asked the Minister for Education if her attention has been drawn to the results of a recent opinion poll in respect of the compulsory learning of Irish in secondary schools; if she proposes to raise this matter with the Minister for the Gaeltacht; and if she will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Compulsory Learning of Irish.
5.
I am aware of the recent newspaper article which gave the results of a poll which included among a range of topics a question on whether Irish should become a subject of choice after the intermediate certificate stage.
I am sure the Deputy will agree that official policy in relation to Irish must be decided on a sounder basis than that afforded by such a poll. All Governments down the years, including the Government of which the Deputy was a member, have been committed to preserving and developing our national language and have recognised the central role the schools have to play in achieving that goal.
I do not propose to change the status of Irish in the curriculum. My aim is to make the teaching of Irish more attractive and more effective and I am not at present having the syllabuses in Irish at post-primary level revised with that aim in view.
Would the Minister accept that her first response to the results of this survey should be to look at the approach taken in the teaching of the Irish language and culture within the educational system? Would she agree with me when I say that in recent years it appears that the teaching of French has been more successful in many of our schools than the teaching of Irish and, if so, in the context of the review of the syllabi if she would be prepared to see to it that the methods adopted in the teaching of French would also be adopted in the teaching of Irish? Would she also agree that many of the textbooks which are currently being used at second level should be consigned to the archives?
Some do not exist at all.
I do not know whether anything should be consigned to the archives.
Peig, for example.
I do not know whether the acoustics are right today but it seems that I am not being heard properly. I said that my aim is to make the teaching of Irish more effective and more attractive and that answers the point the Deputy raised on the syllabi. At present the syllabi in Irish at post primary level are being revised with that aim in view. The National Council for Curriculum Assessment are addressing this topic, too. I agree with the Deputy that the teaching of Irish in schools should embrace more than the teaching of the language. It should also involve the teaching of culture and history. It should be the aim of all our primary and post primary schools to ensure that this spirit prevades the system.
Is the Minister satisfied with the way Irish is being taught in secondary schools at present and, if so, how does she propose to maintain that standard following the reduction in teacher numbers?
As the Deputy is aware, every teacher is constantly striving to improve himself or hereself in terms of their teaching duties and to make their methods of teaching more attractive to their pupils. My Department run in-service courses for teachers and, as I have said, we seek regularly to update the syllabi. From my experience of dealing with young people I know that their wish to retain Irish is very strong. Sometimes young people find the range of books, anthologies and so on for the course not very attractive. We are seeking to ascertain in what way we can render those books, anthologies and so on more relevant to young people's aspirations.
Will the Minister agree that in the case of a teacher seeking to improve himself or herself it is somewhat difficult if one is trying to teach a subject through Irish for which a textbook does not exist? Will the Minister confirm to me the number of textbooks she has provided since she last answered questions here and told us that somewhere between seven and a dozen subjects lacked textbooks in Irish in schools in which——
That is a rather specific question.
I do not have that information with me. It is a separate question but I can arrange for the information to be supplied to the Deputy.