Report comes as British Council also published biennial Language Trends, indicating very positive advancements for Irish language at both primary and secondary levels
The much anticipated ‘Strategic Review of the NI Curriculum’ was published yesterday, Tuesday 3rd June 2025. The report contains several significant headline recommendations relating to the Irish Medium Education Sector:
Recommendation 4 – Curriculum strands
Bespoke strands should be produced by the SEN and Irish-medium sectors to sit alongside the main curriculum framework, taking into account their unique needs and the immersion context. [pg 157]. [See also, ‘Adaptable for Irish-medium education’, paragraphs 9.118 - 9.120, pg 114].
Recommendation 18 – Resource development
A resource development scheme should be established to support curriculum implementation… This scheme and platform should include specific resources designed with and for the SEN sector and the IME sector. [pg 159]. [See also, ‘Teacher Workload’, paragraph 6.34, pg 59].
Teacher supply
2.20 The situation for the Irish-medium sector is even more severe. The sector requires specialist teachers with the accompanying language and immersion skills which is proving to be a significant barrier. [pg 19].
Strengths and weaknesses of the Curriculum
Not suitable for Irish-medium education:
6.40 Representatives from the Irish-medium sector expressed strong concerns that the current curriculum does not sufficiently reflect the realities of immersion education. While the existing statutory curriculum has been translated into Irish, with guidance provided, it was widely noted that this approach fails to account for the specific pedagogical approaches, language acquisition needs and learning trajectories of pupils educated through Irish... [pg. 60-1] [See, ‘Not suitable for Irish-medium education’, paragraphs 6.40 - 6.44, pgs 60-1].
The report also makes a headline recommendation regarding the statutory provision of languages other than English at primary school level (Key Stage 2, ages 8-11), echoing the Primary Languages Programme (PLP) which ran from 2007-2015, and more recently, the Gael Linn Scoil Spreagtha scheme:
Recommendation 13 – Primary Languages
After a lead-in time of five years, to give the sector time to prepare, ‘Languages other than English’ should be added as a statutory strand within the Language and Literacy Area of Learning at KS 2, focused on developing positive attitudes to learning languages and transferable language-learning skills. [pg 158].
[See also, ‘Languages’, paragraphs 11.23 - 11.31].
Following that report, today, Wednesday 4th June, the British Council has published their bi-annual ‘Language Trends’ report. The report contains the following updates on Language Trends within the education sector regarding the teaching and uptake of the Irish language:
Renewed growth and interest in the Irish language:
41.9% of responding post-primary schools now teach Irish at Key Stage 3 (up from 35% in 2023);
GCSE entries have risen by 14.9% in 2024 compared to the previous year;
At primary level, there are encouraging signs of growth. Nearly two-thirds (64.7%) of responding primary schools now teach a language, up from 51 per cent in 2023. Irish is the most commonly taught language, followed by French and Spanish.
Ciarán Mac Giolla Bhéin, President of Conradh na Gaeilge has said:
“The Irish Medium Education (IME) sector has been calling for root and branch reform of the support provided by the Department of Education to Irish medium schools, students, parents and teachers. The curriculum review has outlined many of the pressing issues facing our schools, including the need for a bespoke curriculum for the sector, including a sectoral specific approach to resources and teacher supply. If implemented effectively, those recommendations would have a huge impact on the Irish medium sector.”
“All of those issues, and more, including bespoke IME SEN provision, and suitable accommodation, have been highlighted by the Irish medium sector and international oversight bodies for many, many years.”
“We welcome the recent announcement that the Minister for Education has approved the development of a Department-led Irish-Medium Education Strategy and Action Plan. That work must now be brought forward with haste, in line with best practice for immersive education and the well documented needs of the sector. We look forward to working with the Department on the development of that Strategy. Conradh na Gaeilge remains committed to strengthening the legislative framework supporting Irish Medium Education and work is underway to bring forward a draft Irish Medium Education Bill that would build on the existing statutory duty similar to that of the Integrated Education Act (2022).”
Dr Pádraig Ó Tiarnaigh, Communications Manager, Conradh na Gaeilge, commented:
“The findings of the British Council Language trend report are very encouraging for all of those involved in the promotion and teaching of Irish. We have known that over recent years interest in the language has blossomed at various levels, with uptake of adult classes increasing significantly. The 2025 Language Trend figures show significant upward trends in GCSE uptake, Key Stage 3 provision and at primary school level, with Irish leading the way at Key Stage 2 level, as a result of the resounding success of the Scoil Spreagtha scheme administered by Gael Linn.”
“It is very timely, therefore, that the Review of the Curriculum has recommended that an additional language will become a statutory requirement at Key Stage 2 within 5 years. That recommendation has the potential to be a watershed development regarding the place of the Irish language in the English language education sector and is testament to the incredible impact of the Scoil Spreagtha scheme over recent years.
“We note, however, that whilst the Review touched on the difficulties facing languages at GCSE, it did not recommend reinstating a requirement for all students to take one modern language, in addition to English, to GCSE. We will continue to work with the Department on that front, and, in particular Assembly Members, as we seek to bring forward a policy to that end in the near future.”
CONTACT:
Pádraig Ó Tiarnaigh, Bainisteoir Cumarsáide
202 Bóthar na bhFál, BT12 6AH
EDITOR’S NOTE:
The 2025 ‘Strategic Review of the NI Curriculum’ can be accessed here:
https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2025-06/NI%20Curriculum%20Review_0.pdf
The 2025 British Council ‘Language Trends’ can be accessed here:
https://nireland.britishcouncil.org/programmes/education/language-trends-northern-ireland
