Upcoming Events

National | Miscellaneous

no events match your query!

Blog Feeds

Public Inquiry
Interested in maladministration. Estd. 2005

offsite link RTEs Sarah McInerney ? Fianna Fail?supporter? Anthony

offsite link Joe Duffy is dishonest and untrustworthy Anthony

offsite link Robert Watt complaint: Time for decision by SIPO Anthony

offsite link RTE in breach of its own editorial principles Anthony

offsite link Waiting for SIPO Anthony

Public Inquiry >>

Human Rights in Ireland
Indymedia Ireland is a volunteer-run non-commercial open publishing website for local and international news, opinion & analysis, press releases and events. Its main objective is to enable the public to participate in reporting and analysis of the news and other important events and aspects of our daily lives and thereby give a voice to people.

offsite link Trump hosts former head of Syrian Al-Qaeda Al-Jolani to the White House Tue Nov 11, 2025 22:01 | imc

offsite link Rip The Chicken Tree - 1800s - 2025 Tue Nov 04, 2025 03:40 | Mark

offsite link Study of 1.7 Million Children: Heart Damage Only Found in Covid-Vaxxed Kids Sat Nov 01, 2025 00:44 | imc

offsite link The Golden Haro Fri Oct 31, 2025 12:39 | Paul Ryan

offsite link Top Scientists Confirm Covid Shots Cause Heart Attacks in Children Sun Oct 05, 2025 21:31 | imc

Human Rights in Ireland >>

Lockdown Skeptics

The Daily Sceptic

offsite link Majority of Public ?Does Not Want? Labour?s Islamophobia Definition Thu Nov 20, 2025 15:14 | Will Jones
Labour?s new definition of Islamophobia is not wanted by the majority of the public in any form, with just a fifth backing it, a poll has found, amid a free speech backlash.
The post Majority of Public “Does Not Want” Labour’s Islamophobia Definition appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Call Prostitutes ?Sexual Entrepreneurs?, Say Police Thu Nov 20, 2025 13:00 | Will Jones
Police chiefs have been accused of treating prostitution as a normal job and effectively decriminalising it by telling officers they should call prostitutes "sex workers" or "sexual entrepreneurs".
The post Call Prostitutes “Sexual Entrepreneurs”, Say Police appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Shabana Mahmood?s Asylum ?Fix? is Destined to Fail Thu Nov 20, 2025 11:23 | Will Jones
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood's asylum 'crackdown' is not nearly enough to stop the flow, says Juliet Samuel in the Times. It still leaves Britain looking like a utopia for far too many.
The post Shabana Mahmood’s Asylum ‘Fix’ is Destined to Fail appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link The Damning Moderna Audit Report That We?re Not Allowed to See Thu Nov 20, 2025 09:00 | Dr Alan Black
A damning audit report on Moderna has found "numerous and varied issues". Yet despite the Government forming a 'strategic partnership' with the mRNA vaccine company, the report remains secret, says Dr Alan Black.
The post The Damning Moderna Audit Report That We’re Not Allowed to See appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Ed Miliband Must Stop Blaming Putin for Britain?s Energy Woes Thu Nov 20, 2025 07:00 | Ben Pile
Ed Miliband has been caught peddling lies in the Telegraph, claiming that the "cost of living crisis" was "triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine". No, says Ben Pile. It's lockdowns and Net Zero that made Britain poor.
The post Ed Miliband Must Stop Blaming Putin for Britain’s Energy Woes appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Lockdown Skeptics >>

Voltaire Network
Voltaire, international edition

offsite link Will intergovernmental institutions withstand the end of the "American Empire"?,... Sat Apr 05, 2025 07:15 | en

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N?127 Sat Apr 05, 2025 06:38 | en

offsite link Disintegration of Western democracy begins in France Sat Apr 05, 2025 06:00 | en

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N?126 Fri Mar 28, 2025 11:39 | en

offsite link The International Conference on Combating Anti-Semitism by Amichai Chikli and Na... Fri Mar 28, 2025 11:31 | en

Voltaire Network >>

Extra points for Irish = educational apartheid

category national | miscellaneous | other press author Tuesday December 23, 2008 11:22author by JayC Report this post to the editors

Muireann Ni Mhorain, head of An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta & Gaelscolaíochta, attempts to justify extra points for those taking exams in Irish in the Leaving Cert.
muireann1.jpg

A recent columnists piece, in the Irish Times, described the practice of giving bonus points in various subjects to those sitting exams through Irish as "educational apartheid". Effectively, it seems that displaying the same knowledge of a given subject as Gaeilge attracts more points than someone doing the exact same through English.

By extension, someone showing an inferior knowledge of a particular subject (through Irish) will be marked above someone has a superior knowledge of the same subject - by a margin of 3 to 10 per cent. Most reasonable people would concede that this is unfair, and distorts results and college placings.

Muireann Ni Mhorain, head of An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta & Gaelscolaíochta attempts to justify the practice at the link below.

Taken from the Gombeen Nation blog, with acknowledgment to the Irish Times.

Related Link: http://gombeennation.blogspot.com/2008/12/bonus-points-for-gaelscoilenna-is.html
author by Other Side of the Storypublication date Tue Dec 23, 2008 14:00author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Here's a link to Muireann Ni Mhorains response to Kate Holmquists article.

Also some details from someone who recently sat the Leaving Cert through Irish: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/letters/2008/1212/1....html

Related Link: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2008/1218/1229523050392.html
author by Andrew Dougherty - nonepublication date Fri Dec 26, 2008 03:09author address author phone Report this post to the editors

A few points to help the language after centuries of linguicide are a good thing. I am from America and I am struggling to learn Gaelic because, as anyone knows, language is the first (or was it last) defense of a culture. I'm hardly Irish (meistens Deutscher) I am going to go so far soon as to do all my publications and software As Gaeilge. Speaking the language of imperialist oppressors debases a person and his family. The language will need our help to survive. Sure, the "language apartheid" argument has merit. It is unfair. But so are reparations. That's the point. I would imagine the debate would be similar to affirmative action. Of course, I really don't know anything, but I would like to learn, hopefully, as Gaeilge. Language is so critical to thought (I believe in something along the lines of the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapir-Whorf_hypothesis ). It is for this reason that I am studying Gaelic. To those who are interested, I am planning on scanning in free etexts of hundreds of books written in Irish. In fact I should move on this particular project. If you can help me with this in some way, please email me at andrewdo+irish@frdcsa.org . Thanks.

author by Darren Priorpublication date Sat Dec 27, 2008 23:55author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Given that students being taught through Irish schools are at a disadvantage at second level in that a lot of books are not available in Irish the points are fair. When all the subjects have books in Irish the extra points should be gotten rid of. But not until then...

 
© 2001-2025 Independent Media Centre Ireland. Unless otherwise stated by the author, all content is free for non-commercial reuse, reprint, and rebroadcast, on the net and elsewhere. Opinions are those of the contributors and are not necessarily endorsed by Independent Media Centre Ireland. Disclaimer | Privacy