Effective immersion: supporting learners to make swift progress when supporting them to learn about and appreciate Welsh history and culture.
Quick links:
Information about the provider
Residential courses are Nant Gwrtheyrn’s speciality and these courses take place for periods of 3 or 5 days at a time. Nant Gwrtheyrn also provides a few virtual 3- or 5-day courses. Nant Gwrtheyrn has unique and purposeful courses for an intensive learning experience from Taster level to Proficiency. During 2022-23, the mainstream at Nant Gwrtheyrn provided 452 individual learning experiences to 411 individual learners. The centre also runs the Use Work Welsh scheme. During the most recent year of the scheme, there were 332 individual learning experiences on 35 courses.
Context and background to the effective or innovative practice
The centre that can be seen today on the site of the old granite quarries is the result of the dream of Dr Clowes in the 1970s to create employment locally and support the national campaign to restore the number of Welsh speakers. A decision was made to establish a dedicated centre at Nant Gwrtheyrn that would restore the dilapidated village, create work for local people and give the Welsh language the necessary boost.
Courses at all levels at Nant Gwrtheyrn combine language learning with opportunities to experience and appreciate the history and culture of Wales, including the major national campaign to raise money to develop the Nant Gwrtheyrn site.
Ensuring that our learners understand the history of the Welsh language and the special culture that is unique to it is a means of supporting their relationship with the Welsh language and an opportunity to begin the discussion about ownership.
The combination of hearing the Welsh language being used, learning new vocabulary and patterns in the classroom, language awareness training and discussions about the resilience of the language means that learners acquire language, put their new skills into practice immediately and make a practical plan about where and how to use the Welsh language once they have left the site.
Description of the nature of the strategy or activity
The learning experience here at Nant Gwrtheyrn begins on the Monday morning as learners arrive at the site. A welcome meeting is held to explain the schedule for the week. An important part of the welcome meeting is setting the staff’s expectations of learners. We encourage them to take ownership of the site as a safe place to claim the language, and making increasing use of it as the week progresses.
All members of staff at Nant Gwrtheyrn speak Welsh and have been trained on how to support learners. They are aware of the levels and appropriate patterns to use and encourage learners to communicate through the medium of Welsh at every opportunity. This includes staff at Caffi Meinir, the caretakers of the site, reception staff, accommodation officers and senior officers. They model sound linguistic behaviour.
In the classroom, learning focuses on the target language which encourage the use of language during the week of the visit. This means that learners are equipped to cope with the situations they are likely to experience. This is very important in terms of placing the Welsh language in context, taking ownership of the language, gaining confidence and creating language use.
Experienced tutors also provide language awareness training in a subtle and sensitive way. This is an important opportunity to learners to explore their relationship with the language, have an opportunity to discuss personal challenges and support each other from the perspective of those challenges. Each week ends with a ‘Beth Nesa’ (‘What’s Next’) session, with learners being given information about further learning possibilities, but also drawing up a personal action plan. Therefore, learners leave the site with the intention of making practical, sound and useful use of the Welsh language. Combining the elements of awareness and resilience here leads to a change in behaviour and, in the context, to increasing the use of the Welsh language.
The resources at the Nant Gwrtheyrn site are also important in terms of the immersion experience. The chapel, the surgery and the period house include heritage exhibitions to enrich the learners’ experience. They share information about the history of the site and the area, but also about the history of the Welsh language. Tutors use these resources in full through questionnaires, treasure hunts, opportunities for learners to respond in writing, presentations etc.
Beyond the more formal learning, every element of informal learning has been tailored carefully to ensure that learners continue to be immersed, not only in the language but in positive messages about language use. An example of this is visiting Tafarn y Fic public house and being able to listen to a choir of young local boys rehearsing – a wholly Welsh experience.
Similarly, individuals or groups who provide entertainment for learners are chosen carefully. The aim is to open the door to the world and culture of the Welsh language in a safe environment. This can mean a walk with someone who has learned Welsh to acquire nature vocabulary which is rooted in the Nant Gwrtheyrn area, listening to someone singing a popular Welsh song and the opportunity to sing along or having a conversation with people who are part of establishing Nant Gwrtheyrn to learn about the journey of the Welsh language.
What impact has this work had on provision and learners’ standards?
The result of the immersion experience and these interventions is that learners who come to Nant Gwrtheyrn commit themselves fully to their language journey. They are eager to learn and are able to see themselves as part of the life of the Welsh language and Wales and are therefore able to take ownership of it. They have the confidence to be part of events where the Welsh language is prominent and, by doing so, choose to use the Welsh language actively at community level. This confidence means an increase in use which, in turn, means an increase in skills. This positive cycle means that learners are able to make swift progress in a short period of time.
The variety of formal and informal learning methods, the various spaces on the site, the opportunity to provide entertainment and trips mean that learners are given an opportunity to relax and enjoy this learning experience. The week of learning is also a week of exploring their relationship with the language. This means that we have happy learners who choose to visit time and time again on their language journey.