Kirsty King

Northern Ireland’s education system is still segregated by religion, with the Irish language traditionally only being taught in Catholic-run schools. In many other schools, such as the state-run school I attended, Irish is not offered as a subject option. One of my favourite aspects of secondary school was learning about different languages and cultures, which led me to study French and Spanish at A-Level. While I found studying languages at this level challenging, there was something rewarding about conversing, albeit simply, with the school language assistants in their native tongue.

Over the few years since Ieaving school, in which time I have attended university and had the privilege of meeting a wide range of people from different backgrounds and nationalities, something significant has come to light: the peculiarity that, despite my A-Level-standard knowledge of French and Spanish, I am only aware of a select few phrases of Irish – the native language of the island on which I live.

What’s more, I can’t help but feel disappointment in myself for not making more of an effort to learn the basics of the Irish language up until this point. While in some part I sense this to be an individual failure, I also believe this to be a fault of schooling here. I wonder now if I had had the opportunity to learn Irish at some point during my secondary education, how much more aware of Irish culture I would be as a young person, and how this would benefit me in my everyday life and interactions.

These thoughts are not uncommon amongst young people here. Others, like myself, who were students at Northern Irish secondary schools where Irish was not a subject option, would have liked the opportunity to study it. Here’s why.

Kyle, a 22-year-old Politics graduate from Newry attended a single-faith state school in rural South Down. He says, “I would have liked to have been taught Irish as it is a key part of our shared history on this island and should a comprehensive Irish Language Act be introduced by the NI Executive, it will be a part of all of our lives – which is a great thing.” Kyle continues, “Having a basic grasp of the Irish Language is a skill but also expresses solidarity with those who may be first language Irish speakers. It is not political and does not compromise any ideological position, but shows an appreciation for the shared culture, heritage and history which characterises our island.”

Al is a 21-year-old from a mixed town near the sea. She went to a Catholic run-school, but one in which Catholic students were in the minority and Irish was not a subject choice. She thinks “Being taught Irish in school and having the option to gain qualifications in it would have come with a lot of benefits, with the most important one being that I’d actually be able to communicate with those in my country who use Irish as their first language. Even things like reading road signs when in the South or certain parts of the North wouldn’t be such a ‘struggle’.” Al also suggests that “knowing Irish comes with a sense of community too, which I wasn’t given the option of growing up.”

Eibhlín NicCormaic

Rachel is a student at Queen’s University Belfast, who grew up beside the Mourne mountains. She points out how “most of the mountains have Irish names, and learning the language as an adult, I'm constantly thrilled when I put two and two together to understand the place names and stories around me a little better.” Rachel believes, “Making a language real is so important for learning, and I think at 12 I'd have been so intrigued by the place names, and how the word order in Irish influences how we speak English today. In those ways Irish has always been a part of my life.”

On reflection of our own schooldays, many of us wonder about the potential positive impact that offering Irish in all Northern Irish secondary schools could have on the next generation. Simply providing Irish as a subject option in all schools here would nurture open-mindedness in Northern Ireland’s young people, allowing them the freedom to openly appreciate another’s culture, while at the same time understanding that it does not diminish from one’s own culture in doing so. To not offer this opportunity only creates needless barriers and reinforces a divide which should not exist in 2022.

Eibhlín NicCormaic, the Queen’s University Students’ Union’s Irish language officer, finds it “very disappointing that some students in the North do not have the opportunity to study Irish if they want to”. She believes, “Students should have the opportunity to study our native language and the Executive should ensure that every student has this option regardless of where they go to school.”

Northern Irish politicians from a variety of backgrounds have recently spoken out in favour of an integrated education system here. Last month, UUP leader, Doug Beattie, spoke of the need to “end the educational apartheid which is taking place in Northern Ireland”. And, in relation to the recent passing of the Integrated Education Bill onto the next stage in the Assembly, Sinn Féin vice-president, Michelle O’Neill, discussed the importance of “working together to break down barriers across society” in order to “build a better future for all of our children.” Could offering Irish in all NI secondary schools be a step towards this goal?

Kirsty King is a deputy Culture editor at The Scoop, and an English student at Queen’s University Belfast

Language barriers: young people want Irish to be taught in all Northern Ireland secondary schools