Ireland has two official languages, Irish and English, and a national strategy for everything else. “Languages Connect: Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017-2026” was published by the Department of Education and Skills in December 2017, and the Department (now the Department of Education and Youth) issued an Interim Review Report and Implementation Plan to 2026 in March 2024. Both are hosted on gov.ie. This article summarises what the strategy set out, what the interim report says has changed, and which targets the report shows were met or missed. It covers the Republic of Ireland only, and it reports the Department’s own figures, which have not been independently verified here.
Why the strategy exists
The 2017 strategy says competency in foreign languages in Ireland “remains low”, that the range of languages offered by schools is not sufficiently diverse, and that too few students use mobility opportunities such as Erasmus+. It cites a 2011 survey in which 20.8% of Irish adults aged 25 to 64 knew one foreign language, against a European average of over 35%, and notes that the enterprise sector had reported a shortage of graduates skilled in trade languages. It also points out that immigrants, who make up over 11% of the population, bring languages from almost 200 countries.
The 2026 targets
The strategy lists key targets to be achieved by 2026. They include:
- raising Leaving Certificate uptake of key languages from the levels it quotes: German 13%, Spanish 11%, Italian 0.9%, Russian 0.6%, Japanese 0.6% and Arabic 0.2%;
- introducing a curricular specification for new learners of Mandarin Chinese at Leaving Certificate, and specifications for heritage speakers of Polish, Lithuanian and Portuguese;
- increasing the number of post-primary schools offering two or more foreign languages and the number of students sitting two languages for state examinations by 25%;
- raising the proportion of the higher education cohort studying a foreign language, in any capacity, to 20%;
- increasing Erasmus+ participation by at least 50%, and doubling the number of teachers on mobility programmes and of Foreign Language Assistants.
What the interim report says has been delivered
The March 2024 interim report lists actions completed over five years. The number of Foreign Language Assistants coming to work in schools has nearly doubled, and Erasmus+ participation has increased. A new Junior Cycle specification for modern foreign languages was implemented. New Leaving Certificate Established specifications in Lithuanian, Mandarin Chinese, Polish and Portuguese were developed and are being implemented, and Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) was introduced in Transition Year in French, German, Spanish and Italian. It also notes that revised teacher registration requirements for curricular languages opened for applicants on 1 January 2023 and added Lithuanian, Portuguese, Polish and Mandarin Chinese as registerable subjects.
The four new Leaving Certificate languages
According to the report, the four new curricular languages became available at Leaving Certificate Established level from September 2020. They were examined for the first time in 2022, when 1,451 students presented in total: 191 in Lithuanian, 291 in Mandarin Chinese, 824 in Polish and 145 in Portuguese. Provisional State Examinations Commission statistics showed 1,693 sits in 2023, an increase of 16.7%: 210 in Lithuanian, 339 in Mandarin Chinese, 956 in Polish and 188 in Portuguese. The report adds that the Department announced Ukrainian would be examined as a non-curricular Leaving Certificate language from 2025. It says heritage-language students who attended summer language camps said they were inspired to sit their languages for the Leaving Certificate.
Targets versus actual figures
The interim report’s measurables table gives a 2016 baseline, a 2022 target, the 2022 actual and a 2026 target. Its figures include:
- Leaving Certificate candidates presenting for a foreign language: baseline 69%, 2022 target 74%, actual 73.6%, 2026 target 79%.
- Junior Certificate or Junior Cycle candidates presenting for a foreign language: baseline 87%, 2022 target 92%, actual 83.8%, 2026 target 100%.
- Schools offering two or more foreign languages in Transition Year: baseline 53%, 2022 target 75%, actual 58.4%, 2026 target 100%.
- Students on higher education courses with a language component: baseline 4% (2012/13), 2022 target 10%, actual not available, 2026 target 20%. The report says this cannot currently be tracked and that a feasibility study should be done.
Reading these columns together, the Leaving Certificate figure came close to its 2022 target, while the Junior Cycle and Transition Year figures were below theirs, on the Department’s own numbers. The Junior Cycle figure also fell below the 2016 baseline.
What it means for learners
For a student in Ireland, the practical result is a wider list of Leaving Certificate languages than before, and support for heritage speakers of Polish, Lithuanian and Portuguese as well as new learners of Mandarin Chinese. Adult learners of Irish can also read about the Teastas Eorpach na Gaeilge certificate. The site’s piece on Irish under the Official Languages Act 2003 covers the separate legal position of the national language.
Common questions
Does the strategy cover Irish?
The strategy is about foreign languages. Its foreword says promoting competence in Ireland’s two official languages is also an important objective of Government but treats it separately.
Has the strategy ended?
Its title runs to 2026, and the interim report sets out an implementation plan to that year.
The bottom line
Ireland’s foreign languages strategy aims for higher uptake and more diverse languages by 2026. The Department’s March 2024 interim report shows four new Leaving Certificate languages examined since 2022 and rising numbers taking them, close to target for Leaving Certificate participation, and short of target at Junior Cycle and in Transition Year provision. These are government-reported figures for the Republic of Ireland.
Sources
- Department of Education and Skills, “Languages Connect: Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017-2026” (assets.gov.ie)
- Department of Education, “Languages Connect Interim Review Report and Implementation Plan to 2026” (March 2024) (assets.gov.ie)
- gov.ie, “Languages Connect: Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017-2026”