In some mainland areas of the province there may be no interest in offering Gaelic, for example in strongly Acadian, Mi’kmaq, African Nova Scotian, or German areas which have their own cultural heritage. There is potential for even more students to access Gaelic education, and for more of our Gaelic-speaking instructors to be employed, if parents and fellow community members make their wishes known. In effect, this meant that any school in Nova Scotia could opt to offer Gaelic courses. The important question about community support is… who exactly is the community? In order to transfer to CBU you must be in good academic standing at your current/previous institution. The suggestions for teaching, learning and assessment have been adapted from Nova Scotia Curriculum documents, and they support Pages of the 1920 petition for Gaelic in Nova Scotia schools, Nova Scotia Archives. Gaelic was the only language of many thousands of Scottish Highlanders emigrating to Cape Breton Island during the early to mid-nineteenth century. 91-94). While Gaelic possesses a centuries-old system of writing, many Gaels were illiterate in a formal sense. Bringing back‘The Gaelic’ Once close to extinction, the ancient tongue is on its way to a comeback in Cape Breton. As a cultural destination, it will delight visitors with the unique opportunity to experience first-hand the living culture of the Nova Scotia Gaelic people. Feature photo by Kelly Clark, Communications Nova Scotia. If you want to see Gaelic offered in the schools, then you would need to write or call your local school board to ask for Gaelic in the schools. The fiddling of Cape Breton is infused with this connection, and some people fear that losing the Gaelic language may cause fiddlers to lose a deeper understanding of their music. She also works as a music therapist in Connecticut. The curricula were required to meet provincial standards developed by teachers and outside experts. Here, you can take up to 12 credits of Gaelic through four-week immersion courses offered each May at the Gaelic College. The Gaelic College also has designated learning spaces designed to facilitate GaB teaching and learning. With so much proud Gaelic history rooted deep in our lands and imprinted along our shores, students come to CBU from around the world for this unique program. Your email address will not be published. Stories in English with Gaelic translation on opposite pages. A Gaelic student in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Hotels near Gaelic College, Cape Breton Island on Tripadvisor: Find 10,750 traveler reviews, 3,153 candid photos, and prices for 41 hotels near Gaelic College in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Kennedy noted in 2002 that Gaelic was not automatically included: “when a new compulsory Canadian history course was added to the provincial curriculum… Acadian, African, and Mi’kmaq history were all designated as acceptable Canadian content for the course, but Gaelic history was not. The Gaelic language curriculum is a 3-year course at grade levels 10, 11, and 12. Saddled with polio, pride, and a lack of discipline – Archie Neil lived out the contradictory life of a terrific teacher floundering in alcoholism. The island's road signs are printed in Gaelic … Sydney: Cape Breton University Press. 902-563-1242 Join our mailing list to get regular Gaelic.co updates from Dr. Emily McEwan.Subscribers will receive notices of new blog posts and an e-mail newsletter. Cape Breton is a place where Gaelic culture currently lives in our local communities and is woven into our history and culture. With so much proud Gaelic history rooted deep in our lands and imprinted along our shores, students come to CBU from around the world for this unique program. Students from around the world embrace our authentic island lifestyle, taking innovative courses that ensure they live through the medium of Gaelic for the duration of their course. People need to be aware that Gaelic exists and have a little bit of knowledge as to what it is, the long history of Gaelic in the province, and what their ancestral connection to the language is, if they have one. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Speak it with a lesson in Gaelic. Brief Beginnings: Nova Scotian and Old World Bards Compared. But as has been the case since the 1980s when Gaelic in the schools was almost lost, these subjects are not automatically offered in every school. 5. To comply with this Act, Cape Breton University is publishing the names and earnings of employees who received $100,000 or more in total compensation in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020, including salaries and other payments. If they have an ancestor who came across on the Ship Hector, then they have Gaelic ancestry. Fetschrift for Prof. D. S. Thomson, Scottish Gaelic Studies 17: 342–55. *Statistics courtesy of the Nova Scotia Department of Education. We offer Gaelic as elective courses, a minor in a BA or BACS degree, or as a subject in a BA area major, pairing Gaelic with other subjects and career options. The latest high school Gaelic curriculum documents for the Gaelic language courses Gaelic 10, Gaelic 11, and Gaelic 12, created in 2008, are available free online. Gaelic is taught as a language and history subject in the Nova Scotia education system by dedicated teachers in multiple areas of the province. In Nova Scotia, which means New Scotland, you’ll find a different perspective than you would anywhere else on the continent. Explore the Gaelic Culture of Cape Breton Island. After the creation of the new Gaelic Studies history course, it was decided to update and refresh the high school Gaelic language curriculum and convert it from a local curriculum to a provincial-level one. John A. MacDonald of Jordanhill College of Education was brought over to train Gaelic teachers in Cape Breton, and eventually three of MacDonald’s native Gaelic-speaking students from Jordanhill were brought over to teach Gaelic. However, Cape Breton just changed over to a middle school system with grades 6-8 in middle school and 9-12 in high school. After developing basic conversational skills, you will be introduced to reading and writing to help hone your overall communication skills. Second, there needs to be community support for offering Gaelic language and history as subjects in the schools. It is available here. Gaelic College, Cape Breton Island: Address, Phone Number, Gaelic College Reviews: 4.5/5 There were no restrictions and today that is still the case” (Kennedy, p. 96). As described by Kennedy, in Scotland starting in the 16th century and increasing through the 17th and 18th centuries, Gaelic suffered a long-term forced split from formal education through deliberate British government efforts. In 2014-15, a total of 555 pupils in Nova Scotia schools participated in Gaelic education, taught by a total of 13 teachers in 10 different schools located in 4 different school board areas. A parent can ask for the email or direct line of the school district’s Program Coordinator or Program Director, and express their interest directly that way as well. GAEL 1101: Gaelic Language I – this first course is entirely GaB based (reading and writing are introduced in GAEL 1103), GAEL 2102 and 3102: Advanced Gaelic – these courses are offered exclusively as 4-week immersion courses at the Gaelic College each May, emphasizing GaB while providing a homework lab each afternoon and weekly cultural field trips, Archival internship: Students have the option of undertaking an internship that involves working with Gaelic materials at institutions such as the Beaton Institute archives or the Cape Breton Regional Library, Gaelic teacher (Gaelic is a teachable subject in the Nova Scotia education system), Museums and archives with Gaelic or Celtic content. Gaelic is offered at the elementary school level in Cape Breton schools, and this also naturally feeds into a high-school level interest in taking the Gaelic courses, because awareness is well-established among students and parents, and backed up by availability. Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress. This curriculum is like other high school language courses in educating for basic grammar and use.  The language classes offer a foundation for university-level study and are comparable to high school French classes in effectiveness. 63-4). Those from the Lochaber settled in Mabou. Macdonald, born on Cape Breton, spoke Gaelic before English and preferred the kilt to trousers. Each school in Nova Scotia has its own SAC and contact information can be found on the school website. At this time, as Kennedy notes, Gaelic speakers were achieving positions of political power in the province, but their language and culture were still excluded from education: “In spite of numbering 50,000 speakers at the turn of the century and in spite of the prominent institutional positions held by Gaelic speakers, their language was excluded from virtually all domains of social power and denied any meaningful role in the institutional infrastructure of the province, even within communities where it was the only commonly spoken language. Provincial Department of Education curriculum development projects were undertaken for Canadian History, Canadian History in French, Acadian Studies, Mi’kmaq Studies, African Canadian studies, and Gaelic Studies to fulfill the Canadian History requirement. In Nova Scotia there were at least 50,000 Gaelic speakers, who made up at least 11% of the province’s population (Dembling, 2006). Hannah Krebs works as a ban-chleasaiche | Gaelic Cultural Animator at Baile na Gàidheal | Highland Village Museum. Please select your province for specific admission requirements. The renewed outcomes have been developed with indicators that align with the Essential Graduation Competencies and are inclusive of Acadian, African Nova Scotian, Gaelic, and Mi’kmaw cultures, and Treaty Education.” (p. 1). By first developing students’ ability to speak and understand, we give you the opportunity to work with, and learn from, Gaelic speakers and others who contribute to the vitality of our local Gaelic community. Current state of Gaelic education in the Gaelic Revitalization mailing list to get regular Gaelic.co updates from Dr. Emily will... E-Mail newsletter each school year, the Nova Scotia and reeling bagpipes at a weekly Ceilidh,! Opportunity for Gaelic language, focusing on oral comprehension and speech same status as all subjects! 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