The Welsh language in education in the UK - Mercator-Education

WelshThe Welsh language in educationin the UK

This document was published by Mercator-Education with financial support from the FryskeAkadem y and the European C ommission (DG: Culture and E ducation).© Mercator-Education, 2001The content of this publication may be repro duced in print, except for commercial purposes,provided that the extract is proceeded by a complete reference to Mercator-Education:Europe an Netwo rk for Regio nal or Minority Languages and Education.Mercator-EducationP.O. Box 548900 AB Ljouwert/LeeuwardenThe Netherlandstel: +31-58-2343063fax: +31-58-2131409e-mail: mercator@fa.knaw.nlwebsite:mercator-education.orgThis regional do ssier was written by Meirion Jones (Welsh Language Board). Unless statedotherwise, the d ata reflect the situation in 2000-2001.From 1999 onwards Alie van der Schaaf has been responsible for the edition of the Mercatorregional dossier series.

GlossaryACCAC: Assessment, Qualifications and Curriculum Authorityfor WalesCYDAG: Cymdeithas Ysgolion Dros Addysg Gymraeg(Professional Association of Welsh Medium Schools)ELWa: National Council for Education and Training forWalesFE: Further EducationGCSE: General Certificate of Secondary EducationGNVO: General National Vocational QualificationHE: Higher EducationLEA: Local Education AuthoritiesMYM: Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin (M ovement for WelshMedium Schools)NEWI: North East Wales InstituteNVQ:National Vocational Qualifications not frequently offeredin schoolsPGCE: Postgraduate Certificate of EducationQTS: Qualified Teaching StatusRhAG: Rhieni Dros Addysg Gymraeg (Pressure Group ofParents)SEN: Special Educational NeedsUWCN: University of Wales College NewportUWIC : University of W ales Institute CardiffWJEC: Welsh Joint Education CommitteeWLGAL: Local Government Association

ContentsForeword .........................................11 Introduction ..................................22 Pre-school education ..........................133 Primary education ............................154 Secondary education ..........................205 Further and vocational education .................236 Higher education .............................277 Adult education ..............................308 Educational research ..........................339 Prospects ...................................3310 Summary statistics ............................36Educational system in the United Kingdom ..............37References and further reading ........................38Addresses ........................................41Other websites on minority languages ..................44What can Mercator-Education offer you? ...............47

1 Regional dossier WelshForewordbackgroundaimtarget groupFor several years now, Mercator-Education has made effortsto achieve one of its principal goals: to gather, store anddistribute information on minority language education inEuropean regions. Regional or minority languages arelanguages which differ from the official language of thestate where they are spoken and which are traditionally usedwithin a given territory by nationals of that state who form agroup numerically smaller than the rest of the population.To date, Mercator-Education has been successful inestablishing a computerised data bank containing bibliographicdata, information about people and organisations involvedwith minority language issues. It has published datacollected during four inventory studies on pre-schooleducation, primary education, learning materials and teachertraining. In addition there is a need for documents whichgive a brief outline of the most essential features of theeducational system of regions with an autochthonouslesser-used language. With the establishment of regionaldossiers we intend to meet this need.Regional dossiers aim at providing concise descriptiveinformation and basic educational statistics about minoritylanguage education in a specific region of the EuropeanUnion. This kind of information, such as features of theeducational system, recent educational policies, division ofresponsibilities, main actors, legal arrangements, supportstructures and also quantitative information on the numberof schools, teachers, pupils and financial investments, canserve several purposes.Policy makers, researchers, teachers, students and journalistsmay use the information provided to assess developmentsin European minority language schooling. They canalso use a regional dossier as a first orientation towardsfurther research or as a source o f ideas for improvingeducational provision in their own region.

Education and lesser used languages 2link with EURYDICEcontentsIn order to link these regional descriptions with those ofnational educational systems, it was decided to follow theformat used by E URYDICE, the European education informationnetwork in the E uropean Union. E URYDICEpro-vides information on the administration and structure ofeducation in member states of the European Union. Theinformation provided in the regional dossiers is focussed onlanguage use at the various levels of education.The remainder of this dossier consists firstly of an introductionto the region being studied, followed by six sectionswhich each deal with a specific level of the educationalsystem. These brief descriptions contain factual informationpresented in a readily accessible way. Sections eight to tencover research, prospects and summary statistics. Fordetailed information and political discussions about languageuse at the various levels o f education, the reader isreferred to other sources.1 IntroductionlanguageWelsh is a Celtic language, its nearest cousins being Cornishand Breton. It is also related to Irish, Manx and Gaelic. Thelanguage as spoken to day is descended directly from EarlyWelsh, which emerged as a distinct tongue as early as thesixth century AD., and its literary tradition also extends tothis time when it was the language not only of Wales, butalso of large parts of Southern Scotland and NorthernEngland. Since the 11th Century, it has been largelyconfined to the area that corresponds to that of present-dayWales.Up to the 16 th century, Welsh was the only language of mostpeople in Wales, and it remained the first language of themajority until the end of the nineteenth century. This wasdue, in no small measure, to the publication of the Bible inWelsh in 1588, which is often said to be the single mostimportant event that saved the Welsh language from

3 Regional dossier Welshextinction. Even so, as a result of the Acts of Union of 1536and 1542, English became the language of law,administration and education in Wales. Between the middleof the sixteenth century and the middle of the nineteenth,Wales was almost indistinguishable from any part ofEngland, except in two important respects: the Welshlanguage, and not English, was the only means of communicationfor most of the people of Wales; and in thepublic sphere, Welsh was also the predominant language ofreligious worship.Welsh has a strong literary tradition, stretching from thesixth century to the present day. Storytelling and strict metrepoetry were the basis of this tradition. Wales’ current poetryscene remains vibrant, and poets are still held in high esteemwithin the Welsh speaking community.In 1858 the first National Eisteddfod a national culturalfestival - was organised, and in 1872 the first university inWales opened at Aberystwyth. In 1890, following theEducation Act of 1870 which introduced compulsoryeducation in Wales, the Government made a concession andpaid capitation grants to schools which taught Welsh. Thisby no means obliged any school to teach Welsh the Actfollowed the English model but it did mean that, for thefirst time, the Welsh language gained a toehold in theeducation system. Attitudes to the language within educationwere often profoundly ho stile.The decline experienced in the language over most of thetwentieth century can be attributed to:migration patterns from rural to urban areas in search ofwork. Rural depopulation was at its worst during the late1920s and 30s as unemployed land workers migrated insearch of work, and has continued in parallel with thedecline in the agriculture industry in Wales over the pastfifty years;inward migration of English speakers to rural and urbanareas;increased availability and popularity of English- languagenews and entertainment media;

5 Regional dossier Welsh

Education and lesser used languages 6language statusThe road to effective language legislation in the twentiethcentury was long and demanding, and the victorieswon in the first half of the century were the result oflong, hard campaigns. The Welsh Courts Act of 1942was one such partial victory, although it fell far short ofequal treatment of Welsh and English in the courts. Inrelation to civil administration, official or statutory formswere rarely made available in Welsh. The Welshlanguage continued to have practically no status as far aspublic life was concerned.The UK Government established a committee in 1963under the chairmanship of Sir David Hughes Parry, toexamine the legal status of the Welsh language. R eportingin 1964, the Committee argued that the law containedlittle that was damaging to the standing of thelanguage, but that this position should be regularized byan Act declaring that Welsh had official status (or ’equalvalidity’). It also argued that public sector bodies shouldbe prepared to give effect to this by responding todemands for services in Welsh. The Governmentresponded by passing the 1 967 W elsh Language Act,providing for Ministers the right to prescribe statutoryforms in Welsh, and giving a commitment, for the firsttime, that individuals in Wales would have a choice ofusing Welsh or English in courts as they p referred. T hiscommitment to choice has underlain the growth in theuse of Welsh by many other public bodies since 1967.The 1967 Act did not however give effect to therecommendation that there should be a declaration of thestatus of the language. In the 1 980s, in resp onse toever-increasing political pressure, the Governmentinstituted a consultation process to ascertain whetherwidespread support existed at the time for further legislation.These consultations were partially responsible forprompting the establishment of the non-statutory WelshLanguage Board in July 1988 , to advise the S ecretary ofState for W ales on matters connected with the language.

7 Regional dossier WelshIn 1991 the advisory Board proposed that a statementshould clarify the status of Welsh and that it should statethat the language had ’equal va lidity’ with English. TheGovernment accepted the Board’s advice that newlegislation was required, but too k the view that adeclaration of equal validity could result in both legaland practical difficulties. In 1992 the Secretary of Statefor Wales affirmed his commitment to giving effect toequality between the Welsh and English languages, butindicated that this would be via administrative ratherthan by a statutory declaration. The W elsh Language Actcame into force in 1993, establishing the W elshLanguage Board, giving the Bo ard statutory functions;the Act established the principle that in the conduct ofpublic business and the administration of justice, theWelsh and English languages should be treated on abasis of equality in Wales.The Welsh LanguageBoardThe Welsh Language Board is a statutory organisation,funded by public money. It is a public body sponsoredby the National Assembly for Wales, with the function of“promo ting and facilitating the use of the Welsh language”.In 1999-00 it received £5.9 million of grant-inaid,of which over £4.4 million was distributed by theBoard to other organisations in the form of grants topromote and facilitate the use of the Welsh language andto support Welsh language education. The Board hasalso been successful in attracting European grants andprivate sponsorship to support specific projects.At the beginning of 2001, the Welsh Language Boardhad 30 full time members of staff, working in five policydepartments at its office in Cardiff. Between them, thesedepartments deal with a range of issues relating to theWelsh language, which include advising the NationalAssembly with regards to promo ting the language, todistributing annual grants to organisations across W ales.One of the main functions of the Welsh Language Boardunder the Welsh Language Act 1993 is to agree Welsh

Education and lesser used languages 8Language Schemes with public bodies in Wales. UnderSection 9 of the Act the Welsh Language Board issuesguidelines to public bo dies as to the form and content oftheir Welsh Language Schemes. As a part o f thisfunction the Board’s Education and Training Departmentagrees Welsh Education Schemes with Local EducationAuthorities. The Education and Training Department ofthe Board is responsible for reviewing LEA policies,approving and monitoring the implementation of theirWelsh Education Schemes and also maintaining astrategic overview of Welsh medium education andtraining. A Welsh Education Scheme is a languagescheme pertaining to education and forms part of a LocalAuthority’s main Language Scheme.Other pieces of legislation which have had a significantbearing on the state of the language have included the1981 Broadcasting Act which established S4C, theWelsh Television Channel, and the 1988 EducationReform Act which made Welsh a compulsory part of theNational Curriculum in Wales. In addition, the Governmentof Wales Act 1998 gave the National Assembly thepower to “do anything it considers app ropriate tosupport…the Welsh language.The UK Government signed the European Charter forRegional or Minority Languages in March 2000 in respectof Welsh, Gaelic, Irish and Ulster-Scots. In all, 52clauses were signed, relating to linguistic rights forWales and other parts of the UK .status of languageeducationIt should be noted that the legislation which deals withWelsh-medium education is separate from that relatingdirectly to the language. It was the 1870 Education Actwhich opened the door to teaching W elsh in schools. Animportant step forward was taken in 1927 with thepublication of a report prepared by a committeeestablished by the President of the Board of Educationon Welsh Education and Life which repo rted that althoughWelsh had made remarkab le advance s in schoolssince the 1880s, considerable resources were required

9 Regional dossier Welshfor the training of teachers and the preparation ofteaching materials.It was not until the Education Act of 1944 that legislationwas passed to enable Local Education Authoritiesto provide Welsh-medium schools. The first primaryschool supported by public funding was opened in 1947in Llanelli, in South W est Wales, and by 1950 therewere another 6 Welsh medium schools in South Walesand 5 in North East Wales. In 1956 Ysgol Glan Clwyd,in North Wales, was established as the first Welshmediumse condary school.Full recognition for Welsh education came in 1988,when the Education Reform A ct gave Welsh the statusof a core subject of the N ational Curriculum in W ales inWelsh-medium schools, defined in the Act as ‘Welshspeaking schools’, and the status of a foundation subjectin the rest of the schools in Wales.Welsh became a compulso ry subject for all pupils inWales at Key Stages 1,2 and 3 (i.e. up to age 1 4) in1990. In 1999 it became a compulsory subject at KeyStage 4; this meant that all pupils in Wales study Welsh(either as a first or a second language) for 11 years, fromthe ages of 5 to 16.education system Statutory school education lasts from age 5 to age 16.Post-16 education is not statutory but most youngpeople follow some kind of course of education orundertake training before entering full time work.Education between the ages of 5 and 16 is in two majorstages: pupils attend primary schools up to the age of 11and secondary schools from 11 to 16. The vast majorityof schools are publicly funded and the funding ischannelled through Local Education Authorities. Asmall independent educational sector exists in Wales,based mainly in large towns and cities. Some teachWelsh as a second language but no designated W elshmedium private school exists in Wales. An independentWelsh m edium prim ary school exists in Londo n.

Education and lesser used languages 10Welsh MediumEducationadministrationthe National Assem blyfor Walesrole of Local EducationAuthorities (LEAs)Following the Education Act of 1944 Local EducationAuthorities began opening Welsh-medium schools atprimary and secondary level. Initially, these schoolscatered for children for whom W elsh was their firstlanguage but by the 1960s, increasing numbers o f pupilsin Welsh-medium education came from non- Welshspeaking homes. More information is available in thefollowing sections.Historically, education legislation in Wales was centrallydetermined by Parliament in London. The EducationReform Act of 1988 and all subsequent actslegislate for England and Wales, normally as one entity.The Act of 1988 defined the curriculum, governanceand administration of maintained or state schoo ls inEngland and Wales. The Welsh Office in Cardiffformerly maintained governance over the implementationof statutes, though variance occasionally occurred,such as with the definition of the curriculumorders for Welsh, History, Geography and Music inWales and for the Cwricwlwm Cymreig which sought toensure a Welsh context, ethos and dimension to thewhole curriculum in Wales.In 1998 the Government of Wales Act was passed whichbrought about the establishment of a National Assemblyfor Wales. The Assembly assumed power in 1999. Thenew National Assembly for Wales has brought a revisedpolitical structure and a greater degree of autonomy toWales, and the National Assembly has powers forsecondary legislation. The autonomy of the electedmembers of the Assembly allows them to make changesto the education system in Wales and to make decisionsabout the distribution of finances to Local EducationAuthorities from within the Welsh budget.Each of the twenty-two local authorities in Wales decidesits policies within the parameters of the Education

11 Regional dossier WelshActs and determ ines the level of funding allocated toEducation from within its bud get. The LEA’s role is tosupport and monitor schools and ensure high standardsof educational provision and achievement. Some LEAsmay also be responsible for community education,libraries and leisure services. LEAs select two or threerepresentatives to sit on the Governing bodies of eachschool and LEAs also normally advise governing bodieson important issues. They are also required to provideguidance o n the appointment of Head teachers.other Bodiesresponsible foreducation in WalesSeveral other bod ies exist in Wales to interpret and implementeducational policy decisio ns in a Welshcontext. These include:ACCAC: the Assessment, Qualifications and CurriculumAuthority for Wales, which is also responsible forstatutory testing and overseeing provision of resources.It has overall responsibility for ensuring the provision ofWelsh m edium teaching materials.ELWa: the National Council for Education and Trainingfor Wales (CETW ) was established under theLearning and Skills Act 200 0. It is a National Assemblyfor Wales sp onsored public body responsible forpromoting, securing and funding post-16 education andtraining in Wales, except for higher education. TheCouncil started to exercise its key functions on 1 A pril2001.Estyn: Estyn is responsible for inspecting schoo ls. Thepurpose of Estyn is to improve quality and standards ineducation and training in Wales; in schools, furthereducation; teacher education and training; governmentfundedtraining; careers companies; and the education,careers and training elements of New Deal, a key part ofthe Government’s W elfare to W ork strategy.Estyn also provides advice on q uality and standards ineducation and training in Wales to the National

Education and lesser used languages 12Assembly for Wales and others; and makes public goodpractice based on insp ection evide nce.WJEC: Welsh Joint Education Com mittee, the examiningboard providing syllabuses and examinations in b othWelsh and English; it also developsand commissionsteaching material (especially Welsh medium resources);The Welsh Language Board has a strategic responsibilityfor the promotion and develop ment of Welshmedium education. The Board’s Education and TrainingDepartment reviews LEA policies, approves andmonitors the implementation of their Welsh EducationSchemes and also ma intains a strategic overview ofWelsh medium education and training. The Boardallocates grants to LEA’s on an annual basis to supportthe teaching of Welsh both as a first and secondlanguage.WLGA: Local Government Association (Wales) has aunit which deals with education in Wales and it advisesall 22 Local Authorities on educational policy issues.voluntary and advisorybodiesMudiad Ysgolion Meith rin (MYM). The Movementfor Welsh medium nursery schools, responsible forsetting up Welsh medium nursery and mother andtoddler groups throughout Wales. MYM also providestraining for group leaders and has a publishing departmentwhich produces Welsh medium pre-schoolmaterials.Cymdeithas Ysgolion Dros Addysg Gymraeg(CYDAG). The Professional Association of WelshMedium Schools, this offers support to its memb ers inregional and national networks, in-service training andregular conferences.Rhieni Dros Addysg Gymraeg (RhAG). This is apressure group of parents, which acts in an advisoryrole, especially where problems arise in the provision ofWelsh medium education. It has no direct responsibilityfor education.

13 Regional dossier Welsh2 Pre-school educationtarget group Prior to statutory provision, which commences at 5,there is a range of pre-school provision for 0-5 yearolds.In nearly all areas, schools are able to admit pupilsbefore the statutory age; this can depend on historicalfactors and available space. When possible, some LEAsallowed Welsh medium children to start school earlier inorder to have extra initial time for immersion in Welshbefore starting the curriculum. The National AssemblyGuidance states that the guiding principles for earlyyears education continue to b e the provisio n of a free, atleast half-time good quality education place during thethree terms before the start of compulsory education forevery 4 year old whose parents want this. The Assemblyhas set the goal of achieving part time education of goodquality for all 3 year old s by 2003 . In at least threeLEAs in Wales, Welsh medium state provision isunavailable to parents because of a high demand forlimited places, and therefore the LEA buys into MudiadYsgolion Meithrin provision (see below).Ysgolion Meithrin(Nursery Schoo ls)Welsh medium early years’ education is providedthroughout Wales by Mudiad Ysgolion M eithrin(MYM the Welsh medium nursery association), whichwas established in 1971. It provides Welsh languageimmersion teaching and support for children fromWelsh and English speaking homes. The aim of MudiadYsgolion Meithrin is to promote the education anddevelopment of children under 5 years old through themedium of Welsh. Early years care and ed ucation of ahigh standard through the medium of Welsh is providedin Cylchoedd Ti a Fi and Cylchoedd Meithrin. The aimis to give every child in Wales under statutory schoolage the oppo rtunity to take advantage of the linguisticexperiences offered in these groups. These groups aresubsidised by MYM and provide training for staff as

Education and lesser used languages 14well as giving practical support by finding appropriateaccommodation and resources. MY M also p rovides helpfor pupils with special needs via its “Extra Handsscheme. MYM receives substantial funding annuallyfrom the Welsh Language Board to support and developthis provision.Cylchoedd Ti a Fi(Parent and ToddlerGroups)language of instructionThe Cylch Ti a Fi (literally ‘You and I Circle’) aims tooffer parents and guardians the opportunity to enjoyplaying with their children and socialising in an informalWelsh atmosphere. Activities are provided to promo tethe development of children from birth onwards andopportunities for parents to support one another and todiscuss issues such as health, safety and childdevelopment. Non-Welsh speaking parents are given theopportunity to learn Welsh with their children on aWelsh for the Family scheme. Elementary stories arepresented, in addition to Welsh songs and lullabies andsimple expressions to use at home.Cylchoedd Ti a Fi are voluntary bilingual playgroupswhich form part of MYM ’s provision, and were primarilyfounded for linguistic and social reasons; staffare not necessarily qualified teachers but are likely tohave had a more general training. They fall outsidemainstream educational provision but are regulated bythe Health and Safety Executive and Social ServicesGuidelines.In the Welsh medium and bilingual early years sector inWales, two processes are at work, these are languagemaintenance education programmes and immersioneducation programmes. With language support education,children learn through the medium of the languageof the home. With immersion education, theireducational experiences are mainly through the mediumof the second language. Immersion education, which isthe experience children from non Welsh speaking homesreceive in Cylchoedd Ti a Fi nursery groups, and then in

15 Regional dossier Welshnursery and reception classes and in Key Stage 1 inschools, is a concept that has been pioneered in W ales.instruction material An increasing number of attractive and colourfulbilingual or Welsh medium resources for pre-schoolchildren are available in the form of books, educationaltoys, video tapes, television programmes and aud iotapes but there is still a need to expand in this area interms of choice and availability.statisticsWelsh Medium Playgroups Data for 2000/2001Number of children attending Welsh medium playgroups (including 12,954‘Cylch Ti a Fi’ mother and toddler groups)Number of playgroup leaders in Welsh medium playgroups 935Table 1: Figures of children and leaders at Welsh medium playgroups3 Primary Educationtarget groupWelsh MediumSchoolsWelsh as a subjectThe age of statutory primary education is 5-11. Generally,infant departments in primary schools are responsible fornursery provision (age 3-5) and for Key Stage 1 (age 5-7);junior departments for Key Stage 2 (age 8-11), and theNational Curriculum is followed by all pupils between theages of 5-11 .Generally, in Welsh speaking schools, English is introducedat age 7 and pupils learn very quickly to read, write and usethe language correctly to a standard equal to theexpectations of their age group. From year 3 (age 8)onwards, English is allocated curricular time in the sameway as other subjects, but Welsh is the main medium ofinstruction in mo st other subjects.Welsh as a subject is included in the National Curriculum asoutlined in the Education Act of 1988. Welsh became acompulsory subject for all pupils in Wales at Key Stages 1,

Education and lesser used languages 162 and 3 (i.e. up to age 14) in 1990. In 1999 it became acompulsory subject at Key Stage 4; this means that all pupilsin Wales study Welsh (either as a first or a second language)for 11 years, from the ages of 5 to 16.curriculumThe Education Act of 1988 defined Key Stages ineducation:Primary Schools: Key Stage 1 age 5-7 years 1-2Key Stage 2 age7-11 years 3-6Core Subjects: Welsh (in Welsh speaking schools as definedby Section 35 4 (8) of the 1996 Education Act), English(KS1 pupils in Welsh speaking classes are exempt from theKS1 Programme of Study for English), Mathematics andScience.Foundation Subjects: Welsh, History, Geography,Techno logy, Art, Music, and Physical Education (P.E)which is mand atory at all Key S tages.Information Technology (IT) is usually taught on a crosscurricularbasis and integrated into the curriculum of allschools at all Key Stages. IT has a separate National CurriculumOrder and in some cases it may be taught as a separatesubject.Religious Education as a subject does not form a part of theNational C urriculum Orders.language acquisitionin Welsh Mediumand BilingualSchoolsIn general, during the early years of schooling, pupils fromnon Welsh medium homes follow language immersioncourses with much emphasis on oral development so thatthey achieve fluency quickly. English is introduced at age 7and oral skills are emphasised initially and subsequentreading skills learnt initially in Welsh facilitate reading inEnglish and this because Welsh reads more phonetically. Afew authorities teach bilingually from the age of 3 or 4 inorder to ensure that pupils are fully bilingual by the age of11. By the age of 11, the vast majority of pupils have

17 Regional dossier Welshacquired all language skills commensurate with their ageand ability to eq ual standards in both languages.teachersAthrawon BroService(AreaTeachers of Welsh)In general, one teacher is allocated to a class and isresponsible for teaching the whole curriculum. This has ledto some scho ols designating teachers with sp ecialisms incurricular areas to lead on a subject throughout the school.This occurs frequently in English medium schools where ateacher trained to teach Welsh may be appointed to provideor to lead the compulsory teaching of Welsh as a secondlanguage. The majority of primary school teachers aregraduates; teachers who qualified before a degree became arequirement have a Diploma in Education. A class assistantmay be available if school funding permits, and classroommethodology combines group and whole class teaching.Government policy aims to cut class sizes to fewer than 30pupils over the next few years.As a result of the 198 0 Education Act, funding was allocatedto Local Education Authorities (LEAs) to support Welshmedium education. A national team of area teachers ofWelsh called “Athrawon Bro was set up to support theteaching of Welsh in the National Curriculum . Funding forthis service has been supplemented by Grants for EducationalSupport and Training, which funds the training ofteachers to learn to speak Welsh. Although local variationoccurs, most LEAs have an Athrawon Bro team thatoperates in the primary and/or secondary sector to helpteachers deliver the Curriculum Orders for Welsh. In 1996,responsibility for distributing the grant was transferred fromthe then Welsh Office to the Welsh Language Board, underSection 5 of the Welsh Language Act 1993. The AthrawonBro are therefore currently funded via grants allocated toLEAs on a competitive match funding basis, with the WelshLanguage Board contributing 75% of the allocation, and theLEAs 25%. Grants are awarded according to four priorityareas, namely the Athrawon Bro service, Centres forLatecomers, residential language courses and pilot projects.

Education and lesser used languages 18Centre forlatecomerschildren with specialeducational needsinstruction materialLatecomers to the Welsh language, for example pupils whomove into the more Welsh speaking areas of Wales in themidst of their schooling and need to catch up in the languageskills, are sometimes educated for periods of time atLanguage Centres for Latecomers. T hese exist withinseveral LEAs and are run by one or more members of theAthrawon Bro team. Teaching is based on language immersionmethods and class sizes are sm all.The policy for children with learning difficulties is that theyattend mainstream schools and receive additional supportwhere possible and practicable. Some pupils with SpecialEducational Needs (SEN) may spend part or all of their timein a special class or with a specialist teacher, rece iving basicsupport, particularly with literacy and numeracy. P upils withprofound SEN may be educated in specialist schools or unitsrun by LEAs, according to the individual needs of the pupil.There is a shortage of Welsh speaking specialists in somespecific areas to deal with pupils with SEN, mostparticularly in the areas of Speech and Language Therapy,Occupational and Physiotherapy and EducationalPsychology.Much work has been done over the last twenty years todevelop Welsh medium reso urces. However, additionaldifficulties in matching need and provision have beencaused by the constant changes to the Curriculum Orders forindividual subjects since 1988. A CCAC , the Assessment,Qualifications and Curriculum Authority for Wales, has themain responsibility for commissioning Welsh mediumteaching materials and in 1998/99 £1.4m was spent on avariety of teaching resources.statistics By 1998-1999, over 25% of children in Wales wereattending Welsh-medium schools. The majority of thesepupils came from non-Welsh speaking homes. By 2000,there were 445 Welsh medium or bilingual primary schoolsin Wales and 51,600 primary pupils were taught through themedium of Welsh. A further 6,146 of pupils were taught a

19 Regional dossier Welshpercentage of their curriculum through the medium of Welshand 227,668 pupils taught Welsh as a second language.Primary Schools Data 2000/2001Primary schools having classes where W elsh is the sole or main medium 445of instructionTotal number of primary schools in Wales 1,660Classes where Welsh is used as a teaching medium as a part of the 246curriculumNumber of pupils in classes where Welsh is the sole or main medium of 51,600instructionNumber of pupils in classes where Welsh is used as a teaching medium 6,146for part of the curriculumTotal number of primary school pupils in Wales 291,687Number of primary school pupils taught Welsh as a second language 227,668Number of full and part-time primary teachers teaching through the 2,762medium of W elshNumber of full and part time primary teachers teaching W elsh as a 7,907second languageTeachers considered qualified to teach W elsh but not doing so 278Table 2: Figures of schools, pupils and teachers involved in different kinds of Welsheducation4 Secondary Educationtarget groupstructureStatutory Education at the secondary stage extends fromages 11 to 16. This is divided into Key Stages 3 (11-14)and 4 (14-16) and the National Curriculum is taught inall state schools to the age of 16.Secondary schools are funded according to a formula setby the Local Education Authorities and approved by theNational Assembly for Wales. This means that both theproportion of the budget retained for education administrationand the basis of the distribution of thefunding varies slightly in each of the 22 authorities;similarly, the proportion within the Unitary Authority’stotal budget which is allocated to education varies with

Education and lesser used languages 20each council’s decisions.curriculumlanguage useCore subjects: Welsh (in Welsh-speaking schools asdefined by Section 354 (8) of the 1996 Education Act),English, M athematics, and Science.Foundation Subjects: Welsh, H istory, Geography,Techno logy, Art, Music, and Physical Education (P.E)which is mandatory at all Key Stages, and a modernForeign Language thro ugh Key Stage 3.In Key Stage 4, Foundation Subjects are no longer compulsory(apart from Welsh as of September 1999).Physical Education remains mandatory until the end ofKey Stage 4.The full curriculum is currently studied to 14 years ofage, after which a degree of choice is offered in mostschools; the Core Subjects remain compulsory andchoices are offered in Foundation Subject areas and insome additional subjects such as Religious Education asan examination subject. Most courses lead to qualificationsat General Certificate of Secondary Education(GCSE) (grades A* to G); many courses have a modularstructure which means that the final result is anaccumulation of modular tests taken over two years. Anincreasing number of schools are introducing vocationaleducation into the curriculum; courses frequently offeredinclude General National Vocational Qualification(GNVQ) at Foundation or Interm ediate levels in subjectssuch as Business Studies, Leisure and Tourism, Healthand Social Care.Welsh is a Core Subject or a compulsory FoundationSubject in all schools. M ost Welsh medium schoolsteach the majority of subjects up to G eneral Certificateof Secondary Education (GCSE) level through themedium of Welsh or bilingually. Although it has beentraditional for some Welsh medium schools to offerMaths and Science through the medium of English, manyare changing this policy. The experiences of thoseschools teaching these subjects through the medium of

21 Regional dossier WelshWelsh has demonstrated that pupils have not been at anyeducational disadvantage due to this policy.Welsh medium sc hoolsteachingSpecial EducationalNeeds (SEN)The Assembly’s definition of a Welsh-speaking secondaryschool is one where more than six subjects are taughtthrough the medium of Welsh. In schools which are notdefined as Welsh-speaking schools, up to five subjectsmay be taught through the medium of Welsh. Howeverin the majority of these schools W elsh is taught as asecond language and no subjects are taught through themedium o f Welsh.Welsh as a second language is developing rapidly thefirst cohort of pupils to reach Key Stage 4 (age 14-16,year 10-11) did so in 1999 and in 2001 the majority ofpupils undertook and accredited external examinationsuch as General Cerificate of Secondary Education(GCSE) or General National Vocational Qualification(GNVQ) in Welsh. O ver the years, many pupils opted tostudy Welsh as a second language, some going on tostudy A level and then to study for a degree course inWelsh. One of the effects of the Welsh Language Act1993 has been to create a marked increase in the needfor bilingualism in the workforce across Wales. It ishoped that studying Welsh up to the age of 16 willenable all the pupils of W ales to play a valuable part inits bilingual future.In secondary schools, specialist teachers teach specificsubjects; a variety of teaching strategies are used in eachsubject including whole class teaching, group work, andoral work A relevant degree is required in order to beappointed to teach in the secondary sector.In many schools a support teacher gives pupils withlearning difficulties support either within subject lessonsor by a specialist SEN teacher in a separate department.The aim is to enable pupils to study the completecurriculum at an appropriate level. A statutory Code ofPractice defines steps to be taken in the context of SEN

Education and lesser used languages 22and parents and professionals such as Educational Psychologistsplay an active ro le in discussing a pupil’sprogress. Pupils with severe SEN may be educated instate funded special schools or units outside mainstreamprovision.instruction materialsstatisticsThe provision of a complete range of up to date andattractively presented resources in all subjects throughthe medium of Welsh presents an ongoing challenge.The situation however has improved, teachers in schoolsare still showing commitment and innovation inproducing and providing their own resources. The use ofIT is developing in schools in all its forms and it iscrucial that Welsh medium pro vision be made using allthe latest technology.Of the 229 secondary schools maintained by LE As inWales, 20 taught Welsh as a first language only, 51taught Welsh both as a first and second language and theremaining 158 schools taught Welsh as a secondlanguage only. A total of 52 secondary schools weredefined as Welsh-speaking schools, with another 9schools teaching a limited range of subjects through themedium o f Welsh.Secondary Schools Data 2000/2001Number of Welsh medium /bilingual secondary schools 52Total number of secondary schools in Wales 229Number of Welsh medium /bilingual secondary school pupils 36,289Total number of secondary school pupils in Wales 204,158Number of secondary school pupils taught Welsh as a first 25,072languageNumber of secondary schools where Welsh is taught as a first20languageNumber of secondary schools where Welsh is taught both as a51first and a second languageNumber of secondary school p upils taught Welsh as a second 122,112language

23 Regional dossier WelshNumber of secondary schools where Welsh is taught as a second158languageNumber of secondary teachers teaching through the medium of1,549Welsh (excluding 305 teachers of Welsh as a first language)Number of secondary teachers teaching Welsh as a second694languageTeachers considered qualified to teach W elsh but not doing so 274Table 3: Figures of schools, teachers and pupils involved in different kinds of Welsheducation5 Further and Vocational Educationtarget group andstructureIn Wales, post 16 education is available in Years 12 and 13in secondary schools, tertiary colleges and colleges offurther education. Apart from schools, provision through themedium of Welsh is limited to some availability at tertiaryand Further Education colleges in traditionallyWelsh-speaking areas. The emphasis on Welsh in theworkplace is increasing people’s awareness of the value ofbilingual education and thus encouraging both demand andsupply. Vocational courses through the medium of Welshare gradually becoming available as demand grows.At present the main providers of post-16 Welsh mediumeducation are the Welsh medium/bilingual secondaryschools, apart from o ne area in N orth Wales where allpost-16 education and training is provided at the localtertiary and Further Education college. Welsh mediumschools provide continuity and progression in academic andlinguistic terms for pupils studying subjects through themedium of Welsh. It is also argued that they provide asetting where pupils are able to use their knowledge ofWelsh within a social setting and that this is invaluablelinguistically for young people who have learned Welsh inschools and who have a limited amount of contact with theWelsh language within their communities. Welsh mediumschools concentrate mainly on the provision of courses toAdvanced Level, with a number also providing Vocationalcourses thro ugh the medium of W elsh and English.

Education and lesser used languages 24language useFurther EducationCollegesIn 1991, 21 Advanced Level subjects were provided throughthe medium of W elsh in Wales, and by 1999, this had grownto 26 subjects. In 1991, 3. 7% of all Advanced levelexamination entries in Wales were through the medium ofWelsh, increasing to 6. 2% by 19 99.In some LEAs, secondary schools teach only to year 11(16+) when all pupils leave school. They may continue theirstudies at a tertiary or Further Education college, whichserves the needs of students from several schools, or in aFurther Education college. N o Welsh medium tertiarycollege currently exists.Further Education colleges prepare students primarily forthe worlds of industry and business, offering a broad rangeof education and training at all levels. Adult education andtraining on both full time and part-time bases also form partof their provision; A level and vocational courses areavailable, including NVQ (National VocationalQualifications not frequently offered in schools) as well asGNVQ (General National Vocational Qualification) in allsubjects and at different levels.Until the mid 80s, very little Welsh medium/bilingualprovision was provided in the FE Colleges of Wales. Whatprovision existed was primarily focussed around thefollowing areas: business, secretarial work and care/nurseryeducation. In 1986 the Manpower Services Commissionestablished a project with the aim of promoting bilingualismin FE. This project was called Development of InitialFurther Education and it promoted bilingual FE provisionuntil 1990.During this period, a significant increase was seen in theprovision within colleges and a number of colleges, whichhad not previously offered bilingual courses, began to do so.When the Project ceased to operate, no central co-ordinationof colleges’ work occurred. From 1993 onwards there was ageneral decline in bilingual provision in Wales. However,during this period some colleges such as Coleg Menai and

25 Regional dossier WelshColeg Meirion Dwyfor in North W est Wales increased theirprovision.In 1996 in response to the decline in the numbers of studentsfollowing Welsh medium/bilingual courses or modules at FElevel, the Welsh Language Board in partnership with ColegMeirion Dwyfor in G wynedd, established a project based atthe college which had the aim of providing support andguidance for colleges to increase their W elshmedium/bilingual provision. The pro ject, calledAllweddiaith, initially worked with the six FE collegeswhich provide courses in Welsh speaking areas mainly inNorth and West Wales. Allweddiaith provided guidance forcolleges as they formulated their Welsh Language Schemes,provided training for course tutors and marketed theadvantages of bilingual skills in the workplace to students,In 2001, this project was replaced by the establishment ofSgiliaith, a Centre to Develop Bilingualism in FurtherEducation. This Centre again based at Coleg MeirionDwyfor, is supported by ELWa, the National Council forEducation and Training for Wales, the Welsh LanguageBoard and Fforwm, which is the association of FE collegesin Wales. The Centre has a broader remit than Allwedd iaithas it will provide support for all FE colleges in Wales andwill also link closely with bilingual developments in theschool and Higher Education sectors.provisionThe provision of vocational courses through the medium ofWelsh is gradually increasing as constant pressure is exertedon awarding bodies for assessment, project assignments andexternal moderation to be validated in Welsh. Theacceptance by awarding bodies of Welsh as a valid mediumfor the communication elements of the courses was asignificant step forw ard. Spec ific projects to develop furtherprovision, such as the Welsh Office/ Na tional Assemblyfunded Welsh Medium NVQ Project and the “Rhwydiaithproject supported by the Welsh Language Board, are alsounderlining the relevance of bilingual vocatio nal training tothe workplace in Wales.

Education and lesser used languages 26restructuring of Post16 EducationPost 16 education especially at school and FE level wasrestructured in 2001 with the establishment of ELWa, theNational Council for Education and Training for Wales.ELWa from 2002 onwards will be responsible for thefunding of all post 16 provision either in schools, colleges orwhere relevant by private provid ers of training. In order tofacilitate this development, local consortia have beenestablished to plan and agree who should provide variouscourses at local level. Each consortia has the role ofagreeing this plan. In setting the National Assembly forWales’ priority areas for post 16 education in Wales one ofthe main areas was the development of W elshmedium/bilingual courses and Welsh in the workplacecourses. In order to ensure that Welsh medium/bilingualprovision is being developed, the Welsh Language Boardhas established an all Wales group which maintains anoverview of the provision as it is being developed andprovides advice to ELWa and the National Assembly on thesuitability and range of the provision. This advisory groupincluded representatives from all the main bodies that dealwith education in general in W ales.With this policy development, there are also moves toestablish a Virtual Centre which will have the role ofpromoting bilingualism throughout the post 16 sector. Atpresent two parts of this virtual centre are in place and thesedeal with the H E and FE sectors.As public bodies FE and HE institutions are required toagree Welsh Language Schemes with the Welsh LanguageBoard. However in addition to developing a strategy on howthey intend to deal with the public in Welsh on a customercare level, they also have to describe in detail theircurricular provision over a three year period. This has led toan increased level of provision especially in colleges inWelsh sp eaking areas.instruction material Since 1993 the Funding Council for Wales has theresponsibility for producing resources for Welshmedium/bilingual provision development in the FE sector.

27 Regional dossier WelshThe sum that has been allocated for the development hasremained constant at £100,000 a year since that period. Ingeneral most of the materials developed that have beenpublished on a web site which is openly accessible tocolleges and schools. Teachers and lecturers can then adaptthese materials to suit the specific needs of their students.6 Higher EducationstructureWelsh MediumProvisionThere is a great variety in the provision of Higher Educationin Wales. U ntil recently, the University of Wales, with itsfive colleges at Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, Swansea andLampeter provided most degree courses in Wales; theUniversity of Wales School ofMedicine added another fieldof graduate and post graduate training. However, as a resultof the changes effected in 1993, other colleges, which werepreviously providing courses leading to Certificate orDiploma courses, became degree-awarding institutions.Consequently, the former Polytechnic of Wales became theUniversity of Glamorgan; and other ‘new Universities’ wereestablished, namely the University of Wales Institute Cardiff(UWIC); North Ea st Wales Institute (NEW I), University ofWales College Newport (UWCN), Higher EducationInstitute Swansea, Trinity College Carmarthen, The WelshCollege of Music and Drama, all emerging to offer degreecourses as well as a range of professional and certificatecourses.Welsh medium pro vision in Higher Education has tend ed todevelop in certain institutions as a result of the commitmentwithin them to extending the use of Welsh at all levels ofeducation. The main institutions where p rovision isavailable in courses other than Welsh as a subject includeUniversity of Wales, Aberystwyth, University of Wales,Bangor, and Trinity College Carmarthen.Since the 50’s, the University of Wales has been underpressure to establish a Welsh medium college within theUniversity. Rather than undertaking this course of action,

Education and lesser used languages 28the University decided to fund a num ber of lecturing postsin its colleges which would be specifically for teachingthrough the m edium of W elsh.In 1980 in order to improve the quality and range of coursesavailable the ‘University Board for Welsh MediumTeaching’ was established . This Bo ard’s remit was to decidehow best to spend the extra funding which became availablefor Welsh m edium teaching. When the Higher EducationFunding Council for Wales was founded in 1992, much ofthis Board ’s power in making funding decisions wa s lost.During the mid 1990s a premium was paid to HEestablishments for increasing their Welsh medium provision.In real terms however there was very little progress as onlytwo establishments were able to d emonstrate an increase inprovision.Following a period of discussion on ways to progress andregarding which colleges should be represented on the newUniversity Board for Welsh medium Teaching, it wasrelaunched in 1997 and now represents not only theUniversity of Wales but also the University of Glamorganand other H E Colleges in Wales.The new Board recognised the need to act as a catalyst forchanges. It concentrated its efforts initially on persuadingthe Higher Education Council Wales and the individual HEinstitutions to contribute a sum of money to establish a newpost which would have the remit of developing bilingualismin the sector. In 2000 an officer was appointed to undertakethis task.Welsh LanguageSchemesTeacher TrainingHigher Education institutions, as with Further Educationcolleges are required to agree Welsh Language Schemeswith the Welsh Language Board. (See the relevantparagraph on FE). The development of these schemes hasbeen a considerable challenge for the HE institutions as thequality and range of Welsh medium/bilingual provision hasbeen very varied.The Government retains control over entry to the teachingprofession under the Teachers Regulations by requiring that

29 Regional dossier Welshteachers in maintained schools have Qualified TeachingStatus (QTS). Initial teacher training is the training andeducation undertaken by students in order to gain QTS. Thepathways available to potential teachers to gain QTS includeenrolment on an undergraduate Initial Teacher Trainingcourse (normally BEd or BA Education, lasting two, threeor four years) or on a postgraduate course (normally a oneyear full-time Postgraduate Certificate of EducationPGCE) at a higher education institution. Currently in Wales,candidates apply for courses either at secondary level (thatis to qualify to teach children aged within the range 11-18)or primary level (children aged within the range 3-11).It is a requirement that all courses are operated in conjunctionwith partner schools. So, for example, within athree year undergraduate primary course, 24 weeks wo uldbe spent in schools, and 18 weeks within a one-year PostGraduate Certificate of E ducation p rimary course.Welsh MediumProvisionThere are currently 8 higher education institutions that offerinitial teacher training in Wales, with all but one of themoffering Welsh medium pro vision, allowing students toundertake some or all of their study through the medium ofWelsh. Cynllun Colegau Cymru (Wales’ College P lans)aims to provide prospective non-Welsh speaking teacherswith some Welsh training in order for them to teach W elshto primary pupils in Wales in English medium scho ols.There has been a shortage of postgraduate entrants tosecondary PGCE in Wales in certain subjects in recentyears, including Welsh. Consequently, incentive grants arenow offered to students training in subjects where there areshortages (maths, modern foreign languages, science,technology and Welsh).7 Adult EducationNationalOrganisation ofSectorThe National A ssembly for W ales, the Further EducationFunding Council and the Welsh Language Board are allresponsible for Welsh for Adults at a national level. The

Education and lesser used languages 30post of the national officer for Welsh for Adults is funded bythe ELWa, the National Council for Education and Trainingfor Wales and the officer is based at the Education andTraining Department of the Welsh Language Board. Theofficer co-ordinates the Welsh for Adults committees whichhave a strategic overview of the field nationally. There aresix committees in all with responsibility for strategicplanning, training, qualifications and assessment, research,learning resources and materials, Welsh in the workplaceand marketing and sponsorship. The officer is responsiblefor disseminating information to the W elsh for AdultsConsortia which co-ordinate the provision of courses on alocal level, and dealing with requests with regards tolearning W elsh from the general public.The Welsh for Adults committees are task groups whichwere established by the Welsh Language B oard inconsultation with course providers to examine differentaspects of the field. The main body is the ConsultativeCommittee, which has responsibility for the overview of thefive sub-committees. The sub-committees are Strategy andTraining; Welsh in the Workplace; Research; Marketing andSponsorship, and Resources. The most productive of all thegroups have been the Strategic and Training Sub committeeand the Welsh in the Workplace Sub-committee. In 2000 theStrategy and Training Sub-co mmittee drafted a strategicdevelopment plan, which was submitted to the NationalAssembly for Wales in August 1999. The strategy drew apositive response from various Assembly Members. TheSub- committee also developed a Welsh for Adults PGCEmodule which was duly validated by the University ofWales, Newport in the summer of 1999. The Welsh in theWorkplace Sub-committee has recently published guidelinesfor employers. The document contains models of practicefor businesses wanting to develop the Welsh language skillsof their employees; it also includes details of case studies,and exam ples of good practice.instruction materialThere are a variety of resources available for people wantingto learn Welsh. For complete beginners, there are

31 Regional dossier Welshteach-yourself books and tapes; dictionaries; CD- ROM s;videos of T.V. programmes, and a taped radio series. It isalso possible to learn Welsh through the Internet or via acorrespondence course there is an excellent range ofmaterials and distance learning courses to choose from.People want to learn Welsh for a wide variety of reasons. Inmany cases adults seek to rediscover a language that theymay have spoken as children, some may not have beentaught Welsh at school, whilst others have an empathy withWales and its heritage which can only be fully appreciatedby understanding the language. Increasingly Welsh is apre-requisite for many jobs in Wales as organisations andbusinesses appreciate the advantages of communicating withtheir clients and customers b ilingually.the Welsh for AdultsConsortiaThere are eight W elsh for Adults Consortia withresponsibility for co-ordinating the provision of W elshlanguage classes locally. The Consortia are funded byELWa via the colleges. The main aim is to meet localeducational needs by ensuring that there are classes offeredin every single area. In most cases, the learning route ismapped out for learners of all language levels. Providersalso organise additional courses which range fromresidential and summer courses to revision sessions forexamination students. Som etimes organisers work inpartnership in order to offer training courses for new andexperienced tutors, and seek to work in conjunction with theother relevant didactic organisations in view to provide thebest service possible, to appoint course moderators andorganise moderating m eetings.statisticsThere is a rapidly increasing demand for W elsh classes foradults at all levels in Wales. According to the FundingCouncil’s figures, there were 23,634 enrolments on Welshlearning courses during 1999/2000. The correspondingfigure for 1998/1999 was 21,500. In 1993, 13,000 enrolledfor Welsh classes, therefore there has been a dramaticincrease in numbers over the past few years. The bulk of the

Education and lesser used languages 32provision is offered by Further or Higher EducationColleges and Community Education Departments. Theproviders of Welsh for Adults coordinate the provision inlocally-based groups or consortia, and there are eight ofthese throughout Wales.8 Educational research9 ProspectsThe five colleges of the University of Wales and theUniversity of Glamorgan have research pro grammes inWelsh and the Centre for Higher Studies in Welsh andCeltic in the University of Wales also has a researchprogramme. Socio-linguistic research is also undertaken atboth Swansea and Cardiff universities. Collaboration andsupport in educational developments and in-service trainingfor schools has become increased between schools andHigher Education institutions. ACCAC, the Assessment,Qualifications and Curriculum Authority for Wales, alsocommissions specific research projects associated withissues of curriculum and stand ards.The Education and Training Department of the WelshLanguage Board has commissioned a programme of research,and amongst key reports of the last two years areContinuity in Welsh Medium Education, IncompleteBilingualism, and Welsh Medium and Bilingual SpecialEducatio nal Needs.A number of other organisations have also commissionedresearch into Education in Wales, including the Institute ofWelsh Affairs which exists to promote quality research andinformed debate affecting the cultural, social, political andeconom ic well-being of W ales.As stated before according to the 1991 Census, nearly onefifth of the population spoke Welsh. When viewed from the

33 Regional dossier Welshperspective of the 1981 Census, it is apparent that somethingquite remarkable had happened. The steady decline in thenumber of Welsh speakers appeared to have been arrested.What is more, there was a significant increase in the numberand percentage of young people who spoke Welsh. Forexample, in that 10-year period, the percentage of childrenaged 5-9 who spoke Welsh rose from 17.8% to 24.7%, andthe percentage of young people aged 10-14 who spokeWelsh rose from 18.5% to 26.9%. These increases can bedirectly attributed to the development of Welsh-mediumeducation since the 1940s.Despite all the increases among young people and theapparent expansion o f the language into areas previouslylost, there is still cause for concern. An analysis of the 1991Census by Professo rs Aitchison and Carter which waspublished in 1995 highlighted some important concerns asregards language transmission. They found a contraction inwhat were consid ered to be the traditional strongholds of thelanguage is also a cause for concern. It is difficult to makeabsolutely accurate comparisons from census to census inthis respect, but nonetheless the trend is clear.The reduction can be attributed in the main to a number ofcomplex socio-economic factors: an indication that thestrength of the language in some areas is tied to and isdependent upon sustainable development within thecommunity.In 1999, the Welsh Language Board produced at the requestof the National Assembly for Wales a document called TheWelsh Language: a Vision and Mission 2000-2005. Thisdocument sets out a range of achievable targets for theAssembly in relation to ensuring that Wales beco mes abilingual country, including:-to continue with the work of promoting growth inbilingual services by overseeing the implementation of asubstantial number of language plansto expand and develop projects to encourage early bilingualismby targeting new parents and promotingnursery education. A major new scheme was launched

Education and lesser used languages 34in 2001 based on a number of activities involving thepresentation of information to new parents on theadvantage s of early bilingualism .to improve several aspects of bilingual education andtraining provision, including the W elsh for Adultsorganisation, the Athrawon Bro Service, centres forlatecomers to the language and Special NeedsEducatio n.to promote the use of Welsh at the community level, bystrengthening the network of local language initiativesthroughout Wales and through o ther key bod ies.to develop a long term campaign to promote andfacilitate the use of W elsh in the private sector.to develop a comprehensive marketing strategy on thetheme Two languages twice the choice, aimed at keytarget groups such as parents, and young people aged1425.The Welsh Language Board has emphasised that it isessential that the Welsh language becomes and intrinsic partof the economic life of the whole of Wales. It is clear thatthis message has led to a tangible growth in the privatesector, where an increasing number of companies andbusinesses of all sizes are choosing to use the Welshlanguage more and more, because they consider thelanguage to be a positive asset which offers added value.The increase in the use of the language has led naturally toan increase in the number of em ployment opportunities, andthere is evidence that the demand for workers with bilingualskills will continue to increase significantly in the future.In May 2000, the National Assembly for Wales published adocument (www.betterwales.com) which outlines theAssembly’s first strategic plan. In this document theAssembly sets out its programme of action until March2003. Included in this document is a target concerning theWelsh language: the Assembly proposes to stabilise theproportion of Welsh speakers, sustain the growth in thenumber of young people who speak the language andsupport adult learners.

35 Regional dossier WelshThe overall picture is a mixed one: there is certainly causefor hope, but there is also cause for concern: concernregarding the contraction of the language in its strongholds,its deterioration as a first language in the home, and the usethat is made of it in “traditional contexts; optimismregarding the increase in the number of children aged 5-15who speak the language, its increasing use in new contextsand in the new opportunities for its use.10 Summary statisticsSchools having classes where W elsh is sole ormain medium of instructionPrimary schools Secondaryschools445 52Total num ber of schools 1,660 229Number of pupils in classes where W elsh isthe sole or main medium of instruction51,600 36,289Total number of school-pupils in Wales 291,687 204,158Number of school-pupils taught Welsh as asecond languageNumber of full and part-time teachers teachingthrough the medium of Welsh227,668 122,1122,762 1,549*Number of full and part-time teachers teaching 7,907 694Welsh as a second languageTable 4: Figures of schools, teachers and pupils involved in Welsh education

Education and lesser used languages 36Education system in the UK(Eurydice)

37 Regional dossier WelshReferences and further readingmain official textsregulating theteaching of WelshEducation Act 1870:Introduction of compulsory education in Wales. Paid capitationgrants to schools which taught Welsh.Education Act 1944:This legislation was passed to enable Local EducationAuthorities to provide W elsh-medium schools.Welsh Language Act 1967The ministers are provided with the right to prescribe statutoryforms in W elsh, and a commitment, for the first time,that individuals in Wales would have a choice of usingWelsh or English in courts as they preferred. This commitmentto choice has underlain the growth in the use ofWelsh b y many other p ublic bodies since 196 7.Education Reform Act 1988Establishment of a National Curriculum and stipulation thatWelsh would be taught to all pupils in almost all Welshschools.Welsh Language Act 1993Agreement of Welsh Language Schemes with public bodiesin Wales to promote the use of W elsh.publicationsAitchison, J and Carter, H. (1994) A geography of the Welshlanguage, 1961-1991. University of W ales Press, Cardiff.Baker, C and Prys Jones, S (1998) Encyclo pedia of Bilingualismand Bilingual Education Clevedon: MultilingualMatters.Baker, C (1993) Bilingual Education in Wales. In Baetens-Beardsmore, H (ed. ) European Models of BilingualEducation. Clevedon : Multingual Matters.

Education and lesser used languages 38Baker, C (1993) Foundations of bilingual education andbilingualism. Clevedon : Multilingual Matters.Bellin, W (1984) Welsh and English in Wales. In Trudgill,P. (ed. ) Language in the British Isles. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press, 449-479.Bellin, W. , Higgs, G, and Farrell, S. (1997) Halting orreversing language shift: A social and spatial analysis ofSouth East Wales. Final report for ERSC grant no.R000236330.Gruffudd, H. (1996) Y Gymraeg a phobl ifanc. PrifysgolCymru Abertaw e.Hallam, P. R. , a Gruffudd, H. (1999) DwyieithrwyddAnghyflawn. Adran Addysg Barhaus Oedolion, PrifysgolCymru Ab ertawe / Bwrdd yr Iaith G ymraeg, Caerdydd.Jones,Meirion Prys & Baker Colin, Welsh Language Board,1999 Dilyniant mewn Addysg Gymraeg a Dwyieithog /Continuity in Welsh Medium Education:Addysg Anghenion Arbennig cyfrwng Cymraeg aDwyieithog / Welsh Medium and Bilingual SpecialEducational Needs. Mawrth / M arch 200 0.National Assembly for Waleswww. betterwales. com, May 2000Packer, A a Campbell, C (1996) Pam fo d rhieni yn dewisaddysg Gymraeg i’w plant? Undeb Cenedlaethol AthrawonCymru, Ab erystwyth.Reynolds, D. , Bellin, W. and Ieuan, Ruth ab. (1998)A competitive edge – why Welsh schools perform better.Institute of Welsh Affairs. Cardiff.Williams, C (1993) Bilingua l Wales in a Multilingual

39 Regional dossier WelshEurope. Dyfed County Council.Williams, Cen (1997) Pwyso a mesur addysgu dwyieithog:addysg bellach. Canolfan Bedwyr, Prifysgol Cymru,Bangor.

Education and lesser used languages 40Addressesofficial bodiesNational Assembly for WalesBae Caerdydd / Cardiff BayCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF99 1NATel: 029 2082 5111Fax: 029 2082 3204Enquiries regarding statistics029 2082 5535www. wales. gov. ukELWaNational Council for Learning and Training in WalesT’r AfonBedwas RoadBedwasCAERFFILI / CAERPHILLYTel: 01443 663784Fax: 01443 663787www. elwa. ac. ukACCACAssessment, Qualifications and Curriculum Authority forWalesCastle BuildingsWomanby StreetCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF10 1SXTel: 029 2037 5400Fax: 029 2034 3612e-mail: info@accac. org. ukEstynHer Majesty’s Inspectorate For Education & Training InWalesT Glas RdLlanishen

41 Regional dossier WelshCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF14 5ZDTel: 029 2032 5000Higher Educa tion Fun ding CouncilLinden CourtThe OrchardsIlex CloseLlanishenCAERDYDD/CARDIFFTel: 029 2076 1861Fax: 029 2076 3163e-mail: hefcw@wfc. ac. ukWJECWelsh Joint Education Committee245 Western AvenueLlandafCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF5 2YXTel: 029 2026 5007Fax: 029 2057 5995e-mail: iaith@cbac. co. ukThe Welsh Language BoardMarket Chambers5-7 St Mary StreetCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF10 1ATTel: 029 2087 8000Fax: 029 2087 8001e-mail: ymholiadau@bwrdd-yr-iaith. org. ukLlinell Gyswllt â’r GymraegLink Line to W elsh0845 606059Welsh Local Government AssociationLocal Government House

Education and lesser used languages 42Drake W alkCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF10 4LGTel. : 029 20468600Fax: 029 20468601educationMudiad Ysgolion M eithrin (MYM).The Movement for W elsh medium nursery schoo ls145 Albany RoadCAERDYDD/CARDIFFCF24 3NTTel: 029 2048 5510Fax: 029 2047 0196www. mym. co. ukRhieni D ros Addysg Gymraeg (RhA G).Parents for Welsh-medium Educationc/o 41 Heol HazelABERTAWE/SWANSEATel/Fax: 01792 205807e-mail: heini@hgruffudd. freeserve. co. ukUniversity of WalesThe RegistrarUniversity RegistryCathays ParkCAERDYDD/CARDIFFTel: 029 2038 2656Other websites on minority languages

43 Regional dossier WelshMercatorMercator-EducationMercator-Med iaMercator-LegislationEuropean UnionCouncil of EuropeEurydiceEBLULwww.mercator-central.orgGeneral site of the Mercator-project. It will lead you to thethree specialized centres:www.mercator-education.orgHomepage of Mercator-Education: European Network forregional or minority languages and education. The site containsthe series of regio nal dossiers, a database with organisationsand bibliography and many rated links to minoritylanguages.www.aber.ac.uk/~merc/Homepage of Mercator-M edia. It provides information onmedia and minority languages in the EU.www.troc.es/ciemen/mercatorHomepage of Mercator-Legislation. It provides informationon minority languages and legislation in the EU.http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/langmin.htmlAt the website of the European Union an explanation isgiven of its support for regional or minority languages.http://conventions.coe. int/European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.(1992) and Framework Convention for the Protection ofNational Minorities (1995) European Treaty Series/Série destraités européens ETS 148 and 157, Strasbourg.www.eurydice.orgEurydice is the information network on education in Europe.The site provides information on all European educationsystems and education policies.www.eblul.org/Homepage of the European Bureau for Lesser UsedLanguages. This site provides general information on lesserused languages as well as on projects, publications andevents.

Education and lesser used languages 44

45 Regional dossier WelshWhat can Mercator-Education offer you?websitenetworknewsletterQ&Apublicationswww.mercator-education.orgMercator-Education is part of an information service andresearch network of three centres. They provide reliable andin-depth information on regio nal or minority languages inco-operation with many experts throughout Europe.Mercator-Education is hosted at the Fryske Akademy,Leeuwarden. Mercator-Media resides at the U niversity ofWales (Aberystwyth) and Mercator-Legislation at Ciemen(Barcelona).An electronic or printed newsletter with current developmentsconcerning regional or minority languages in ed ucation isdistributed to individuals and organisations.Through the Question and Answer Service we can inform youabout any subject related to education in minority or regionallanguages in the European Union.Regional dossiers are published on a regular base to providebasic information on schooling in minority language regionsin the Europ ean Union (also on-line).The latest Mercator Guide to Organisations (MGO) waspublished in 1998. It contains some 500 relevant addresses ofinstitutes and services, now also available through our on-linedatabase.During the years we have published extended studies onpre-primary education, p rimary education, teacher trainingand learning materials. Topical case studies and a selectivebibliography have also been published. A list of all ourpublications is available.

Available dossiers in this seriesBasque; the Basque Language in Education in FranceBasque; the Basque Language in Educa tion in SpainBreton; the Breton Language in Education in FranceCatalan; the C atalan Language in Education in SpainCorsican; the Corsican Language in Education in FranceCroatian; the Croatian Language in E ducation in A ustriaFrisian; the Frisian Language in Education in The Netherlands (3rd)German; the German Language in Education in Alsace, France (2nd)Galician; the G alician Language in Education in SpainIrish; the Irish Language in Education in Northern IrelandIrish; the Irish Language in Education in the Republic of IrelandLadin, the La din Langua ge in Education in ItalyMeänkili and Sweden Finnish; the Finnic Languages in Education in SwedenNorth-Frisian; the North Frisian Language in Education in GermanyOccitan; the Occitan Language in Education in FranceSami; the Sami Language in Education in SwedenSlovenian; the Slovenian Language in Education in AustriaSorbian, the Sorbian Language in Education in GermanySwedish; the Swedish Language in Education in FinlandRegional Dossiers Series