Madam, - I agree with much of the advice offered by Éanna Mac Cuinneagáin (March 10th), but I feel that he over-complicated the matter.
The 13 or 14 years of Irish classes taken by the vast majority of our population should be more than enough people orally fluent, irrespective of homework or other exercises. The issue, as Mr Mac Cuinneagain points out, is the manner of teaching.
Ideally, I would like to see Gaeilge removed from the exam-based curriculum with the new focus being on fluency of speech. If, after 14 years of learning, we can make one generation fluent in the language, it will be immeasurably easier to make their children fluent as well. Statistics prove that the children of Irish speakers are overwhelmingly more likely to become Irish speakers themselves. Furthermore, with this skill attained, Irish may well become commonly spoken in the average home, further increasing the children's likelihood of fluency.
Once a large level of fluency is attained, the instruction of poetry and advanced language skills becomes relatively easy and these can be reintroduced into the classroom, along with testing, as desired.
Since our Irish teaching methods are achieving well below their desired goals, I feel it is time for radical changes and a phase-based approach. - Yours, etc.,
MICHAEL KEARY, Monaleen Heights, Castletroy, Limerick