The reasons why parents choose to transfer students with special educational needs from Irish immersion education

The Challenges Facing Irish-Medium Primary and Post-Primary Schools When Implementing a Whole-School Approach to Meeting the Additional Education Needs of Their Students

“…There have been several reasons provided in the limited research that has been undertaken in relation to why these transfers occur [30][31][32][33]. The reasons identified in the literature include (a) the academic challenges that learning through a second language poses for the students, and (b) concerns regarding the ability of this form of education to meet the AEN of students [30][31][32][33][34].…”

“…There have been several reasons provided in the limited research that has been undertaken in relation to why these transfers occur [30][31][32][33]. The reasons identified in the literature include (a) the academic challenges that learning through a second language poses for the students, and (b) concerns regarding the ability of this form of education to meet the AEN of students [30][31][32][33][34]. In the RoI, the limited literature available found that students with AEN transferred from IM schools to English-medium schools due to their learning difficulties and due to a recommendation by an educational psychologist that IM education was not suitable for the student [32,35].…”

“…In the RoI, the limited literature available found that students with AEN transferred from IM schools to English-medium schools due to their learning difficulties and due to a recommendation by an educational psychologist that IM education was not suitable for the student [32,35]. Parental concern has also been listed as a factor for student transfer [30][31][32][33][34]. Advice given to parents regarding the suitability of bilingualism for students with SEN is often negative, and this, in turn, often leads to these students transferring to monolingual schools [11,20,28].…”

The Factors Motivating Parents to Choose Irish Immersion Education for their Child with Special Educational Needs

“…Nevertheless, the limited research available suggests that students with SEN in Irish-immersion primary schools can experience benefits in terms of bilingualism, academic benefits for post-primary school, and increased self-esteem/self-confidence (Nic Aindriú, 2021Nic Aindriú et al, 2020). However, even though there are potential benefits for these children, parents have chosen to transfer their child with SEN from Irishimmersion to English-medium schools (Ní Chinnéide, 2009;Nic Aindriú, 2022). In mixed methods study on the reasons why parents chose to transfer their child with SEN from an Irish immersion school, the main reasons cited were; (1) parental anxiety and concern that learning through a L2 was too difficult for the child, (2) recommendations to transfer the child to an English-medium school by educational professionals (e.g.…”

“…In mixed methods study on the reasons why parents chose to transfer their child with SEN from an Irish immersion school, the main reasons cited were; (1) parental anxiety and concern that learning through a L2 was too difficult for the child, (2) recommendations to transfer the child to an English-medium school by educational professionals (e.g. educational psychologists and speech therapists), and (3) the child having difficulties learning through Irish (Nic Aindriú, 2022).…”