Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Caithfidh mé a admháil - is dócha go mbeidh sé soiléir i gceann tamaill - nach bhfuil mo chuid Gaeilge chomh líofa agus chomh flúirseach leis an nGaeilge atá ag na Teachtaí eile a labhair go dtí seo. Tá grá agam don teanga. Déanaim agus déanfaidh mé mo dhícheall an Ghaeilge a labhairt. Tá sé oiriúnach agus tábhachtach go bhfuil an díospóireacht seo ar siúl inniu, i rith Seachtain na Gaeilge agus go háirithe roimh cheiliúradh Lá Fhéile Pádraig. Is cinnte gur rud dearfach é go bhfuil Seachtain na Gaeilge againn. Is mór an trua é nach bhfuil ach lá Gaeilge amháin - nó maidin amháin, b'fhéidir - againn sa Teach seo. Is dóigh liom go mbeadh sé i bhfad níos fearr dá mbeimid in ann an Ghaeilge agus an Béarla a úsáid i rith na bliana sa Dáil. Ceapaim gurb é sin an tslí is fearr atá romhainn iarracht a dhéanamh chun a bheith dátheangach. Nuair a bhíos i dhá scoil an tseachtain seo caite - ní gaelscoileanna a bhí ann - bhí sé soiléir dom go raibh iarrachtaí á ndéanamh ag na daltaí scoile an Ghaeilge a labhairt ag am lón nó am sos. This week I visited schools which were not Gaelscoileanna but it is obvious that schools are placing a lot of emphasis on making an effort to speak Irish. Beidh mé ag caint as Béarla agus as Gaeilge i rith an cúpla nóiméad atá fágtha agam.

It is a terrible indictment of our education system that having been in primary school and second-level school for 14 years, some many young Irish people leave school unable to carry on a conversation in Irish. There is something wrong with that system if this is the result and it needs to be dealt with. I refer to a presentation in the AV room yesterday room about a programme involving Ireland and universities in America. American students come to Ireland and following a total immersion programme in Irish they are able to carry on a conversation at a much better standard than would be the case for some Irish school students. The most glaring failure of successive Governments from the foundation of the State has been the neglect of our language. We have failed to make inroads into making Irish the spoken language of choice for Irish people. Ceapaim go bhfuil gach páirtí polaitíochta ciontach maidir leis an teanga. I think Irish will survive but it will not be as a result of Government action. There is no doubting the Minister of State's commitment but Irish will survive if the people wish it. Time does not allow me to speak about the policies since the foundation of the State but a common denominator is that they have all been ineffective.

I ask where is the will to address this issue. Article 8.1 of the Constitution states:

The Irish language as the national language is the first official language.

We pay mere lip service to that article. Article 8.3 states:

Provision may, however, be made by law for the exclusive use of either of the said languages for any one or more official purposes, either throughout the State or in any part thereof.

While we pay lip service to the first language, the second language has been used to the detriment of Irish as a spoken language. There is a need for native speakers, including the people in the Chamber, to be more accommodating and receptive of those for whom Irish is not their first language but who are making great efforts to speak it.

We must accept that while the Gaeltacht areas have a valuable role to play in safeguarding and promoting the language, so, too, do other areas.

Bhí an t-ádh liom nuair a bhí mé ar scoil, an bhunscoil agus an mheánscoil agus go háirithe an mheánscoil, Cnoc Carmel, i Sráid Hallaí an Rí, go raibh múinteoirí sár maith agam. Bhí grá acu don Ghaeilge, bhí suim acu sa Ghaeilge, ach go háirithe, bhí suim acu an grá sin a spreagadh ionainn. D'éirigh leo an chuid is mó den am. Bhí a fhios againn gur teanga bheo í an Ghaeilge agus gur teanga í le labhairt. An chéad rud gur cóir a dhéanamh anois ná féachaint ar an tslí ina bhfuil Gaeilge á múineadh ag múinteoirí.

We also have to consider the entry requirements for the teacher training colleges. A C3 in honours Irish in the leaving certificate is a good achievement, but it does not indicate an interest in or an ability to promote Irish. I know people who got an A1 in honours Irish because they were able to approach the examination in a certain way, but they cannot conduct a conversation in the language. The oral examination now accounts for 40% of the total marks for the Irish examination, but not all schools will take that up because of the extra workload on teachers. It is another issue that needs to be examined. We must ensure that people going into the training colleges come out with a love of Irish, because they are the first port of call for most children when it comes to learning Irish.

In the past, students in the training colleges received a grant to spend a few weeks in the Gaeltacht. That total immersion approach had a very positive impact. In the case of teachers who are not successful in getting into the training colleges here and instead go to the United Kingdom to obtain a teaching qualification, I understand the Irish examination they have to take in order to be fully qualified to teach at primary level in this country is of a higher standard in terms of the spoken language. That is something the Department should examine.

Ní féidir liom a thuiscint cén fáth, ó thús an Stáit agus i rith na mblianta nach raibh gach scoil ina Gaelscoil, fiú amháin go dtí rang a haon nó a dó. Nuair a théann leanaí chuig Gaelscoil ag ceithre nó cúig bliana d'aois, bíonn Gaeilge ag cuid acu, ach ní bhíonn Gaeilge ag an gcuid eile. Ach tar éis bliana nó dhó, tá siad ábalta labhairt as Gaeilge. Tá leanaí cosúil le spúinse. Is dócha go mbeidís ábalta teanga ar bith a fhoghlaim, ar nós Fraincis, Spáinnis nó Gearmáinis. The child whose first language is Irish will still speak English very well, but the child whose first language is English will not have the same standard of Irish as the former. Tá rud éigin mícheart there.

The Fine Gael Party's election manifesto included an undertaking to remove Irish as a core subject for the leaving certificate. We saw the reception that proposal met, and I was glad to see it. Chun críochnú, tá ár dteanga thábhachtach, cosúil lenár gcultúr agus ár n-oidhreacht. Gan dabht, tá sí i mbaol. Mar sin, caithfidh muid greim a bhreith ar an fhadhb i dtreo agus go mbeidh an Ghaeilge á labhairt ag daoine agus na generations atá ag teacht. Is féidir linn rud éigin a dhéanamh, cosúil leis an rud a dhein Ceanada, an Bheilg agus an Bhreatain Bheag ionas go mbeidh muid go léir dátheangach.

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