Teaches Irish-language basics to other newcomers
Iryna Kovalenko is a secondary school languages teacher from Lviv with thirteen years of classroom experience in Ukrainian, Russian, English, and French. She arrived in Cork in March 2022 with her two children.
Within four months she had enrolled in a beginner's Irish language course through an online Gaeltacht programme. Within eight months she had passed the beginner level. Within a year she was at intermediate.
She noticed that few other Ukrainian arrivals — or any newcomers — were engaging with Irish. She understood why: the practical incentives are limited, the learning resources are scattered, and the social benefit is invisible until you experience it.
She began running informal Irish-language taster sessions for other newcomers in Cork — mostly at community centres and through the DGS network. The sessions focus on greetings, place names, and what she calls "the phrases that show you are at home here." They take 90 minutes. She has run 22 sessions.
Her teaching work in Ireland is being recognised through the Teaching Council's registration process. She will be eligible for permanent registration in 2026. She is already shortlisted for a secondary school post teaching languages — including, she hopes, Irish.