Thousands sign petition over €650 cost for trainee teachers to attend ‘virtual Gaeltacht’

The cost has been described as “exorbitant”.

Over 4,500 people have signed a petition seeking a change in legislation for Gaeltacht fees over the cost of attending a ‘virtual Gaeltacht’ for trainee teachers from Hibernia College.

At the time of writing, a little under 5,000 people have signed the the petition over the €650 fee for trainee teachers from Hibernia College to attend the ‘virtual Gaeltacht’ as part of their course.

Before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the course cost €750 per fortnight (€1,500 in total for a four-week course) and included full food and board in a Gaeltacht, as well as a number of language lessons and activities.

Due to Covid-19 safety restrictions, this has been replaced with a fully online experience undertaken in students’ homes, for a cost of €650 per fortnight (€1,300 in total).

In an email addressed to Ministers Simon Harris, Norma Foley, and Catherine Martin, author of the petition Tracy Hayden wrote: “As students undertaking initial teacher training, we, like the thousands of teachers before us, must complete an immersive Gaeltacht course to comply with Teaching Council requirements.

“It is a course that serves not only as a fully immersive language learning experience but also one which fostered a grá for Gaeilge in the generations of teachers who have gone before of us.”

Hayden went on to describe the cost of the course as “an exorbitant price given the course provider now will not have to incur the cost of food, lodgings and room rental generally associated with the Gaeltacht experience”.

In a letter sent to students, Hibernia College said it was anticipating a “much lower fee” for the online course.

The college wrote: “In early January, it was brought to our attention that the proposed fee for the two-week online programme would be in the region of €650 and that all students from State colleges would receive a re-instated student grant to cover this cost.

“We were acutely aware that this fee would cause huge stress and anxiety for many students and their families and we have consistently lobbied the Department of Education since last November asking for consideration for the grant for our students.

“As an online provider with 20 years’ experience in delivering courses online, we were anticipating a much lower fee for online course provision. We find it most unusual that the Department of Education and Comhchoiste Náisiúnta na gColáistí Samhraidh (CONCOS) agreed to an average price being set across the Gaeltacht providers, which is binding on our students.”