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A Gaelscoil (; plural: ''Gaelscoileanna'') is an
Irish language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
-medium school in Ireland: the term refers especially to Irish-medium schools outside the Irish-speaking regions or
Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...
. Over 50,000 students attend Gaelscoileanna at primary and second-level on the island of Ireland. A further over 13,000 students are receiving their primary and second level education through Irish in the Gaeltacht. Gaelscoileanna and Irish-medium schools in the Gaeltacht are supported and represented by Gaeloideachas and
An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta & Gaelscolaíochta An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta / COGG is a Republic of Ireland State-agency who serve as a consultative council to the Irish Department of Education and Skills and other organisations and individuals on Irish language ...
or COGG in the Republic of Ireland and by
Comhairle na Gaelscolaíochta Comhairle na Gaelscolaíochta or CnaG is the representative body for Irish-language medium education in Northern Ireland. Its name translates into English as the ''Council for Irish-language medium education''. It was established in 2000 by the N ...
in Northern Ireland. Students in the Gaelscoileanna acquire the Irish language through
language immersion Language immersion, or simply immersion, is a technique used in bilingual language education in which two languages are used for instruction in a variety of topics, including math, science, or social studies. The languages used for instruction ...
, and study the standard curriculum through it. Gaelscoileanna, unlike English-medium schools, have the reputation of producing competent Irish speakers. English-medium schools, in contrast, produce relatively few fluent Irish speakers, despite the
Irish language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
being an obligatory subject in the
Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...
in both primary and secondary school. This has been attributed in part to the lack of Irish-language immersion programs. Gaelscoileanna have undergone a striking expansion over the last few decades, although there are now concerns that rules limiting the founding of new schools is affecting the establishment of new Irish-medium education in areas where there is a competition amongst educational patrons. Their success is due to effective (though limited) community support and an efficient administrative infrastructure. They are distinguished by being the product, not of state policy, but of a genuine community movement. In 1972 there were only 11 such schools at primary level and five at secondary level in the
Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...
. As of September 2021 there are 185 gaelscoileanna at primary level, attended by over 40,000 students, and 31 gaelcholáistí and 17 aonaid Ghaeilge (Irish language units) at secondary level, attended by over 12,000 students in non-
Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...
areas across
Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
. 35 of these primary schools, 2 of the postprimary schools and 4 of the postprimary units operated are in Northern Ireland. Additionally, some 4,000 children attend Irish-medium preschools or Naíonraí outside the Gaeltacht with around 1,000 children attending ''Naíonraí'' within the Gaeltacht. There is now at least one gaelscoil in every county in Ireland with over 50 in County Dublin; 30 in County Cork and 13 in County Antrim included.


Social status and function

Gaelscoileanna have acquired a reputation for providing excellent academic results at a moderate cost. They have been described as a system of "positive social selection" giving better than average access to tertiary education and the social and employment opportunities which follow. An analysis of "feeder" schools which send students on to tertiary level institutions shows that 22% of Irish-medium schools send all their students on to tertiary level, compared to 7% of English-medium schools. Supporters argue that the bilingualism resulting from early acquisition of another language is of general intellectual benefit and helps children to learn still other languages. Irish-language advocates of the immersion approach sometimes refer to studies showing that bilingual children have advantages over monoglot children in other subjects.


Statistics


By province (primary level)

* Leinster - 19,331 primary students attend 71 gaelscoileanna. * Ulster - 6,801 primary students attend 45 gaelscoileanna. * Munster - 11,332 primary students attend 44 gaelscoileanna. * Connacht - 3,509 primary students attend 18 gaelscoileanna.


Post-primary education through Irish

At present over 12,000 students on the island of Ireland are receiving secondary education through Irish outside Gaeltacht areas. These include around 10,000 students in the Republic of Ireland. Two new second-level gaelscoileanna opened in Ireland in 2014: Coláiste Ghlór na Mara in
Balbriggan Balbriggan (; , IPA: �bˠalʲəˈbʲɾʲɪɟiːnʲ is a coastal town in Fingal, in the northern part of County Dublin, Ireland, approximately 34 km from Dublin City. The 2016 census population was 21,722 for Balbriggan and its environs. ...
and Gaelcholáiste an Phiarsaigh in Rathfarnham (both in
County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...
). Gaelcholáiste Charraig Uí Leighin opened in
Carrigaline Carrigaline () is a town and civil parish in County Cork, Ireland, situated on the River Owenabue. Located about south of Cork city, and with a population of 15,770 people, it is one of the largest commuter towns of the city. The R611 regiona ...
and
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is #Descriptions, variously described as ...
's second gaelcholáiste Gaelcholáiste Dhoire opened in Dungiven Castle in 2015. Gaelcholáiste Mhic Shuibhne opened in Knocknaheeney in 2019. Gaelcholáiste Mhaigh Nuad opened in
Maynooth Maynooth (; ga, Maigh Nuad) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's ...
in September 2020. There are also campaigns running for several new gaelcholáistí in other areas.


20-Year Strategy

The function and future of the Gaelscoileanna in the Republic of Ireland will be affected by the 20-Year Strategy for the Irish Language 2010-2030, published in December 2010. This emphasises the importance of offering all children in primary schools in Ireland the opportunity to experience partial immersion in the formative years of primary education. It calls for primary teachers to have additional immersion classes to improve their competence in the language. This would involve teaching some subjects such as Mathematics and Science in Irish. Such a policy, if implemented effectively, may mean that the gaelscoileanna will no longer be the largest means of promoting Irish/English language bilingualism in schoolchildren.


See also

* An Foras Pátrúnachta * Education in the Republic of Ireland *
Education in Northern Ireland Education in Northern Ireland differs from education systems elsewhere in the United Kingdom (although it is relatively similar to Wales), but is similar to the Republic of Ireland in sharing in the development of the ''national school'' syste ...
* Official Languages Act 2003 * Calandreta, bilingual French- Occitan school in
Occitania Occitania ( oc, Occitània , , or ) is the historical region in Western and Southern Europe where the Occitan language was historically spoken and where it is sometimes still used as a second language. This cultural area roughly encompasse ...
, France *
Diwan (school) Diwan (pronounced ; "seed" in Breton) is a federation of Breton-medium schools in Brittany. Concept The Diwan concept, which allows children to learn French and Breton through language immersion, was inspired by the '' Gaelscoileanna'' movemen ...
– Breton medium education in
Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
*
Gaelic medium education in Scotland Gaelic-medium education (G.M.E. or GME; gd, Foghlam tro Mheadhan na Gàidhlig) is a form of education in Scotland that allows pupils to be taught primarily through the medium of Scottish Gaelic, with English being taught as the secondary langua ...
– Scottish Gaelic equivalent in
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
* Ikastola, similar education centre in Basque language * La Bressola, a bilingual French-
Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
school network in
Northern Catalonia Northern Catalonia, North Catalonia, ; french: Catalogne (du) Nord ; oc, Catalonha (del) Nòrd; es, Cataluña (del) Norte) French Catalonia or Roussillon refers to the Catalan-speaking and Catalan-culture territory ceded to France by Spain ...
, France * List of Irish medium primary schools in Northern Ireland *
Medium of instruction A medium of instruction (plural: media of instruction, or mediums of instruction) is a language used in teaching. It may or may not be the official language of the country or territory. If the first language of students is different from the offic ...
*
Welsh medium education Education delivered through the medium of the Welsh language is known as Welsh-medium education (). Welsh-medium education should be distinguished from the teaching of the Welsh language itself as an academic subject. 16% of pupils in Wales atte ...


References


External links

* List of Gaelscoileanna in Ireland (Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland)
Gaelscoileanna.ie (website of Gaelscoileanna Teo)

Stats on Gaeltacht schools 2004

Gaeltacht Comprehensive Language Study 2007

Gaelscoil stats 2010–2011

Republic of Ireland Census 2006 - daily speakers outside education system
{{Celtic languages Irish-language education Medium of instruction Celtic medium education Irish words and phrases Minority schools School types Language immersion