Minister Foley announces extension of the 'Say Yes to Languages' primary languages sampler module for 2022/23 and invites applications from primary schools
-
From: Department of Education
- Published on: 19 April 2022
- Last updated on: 9 May 2022
The Minister for Education, Norma Foley, today announced an extension of the “Say Yes to Languages” primary languages sampler module for a further year and invited primary schools to apply to participate in the module.
The length of the module in 2022/23 will be increased from 6 to 8 weeks. The grant to schools participating will also be increased to €400 per class up to a maximum of €1,600.
The module is aimed at 3rd to 6th class and the school can select the language of choice depending on its demographic and school context.
The 2022/23 module could be used to support the integration of newly arrived Ukrainian pupils to our schools by acknowledging Ukrainian as one of the languages of the classroom or by choosing to teach Ukrainian for the duration of the module.
Languages selected in 21/22 included French, Spanish, ISL, German, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Arabic, Tamil and Portuguese.
Minister Foley said:
“I am delighted with the response of our schools to the module in 2021/22. It has been warmly and positively welcomed by over 500 schools. Over 40,000 pupils have had the opportunity to learn and have fun through a range of languages, opening doors for them to the languages used by their classmates.
“I have extended the programme to eight weeks and would like to see even more schools participating this year. Being able to speak a foreign language, and learning about other cultures is an enormous advantage to our children and young people. This programme gives them a unique opportunity to be exposed to foreign language learning at a young age.
“The module is an important aspect of our foreign languages strategy which aims to increase the number of students studying foreign languages at all levels. We want to equip our students with the skills that they will need to live in our globalised world, and foreign languages provide our students not only with a skill but with a broader access to and appreciation of a wide range of culture.”
The primary language sampler module can be delivered by either the class teacher in the school or by an individual identified by the school as a suitable tutor (for example, a language teacher/ foreign language assistant in a local post-primary school or a member of the community who is fluent in the chosen language, for example, a parent, who meets the scheme’s criteria).
Training for the teacher/ tutor will be provided by Post Primary Languages Ireland (PPLI) which will also provide all the necessary resources and supports to the schools delivering the module. Further information on the resources are available on the Post Primary Languages Ireland (PPLI) website.
Further details on the module are available in a circular.
Apply: Schools can apply to participate in the module in 2022/23 here. The closing date for receipt of completed application forms is 5pm on 11 May 2022.
Notes
Photographs will issue directly to picture desks from Maxwell Photography.
The 21/22 “Say Yes to Languages” primary languages sampler module has been rolled out in circa. 500 primary schools in three phases since November 2021. Schools selected 11 languages: French, Spanish, ISL, German, Italian, Lithuanian, Romanian, Polish, Portuguese, Arabic and Tamil.
The aims of the module are to:
- generate awareness among pupils of the range of languages used by their peers, including Irish Sign Language, in their schools and communities which may help support greater inclusion and appreciation of diversity in society
- encourage uptake of languages at post-primary level
- provide opportunities for increased levels of collaboration among the school community with regard to the celebration of languages and cultures
- support implementation of Item was unpublished or removed Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017–2026
The grant available for schools participating in the module in 22/23 will be:
- €400 for 1 classroom
- €800 for 2 classrooms
- €1,200 for 3 classrooms
- €1,600 for 4 or more classrooms
The grant can be used to pay the external teacher/tutor or where the class teacher is delivering the module, it will be used to fund additional resources and/ or to finance other activities that support the aims of the module.
The module will be rolled out for 8consecutive weeks – one hour per week of normal class time.
Training and resources will be provided by Post Primary Languages Ireland (PPLI).
Schools will be selected based on:
Participation is not guaranteed to all applying schools, and the department/PPLI will establish a panel to evaluate applications based on the following criteria:
- submission of a completed application form by the deadline
- diversity in the target languages applied for
- school has internal staff capacity to deliver the module
- school can provide contact details of teacher/tutor
- school has previously met the requirements of the programme and provided feedback as requested
- school can provide details in support of its application to highlight how it will engage in promotion and dissemination of the chosen language
- school committed to encouraging teacher/tutor and hosting teachers to participate in training
- school committed to providing feedback and facilitating school visits
- commitment to deliver the module within specified timeframes and for the full number of hours
- commitment to communicate with PPLI
The department will seek to ensure that there is a geographical spread of schools and a range of school contexts when finalising the successful applicants. School will be evaluated on the above criteria.
Schools selected to participate in the programme will be notified by 30 June 2022.