Breis is €2 mhilliún bronnta ag an Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spórt agus Meán ar Lárionad na Gaeilge, Ollscoil Mhá Nuad, le tacú le tograí i múineadh agus i measúnú na Gaeilge
Ag ócáid in Ollscoil Mhá Nuad inniu, d’fhógair Aire Stáit na Gaeltachta agus Spóirt, Jack Chambers TD, maoiniú €2,084,330 do Lárionad na Gaeilge: Taighde, Teagasc agus Tástáil, le tacú le ceithre thogra de chuid an Lárionaid as seo go ceann trí bliana:
€1,604,881 do Theastas Eorpach na Gaeilge (TEG)
€255,332 don Teastas i Múineadh na Gaeilge do Dhaoine Fásta (ar líne)
€149,700 le tacú le múineadh na Gaeilge sa Centre Culturel Irlandais, Páras
€74,417 don acmhainn teagaisc agus foghlama Vifax
Is córas neamhspleách scrúduithe agus cáilíochtaí Gaeilge é TEG, atá bunaithe go ginearálta ar an bhFráma Tagartha Comónta Eorpach (FTCE), ag cúig leibhéal ó A1 (Bonnleibhéal 1) go dtí C1 (Ardleibhéal 1). Ó cuireadh tús le TEG sa bhliain 2005, tá beagnach 12,000 foghlaimeoir Gaeilge tar éis tabhairt faoi na scrúduithe, in ionaid ar fud na hÉireann agus thar lear. Tá an córas á úsáid anois i réimse comhthéacsanna acadúla agus gairmiúla mar shlat tomhais neamhspleách, bhailí, iontaofa ar an inniúlacht sa Ghaeilge. Beidh tábhacht faoi leith ag baint le córas TEG sa tréimhse atá amach romhainn, agus é mar phríomhaidhm ag Acht na dTeangacha Oifigiúla (Leasú 2021) go mbeidh 20% d’fhosaithe nua de chuid na hearnála poiblí inniúil ar an nGaeilge faoin mbliain 2030. An tseachtain seo caite, d’fhógair an tAire Stáit ‘Ré nua do Chúrsaí Gaeilge sa Státseirbhís’ agus TEG le teastasú a dhéanamh ar na cúrsaí Gaeilge uilig a chuirtear ar fáil do bhaill foirne na Státseirbhíse. Le cois scrúduithe agus teastasú, cuireann siollabais agus acmhainní tacaíochta TEG spriocanna cinnte foghlama roimh mhúinteoirí agus roimh fhoghlaimeoirí le go mbeidh na foghlaimeoirí in ann líofacht sa Ghaeilge a bhaint amach céim ar chéim. Tá maoiniú TEG méadaithe faoi thrí, go dtí breis is €1.6 milliún, le tacú leis an obair bhreise atá beartaithe agus le forbairtí eile a dhéanamh ar an gcóras as seo go ceann trí bliana.
Cuireadh tús leis an Teastas i Múineadh na Gaeilge do Dhaoine Fásta mar chúrsa ar líne sa bhliain 2019. Mar chuid den chúrsa, cuirtear oiliúint agus meantóireacht ar fáil dóibh siúd atá ag múineadh na Gaeilge do dhaoine fásta i réimse comhthéacsanna, lena n-áirítear, ceantair Ghaeltachta agus suíomhanna idirnáisiúnta, ranganna don phobal agus cúrsaí tríú leibhéal. Is é an t-aon chúrsa teastasaithe dá leithéid agus toisc gur ar líne a dhéantar é, meallann sé mic léinn ó réimse leathan tíortha agus cúlraí. Tá leathanach gréasáin ag baint leis an togra freisin, áit a gcuirtear acmhainní agus treoir ar fáil saor in aisce d’aon duine a bhfuil spéis aige/aici sa dea-chleachtas i múineadh na Gaeilge.
Tá Lárionad na Gaeilge ag cur cúrsaí ar fáil sa Centre Culturel Irlandais (CCI), Páras, ó bhí 2005 ann. Bíonn an-tóir ar na ranganna i gcónaí, agus bíonn thart ar 60 duine ag freastal orthu agus ag tabhairt faoi scrúduithe TEG i bPáras. Tacaíonn an Lárionad le himeachtaí teanga agus cultúir in CCI freisin, chun an Ghaeilge a chur chun cinn i measc mhuintir Pháras. Ar an 25 Samhain 2022, beidh an ceoltóir cáiliúil Conallach Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh ó Altan ina haoi speisialta ag ócáid in CCI le ceiliúradh a dhéanamh ar na foghlaimeoirí Gaeilge agus orthu siúd a bhain teastais TEG amach le roinnt blianta anuas. Tá an caidreamh idir CCI agus Lárionad na Gaeilge an-speisialta go háirithe mar gheall ar an dlúthcheangal stairiúil atá idir Maigh Nuad agus Coláiste na nGael, Páras, an foirgneamh ina bhfuil CCI lonnaithe sa lá atá inniu ann.
Ar deireadh, tá méadú tagtha freisin ar an maoiniú a chuirfear ar fáil don togra Vifax sa tréimhse trí bliana atá amach romhainn. Is acmhainn ilmheán teagaisc agus foghlama é Vifax, a chuireann ceachtanna seachtainiúla Gaeilge ar fáil ar líne le linn na bliana acadúla, bunaithe ar fheasacháin nuachta ó Nuacht TG4. Tá sé á chur ar fáil saor in aisce do mhúinteoirí agus d’fhoghlaimeoirí Gaeilge ó bhí 1998 ann. Is é an chéad acmhainn dá leithéid a cuireadh ar fáil don Ghaeilge agus bronnadh an Séala Eorpach do Theangacha air sa bhliain 1999, as an nuálaíocht agus as an bhfeabhas a bhain leis. Tá Vifax á chómhaoiniú ag COGG i gcomhar leis an Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán. Tacóidh an maoiniú breise le roinnt forbairtí atá beartaithe do Vifax, ina measc, pacáiste nua teagaisc agus foghlama a sheolfar i samhradh 2023, bunaithe ar shobalchlár TG4, Ros na Rún.
San óráid a thug an tAire Stáit Chambers, chuir sé béim ar an ról tábhachtach a bheidh ag TEG ó thaobh méadú ar úsáid na Gaeilge sa státchóras: “Tá Lárionad na Gaeilge chun tosaigh maidir le foghlaim agus teagasc na teanga a leathnú chuig gach pobal agus comhthéacs anseo sa bhaile agus thar lear. Tá sé mar sprioc ag mo Roinn faoi Acht na dTeangacha Oifigiúla (Leasú), 2021 go mbeidh 20% d’fhostaithe an státchórais líofa sa Ghaeilge faoin mbliain 2030. Táim lánsásta, mar sin, go bhfuil mo Roinn ag déanamh infheistíochta €1.6 milliún chun clár méadaithe TEG a chur ar fáil. Ina leith seo, tá sé ríthábhachtach go mbeadh measúnú trédhearcach éifeachtach á dhéanamh ar dhul chun cinn an duine ó thaobh líofacht Gaeilge de; le comhoibriú idir an Lárionad anseo agus comhpháirtithe eile, beidh ar chumas thart ar sheacht gcéad caoga (750) fostaí de chuid an státchórais teastasú TEG a bhaint amach in aghaidh na bliana.”
Labhair Uachtarán Ollscoil Mhá Nuad, an tOllamh Eeva Leinonen faoi thábhacht thograí Lárionad na Gaeilge le tacú leis an dátheangachas sa tír: “As a linguist and as a native of Finland, I understand the importance of state policies and services that support and promote bilingualism and language rights for all members of society. I’m very proud that Maynooth University’s Centre for Irish Language is playing an important role in supporting those national policies, and in providing the structures, pathways and resources to help adult learners re-engage with Irish and to become competent and confident users of the language.”
Ag labhairt di ag an ócáid, ghabh Stiúrthóir Lárionad na Gaeilge, Aoife Ní Ghloinn, buíochas leis an Aire agus leis an Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán as a gcuid tacaíochta i gcónaí d’obair Lárionad na Gaeilge, agus mhol sí an fhoireann, a mbíonn a gcuid saineolais, tiomantais agus cruthaitheachta ag croílár obair cheannródaíoch an Lárionaid i gcónaí.
Maynooth University’s Centre for Irish Language awarded over €2 million by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht
Maynooth University’s Centre for Irish Language has been awarded over €2 million by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media to support Irish-language teaching and testing initiatives.
At an event in Maynooth University today, the Minister of State for the Gaeltacht and for Sport, Jack Chambers TD, announced funding of €2,084,330 to the Centre for Irish Language Research, Teaching and Testing. This funding will provide continued support for four of the Centre’s Irish-language projects over the next three years:
€1,604,881 for Teastas Eorpach na Gaeilge (TEG)
€255,332 for the Certificate in Teaching Irish to Adult Learners
€149,700 to support Irish language programmes in the Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris
€74,417 for the online teaching and learning resource Vifax
TEG is a suite of independent language proficiency tests available for Irish, broadly aligned with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), at five levels from A1 (Beginner) to C1 (Advanced). Since its establishment in 2005, TEG exams have been taken by almost 12,000 candidates all over Ireland and abroad. The system is used as an independent, valid and reliable benchmark for Irish language proficiency in a range of academic and professional contexts. Their use in professional contexts is becoming increasingly important in the implementation of national language policy and strategy, in particular the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021, which aims to ensure that 20% of new employees recruited to the public sector will be proficient in Irish by the year 2030. Last week, Minister of State Chambers announced a ‘new era’ for Irish language professional development across the Civil Service, with TEG certification to be integrated into all Irish-language courses provided for Civil Service employees. In addition to the exams and certification, TEG syllabuses and resources provide learners and teachers with clear learning targets that enable learners to develop fluency in Irish, step by step. TEG funding has been tripled to over €1.6 million to support additional developments in the TEG system over the next three years.
The Certificate in Teaching Irish to Adults was established as an online programme in 2019 and provides training and mentoring to those teaching Irish to adults in a range of contexts, including in Gaeltacht areas and overseas, in community settings and at third level. It is the only certified course of its kind and its online delivery has made it accessible to students from a diverse range of backgrounds and locations. An accompanying online resource hub provides free open-access training and professional development materials to all interested in best practice in Irish-language teaching.
Lárionad na Gaeilge has been providing Irish-language classes in the Centre Culturel Irlandais (CCI), Paris since 2005. These very popular classes are attended weekly by approximately 60 students at four levels, many of whom take TEG exams in Paris. The Lárionad also promotes and supports Irish language cultural events and activities in CCI. Renowned Donegal singer, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh of Altan, will perform in CCI on 25 November 2022 at an event to recognise the achievements of TEG graduates and alumni. The collaboration between the Lárionad and CCI is particularly special, due to the close historical links between Maynooth and the Irish College in Paris, which houses the CCI today.
Finally, Lárionad na Gaeilge’s Vifax project has also seen its funding renewed and increased for the next three-year period. Vifax is an online multimedia language-learning resource, consisting of weekly lessons based on authentic news bulletins from Nuacht TG4. It has been produced by Lárionad na Gaeilge since 1998 and is made freely available to teachers and learners online each week. It was the first resource of its kind available for Irish and received the European Language Label for innovation and excellence in language teaching and learning in 1999. Vifax is co-funded by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and COGG. Increased funding will support a number of developments, including a new teaching and learning package to be launched in summer 2023, based on Ros na Rún, the long-running TG4 drama series.
In his address, Minister Chambers emphasised the key role of TEG in the efforts to widen the use of Irish in the state sector. “Lárionad na Gaeilge is at the forefront of expanding the learning and teaching of the language to numerous communities and contexts here at home and abroad. My Department's goal under the Official Languages (Amendment) Act, 2021 is for 20% of the employees of the state system to be fluent in Irish by 2030. I am therefore very happy that my Department is investing €1.6 million to provide for an expanded TEG programme. In this regard, it is vital that a transparent and effective assessment of progress in terms of fluency in Irish is carried out; with collaboration between Lárionad na Gaeilge here and other partners, approximately seven hundred and fifty (750) employees from the Civil and Public Service will be able to achieve TEG certification per year.”
Welcoming Minister Chambers to Maynooth University, President of Maynooth University, Professor Eeva Leinonen spoke about the significance of this funding for the Centre’s projects. “As a linguist and as a native of Finland, I understand the importance of state policies and services that support and promote bilingualism and language rights for all members of society. I’m very proud that Maynooth University’s Centre for Irish Language is playing an important role in supporting those national policies, and in providing the structures, pathways and resources to help adult learners re-engage with Irish and to become competent and confident users of the language.”
Speaking at the event, Director of Lárionad na Gaeilge, Aoife Ní Ghloinn thanked the Minister and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, for their continued support for the work of Lárionad na Gaeilge, and she paid tribute to the staff, whose expertise, creativity and dedication were at the heart of the Centre’s achievements and pioneering work.