Catrin Redknap Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg/Welsh Language Board June 2010

1. Added value of Welsh language skills in Wales: perceptions, aspirations and the challenge of realising linguistic potential Catrin Redknap Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg/Welsh Language Board June 2010

2. Wales and the Welsh language: background facts • Population of Wales: 2.9 million • Welsh speakers in 2001: 20.8% (582,400) • 40.8% amongst children 5 -15 years old

3. % able to speak Welsh

4. The Vitality of Welsh: A Statistical Balance Sheet November 2009 Percentage speaking ‘fluently’ as percentage of those able to speak Welsh (2004-06): 58% [61% in 1992] http://www.byig-wlb.org.uk/english/publications/publications/the%20vitality%20of%20welsh%20a%20statistical%20balance%20sheet%20november%202009.pdf

5. 2004 Welsh Language Survey (Welsh Language Board 2006) 88% of fluent speakers speak Welsh daily 26% of those not fluent speak Welsh daily http://www.byig-wlb.org.uk/english/publications/publications/4068.pdf

6. Translating competence into use Linguistic considerations: Need for broad spectrum of linguistic resources to operate in domestic, social, informal and workplace settings

7. Translating competence into use Other considerations: • Structural (including ‘critical mass’) • Organisational • Legislative • Attitudinal

8. ‘Buy-in’ in terms of demand for Welsh-medium education Widely-held views on educational, cognitive, cultural and employment-related benefits of bilingualism and multilingualism

9. Added advantages of Welsh-medium education • Mixed and complex picture • June 1998: A Competitive Edge: Why Welsh-medium Schools Perform Better (IWA, David Reynolds, Wynford Bellin, Ruth ab Ieuan) http://www.byig-wlb.org.uk/english/publications/pages/publicationitem.aspx?puburl=/english/publications/publications/4855.pdf

10. Added advantages of Welsh-medium education • ‘Added value’ in terms of achievement in English, Science, Mathematics and MFL http://www.byig-wlb.org.uk/English/publications/Publications/4841.pdf

11. Aspirations v Reality (or ‘real’ output as opposed to anticipated output) • Do pupils achieve required skills to required level? • How easy is it to assess usefulness of skills in the workplace? • How successful and consistent is the message about Welsh-language skills?

12. ‘Costs’ of Welsh-medium education • Personal commitment • Distance and transport • Learning support materials and qualifications

13. Assumption: Welsh-language skills an asset in the workplace ‘Sub-assumptions’: • Enhanced range of job opportunities • Career progression • Financial gain

14. Impact of Bilingualism on Earnings Andrew Henley and Rhian Eleri Jones, ‘Earnings and Linguistic Proficiency in a Bilingual Economy’ (School of Management and Business, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, 2003)

15. Language skills and occupational outcomes ‘Language and Occupational Status: Linguistic Elitism in the Irish Labour Market’ (Boorah, Dineen and Lynch, The Economic and Social Review, vol. 40, number 4,Winter 2009)

16. Assumption: language skills an asset in the workplace 2 pre-requisites: • Appropriate and targeted skills • Clear articulation of the need for skills

17. Appropriate and targeted skills • Continuity of Welsh-medium provision • Training of practitioners • Strategic planning of opportunities to opt for Welsh-medium provision

18. Clear articulation of the need for skills • Challenge of maintaining coherent account of benefits of Welsh-language skills as pupils progress through their school career and into the workplace • Availability of convincing evidence of value of bilingual skills in the workplace

19. Evidence of the need for bilingual skills in the workplace • Public sector: 1993 Welsh Language Act and Welsh Language Schemes • Private sector: patchy nature of evidence base

20. Patchy nature of evidence base • Difficulty of establishing consistent method of defining language skills (level and nature of skills) • Plethora of vocational training and qualification frameworks • Complexity of private sector (interests and priorities) • Variable prominence of linguistic skills

21. Welsh-medium Education Strategy (Welsh Assembly Government, April 2010) • Work with all partners to promote the understanding and recognition of the value of Welsh as a skill in the workplace • Raise awareness of the benefits of Welsh- medium and Welsh language learning amongst stakeholders • Work with partners to raise awareness of the benefits and the value of Welsh-language skills in the workplace, targeting parents, carers, learners and employers in particular

22. Welsh-medium Education Strategy (Welsh Assembly Government, April 2010) •Partner bodies to raise awareness of the value of Welsh- language skills with parents, carers and learners • Improve careers education, advice and guidance in relation to Welsh-medium and Welsh-language education and employment opportunities • Ensure that those advising on subject choices, careers information, and work experience/placements give consistent positive messages about the value of Welsh- language skills, Welsh-medium study and employment opportunities.  

23. Welsh-medium Education Strategy (Welsh Assembly Government, April 2010) • Encourage AOs (awarding organisations) to increase the number and range of Welsh-medium qualifications (below HE level), in response to learner and sector needs and national strategic objectives. Work with SSCs/standard-setting bodies to measure and meet sector needs for Welsh language skills. • http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/publications/guidance/welshmededstrat/?lang=en

24. More meaningful and clearly articulated message about the value of bilingual skills beyond the classroom: key component of future efforts to sustain the development of Welsh-medium education