It's been reported that parents are gaming the system by handpicking psychologists to get their children exemptions from learning Irish, even though the students in question are still able to take foreign language classes.
Betty McLaughlin, former president of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors, says there seems to be truth in it.
A report from the Department of Education looked at 12 schools, six primary and six secondary, and found that our of 181 students who received Irish exemptions, just 48% had been correctly granted.
Betty says, "There is something definitely awry."
Julian de Spáinn, general secretary of Conradh na Gaeilge, says the Department of Education is not looking at fixing the system: "If they were really sincere about it they'd be looking for other solutions rather than just trying to tweak the system that's there at the moment."
Julian says we need to look at teaching Irish in a different way, for example focusing on listening and speaking skills in students who may struggle with writing as a result of a learning difficulty.
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