THEY are paid to speak Irish, but the first official language has disappeared from many Gaeltacht schools, a new study has found.

Although Gaeltacht teachers get an annual bonus of €1,450, fewer are doing their work entirely as Gaeilge. English is now the main language of instruction in 40% of Leaving Certificate classes in Gaeltacht schools, the study found.

Some schools are not teaching in Irish at all, even though gaelscoileanna receive a higher rate of funding from the Department of Education, getting €155.50 per pupil compared with €129.58 in English language schools.

“It is evident that teaching through the medium of Irish in Gaeltacht post-primary schools is in a state of crisis,” the report concludes.

The bizarre result is that many students leaving Gaeltacht schools, after five or six years of being taught in Irish, are not able to speak the language very well.

A quarter of pupils leaving primary schools in Gaeltacht areas have only middling Irish, with about 10% having little or none. At Leaving Cert level, 18% of students have only reasonable Irish, and one in 10 have little or none.

The study concludes: “It would appear that the education system in the Gaeltacht is better equipped to inculcate the use of English among speakers of Irish than it is to inculcate the use of Irish among first-language speakers of English.”

The academics from University College Galway and An Diseart who compiled the report warn that “it is likely very few primary or second level Gaeltacht schools will still be teaching through Irish in 20 years’ time”. A significant number of Gaeltacht schools “have already conceded defeat in the face of difficulties and have switched to teaching through the medium of English”. A number of others appear to be “wavering in their commitment”, it said.

The findings are further proof that English is swamping the designated Gaeltacht areas — in Galway, Kerry, Donegal, Mayo and west Cork — despite huge subsidies from the public purse. Instead of helping to support the language, Gaeltacht schools seem to be undermining it, the study indicates.

English is not only used in the playground, it is also the dominant language in many schools in communications between teachers and parents, and as the working language of the school board.

The study says that the definition of Gaeltacht schools is now outdated, and the status of the 143 primaries, with 9,556 pupils, should be examined.

The study was commissioned by An Chomhairle Um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaiochta, which advises the department. Muireann Ni Mhorain, the chief executive, said the findings should be seen in the context of a more multicultural Ireland, with a quarter of children in Gaeltacht schools being born outside Irish-speaking areas. She said extra staff were needed in the schools, and better support for teachers.

“The question of teacher training has to be addressed,” Ni Mhorain said. “We have to look at the low standard of Irish among teachers coming out of colleges.

“Something must be done to help competency in Irish. Universities must also address this, because that is where post-primary teachers qualify.”

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