Department of Education and Youth Inspectorate report published on inspections of courses in Irish colleges
- Published on: 18 July 2025
- Last updated on: 18 July 2025
The Department of Education and Youth today published a report on its main findings from inspections of summer courses provided in Irish colleges in Gaeltacht areas.
The report, based on inspections of 272 individual lessons in 67 courses provided between 2022 and 2024, found that:
- Irish colleges are delivering effectively on their responsibility to nurture positive attitudes towards the Irish language among students
- through immersion education experiences and engaging cultural activities, students appeared enthusiastic about speaking Irish
- Irish colleges created a safe and supportive environment where students could use Irish naturally in everyday conversation.
Summer courses of two or three weeks’ duration are provided annually at Irish colleges in Gaeltacht areas to provide students with an opportunity to develop their Irish-language competency, as well as their knowledge and understanding of the life and culture of the Gaeltacht.
A total of 18,332 students attended officially-approved summer courses in Irish colleges in Gaeltacht areas in 2022, with this figure increasing to 21,979 students in 2023 and 22,753 students in 2024.
Minister for Education and Youth Helen Mc Entee TD welcomed the publication of the report and said:
“Attending the Gaeltacht is an important rite of passage for so many students and it is wonderful to see so many colleges offering Irish courses for students across the country. I want to thank those who put so much work into organising these courses which allow so many students to become fully immersed in the Irish language. The recommendations of this report will be of great assistance to the management of Irish colleges who strive to provide high quality language-learning experiences for students”.
The Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, Dara Calleary TD also welcomed the publication of the Inspectorate report. He said:
“The Irish colleges play a very important role in promoting the objectives of the 20-Year Strategy for the Irish Language 2010-2030. This report highights the strong positive impact that courses in Irish colleges have on young people’s attitude towards Irish. It is encouraging to see students taking pride in using Irish in their daily conversations, demonstrating both motivation and a strong commitment to the language. I am dedicated to working collaboratively with stakeholders to promote the delivery of high-quality Irish language experiences for students attending Irish courses in the Gaeltacht.”
Publishing the report, Chief Inspector Yvonne Keating said:
"The work undertaken in Irish colleges is an important part of supporting students’ ability to learn Irish and become fluent in the language. This report will support ongoing reflection by management and teachers in all Irish colleges on the quality of education they provide. Such reflective practice is an important contributor to the goal of strengthening and enriching the Irish-language learning experience for students across the country in the years ahead.”
The full composite report is available here.
For more information, please email Inspectorate@education.gov.ie.
Notes to Editors
The Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht (DRCDG) administers and funds the Irish Learners’ Scheme (Scéim na bhFoghlaimeoirí Gaeilge), and is responsible for officially approving courses in the Irish Colleges. The Department of Education and Youth's Inspectorate, at the request of the DRCDG, carries out an annual programme of inspection in up to one fifth of the courses provided each summer in Gaeltacht areas.
Inspections of courses in Irish colleges focus on three key areas:
- quality of teaching, learning and assessment
- quality of leadership and management
- quality of students' experience of Irish language and culture
The report highlights the following key points:
- Most teachers in the Irish colleges demonstrated a high standard of communication and proficiency in Irish, effective pedagogical and classroom management skills, and a positive and respectful relationship with learners.
- During some Irish courses, teachers made effective use of digital technology to support the language needs and learning experiences of the students.
- Students made good progress in learning the language when lesson content was connected to their daily lives and included relevant language input to enable them engage in meaningful conversations.
- Teachers provided constructive feedback to students on their use of the language, and often linked this feedback directly to the learning objectives of lessons.
- Most Irish colleges prioritised the personal, social, and wellbeing needs of students. Positive relationships were fostered between teachers and cinnirí (student leaders).
- The planning and the management of the courses in almost all of the Irish colleges was effective, and the activities were well organised.
- In most courses, a wide range of afternoon and evening events was provided, ranging from sporting events to cultural and arts-related activities such as music, song-singing and poetry.
- There were well-organised systems in place to support students in speaking Irish, particularly during afternoon activities and events, with valuable assistance provided by the cinnirí.
The report makes a number of recommendations to ensure that students across the country benefit from engaging and stimulating language-learning experiences in Irish colleges:
- In some instances, there was a need to increase the frequency of authentic communication opportunities for students and to spend more time on communicative tasks in Irish in order to better support students in acquiring and internalising the new language.
- Some courses required a clearer and more user-friendly monitoring system to track and record students’ language learning progress, making it easier for both students and parents to understand the progress made in acquiring the language.
- In a few of the Irish colleges, there was a need to introduce mentoring and collaborative teaching approaches to empower teachers as leaders of learning.
- In some courses, there was need to strengthen the connection between the lesson content in classrooms and the Irish language required for the afternoon and evening activities.
- On some courses, there was a need for teachers to use authentic materials, such as stories, poems and songs from the local area to enhance students’ understanding of the linguistic and cultural heritage of the Gaeltacht area.