Conradh Na Gaeilge Announces Speakers for Education Conference On 12 Sept In TCD

dublin | miscellaneous | event notice Wednesday August 30, 2006 13:43 by Ard-Rúnaí - Conradh na Gaeilge comhdhail at cnag dot ie 01 4757401

All are welcome to attend - Register at comhdhail@cnag.ie or 01 4757401

Conradh na Gaeilge announced today the key speakers who will take part at its Education Conference in Trinity College on Tuesday, 12 September 2006, aimed at developing the education system’s methods of teaching and learning Irish. Among those speaking, Professor David Little, Director of the Centre for Language and Communication Studies and Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics at Trinity College, will describe the urgent need for an integrated language curriculum in the context of a multilingual Europe.

Programme for the Education Conference

Caoimhe Máirtín, former head of Coláiste Mhuire Marino, will discuss the plan to have every primary level trainee teacher to attend a one year Irish language emersion course. This will ensure that every primary school teacher will have a satisfactory standard of Irish. She will also recommend that student teachers be allowed to complete their training fully through Irish, if they wish. Máire Ní Bhaoill of St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra, and Colm Hamrouge, President of the Union of Students in Ireland, will form the discussion panel on this subject.

Dr. John Harris, Senior Lecturer in Psycholinguistics at Trinity College, will talk about his research “Irish in Primary Schools: National Long-term Trends in Competence,” and will suggest the teaching of Irish to primary school students through the medium of another subject, for example Physical Education. Dr. Harris argues that this method of partial-emersion teaching will provide students at English-speaking schools a better standard of Irish. Tomás Ó Slatara, President of the Irish Primary Principals’ Network, Deirbhile Nic Craith of the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation, and a representative from the National Parents Council will form the panel discussing these proposals.

In the afternoon, Colmán Ó Raghallaigh, teacher and member of Conradh na Gaeilge’s Governing Committee, will speak of plans to form a two-tiered secondary level Irish syllabus: “Irish Language” and “Irish Literature”. An “Irish Language” exam would examine students’ conversation, understanding, reading and writing skills in Irish based on the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages,” and all students would be permitted to sit the exam. “Irish Literature” would be taught in Irish-speaking schools, and as a non-compulsory, extra subject for students in English-speaking schools who have the interest and ability. A Northern Ireland perspective will be added to discussion by panel member Dr. Eugene McKendry, School of Education in Queens University Belfast and Director of NI Centre for Information on Language Teaching and Research. Máire Ní Chiarba of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland, John Mac Gabhann of the Teaching Union of Ireland, and Conor Mahon, Vice-President of the Union of Secondary Students, will join Dr. McKendry on the discussion panel.

All conference attendees will have a chance to voice their opinions in the afternoon’s open discussion.

Conradh na Gaeilge President Dáithí Mac Cárthaigh said: “At the moment, Irish people are bottom of the European league of language ability. Conradh na Gaeilge aims to foster multilingualism in Irish people, and make a high standard of Irish a cornerstone of this. The conference’s aim is to gather the interested parties together to share their expertise with each other and with the public in order to develop practical suggestions for the short-term and medium-term.”

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