin a slot considering his poem was the only relatively enjoyable one on the course.
Day Five of Leaving Cert 2012 over. The joys of French grammar await.
India McGirr is a pupil at Gorey Community School, Co Wexford
www.independent.ie
Olympic effort required but second Irish test ‘ fair’ to all
June 13, 2012
Leaving Cert Irish Paper 2
The theme of the Olympics once again featured prominently in the Leaving Cert Irish higher level exam, as students got to grips with a “fair” paper 2.
Many teachers felt the unseen comprehension text on the life of Irish- American 1912 Olympic gold medallist Jim Thorpe was both interesting and manageable.
This year, candidates coped with changes to the paper – including the introduction of a new question concerning grammar, opinion and the genre of literature.
Robbie Cronin, from the ASTI and Marian College, Ballsbridge, Dublin, felt the opinion piece “was too demanding” for a maximum of 10 marks.
In it, students were asked to say what the text – about the Olympian’s sporting prowess to his final days in penury – revealed about the mindset of the American people and the International Olympic Committee.
ASTI’s Noelle Moran from St Jarlath’s College, Tuam, Co Galway, agreed: “It is a lot to be asking the student’s opinion on something, it is not testing the knowledge of the piece”.
The TUI’s Ruth MorrisseyCasey, a teacher at St Michael’s Community School, Kilmihil, Co Clare, said the second comprehension question featuring journalist Alex Hijman’ visit to Salvador was “harder” with references to oppression, poverty, history and religion.
She said students may have found some words including ‘ aingil choimhdeachta’, meaning ‘ guardian angel’, difficult.
Clare Grealy, of the Institute of Education, Dublin, said the grammar question for both comprehension texts dealt with points most students were familiar with.
Inviting
Teachers felt some of the questions had been anticipated, including the question relating to the story ‘ Hurlamaboc’.
Deeming it a “good paper” overall, Ms Grealy said the poem ‘ An tEarrach Thiar’ was one of the easier ones students encountered on the syllabus.
“The question on images and sounds was particularly inviting,” she said.
Ms Grealy described ordinary level as a “very fair” paper, with the questions and language in the comprehension section featuring stories about RTE sports journalist Evanne Ni Chuilinn and young tennis player Daithi O hEithir far easier than previous years.
The prose featured six short questions rather than following the traditional format of a more general summary type question and Ms Grealy felt it may have proved “helpful” as it gave students a clear structure for their answer.
Ms Moran’s main complaint was that both the prose and poetry questions were “very wordy” for the level.
www.independent.ie
Unexpected Irish Questions cause confusion
June 8, 2012
Trapattoni, Justin Bieber and Jedward provided topical but “challenging” questions in the higher level Junior Cert paper, one teacher felt.
For those listening to the higher level aural tape, there were a couple of “tough, bordering on unfair, and unexpected questions”, according to Robbie Cronin of the ASTI and Marian College, Dublin. “One question was to write down the title of the Réamhaisnéis na hAimsire – the weather forecast. My students were surprised and couldn’t answer it,” Mr Cronin said, adding the news item about the Young Scientist also caused confusion.
The reading comprehension pieces centred around an Irish teenage radio station, Raidio Ri- Ra, and Justin Bieber, which provided topical but challenging questions, said Mr Cronin.
However, the ASTI’s Richie Mac Liam from Chanel College, Dublin 5, felt the comprehensions were not as “straightforward” as in other years.
He said the comprehension question was still asking pupils to put answers in their own words, even though they wouldn’t get more marks than if they repeated what was in the text.
Mr Cronin said a glossary should have been provided for certain difficult words – such as ‘ craoladh sealadach’, meaning temporary broadcast. The choice of essay topics – featuring the Irish soccer team – were heralded as good and topical.
In Paper 2, the unseen prose question was described as “challenging but student- friendly”.
A broad glossary was provided for difficult words in the poetry section which underlines the unfairness of using similar difficult words in paper one, Mr Cronin argued.
Overall, most teachers agreed that the ordinary level paper did not appear to cause any major difficulties.
www.independent.ie
Andrew McKimm: Leaving Cert: it’s an Irish renaissance as hostilities cease
June 5, 2012
An Englishman gave us back our flag — and now we are reclaiming our own language from extreme republicanism, writes Andrew McKimm
THIS year sees the launch of the revamped Leaving Certificate Irish Paper. It will be a markedly changed exam in which 40 per cent, instead of the former 25 per cent, is being awarded for the oral component of the test. This is the first major change to the Irish paper in about 15 years.
I asked Richard Barrett, who teaches Irish in Blackrock College, Dublin, what prompted such a significant shift in the examination of Irish. Does he see this trend as a kind of dumbing down of Irish by moving away from a more literature-based curriculum? Where is Peig in all of this? Is her legacy in danger of drowning somewhere off the Blasket Islands?
“Not at all — I see it as an entirely positive step and one that is very much in keeping with the modern healthy trends in the attitude of students to learning Irish nowadays,” he replies.
He proceeds in his measured, calm way, every point springing with clarity from a deep understanding and love of a language to which he has devoted a lifetime of teaching.
“There are four components to learning any language — listening, speaking, reading and writing. For far too long, the speaking part has been underplayed!”
I can’t resist the opportunity of playing devil’s advocate. What about the large number of people who claim that Irish is a dead and useless language and that it should be totally abolished from the curriculum? He sighs patiently as this is a question that he has to face almost every day.
“People say to me all the time that, after spending 13 years learning Irish in school, they can’t put two words together. I tell them that I beg to differ. Of course they can put two words together and usually quite a lot more. I can give them a quick vocab test and they can get it completely right. I can speak to them and they can understand me perfectly.”
He adds, “Thirteen years of studying anything doesn’t imply perfect knowledge. Does 13 years of studying maths mean that you’re going to get an A?
“It has been a trend for many years not to like Irish but, in fact, most people don’t feel that negative about it any more. People now have a greater sense of our history and are regretful of the fact that they don’t know more Irish.
“Parents keep telling me that they were ‘useless’ at Irish and didn’t like it. This of course makes it much harder to pass on to the next generation. Ironically, the young people whom I teach are the least hostile towards it — they just see Irish as being part of the system. In our school, we have Seachtain na Gaeilge which virtually every boy in the school gets involved in. The smarter ones opt for the ceili with the girls from Sion Hill next door.”
Ultimately does Richard think that attitudes to Irish have improved over the last 20 years? Did the boom —the era of the Fionns and the Saoirses — actually cause a proliferation of more than just that a cupla focail?
“Over the last 30 years, Ireland as a nation has matured and is not trying so hard to prove itself. Irish now exists as part of our heritage, and we accept it. The extreme Republican element in this country had hijacked both the language and the national flag. Ironically, it was an Englishman, Jack Charlton, who gave us back our flag and allowed us to wave it without being viewed as terrorists.
“The days of narrow-minded gaelgoiri being able to define ‘Irishness’ is gone and the language belongs to no political or religious tradition. In fact, some of the best performers in Irish nowadays are our immigrants.”
Apart from our newfound national confidence that started with The Joshua Tree and the discovery of Michael Flatley — both of which have reached their natural apotheosis in Jedward — Richard thinks that credit for our modern, more positive attitudes towards Irish lies with the governments of the last 40 years.
“Healthy bilingualism, which started as unwritten government policy in the Seventies, became de facto policy in the Eighties. Ireland is an English-speaking country and there is now no attempt to replace English with Irish, to pointlessly pit one against the other. The realism of the modern era has buried the ‘one-language nation’ approach.”
What about the reduction in the literature component in newspapers, does this mean that Irish as a literary medium is dying out?
Peig almost single handedly killed off my own admittedly fragile interest in Irish at school. It was only the genius of Padraic O Conaire (coincidentally a past pupil of Blackrock College) and his masterful short stories, Scothscealta, that saved it.
Richard shares my abject enthusiasm for Scothscealta and thinks that a great TV series based on O Conaire’s work has yet to be made.
Richard reminds me that things have moved on a lot since I was in school.
“Irish still has a thriving literary culture with a small but committed audience. The topics on the Leaving Certificate include crime, murder, drug addiction, abortion. The work of poets like Nuala Ni Dhomhnail is some of the most sensual you will read in any language.
“In fairness to Peig, she was the first to forsee that she was part of a dying culture on the Blasket Islands. ‘Ni bheidh ar leithieidi aris ann.’ (Our kind will not be seen again.) Peig can never be viewed as great literature but her book is a vital historical document, a window to the past,” he says.
It is thanks to Richard Barrett and many other teachers of Irish in this country that the Irish language is prevented from going the way of people of the Blaskets and becoming nothing other than a memory.
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Most parents would choose state run or multi-denominational schools – survey
April 30, 2012
ONLY a quarter of parents with dependent children would opt to send them to a church-run primary school, a poll has found.
Some 27pc of parents would choose a primary school owned and managed by the Church, compared with the remainder, who would opt for a Vocational Education Committee (VEC) school, multi-denominational or State-run.
The survey, commissioned by the Irish Primary Principals’ Network (IPPN) and carried out by RedC, also found that while only a quarter would choose a Church-run school, the majority of respondents still want religion taught during the school day.
“While there appears to be a public appetite for choice in the models of school patronage available, with most people opting for models that are not based on the ethos of a Church, there is still strong demand for religious instruction to be taught within the school day,” said IPPN president Gerry Murphy.
Despite this, he said the overriding objective of the survey is to ensure the highest standards of teaching are available to all children regardless of their background.
The IPPN-RedC poll saw a random sample of 729 adults questioned – including those with no dependent children – during March this year.
Among those surveyed who have dependent children (under 16 years), 30pc said they would send them to a VEC school, which is run by the State.
A quarter (24pc) would opt for a multi-denominational school such as Educate Together, and 20pc would choose a State-run school.
While most would not have their children educated by the church, 67pc said they would still want their child to receive religious instruction during the school day.
They would also like their children to get help with preparation for the sacraments, such as first confession, first communion and confirmation.
Some 31pc of parents would rather their children receive religious education outside of school.
Of that figure, the majority (60pc) said the responsibility to educate their children on religion should fall to the parents, 26pc believed it should be the clergy’s responsibility and 13pc teachers’.
IPPN director Sean Cottrell described the survey as a snapshot of the preferences of broad Irish society.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Ruairi Quinn launched the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism last week, which was set up to consult on the primary system to ensure the patronage of schools reflect the diversity of the population.
The idea is to ensure schools are inclusive of all pupils, regardless of their background or religion.
The Minister will consider a report compiled by an independent advisory group within the forum.
INDEPENDENT.IE
Tongue twisted
April 17, 2012
The problems associated with the teaching of Irish are often mentioned but there is a fundamental problem that needs to be addressed.
At honours level, students in English-speaking secondary schools take the same exams in Irish and study the same syllabus as Gaelcholaisti and Gaeltacht schools. This does not make sense. Students who are studying a second language cannot be treated in the same way as those who have it as a first language.
Students in English-speaking schools are being examined and taught at a level that is inappropriate for their level of language development. This hinders their grasp of the language.
There are also too many aspects to cover on the course in too short a time, so teachers are forced to prepare students for an exam, instead of having time to teach the basics. Students thus do not develop the skills needed to learn a language properly.
To make matters worse, students do not take an oral exam at Junior Cert level in the vast majority of schools. Because the focus is all on the exam, teachers have little time to partake in oral work. This is where the crux of the problem lies. Students could pick up the language easily if the system was appropriate.
Meanwhile, in Irish-speaking schools the course is not challenging enough — it thus satisfies no one.
The solution is simple — two separate exams and qualifications at honours level. One for those learning Irish as a second language (focusing mainly on the basics) that everyone would take, with an additional and more challenging exam for those who have Irish as a first language. There must also be an oral exam in every school at Junior Cert level.
They do this in other jurisdictions. In Wales, for instance, they have two qualifications — Welsh as a first language and then as a second language, as they recognise that you cannot teach both in the same way. They do the same with the Irish language at GCSE level in the North.
We are failing our best students. Why are we not doing something about it?
S O Coinne
Dun Dealgan, Co Lu
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Schools show how to stage a protest
April 17, 2012
The teachers, parents and pupils of Gaeltacht schools showed how to organise a proper protest.
Eagraiocht na Scoileanna Gaeltachta held a campaign on the NUIG campus, causing no hassle while still getting their point across.
Treasa Ni Mhainin and Micheal MacDonncha warned cuts would result in the loss of at least 30 teachers in the Gaeltacht schools system.
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Church prepares for historic handover of primary schools
April 10, 2012
But any bid to switch educational patron must get parents’ go-ahead
The first official steps towards a historic handover of Catholic primary schools to other patron bodies will get under way shortly.
A softly, softly approach to the transfer is recommended with about 50 schools expected to be involved in initial efforts to switch patron.
Up to 47 towns and suburban areas of Dublin have been targeted for the first phase of the process.
These areas have 250 schools between them so, on average, one Catholic school in each area could be transferred to a new patron, such as the multi-denominational body, Educate Together.
But crucially, any decision to change the patronage of a school will have to have the support of local parents.
If parents agree, the Department of Education hopes that the handover of the first Catholic schools to another patron could start happening in about a year.
Where there is a demand for a change of patronage of a school in an area, parents would also have to agree on who that new patron should be, which may prove controversial.
The report of an expert group yesterday set out a roadmap for the handover process, which is aimed at creating greater choice of primary schools to reflect the changing social mix in Ireland.
As well as providing greater choice on grounds of religion, the advisory body also recommends that more all-Irish schools should emerge from the process to meet demand from parents.
The Forum of Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector, chaired by leading educationalist Professor John Coolahan, deliberated for six months last year. It held public hearings and also received 247 submissions.
Currently, 96pc of the 3,200 primary schools are under the control of the churches, overwhelmingly the Catholic Church, which runs 92pc of them.
Concern
As well as recommending a process for the handover of schools, the advisory group suggests ways in which all schools can cater for children of different religious beliefs.
Education Minister Ruairi Quinn, who released the report yesterday, welcomed its findings.
He said “We live in a changed and changing nation. Primary school provision needs to reflect this changed society and provide for increased diversity. Parental choice should be our main concern” Mr Quinn has been an enthusiastic advocate of change and when he set up the forum last year he spoke of up to half of primary schools being transferred from the control of the Catholic Church.
However, the forum cautions against a ‘big bang’ approach and advises that change of patronage should happen in a phased way, taking account of the preferences of parents.
Mr Quinn will announce a plan of action for the change process in about a month.
The report recommends that the first phase of change would involve examining school patronage in 43 towns and four suburban areas in Dublin areas already identified as likely to have substantial demand for diversity.
These are areas where there is a stable population and also an existing demand for greater school choice and divesting from an existing patron, most often the Catholic Church.
The forum also calls for greater inclusivity in all schools, aimed at ensuring that these are as inclusive as possible and accommodate pupils of various belief systems.
One recommendation is that preparation for the sacraments have no part in the school day anywhere and that schools have a policy on the display of religious and non-religious artefacts , which are not exclusive to any one faith, but which have balance.
The forum is especially concerned about communities served by a single school, where transfer of patronage is not an option. There are about 1,700 of these, which are at least 3km from their nearest neighbour.
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Number claiming they speak Irish reaches 1.7 million
April 2, 2012
ALMOST 2pc of people speak a cupla focal on a daily basis outside of school.
The first detailed results of last year’s Census show the number of people who claim to be able to speak Irish increased by 7.1pc between 2006 and 2011 to 1.77 million people. But almost one in three (30.9pc) of 10 to 19-year-olds said they couldn’t speak the language.
In total 1.8pc of people said they spoke the language every day, 2.6pc used it weekly, while 14.3pc said they turned to it less often.
However, 12.2pc of people within the education system said they spoke the language daily, but only at schools and colleges.
More women than men speak the language — 44.9pc of females compared with 37.9pc of males.
Of the 1.77 million who said they could speak it, 77,185 used it daily outside the education system (up 5,037 since 2006), a further 110,642 use it weekly (up 7,781), while 613,236 used it less often (up 27,139).
One in four said they never used it.
The total population of all Gaeltacht areas in April last year was 96,628, up from 91,862 six years ago.
Of these, 66,238 or 68.5pc, indicated they could speak Irish.
IRISH INDEPENDENT
Rural primary schools hit as 73 posts to go
March 26, 2012
UP TO 73 small primary schools will lose a teacher in September because of changes in teacher allocations.
The full list of schools threatened with the loss of a teacher is revealed by the Irish Independent today.
They will only avoid the loss if their pupil numbers have risen since the last count in September — a major challenge for many because of their location.
With the exception of one in Clondalkin, Dublin, all the schools are in rural areas, mainly in the west. Last year’s Budget change to teacher allocation has sparked a major protest campaign amid fears that ultimately schools will close — to the detriment of local communities.
The Department of Education has told the 73 schools that, based on the last official pupil count, they will lose a teacher next September.
In recent weeks, schools were advised of their September 2012 allocations based on their September 2011 figures.
But there is an appeals process and — in a bid to soften the blow — Education Minister Ruairi Quinn has said that if schools succeed in enrolling higher numbers than in September 2011 the new figure will be included in the calculations.
This has pushed schools into a major competitive drive for new enrolments.
The cuts will continue for three years, starting in September, and will put the schools under ongoing pressure to keep increasing numbers.
Under the department’s plan, a school which this year got a third teacher for 49 pupils or above will need 51 pupils in September to secure the third teacher and 56 in three years’ time.
It also means a school which this year has a fourth teacher for 81 pupils will need 83 next year and 86 in two years’ time to retain that number of staff.
The aim is to cut 250 teaching posts in all. However, the staff will be redeployed to fill vacancies elsewhere.
The cuts have sparked a huge outcry in rural Ireland.
Over the weekend, parents, teachers and community activists held a rally in Loughrea, Co Galway and handed a petition in to Junior Education Minister Ciaran Cannon.
Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) president Noreen Flynn told the protest that what was needed was a coherent, long-term and resourced strategy for sustainable schools into the future.
“Instead, what we have are budget proposals aimed at forcibly amalgamating some small schools by cutting teachers”, she said.
Ms Flynn said the department should wait for the outcomes of a value-for-money report it was undertaking.
There was a need to review the benefits of small schools in rural communities.
INTO says alternatives to school closure and amalgamations should be considered, such as examining the possibility of repopulating existing schools rather than constantly expanding larger schools in urban areas, often with unsuitable temporary accommodation.
Minority
The union said schools of minority denominations, island schools and Irish medium schools must be treated with particular sensitivity.
Separately, 16 disadvantaged rural primary schools are losing a teacher arising from the Budget decision to withdraw what are known as “legacy” posts. These were awarded under a programme which predated the Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools (DEIS) programme in 2005.
IRISH INDEPENDENT
