Conchúr Ó Brolcháin

Dr Conchúr Ó Brolcháin is a Lecturer in Language & Literacy Education at Mary Immaculate College (MIC), a constituent college of the University of Limerick, Ireland. He teaches Múineadh na Gaeilge (The Teaching of Irish) and Gaeilge at undergraduate (B.Ed) and postgraduate (M.Ed & PhD) levels, chairs the M.Ed Research Ethics Committee for Gaeltacht & All-Irish Education, and is an active doctoral supervisor.

Education

• Bachelor
• Master
• Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Research Interests

Conchúr’s scholarship centres on bilingual and multilingual education, with particular attention to Irish-language immersion, translanguaging pedagogies, minority-language maintenance, and content-and-language integrated learning (CLIL). His current projects investigate the promotion of Irish in urban DEIS (disadvantaged) schools, the experiences of L3 learners in Gaeltacht immersion contexts, and the integration of language and subject teaching.

Recent Research Trajectory

Across 2016–2024 his outputs address translanguaging policy and practice, teacher professional development in Irish-medium settings, literacy initiatives in Gaeltacht schools, and family language policies. Collectively these works chart an evolving focus from classroom-level pedagogy to broader sociolinguistic and policy dimensions of Irish-language education.

Awards & Fellowships

• Regional Teaching Excellence Award (2023) – for outstanding higher-education teaching practice
• Comhaltacht Shéamuis Uí Mhórdha – Séamus Ó Mórdha Research Fellowship (2012)

Postgraduate Supervision & Grants

He has supervised more than twenty postgraduate projects (Master’s and PhD) on topics ranging from reading-comprehension strategies to blended learning in Irish-medium contexts. External collaborations include funded partnerships with An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta and advisory roles with TG4/Fíbín for the home-schooling programme Cúla4 ar Scoil.

Laboratories & Teams

While no formal lab is listed, Dr Ó Brolcháin leads the MIC M.Ed Research Ethics Committee for Gaeltacht & All-Irish Education and coordinates a growing cohort of doctoral researchers examining language education in immersion and minority-language settings.