Cúpla Focal

Conradh na Gaeilge members were picketing outside the Dáil yesterday as part of their campaign to achieve equal status for Irish and English on road signs and other public areas around the country.  

The picketers argued that under the Official Languages Act of 2003, which was established to “ensure better availability and a higher standard of public services through Irish”, the Government should be making more of an effort to bring about equality of the Irish language. 

It seems however, that Conradh na Gaeilge’s website is lacking in the bi-lingual department itself. When I clicked on the English language version of the site I found much of the content was “not available in your selected language”. 

A case of “practice what you preach” you may ask? Julian de Spáinn, spokesman for the Conradh na Gaeilge, told the Irish Independent: “We have very scarce resources but hope to have enough funding to have the site fully bilingual by March 2007”. Watch this space…

*Headline: Easpa béarla = lack of english

An agency set up by the Department of Education today put forward the proposal that english should not be taught in any shape or form to junior infants in Gaelscoileanna across the country. According to the COGG (An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaiochta/ Committee for Education in Gaelscoileanna and the Gaeltacht), “When English is introduced at the commencement of schooling . . . the child understands that the teacher knows English and so there is no necessity to learn Irish or at least there is no great urgency to do so”. 

Minister for Education Mary Hanafin is said to be assessing the legality of the proposal but already recommends that children in Gaelscoileanna spend at least a half an hour learning a second language per day.  

While I wouldn’t suggest that this idea is in any way as ridiculous as FG’s notion that making Irish a choice subject for the leaving cert so as to have the reverse effect of actually promoting it, I simply don’t think that the COGG’s idea is a good one. Promoting the Irish language in schools should not be synonymous with neglecting the English language. We do not need to go to such extreme lengths to preserve an Ghaeilge- it does not have to be all or nothing.  Primary school plays a vital role in moulding the mind of a child, and a primary school teacher can have an enormous affect on the path a child will take in the future. I developed my love and flair for both Irish and English at primary school thanks to a succession of teachers who both loved the language and placed an equal weight of importance on both. English should not be neglected in Gaelscoileanna just as Irish shouldn’t be neglected in English speaking schools.

The Irish language has definitely undergone a major image overhaul in the last few years. TG4 and other Irish language media has played a huge part in sexing up this image, with young and trendy presenters such as Síle Ní Bhraonáin and Aoife Ní Chonchúir gracing our screens. Described by the Celtic Tiger himself David McWilliams as the “trendiest radio station in Dublin”, I went along to Radió na Life in Merrion Square to speak with 26 year old station manager Maebh Ní Fhallúin about her thoughts on the future of the Irish language. 

You can listen to this interview with Maebh in my short radio programme below.