An sgoilear a dhiochuimhnich 'obair

Tha sinn a' feuchainn ri corra cheist a fhreagairt agus corra sreath a sgrobhadh agus sinn dchasach nach mothaich an neach-teagaisg gu bheil sinn ann. Ach uair sam bith a bhios sinn a' smaoineachadh gu bheil sinn air faighinn as leis, tha sil an neach-teagaisg a' laighe oirnn agus iarrar oirnn ceist a fhreagairt gun fiosrachadh againn, neo aiste leth-deiseil a chuir a steach.

Agus na bhios anns na h-aistean leth-ullaichte sin, sreathan de dh'fhiosrachadh gun bhrgh nach eil ceangailte idir ris a' chuspair. A' lonadh nan duilleag. Nach eil a' freagairt nan ceist.

Sin am faireachdainn a tha thu a' faighinn agus tu a' leughadh athaisg riaghaltas Bhreatainn a thaobh mar a thathas a' cumail ri na h-uallaichean fo Chairt Erpach nam Meanbh-Chnan.

Seo rud air a shadail ri chile. Fiosrachadh nach buin dhan chuspair ga stopadh a steach gus deanamh cinnteach gu bheil briathran gu ler ann. Faireachainn agad fad na tde gu bheileas an dchas gum bi am bruidhinn mr gu ler gus an diochuimnich sinn air cho beag is a tha a' tachairt.

Feumaidh tu a bhi tapadh son seo a' leughadh. Gu math tric, tha thu a' coinneachadh ri cnapan de dh'fhacail air a bheil an coltas gun deach a chuir ri chile a dh'aon gnothaich gus cadal a chuir ort. Mus fhaigh thu a mach d a tha Riaghaltas na h-Alba a' deanamh dhan Ghidhlig is dha na Gaidheil, tha thu a' dol tro eachdraidh Oifis na h-Alba is mar chaidh comhairlean na h-Alba atharrachadh bho chionn 10 bliadhna, mneachadh gu bheil luchd-lagh ag obair ann an Dn-Eideann, agus mar a tha Prtaidh Uaine is Sisealaich gan riochdachadh anns a' phrlamaid ir againn.

Cha dean muinntir na Roinn-Erpa mran a mach a seo.

A bharrachd air an sin, cha shaoil an Roinn-Erpa mran anns an digh suarach anns a bheileasair diligeadh ri cuid de na puincean a chaidh a thogail d bhliadhna air ais nuair a thug elaichean sil air d cho math agus a bha Bhreatainn a' cumail ri a chuid uallaichean dha luchd-labhairt nan cnan beaga.

D bhliadhna air ais, rinn na h-elaichean cineadh mr air an suidheachadh a bh'ann dha na Gaidheil ann an Alba. Thuirt an riaghaltas aig an m nach robh cir againn a bhi a' cur uiread de chuideam air a' bheachd Erpach air sgth is gu robh cisean air atharrachadh bho chaidh am fiosrachadh a chruinneachadh. A bharrachd air an sin - thuirt iad - bha a nis Bile na Gidhlig air an t-slighe a bha a' dol a chuir a h-uile cil ceart.

Cha robh anns an sin ach cnan riaghaltais. 'Se frinn na cise nach robh mran air atharrachadh, a bharrachd air an sin, cha robh e idir follaiseach gu robh am Bile - Achd mar a th'ann a nis - a' dol a leasachadh nan uireasbhuidhean.

'Se as duilighe dhan h-uile duin againn nach eil mran air tachairt a thaobh cuid de na molaidhean a nochd d bhliadhna air ais. Rinn e dragh dha na h-elaichean dha caochlaiteach is m-chinnteach is a dh'fhaodadh fghlam anns a' chnain a bhi. "Patchy" am facal a chleachd iad.

Tha cisean air fs nas fherr leis gu bheil barrachd fghlam Gidhlig a nis ri fhaotainn. Ach tha am puinc a thog na h-elaichean fhathast a' seasamh, gu bheil an t-seirbhis fhathast gu math caochlaideach is m-chinnteach.

Nochd draghan mra cuideachd mu dheidhinn cho tearc is a tha cleasaichean Gidhlig dha daoine aig a bheil na h-uidhir den chnain. 'Se sin fear de na trioblaidean as m a th'aig luchd-ionnsachaidh cainnt sam bith, ach tha e gu h-raid dona a thaobh na Gidhlig. Tha an t-uamhas de dhaoine a muigh an sin aig a bheil tomhais den chnan. Fileantaich nach do dh'ionnsaich leughadh a riamh. Feadhainn a rinn rith neo bliadhna de chlasaichean. Chan eil cil ann an athaisg r an riaghaltais a' mneachadh d rinn iad mu dheidhinn trioblaid a chaidh a thogail d bhliadhna air ais. Tha Brd na Gidhlig a nis ann agus e a' coimhead air an seo am measg mile gnothaich eile. Ach tha an t-uireasbhaidh seo a' sealltainn carson a bha am Brd a dhth oirnn bho chionn fhada.

Chan eil cil ann an athaisg riaghaltas Bhreatainn a' mneachadh ciamar a tha iadsan a' cuideachadh le trineadh luchd-naidheachd Gidhlig. Ged a chaidh innse dhaibh bho chionn d bhliadhna nach robh cil a' tachairt a thaobh sin, chan eileas a' toirt freagairt cothromach seachad d an t-adhartas a tha a' tighinn air an seo.

Chaidh iarraidh orra cuideachd d bhliadhna air ais barrachd a dheanamh gus Gidhlig anns na meadhanan sgrobhte is na pipearan a bhrosnachadh. Tha na h-uidhir den sin a' tachairt. Ach chan e gu bheil cil den na tha iadsan a' deanamh ga chuideachadh ann an digh sam bith. Air falbh bhon cheist mu dheidhinn an riaghaltais a bhi a' gabhail gnothaich ri na pipearan is na meadhannan - rud a tha iad a' deanamh co-dhi. 'Se an riaghaltas fhin a ghabh ris an uallach feuchainn ri na meadhanan Gidhlig a bhrosnachadh, pipearan-naidheachd nam measg.

A' coimhead ri athaisg an riaghaltais, tha cuid de rudan air tighinn air adhart, agus thathas air moladh a chosnadh air son nan nithean sin. Tha iad a' feuchainn, thathas a' deanamh oidhirp dha-rreabh. Tha obair mhr a' dol gus luchd-teagaisg a bharrachd a lorg agus a thrineadh a dhol dha na sgoiltean againn. Sin an rud as misneachail a tha a' nochdadh a mach as an athaisg seo.

Ann an digh, tha deasachadh na h-athaisg seo caran coltach ri neach a' suidhe deuchainn ine mhr mus robh e deiseil. Thathas a' deanamh na h-uidhir. Chan eil Brd na Gidhlig air a bhi ann fada gu ler son cuid de na h-uireasbhuidhean a leasachadh. 'Sdcha gum biodh barrachd adhartais ri aithris as deidh sia mosan neo bliadhna eile.

'Sdcha. Ach tha e follaiseach le a bhi a' leughadh seo, nach eileas idir a' deiligeadh ri na Gaidheil ann an digh a bhiodh ciallach neo cothromach a rir slat-tomhais eadar-niseanta.

The schoolchild who forget to do his homework

Few of us can be so perfect that we do not recall the feeling when we have done the homework before we are asked to hand in an essay or assignment and the lesson is about to begin.

We hurriedly attempt to fill in a couple of questions and scribble down some sentences as we hope against hope that the teacher has not noticed that we exist. And then, just as we think that we have got away with it, the teacher's eye lies up on us and we are asked to answer the question without us being ready, or we have to hand in the half-prepared essay.

And these patched-together last-minute essays will contain reams of words and information with little if any connection to the original subject. At least they fill in the page. But they do not answer the questions.

That is how you feel as you come to read the UK government's latest report on how they are dealing with their obligations under the Council of Europe's Charter on Minority Languages.

This really is something which has been thrown together. There is plenty of information which has nothing to do with the matters in hand inserted in order to make sure that there are enough words on the page. You have a feeling the whole time that this is a production put together in the hope that all the talk will make us forget how little has really happened.

You have be tough to get through this. Often you encounter reams of words which seem that they have been constructed especially to encourage you to fall asleep. Before you get through what the Scottish Executive is doing for Gaelic and for the Gaels, you plough through the history of the Scottish Office and an account of the restructuring of Scottish local government 10 years ago, you are told of how lawyers work in Edinburgh, and the fact that the Scottish Socialists and the Greens are represented in the new Scottish parliament.

The Europeans will make little of this.

Moreover, the Europeans will make little of dismal way in which the officials have dealt with some of the points which were raised by the Council of Europe's team of experts two years ago after they had come to see how well the UK was dealing with the rights of the speakers of minority languages.

Two years ago, the experts were critical of the situation of the Gaels of Scotland. At the time, the government insisted that we should not place too much weight on the report because much had changed since the information underlying it had been gathered. Moreover, they said, the Gaelic Bill was now on the way and it was going to sort out everything just fine.

That was just government talk. The truth was that little had really changed. In addition, it was far from clear how the bill, an act as it now is, would deal with the gaps.

What is grimmest is that little has happened about many of the points which were raised two years ago. The experts were concerned how inconsistent and variable the provision of Gaelic education could be. The word they used was "patchy."

The situation has improved somewhat in that there is now more Gaelic education available. But the point raised by the experts is still valid, that the service is still patchy and inconsistent.

Concerns were raised as to how few classes there are for people who have learnt some of the language. That is one of the problems faced by learners of all languages, but it is especially acute as far as Gaelic is concerned. There are very many people out there who have a smattering of the language. Fluent speakers who have never learnt to read it. Some who did a couple of years of classes.

There is nothing in the government's new report which explains what has been done to address this lack which was raised two years ago. The Gaelic Board is now here and examining this issue among a thousand other things. But this lack shows why we needed the Gaelic Board a long time ago.

There is nothing in the British government's report which explains how they are helping facilitate the training of Gaelic-language journalists. Although they were told two years ago that they were making no progress in this respect, they give no coherent answer as to what progress they are making in this regard.

They were asked two years ago to do more to boost the language in the written media and in newspapers. There has been some progress. But none of it is down to them. Quite apart from the question of how the government should be involved with the newspapers and the media - which is something they get up to anyway - it was the government itself which accepted the obligation to boost the language in the media, newspapers included.

Looking at the government's report, it is clear that there has been some progress. They deserve praise for what they have done. They are trying, they are making some real efforts, there is serious work going on to find more Gaelic teachers and train them to go into the schools. That is the most encouraging thing which emerges from this report.

In another way, this report is like a scholar sitting an exam for which they are not ready. Some things are being done. The Board has not been around long enough to sort out all the problems. There might be a lot more progress to report after six more months or another year.

Maybe, but it is clear from reading this report that Scotland's Gaels are not being dealt with in a way that would be sensible or fair by international standards.