My experience is that we resented it, as it was forced upon us. “What job can you get from it? A postman in the Gaeltacht.”
Everyone saw it as a necessary evil. It should be optional and not just the language thought but also Gaelic culture and history and mythology. If kids got into the myths first I bet they would be more likely than develope a passion for the language. Right now all there is, is resentment. Same when I was a kid.