I suppose the real question is why should classroom resources be used to teach Gaelic in those areas where Gaelic is commonly spoken, usually at home or down at the pub?
I dunno, why teach any language to those who already speak it? I mean, honestly, why do we teach English to English-speaking kids? Maybe, to help preserve the language and ensure that it's spoken/written properly?

If Gaelic is the native language of a people and that's what they speak in the home and the community, I see no reason why it should be ignored. Sure, if English is the common language of the nation, it behooves the educators to ensure that everyone learns it. But it doesn't necessarily have to mean that Gaelic is completely ignored by educators, does it?

Linguistic isolationism has always been a major contributing factor to the poverty of minority groups in any society, and Scotland is no exception. If the economic issues facing the Highlands and Islands are to addressed and overcome, linguistic integration in the class room will have to take place.
My reading on Scottish history seems to suggest that this approach has been tried for several hundred years now, with very little success. Maybe it's not the language that's making them poor.

Forcing an indigenous culture to adopt foreign ways (which includes trying to wipe out their language in favor of the tongue of the more powerful controlling culture) has been done many times, in many different places, and is almost invariably looked upon later with regret.

Surely there can be room in the budget to acknowledge that Gaelic is an important part of the history and culture of the region, and should be preserved for posterity by continuing the tradition with the children? Integration into the modern world is a noble goal, to be sure, but if it comes at the expense of history, tradition, culture, and identity (especially when such change is being pushed on them), then one has to question the true worth of it.

All the above, of course, is said with the utmost respect and acquiescence to the internal decisions of the region. I just find this to be an interesting subject of discussion, considering what my own country has done to its indigenous peoples (which is now looked upon with great regret by many). It's like watching history being made, and something terrible happening to a people whose rich culture is being forced into obscurity due to... what? Budget concerns?