Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 July 2020
551. Deputy Neale Richmond asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of the development of a new modern languages initiative for primary school level; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19146/20]
View answerLanguages Connect, the government’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017-2026 sets out a roadmap to put Ireland in the top ten countries in Europe for the teaching and learning of foreign languages, through a number of measures targeted at improving proficiency, diversity and immersion. A key part of the strategy is not only increasing the numbers of children taking up a foreign language, but also diversifying the range of languages available to schools and increasing students depth of knowledge in a language. Exposing children to a foreign language from an early age, would enhance their interpersonal communication skills, adaptability, logical thinking and creativity. These transferable skills are relevant across all disciplines and subjects.
Under the strategy, the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) was asked to consider including foreign languages in senior classes as part of its review of the primary curriculum. The NCCA subsequently published a background paper ‘Integrating Modern Foreign Languages in a Redeveloped Primary Curriculum’ available on its website as part of the research base to inform the development of the Draft Primary Curriculum Framework.
The draft Primary Curriculum Framework was published for consultation in February 2020 and sets out the proposed purpose, structure and content of the curriculum which will be developed in the coming years. The draft framework proposes a revised structure for curriculum areas that supports the introduction of modern foreign languages in stages 3 and 4, i.e. from 3rd class onwards, incrementally building on children’s existing knowledge and awareness of language and progressing to a competency model in stage 4. The consultation on the draft framework will continue to the end of December 2020 and potentially into 2021 depending on the Covid-19 situation, with the finalisation of the framework expected by the Summer 2021. The development of curriculum specifications will take place in the following years.
This proposal connects with and builds on the role of linguistic diversity in the Primary Language Curriculum/Curaclam Teanga na Bunscoile which seeks to support children on their language-learning journeys, in both English and Irish, while also acknowledging the diversity of languages spoken in Irish primary schools.
