Number of students exempt from studying Irish at second level reaches record high

"Over 60,000 students in secondary school are exempt from learning the Irish language"

"The number of second level students with an exemption from studying the Irish language has doubled in the last seven years. Figures obtained by TG4 from the Department of Education and Youth show the numbers of those with an exemption sit at over 60,000 and have doubled over the past seven years."

More than 60,000 students in second-level schools hold exemptions from studying the Irish language. The number of students with exemptions has doubled over the last seven years. Figures obtained by TG4 from the Department of Education and Youth show the current total sits at over 60,000. The increase represents a sustained upward trend in exemptions at the secondary level across a seven-year period. The data points to a marked change in Irish-language study uptake or exemption policy outcomes among secondary students. The growing exemption totals amount to a sizeable share of the overall second-level student population.

Read at Irish Independent