Class action: Distant memories still rankle. Many dread to see the phrase An Módh Coinníolach (the conditional mood), written up on the blackboard. They quake at the mention of An Aimsir Chaite (the past tense). Catherine Foley writes that Irish people have particularly negative attitudes to learning foreign languages. Have we no ear, or just bad memories of the classroom?

The agonies of learning grammar rules are deeply embedded in our psyche. The memories of sleepy afternoons in classrooms long ago trying to learn French verbs in the passé composé haven't gone away.

Some of us remain convinced the Irish have no ear for languages. Backing up this impression is a recent EU survey, which found the Irish to have extremely negative attitudes to language, in comparison with other EU member-states (see panel).

But more and more adults are putting unhappy school memories behind them, and realising it's a myth to think the Irish are poor at languages. In fact, the Irish are proving themselves to be very good linguists.

It is estimated that at least 60 languages are spoken in the country, while more than 24 nationalities are represented in primary schools.

According to a report on the 2001 European Year of Languages in Ireland, there was an increase of up to 20 per cent in adult enrolment in language school classes as a result of raised awareness.

The year's achievement, says this report, was "to tap into that goodwill and potential and to awaken - or rekindle - the general public's interest in broadening its horizons and experiencing the satisfaction of acquiring new language skills in the new century." The experts say we are good at learning languages, and the incentive to learn is growing.

"The people on the street are more Western-looking than Eastern and we rely on the fact that we speak English. It's a very comfortable position to be in . . . it's a problem that is common to the English speaking world, speaking English can make us lazy," explains Marie Heraughty, project manager for the European Year of Languages in Ireland.

"It goes down to the fact that the language of science, the language of business is mainly English. There's a lack of awareness that you need to have some language skills for cultural reasons," she says.

But, she points out, awareness is increasing, and people are beginning to realise there is a need to go beyond just being able to talk to another person.

Also, she says, the Irish are well suited to learning more languages, because we have "a softer accent" and "our auditory skills are fine-tuned".

Linda Richardson, managing editor of Authentik, a TCD campus company which develops educational programmes based on research into language development, says teachers report an openness among their students to learning languages.

She says, "Traditionally, Ireland and the UK have come out on the bottom of those leagues because we have English." In fact, she says, "the average person will have a go at a language and have a positive attitude to use it."

Silvia Fernandez, who has taught Spanish to Irish people of all ages over the past four years, agrees. Her worst students are teenagers but her best students are adults and children.

"The secondary school students just want to pass the exams. They don't really want to learn. With adults it is different. They pay, they have to come to you to learn in the evening and they make a big effort."

The children are great learners also, she says. "They think the language is a game, we don't have to do exams. We do songs, games and we don't teach a lot of grammar in primary school."

"In secondary school we have to help them pass the Leaving and the Junior Cert," she explains, but generally she finds Irish people are good at language learning. "They make a big effort, especially the adults," she says of her class in Cabinteely Community School in Co Dublin. "They are like kids, they want to be the winners, they want to be the best. They are very, very open to learn."

Says Claire Delabre, a teacher at the Alliance Français in Dublin, "People are very enthusiastic, and very disciplined and good learners."

Her colleague, Severine Guz, nods in agreement. Language learning is now "very motivated", especially for those people in business who are going to Brussels or France, she says.

Delabre has found that "some people will tell you that they are really tense and really stressed because of the memories", but "the approach is different now", she points out. "It's more communication, it's not as traditional, with vocabulary and grammar."

"The biggest change is the whole idea of independence, autonomy," says Richardson. Today students "don't have to wait for teachers to spoon-feed them, they have to be given the tools themselves and the skills to learn, not just inside the classroom but outside as well."

"The general feeling is that people are willing to have a go," she says. As for our experiences "ag foghlaim na Gaeilge" at school, she believes "it's a positive thing". Having another language has allowed people to realise there's another word for something. "People do look at language differently."

Teachers point to the new methods of teaching, which stress communication rather than grammar and literature; the openness to learn and the added incentive to travel. These changes have all helped to make the learning of foreign languages more appealing.

Having Irish as an additional language helps students, says Richardson. Students today are learning to enjoy themselves, she adds.