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Sasanaigh Beaga & Oideachais Éireannach

Léigh mé an litir seo (féic suas, le do thóil) leis Marcus Ó Colmáin ar Gaelpost.com inné. Tá Colmáinach barúil aige go laidir faoi litir eile leis Dónal Ó Floinn. Bhí Floinniach tuairim difriul aigesean. Mheasaionn sé féin go mbeadh níos mó má dhéanfaidís mac leinn mar a thogrós siad féin. Shíl sé go mbeidh is mo páistí leo seo.

Níl aontaionn Colmáinach leis an smaoineamh seo. Tá fearg a glacadh le idé Ua Floinn. Ní dúil leis an páiste a foghlaim rudái uile! Thosaigh sé a labhairt teanga go nádúrtha. Dúirt Flionniach: is cuma má go mbeadh as Béarla nó as Gaeilge. Tá ábhar go mbeidh ag fás go suaimhneach ann.

Tá dhá fadhbannaí na scoileannái anois. Níl seans a tumadh go minic ann. Níl cúis a cleachtach ar an taobh amuigh de rang níos mo go minic. Fágfaidh duine óg go leor go náireach mar sin ní mbeidh liofa acu féin leis an teanga náisiúnta eile acusan.

Deir Colmáinach go bhfuil Floinniaich 'Sasanach beag.' Ceapainn Colmáinach go mbeidh contuirt seo in Éirinn ann. Tá Eorpachaigh ag rá teangaí eagsulaí go hionduil. Ach, níl duine is fearr na h-Eireann grá mór na Gaeilge. Níl ardmheas an-fior orthu ar an laghad. Má dhéanfaidís, go labharaí siad an oiread go leor nuair ag obair ar cheile gnáthsaol ann.
(in English)

Little Englanders & Irish Education

I read this letter (see below, please) by Marc Coleman in Gaelport.com yesterday. Coleman has his strong opinion about another letter by Donal Flynn. Flynn has himself a different judgement. He reckons that it would be better if students were to do as they pleased. He thinks that this will be best for children.

Coleman does not agree with this opinion. He is angry at the idea suggested by Flynn. A child has no desire to learn anything! He started to speak a language naturally. Flynn says: it does not matter if it would be in English or Irish. The material will grow easily in him.

There are two difficulties in the schools now. There's no chance to immerse often there. There's frequently no occasion to practice more outside of class. Therefore, many young people will leave ashamed at their own lack of fluency in their other national language.

Coleman says that Flynn is a "Little Englander." Coleman thinks that this will be a danger in Ireland. Europeans speak different languages usually. But, too many people in Ireland do not have a great love for Irish. They do not have a truly high esteem, at least. If they did, they would speak it much more when working together in everyday life.

10ú Bealtaine 2008

'Wretched' state of Irish in schools

Madam, - For sheer stupidity, Donal Flynn's letter of May 9th takes some beating. The whole purpose of education is not what youngsters 'want'. Youngsters 'want' to learn neither English nor Irish. But because they are exposed to English from day one, they absorb it without knowing it. Later learning becomes easy.

The State's failure to follow the widespread use of immersion education - successful employed in most bilingual countries - prevents this absorption as far as Irish is concerned, leading to resentment among a minority of students.

But it is the inability to practise Irish outside the school - thanks to the relentless economic persecution of the language through history - that, together with the failure to properly immerse them in Irish early on, prevents the majority of well disposed students from maintaining spoken Irish later on. Hence the embarrassment of Ireland being the only country with an indigenous language whose inhabitants can't speak it.

By the way immersion students are not only better at Irish, but better at English and other languages, as well as being generally smarter too. Our woeful - and almost unique in Europe - inability to learn other languages well stems from the little-Englander mentality of the likes of Mr Flynn.

If such attitudes prevail, we are headed for a moronic and lobotomised cultural future. From being a cradle of culture, we will be nothing more than a footnote in Anglo-American cultural history. - Yours, etc,

Marc Coleman,

St John's Close,
Dun Laoghaire,
Co Dublin.
www.ireland.com

Griangraf/Photo: Scoil Aonghusa, Geata an Domhnaigh, Droichead Átha, Co Lu. Fáilte ar Scoil Aonghusa!