Training Of Gaelic Tutors
This week The Highland Council has been running a special six day immersion training course for Gaelic language tutors in Portree, with 12 students signed up for the introductory course.
Skye and Lochalsh Community Learning and Development Officer (Gaelic), Shona Paterson has organised the Ùlpan training course which is being held in Tigh na Sgire. She said: “Ùlpan is a fast and effective way to learn a language. It has been used to great effect in Israel, where it originated, and in Wales.
“As Ùlpan is a new way of teaching, tutors need to be trained and accredited in the system. Clì Gàidhlig has joined forces with Deiseal Earranta Ltd to provide this. Deiseal is a company set up by Dàibhidh Grannd and Guto Rhys, both language tutors and linguists, to adapt the Welsh system to Gaelic.”
The introductory course is familiarising trainee-tutors with the Ùlpan methodology and ethos, key skills and their contractual obligations with Deiseal Earranta.
Over the six days trainee tutors circulate between teaching students and taking part in workshops where instruction in basic grammar, Gaelic dialects, teaching pronunciation and group management is being delivered. These sessions also provide opportunities for peer review learning.
Councillor Hamish Fraser, Chairman of The Highland Council’s Gaelic Committee said: “One of the many aims of the Council’s Draft Gaelic Language Plan is to provide opportunities to Council staff and members of the Community to learn Gaelic and Ùlpan is one of the methods which can provide this.
“Ùlpan is ideal for people who wish to learn to speak Gaelic with real confidence, such as people who need Gaelic for their work, parents with children in Gaelic-medium education people who have moved to a Gaelic-speaking community and employers wishing to provide in-house language tuition, Learning should be fun and I believe that Ùlpan classes are fun and rewarding for learners and tutors alike, as everyone can see a steady growth in ability and confidence, week on week.”
Daibhidh Grant, Director of Deiseal Ltd, the developers of Ùlpan said: “This is a great course for complete beginners but it’s also very useful for people with good reading and writing skills in Gàidhlig but who can’t understand or speak it, it acts like glue for all the bits.”