Institute closure a major blow to language studies
Its membership derives from teachers, researchers and students in universities and third-level institutions in Ireland and abroad.
The announced closure of ITÉ (The Linguistics Institute of Ireland) raises a number of issues and questions of concern to the IRAAL.
Firstly, apart from the contribution of its specialised research, ITÉ houses a library of books and journals relating to languages and language issues that has been an invaluable and irreplaceable research asset to our members.
What is to happen to this resource?
Over the years, ITÉ has been a prolific publisher and has produced an important number of books, teaching/learning materials and scholarly journals.
What is the future for all such publications? The institute also provided a series of support materials and advice, including a website for teachers and students of Irish, Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Italian.
Continued access by teachers and language researchers alike to a range of material is vital for the future development of modern languages in Ireland.
Further, the institute is to the forefront of research in several areas of linguistics, such as in the teaching and learning of Irish and in the applications of computers in analysing languages and creating dictionaries.
It has had a special relationship with the deaf community in Ireland, supporting users of Irish sign language and housing research into the linguistic needs of deaf people.
The institute possesses a long tradition of practical and theoretical research in the area of language testing, in which expertise is uncommon in Ireland.
The institute in many cases works in partnerships with similar bodies elsewhere in the EU.
What are ITÉ's partners and academics in other countries to think of the Government’s dissolution of our national institute for research into language and linguistics?
The irony of such a decision is strident when Ireland is about to assume presidency of the EU and, in particular, preside over its expansion to include the accession states with their range of languages.
The innocent parties in all this, of course, are the 25 or so workers at ITÉ, both research and support staff who now face redundancy at a time when, more than ever, their expertise is needed.
It is of immediate concern to an academic association such as IRAAL that the work, expertise and resources provided by ITÉ be supported and maintained.
Dr Muiris Ó Laoire,
President,
IRAAL,
Institute of Technology,
Tralee,
Co Kerry.
