ALBA/SCOTLAND: NEW GAELIC MEDIUM SCHOOLS
"We need to impress upon parents and children the advantages of bi-lingualism within the European context."
This was the comment last week by Councillor Michael Foxley, Leader of the Highland Council's Administration in Alba/Scotland.
Cllr. Foxley was speaking after it was announced that The Highland Council's Education, Culture and Sport Committee agreed to establish two Gaelic Medium schools to serve the Greater Fort William and Portree communities.
The two schools will complement Scotland's first purpose-built Gaelic medium school, which was formally opened earlier this year in the Highland city of Inverness. Councillor Hamish Fraser, Chairman of the The Highland Council's Gaelic Committee said:
"I congratulate the Council for moving forward the Council's Gaelic Plan which is another historic and important decision which reinforces the Councils commitment to the Gaelic language and sends out a clear message that we are taking seriously our obligation to that Plan."
The first Gaelic School in Scotland, Bunsgoil Ghàidhlig Ghlaschu (Glasgow Gaelic Primary School), opened in 1999 and over the last few years the growth of such schools in the country has not been able to keep up with demand. Sgoil Ghàidhlig Ghlaschu, (Glasgow Gaelic School), a Gaelic medium secondary school currently has 700 pupils enrolled in it, but demand for places at the school is as high as 1000. This has prompted the local authority to consider building another school to meet demand in recent years.
However, this demand for Gaelic medium school places contrasts sharply with a lack of qualified teachers at both primary and secondary level in Scotland and a National Gaelic Education Steering Group was established this year to address the shortage. Also, recent surveys have shown that the number of Gaelic speakers has actually fallen since 1991, even though a growing number of children are being taught through the medium of Scottish Gaelic, with many more studying the language as a subject.
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(Article prepared for Celtic News by Rhisiart Tal-e-bot)
J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League
23/11/08
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