Anyone move their child out of a Gaelscoil

[Mumof3onetwothree]

Wondering how a child who has been in a Gaelscoil for a few years adapts to an English speaking school. We are considering a move but I am concerned that they'll be really behind in English and perhaps it's better to wait until after the summer holidays and try and get some tutoring in English during the break. I'm concerned they'll be embarrassed at how behind they are.
Any other things I might not be aware of..culturally etc....I feel the children in the Gaelscoil are quite innocent and I am wondering will children be more 'with it' in an English speaking school...are there things they might get teased about etc.

You've hit the nail on the head there.

Children in Gaelscoils usually learn to read and write in Irish first and then English - (this may not happen un every school.) By third class children in Gaelscoil on average, sore higher in their standardised tests in English & Maths than those in English speaking schools. So your child will likely be absolutely fine when you move them and will have benefited from learning through a different language for a while.

The innocence of the kids in the school really just depends on the type of family the school is attracting I suppose - it’s got nothing to do with the language medium. I don’t think you could say kids in English speaking schools are less innocent. It really depends.

Thanks so much.
Yes this is our concern. Half way through second class and can hardly write in either language. Reading is ok. The school won't admit any issue. But I know they have asked several children with extra needs to leave as they don't have the resources for them and they also have the problem of children in older classes leaving for feeder schools so I feel they are trying to hang on to everyone else and so wont have an honest conversation about it. Gaelscoileanna are great for some children but I do think for others (especially those who struggle more with reading and writing) it's an extra mental stress.

What were his standardised test scores? He should have done them last year.

I don’t know how children with extra learning needs fair in a Gaelscoil generally. But resources are allocated to all schools on the same basis (it’s based on need) and they can’t ask people with additional needs to leave. There might be an issue with the school itself rather than the language medium.