This article is from page 8 of the 2011-10-11 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 8 JPG
THE move towards establishing a new secondary school in Clare where everything will be taught through the medium of Irish has taken a huge step forward this week following the publication of a feasibility study report that was commissioned by Clare VEC.
A copy of the extensive report seen by The Cla re People has revealed that an overwhelming number of respondents to the countywide survey have backed the concept of a standalone Irish secondary school.
Key figures contained in the report show that 88 per cent of the 854 respondents to the survey “agreed or agreed strongly that Irish-medium education should be available at second level”, while 69 per cent of survey participants said that Gaelcholáiste an Chláir would move to its own campus. These are the main findings of the report, which was commissioned by Clare VEC in January when it “appointed an independent external consultant to conduct a survey to assess the demand for second-level education entirely through the medium of Irish in Clare and to inform future planning and options for Gaelcholáiste an Chláir”.
As part of the process participants were asked their views on whether the Gaelcholáiste “should establish independent status and move to its own campus”, or whether the school “should remain as it is, operating within Ennis Community College”.
“There was clear evidence from respondents’ comments that more parents will be encouraged to enroll their children in Gaelcholáiste an Chláir if it can provide full immersion education and establish its own ethos and identity,” the report says.
“In 2006, Limerick VEC established a very successful stand-alone independent Gaelcholáiste. Gael- choláiste Luimnigh began with 30 pupils and now attracts over 100 applications annually and has an intake of 80. This positive experience might either encourage the Department of Education to establish a similar entity in Clare or the view may be taken that the region already has a standalone Gaelcholáiste in Limerick City with the capacity to become a much bigger school,” the report adds.
The move to establish all-Irish secondary education in the county was born in 1993 when Ghaelcholáiste an Chláir opened on the Ennis Community College site. Since then, the school has built up to a full six-year secondary cycle with an annual intake of approximately 30 pupils.
The project was initiated by parents and involved polling parents of potential pupils as well as supporting the Vocational Education Committee and Department of Education to find the way to fund the project.