Having received a very good inspection that confirms the excellence of learning and teaching in Coláiste Feirste there are questions about certain aspects of the evaluative procedure for Irish Medium schools which need to be raised.

General inspection panels in Irish Medium Schools often include inspectors with no Irish Language fluency. These inspectors can not fully understand nor fully evaluate the effectiveness of the nature and level of the educational activities which they are charged with. Assessing a fair, impartial and informed inspection cannot be said to occur when members of the inspecting body are not able to follow the language of instruction, and the degree of competence with which instruction is planned, given and received. In particular, the inspectors can not evaluate fully the effectiveness of the questioning, the responses of the pupils, or the appropriateness and pace of the work.

Almost 50 years after the establishment of the first Irish Medium School in the North of Ireland ETI and DE still do not have clear and rational mechanisms and benchmarks for assessing the quality of this educational provision. We still have a situation where a process designed to assess the quality of English-medium education, including quality indicators, benchmarks and norms, is being used in an inappropriate and inequitable way to pass judgement on IM provision, pedagogy and developmental requirements., ETI and DE still do not have clear and rationale mechanisms and benchmarks for assessing the quality of this educational provision. We still have a situation where a process designed to assess the quality of English-medium education, including quality indicators, benchmarks and norms, is being used in an inappropriate and inequitable way to pass judgement on IM provision, pedagogy and developmental requirements.

This leaves a credible loop of risk at the heart of the inspection process which renders the inspection findings unsafe.

In the interests of the children in IM and for the support and development of the staff working in the sector, there is an urgent need to develop a fit for purpose inspection process.

It is simply unacceptable that IM have the quality of the education it offers examined by people who are at a significant disadvantage to understand how it is planned, delivered and received. The result of such an examination becomes arbitrary, and not based on fully informed observation.

Cé go raibh cigireacht iontach ag C.F. a bhí iomlán tuilte acu agus a deimhníonn ard caighdeán foghlama agus an teagais tá roinnt ceisteanna faoi ghnéithe áirithe den phróiseas luachála a chaifear ardú.

Mar gheall air seo, ní raibh siad in ann tuiscint iomlán a fháil ná luacháil iomlán a dhéanamh ar nádúr agus ar leibhéal na ngníomhaíochtaí oideachasúla a raibh orthu a mheas.

Bhí cigirí eile ann a thuig teanga an teagaisc. Ach is féidir laigí a fheiceáil sa ghné seo den chigireacht fosta mar go raibh cúlra agus oiliúint ag roinnt de na cigirí seo i gcóras oideachais eile agus gur beag an taithí ná an tuiscint a bhí acu ar dhúshláin agus riachtanais páistí san iarbhunscolaíocht lánGhaeilge ó thuaidh

50 bliain i ndiaidh do bhunú na bunscolaíochta lánGhaeilge ó thuaidh, níl meicníochtaí ná tagarmharcanna soiléire, réasúnacha ag ETI ná DE chun measúnú a dhéanamh ar an fhoraíl oideachais seo. Is fíor go fóill go bhfuil an próiseas a dearadh le measúnú a dhéanamh ar cháilíocht an oideachais trí mheán an Bhéarla, táscairí, tagarmharcanna agus noirm san áireamh, i bhfeidhm go míchuí, míchothrom chun breith a thabhairt ar an fhoraíl, ar an oideolaíocht agus ar riachtanais forbartha an Ghaeloideachais.

Fagann sé sin bearna mhór ag croílár an phróisis chigireachta, a chuireann torthaí na cigireachta ó rath.

Ar leas na bpáistí sa Ghaelscolaíocht agus chun cur le tacaíocht agus forbairt ghairme na foirne a oibríonn san earnáil, tá géarghá le próiseas cigireachta a fhorbairt atá oiriúnach don fheidhm.

Tá sé doghlactha do Choláiste Feirste nó do scoil ar bith eile go ndéanfaí imscrúdú ar cháilíocht a foraíle ag daoine atá faoi mhíbhuntáiste mhór leis an dóigh a bpleanáiltear, a seachtadtar agus a bhfaightear í a thuigbheáil