Over the past year the Vifax website has attracted almost 80,000 hits – an increase of 33% - with visitors from abroad, such as the UK and North America, as well as from Ireland.
Government Chief-Whip and Minister of State for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands, Seán Kyne T.D. has today approved a grant of over €7,000 for ‘Vifax don Ghaeilge’, an Irish language learning resource developed at NUI, Maynooth.
A popular resource for teachers and learners, Vifax don Ghaeilge comprises a series of lessons based on news reports from TG4 and is published weekly during the academic year.
The project is supported by the Department of Culture, Heritage and Gaeltacht with further funding from COGG, an gComhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta.
Minister Kyne said “I am delighted to approve this grant of €7,640 which along with €7,325 from COGG, enables Vifax to continue through the new academic year.
The learning resource is very user-friendly with three levels catered for and is used in Irish language classes as well as by individuals, particularly adult learners of the language.
Vifax makes great use of TG4 news reports which provides learners with lessons based on topical and current events.
As the start of the academic year, September is associated with the start of new courses and I encourage people to consider enrolling in an Irish language course to rediscover our native language or to start learning it.
Aisling Ní Bheacháin, the Centre’s Irish Language Coordinator said,
It is a simple but really effective system of learning which the Irish Language Centre in the University of Maynooth has been providing for the last 20 years. As soon as Nuacht TG4 is uploaded to the Player on Wednesday, our lesson designer (who is based in Brittany!) designs lessons in three levels (basic, medium, high) based on the news stories of that day. After proof-reading the lessons the following day here in Maynooth we upload them to the Vifax site from where they are available free of charge for learners and teachers of the Irish language 20 weeks of the year.
The lessons are used in secondary schools, in third level institutions and by organisations in Ireland and all over the world who are engaged in teaching Irish to all age groups.
The funding for Vifax don Ghaeilge is being made available in accordance with the commitment made under action 5.37 of the Government’s Irish Language Action Plan 2018 – 2022.