Parents' anger at plans to axe Gaelic lessons at Onthank Primary

Nov 20 2009 by Stef Lach, Kilmarnock Standard

ANGRY parents this week condemned council plans to axe vital class space for Gaelic lessons at a Kilmarnock primary school.

They are up in arms over proposals to hand over a Gaelic classroom at Onthank Primary to children being given regular lessons.

Primaries one, two and three at Onthank Gaelic Unit are currently squeezed into one classroom, partitioned into two areas with two teachers.

The threatened classroom is used every afternoon by Gaelic primary children as part of the Learning Through Play and Curriculum for Excellence guidelines laid down by the government.

And parents say using the classroom as an overflow for English-medium nursery children will remove a vital resource, leaving the Gaelic youngsters with nowhere to go – putting their education at risk.

They also accused East Ayrshire Council of undermining its commitment to Gaelic-medium schooling, which is protected by law.

Comman nam Parant, the Gaelic parents association, has written to education secretary Fiona Hyslop, Gaelic minister Mike Russell and local MSP Willie Coffey.

Dr Aileen Baillie, secretary of the association, has also demanded reassurances from East Ayrshire Council that the plan be dropped.

She said: “They are talking about taking away a resource that is an absolute necessity and has been timetabled for use by children from the Gaelic unit.

“It is also proposed to form a new area to be used by all lower primary classes in the school, but this would mean the Gaelic children would be surrounded by English language stimulus.

“The new space would also be open to a corridor and this would not allow Gaelic immersion, which is of vital importance during these early years.”

Dr Baillie vowed: “We will go to any lengths to protect the Gaelic unit at Onthank and highlight the council’s failure to show a proper commitment to Gaelic medium education.”

Susan Robertson, another parent who has two children at the Gaelic unit, said: “They would be putting up English displays along with the Gaelic signage and posters.

“If you sent your children to an English-speaking school you wouldn’t want them to be surrounded by Gaelic, and our needs are no different.

“Gaelic-medium education is becoming more and more popular and it can only be provided properly in the three classrooms we have at present.

“It doesn’t seem much to ask to keep them, but the council seem to think they can just bulldoze this through without consultation.

“Parents feel the Gaelic unit at Onthank primary is at risk of being squeezed out of existence.”

Teachers at the Gaelic unit and school management are understood to be equally opposed to the move.

Ironically, East Ayrshire is trying to promote Gaelic medium education despite having no official dedicated to supporting to the language.

Neighbouring North Ayrshire employs a Gaelic development officer – even though the authority has no Gaelic medium school.

However, there may be a glimmer of hope for parents.

Andrew Sutherland, East Ayrshire’s head of service for schools, said he was “reviewing” the proposals.

Mr Sutherland added: “Parents of the Gaelic unit have identified an accommodation issue, given the increase in Gaelic speaking young people into the provision this session.

“At present the accommodation available in the primary school is fixed, but I propose to review it and will make recommendations after that.”

More than 2000 pupils receive Gaelic medium education at 62 units in Scottish primary schools.

Parents are attracted by lower class sizes and research which shows children receiving Gaelic-medium primary education in many cases outperformed pupils taught only in English.