Joe McHugh, TD
MINISTER of State for the Gaeltacht, Joe McHugh TD, today announced that he has sanctioned a grant of €740,000 in total for Muintearas and Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne for the 2014/2015 school year to run the Irish-Language Assistants Scheme.
Donegal schools are to receive the largest share with €243,266.71 going to Irish language schools around the county.
“This is another significant step in the implementation of the Family Language Support Programme,” said the Minister of State. “When that Programme was launched in April 2012, reference was made to the importance of an amended approach to the practical support of Gaeltacht families who are raising their children through Irish or who wish to do so. The grant announced today will enable the two organisations that administer the Irish-Language Assistants Scheme to continue to actively support the preservation and strengthening of the Irish language in the Gaeltacht.”
The Minister of State said he was pleased that the Department has expanded this scheme in recent years. “When the scheme began, the assistants focused on those who didn’t have any Irish but now, children who already speak the language are being helped to enhance it. The scheme influences the language habits of students and ensures that Irish is used as the main language of communication, not just in the classroom but in the schoolyard as well,” said the Minister of State.
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