Points regarding the recommendation of the Labour Party:
The issue of diversity
- The issue of diversity in the teaching profession is far broader and more complicated than Irish alone. There is no evidence to support solely blaming Irish requirements for lack of diversity. This argument is based on an assumption that minoritised candidates do not already speak Irish, or that they are not capable of learning Irish - an assumption that is disrespectful to those same candidates.
- Access (or lack of access) to training courses contribute to lack of diversity: the general academic requirements (CAO points) for training courses, the cost of living for students, lack of accommodation, etc. There are other barriers at play when people try to register with the Teaching Council (research shows that teachers from other countries have difficulty obtaining all the required documents from their home country).
- Focusing on Irish as the barrier to a teaching career avoids drawing attention to the racism and discrimination that minoritised candidates face in the education system in Ireland.
- Many universities have support schemes funded by the Higher Education Authority (more information available here), and are having positive results by supporting people from different backgrounds to access initial teacher education courses. The experience from some of these support programmes is that it is the high CAO points, rather than the H4 in Irish, that is a barrier to people from non-traditional backgrounds.
- There are already alternative routes available that provide intensive courses for candidates to achieve the Irish qualification (more information available here).
- There is already a system in place in primary schools to give 3 years to any teacher who comes from abroad to reach the required Irish qualification.
If Irish was the main barrier at primary school level, there would be no issue with diversity among teachers at post-primary level, where there is no Irish requirement.
Teacher shortages
- There is no evidence to suggest that entry requirements for teaching training courses have any impact on teacher shortages. There are specific problems in cities, especially Dublin, where it has been recognised by principals that a lack of housing is the reason for teacher shortages in city schools.
- There is a huge demand for initial teacher education courses (notwithstanding the current entry requirements). Removing the requirement of Honours Irish would not change the amount of teachers coming out of the colleges. The Department of Education sets out limits on the number of students that are accepted to teacher training colleges each year.
- Changes to the Substitution and Supervision Scheme in 2013 have meant that teachers cannot live adequately on substitution pay now. This has forced teachers to move abroad if they do not have a permanent job.
Standard of Irish
- We agree that the capability of student teachers should be brought up to the required standard during their 4 year course, but the students should start out on a high common level that can be improved to B2 level on the CEFR.
- For the most part, Irish is the second language of student teachers. There is a need for the Honours Irish entry requirement, therefore, to ensure that they have sufficient Irish to progress in their initial teacher education courses. Almost every candidate has fluent English, regardless of whether they sit Honours or Ordinary level English in the Leaving Certificate - the same cannot be said for Irish.
Alternative recommendations:
The issue of diversity
- To provide a full scholarship for every disadvantaged student during their school years, whether they are in a DEIS school or another school setting, to attend a Gaeltacht summer course.
- To add to the access courses for teachers, such as the course “Think about Teaching” that took place in 2021-2022, and is to take place again in the academic year 2023-2024 in Maynooth University. Research about this course is available at this link, and describes the very favourable experience that the students had of learning Irish through the CEFR system. Another project in Mary Immaculate College, Step into Teaching, funded by the HEA, had an Irish camp for young people. Dublin City University has a development hub that provides Maths, English and Irish support to post-primary students and adults in North Dublin who are interested in teaching and come from low socio-economic backgrounds. The participants achieve the H4 in Irish, but do not all achieve sufficient CAO points.
Teacher shortages
- To change the MGO/PME course back to a one year course, and to significantly reduce the course fees.
- To improve the Substitution and Supervision Scheme (to pre-2013 levels) so that people can achieve an adequate standard of living working as a substitute.
- To offer permanent, full-time jobs to teachers.
- To fund the provision of additional spaces in initial teacher education courses. The number of students in first year increased in 2020 due to Covid, but this increase did not continue in 2021 or 2022. If the number of students who could attend the colleges increased, the CAO points would be lowered.
Standard of Irish
- To put together a policy for Irish in the education system from pre-school to third-level, as promised in the Programme for Government, without further delay. This policy should be based on the CEFR, and would greatly assist in ensuring that any student attending teacher training college in the future has the required standard.
- To deal with the over-supply of exemptions from Irish in schools.
- To provide for a Gaeltacht course in each year of the BEd, and to increase the teaching hours of Irish in the colleges.
- To offer periods of language immersion, or partial-immersion programmes in the training colleges.
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pdf of our statement available here.
We are happy to speak with the Labour Party and any other groups to develop an approach that meets the needs of schoolchildren, teachers, minoritised applicants and the Irish language.
