Inspectors concerned over quality of teaching, learning in Irish

Department of Education inspectors have expressed concern over the quality of teaching and learning in Irish across many primary and secondary schools.

The findings are contained in the Department of Education’s Chief Inspector’s Report, which draw on the findings of thousands of school inspections between 2016 and 2020.

At primary level, the report found that pupils’ learning outcomes in Irish at English-medium primary schools were “very concerning”.

There was progress, however, reported in all-Irish schools where standards were deemed to be “good” overall.

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In English-medium primary schools, inspectors found pupils’ attainment of learning objectives in Irish was good or very good in just 67 per cent of lessons.

Schools highlighted that children’s learning in Irish suffered disproportionately because of disruption linked to the pandemic.

There was often insufficient opportunity for children to communicate through Irish and to develop their language skills.

Inspectors observed an overreliance on translation from Irish to English as part of the pupils’ experience of Irish and highlighted a need for more fun and engaging Irish language learning activities.

Overall, the chief inspector’s report notes many positive findings about educational standards which were reflected in national and international measures of quality.

Teaching and learning at primary level was found to be good or very good in about 85 per cent of inspections.

In English there was evidence of "very strong" performance when measured against other countries, while pupils also ranked highly in Ireland for maths.

However, the report also identified several areas in need of development and improvement.

It said there was a need for greater differentiation in teaching, or adjusting to the individual needs of students, and greater use of whole-school assessment strategies.

Inspection findings also indicated a clear link between high-calibre leadership and positive learning outcomes.

Second level

At post-primary, the overall quality of teaching and learning was also of a high standard.

Inspections of Irish indicated that the quality of teaching and learning in Irish was good or very good in a majority of schools. However, it was considerably below the standards achieved in the other core subjects.

For example, the overall quality of Irish teaching was found to be good in 71 per cent of secondary schools inspected and very good in 8 per cent of schools.

In maths and English, by contrast, the overall quality of teaching was good or very good in excess of 90 per cent of schools in both subjects.

It said there was scope to improve outcomes for generally more able pupils who were not always being “stretched” enough, and further opportunities were needed for collaborative work among teachers.

On the impact of Covid-19, inspectors said schools and teachers demonstrated increased capacity to use digital technologies to support learning.

However, due to school closures, students experienced anxiety and challenges to their wellbeing as well as gaps in their learning.

Inspectors said it appeared the effects of Covid-19 has been experienced unevenly, with students at most risk of educational disadvantage disproportionately affected.

Inspectors said it is possible that in the next few years we may see a slowing or even a reversal of the progress that we have made in Ireland in improving the learning outcomes of students in Deis schools compared to students in other schools.

It said it is possible, too, there will be a similar effect for pupils with special educational needs and those who require therapeutic supports.

Chief inspector Harold Hislop said that, overall, inspections show that there are many strengths in the Irish education system at early years, primary and post-primary levels.

“I am pleased to be able to report positively on high quality learning, good teaching and support for children and young people in our education system. This provides a solid basis on which to build even better education provision for our children and young people in the years ahead,” said Dr Hislop.