An Approach to Developing Language Awareness in the Irish Language Classroom: A Case Study.

This case study deals with language awareness (LA) oriented instruction in the Irish language classroom, based on qualitative-type research conducted in a class of 21 English-medium secondary students studying Irish as a subject. Having outlined the general background to the teaching of Irish in secondary schools, the first section of the paper analyses the learners' language learning background and language learning styles, with a particular focus on the language learning strategies they deploy in learning Irish. The study then examines the outcome of a number of pedagogical techniques designed to raise learners' LA. These include the use of consciousness-raising and attention focusing devices in areas of phonology, dialect, syntax and lexis. The learning outcomes attributable to the LA pedagogical interventions are described and some conclusions for developing LA in the Irish language classroom are drawn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]