As the Deputy will be aware, my Department oversees and has policy responsibility for the conservation, preservation, protection, development and presentation of Ireland’s heritage and culture. In that context, my Department seeks to promote the Irish language, to support the Gaeltacht and to assist the sustainable development of island communities.
It is vital that we encourage children to both appreciate and participate in Ireland's rich culture and heritage. In this regard, my Department and the bodies and agencies funded from my Department's Vote Group provide a number of programmes, schemes and exhibitions for children and young people. For example, in the arts area, the National Cultural Institutions provide educational services for children and young people to encourage them to appreciate the collections and also to develop their own artistic talent. Details of these educational programmes, workshops, exhibitions and tours can be accessed through the individual web-sites of the National Cultural Institutions. In addition, the Arts Council identifies children and young people as an important constituency, with a wide range of programmes and supports in place for both ‘in-schools’ and ‘out-of-schools’ activity. Details of these programmes can be found on the Arts Council's website.
My Department also encourages children to appreciate and explore Ireland's rich built and natural heritage. For example, my Department's National Parks and Wildlife Service operates a number of education centres around the country that seek to raise awareness of the natural world and of conservation. Such centres typically offer nature awareness programmes to primary schools and ecology and geography fieldwork to secondary schools. They may also offer special events and tours for the public. In addition, the Heritage Council run the Heritage in Schools Scheme which is unique in Ireland and provides a panel of over 165 diverse heritage specialists, who work directly with children in primary schools throughout the country, at the request of the school. The primary aim of the scheme is to encourage awareness of the natural and cultural world that surrounds us in our daily lives and engage children in a direct experience of their heritage, preferably outside the classroom where possible and appropriate.
In recent years, my Department has, in partnership with the Education Centre Network of the Department of Education and Skills, produced bespoke primary and transition year resources under the Archaeology in the Classroom programme. The programme employs a variety of outreach tools, from continuous professional development courses to a dedicated website (www.itsabouttime.ie), to raise awareness of and increase engagement with our archaeological heritage amongst both teachers and students.
In addition, my Department’s National Monuments Service website, www.archaeology.ie, is an excellent educational resource and hosts a ‘Monuments to Visit’ page which provides visitor information on a range of publicly-accessible national monuments. The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH) website and publications are also used as educational resources by both teachers and students. A copy of each county or city NIAH book is sent to all the public libraries and second level schools of the area in question.
The Deputy may also note that Irish is a vital part of the State’s heritage and the Gaeltacht is the primary source of the living language. A core task of my Department is to promote the maintenance of the Irish language in the Gaeltacht, as its most important community resource and its principal means of communication. It has long been recognised that its transmission from one generation to the next is critical for the survival of the Irish language as the predominant household and community language in the Gaeltacht. It is for this reason that my Department and Údarás na Gaeltachta operate a number of schemes and initiatives aimed at the maintenance and strengthening of the language in the Gaeltacht. In this regard, a number of schemes are in operation, which assist families, children and young people to live their lives through the Irish language:
- Scheme for Irish language Learners
- Department’s Improvement Schemes (capital grants)
- Summer Camps through Irish for Gaeltacht Youth
- Language Assistants’ Scheme
- Family Language Support Programme
In addition, Foras na Gaeilge, an agency of the North South Language Body, is responsible for promoting the Irish language in every aspect of everyday life throughout the island of Ireland. Many of the activities of Foras na Gaeilge are targeted at encouraging young people to use Irish in their daily lives.
