Page 88 - 《客語及少數族群語言政策》附錄_少數語言法律

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Language transmission in the family

The 2011 Census reported that in couple households where two adults could speak Welsh, 82 per
cent of children between three and four years of age were also able to speak Welsh. In couple
households where one adult could speak Welsh, 45 per cent of children three to four years of age
were able to speak Welsh. Encouraging more parents/carers to transmit the language to their
children is a key priority for this strategy. Nevertheless, there is a limit to the additional number
of Welsh speakers that can be created by transmitting the language from one generation to the
next. That is why education is such an important component of this strategy.

Education

Welsh-medium immersion education is our principal method for ensuring that children can
develop their Welsh language skills, and for creating new speakers. School data tells us how
many children are educated through the medium of Welsh. In 2015/16, of the 35,000 learners in
Year 2, some 22 per cent (namely 7,700) were assessed in
Welsh (first language). If this percentage were to rise to 40 per cent by 2050 then this would be
approximately 14,000 learners (based on the size of the cohort of learners in Year 2 in 2015),
approximately 6,300 additional children. This demonstrates how important securing the
commitment of the education system is to create a million speakers. It also highlights the
importance of the early years sector as a point of early entry to immersion education, and as a way
to increase demand for Welsh-medium education. The latest administrative data (2015/16) from
Mudiad Meithrin shows that 86 per cent of children that attend
Mudiad Meithrin groups progress to Welsh-medium primary education.

We want all our learners to have the opportunity to be bilingual. In order to reach a million
speakers, we will need to increase the number of learners in English-medium schools that
succeed in acquiring the language.

We must also bear in mind the importance of the Welsh for Adults sector. According to
2015/16 academic year data, 16,375 adults are learning Welsh through formal Welsh for Adults
routes. Further work is required to obtain a clearer picture of the number who are learning
Welsh and are confident in its use, and the National Centre for Learning Welsh will address this.

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