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35 different languages are spoken in Dorset schools

9:10am Tuesday 14th October 2008 in


AN INFLUX of migrants means up to 35 different languages are spoken in individual Bournemouth primary schools.

One in 10 pupils at Malmesbury Park Primary School cannot speak English and a further 15 per cent have needed extra help to learn the language in the past.

The picture is the same at St Michael’s Primary in the town centre, the area most affected by the culture change.

And some Boscombe schools are seeing dramatic rises in the number of pupils categorised as EAL (English as an Additional Language).

Such statistics are common in inner-city areas of the UK, where ethnic minorities routinely outnumber white British pupils.

But the figures are likely to surprise many people who may not have previously thought it applied to Dorset David Blakely, head teacher of Malmesbury Park in Lowther Road, said the number of languages spoken in the school had risen gradually over the last 10 years.

“There is a wide variety from Polish and Korean to Arabian and different forms of Spanish,” he told the Daily Echo.

“We haven’t even heard of some of the languages until the children arrive here.”

He said around 60 of the school’s 635 pupils need intensive support because they cannot speak English and said two teaching assistants have been employed to help them. An extra teacher also comes in two days a week.

“I firmly believe it does not have a bad effect on the rest of the pupils in the school,” added Mr Blakely.

“The school has done relatively well in recent tests.

“The children here are learning about the differences between different cultures and learning to get on together, which is a good thing.”

And he continued: “They are learning life skills that it would be hard to teach without that ethnic mix.”

Comments(12)

djd says...
1:44pm Tue 14 Oct 08

A good argument for speaking English to be the criteria for entry into this country, or would that be to PC ???

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BW of Bournemouth says...
2:15pm Tue 14 Oct 08

djd wrote:
A good argument for speaking English to be the criteria for entry into this country, or would that be to PC ???
Agree absolutely. If they are to become proper residents of the UK, then fluent English, both spoken and written is essential. It's my understanding that the only language used for teaching in France is French other than in a language class.

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John T says...
4:36pm Tue 14 Oct 08

If fluency in spoken and written English is to be a qualification to become proper residents of the UK,then some 50% of the commenters on this site would fail the test, because they dont right english proper!

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2Much...again! says...
5:03pm Tue 14 Oct 08

So..we..the Brits..moving to Europe in our droves (probably partly brought on by people moaning about dogs in the forest or on the beach) are expected to teach our kids fluent language skills before we send them to a school?..No..didn't think so. Good old hypocrisy rises it's ugly head again!

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ranger_bob says...
5:10pm Tue 14 Oct 08

2Much...again! wrote:
So..we..the Brits..moving to Europe in our droves (probably partly brought on by people moaning about dogs in the forest or on the beach) are expected to teach our kids fluent language skills before we send them to a school?..No..didn't think so. Good old hypocrisy rises it's ugly head again!
If we are going to discuss fluency in English shouldn't that be "raises its ugly head again!"

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2Much...again! says...
5:39pm Tue 14 Oct 08

ranger_bob wrote:
2Much...again! wrote:
So..we..the Brits..moving to Europe in our droves (probably partly brought on by people moaning about dogs in the forest or on the beach) are expected to teach our kids fluent language skills before we send them to a school?..No..didn't think so. Good old hypocrisy rises it's ugly head again!
If we are going to discuss fluency in English shouldn't that be "raises its ugly head again!"
Good grief Ranger..you are right! Apologies :)

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Beekeeper says...
7:42pm Tue 14 Oct 08

Utter madness, how much is all this costing Dorset ratepayers, i know from my own village that when Polish children started to attend the village primary school unable to speak a work of English, one extra member of staff (Part time) had to be employed to teach them our language before they could be taught anything else, it is an insult to our own people to expect us all to put up with this ridiculous situation.

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manana says...
7:43pm Tue 14 Oct 08

As long as the extra teachers are actually extra and not taken out the classroom to give one to one then at least the english speaking children will not have their studies affected. In Spain, you either integrate into a spanish school and get on with the language or you pay for an international school which will then teach you in both languages. The younger the child, the easier it is. Its usually the parents that are then left behind!

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pachyderm says...
10:41pm Tue 14 Oct 08

Let the first person to translate this

parva leves capiunt animas

go to the top of the class.

Sorry to be so otiose and solipsistic, but defenestration is not good enough for some !

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Nickolai says...
8:15am Wed 15 Oct 08

BW of Bournemouth wrote:
djd wrote: A good argument for speaking English to be the criteria for entry into this country, or would that be to PC ???
Agree absolutely. If they are to become proper residents of the UK, then fluent English, both spoken and written is essential. It's my understanding that the only language used for teaching in France is French other than in a language class.
It's all part of the wonderful pc-multicultural utopia created without our consent by New Labour.

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John T says...
11:20am Wed 15 Oct 08

Nickolai.... now there is a nice White Anglo Saxon Protestant name.

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Laurie Marsh says...
12:07pm Sun 19 Oct 08

Elephant,
Any-one can construe just about anything with a computer!
How does one go to the top of the class whilst standing on ones head?
All of this rubbish about teaching kids to communicate can be solved in about two weeks. All you have to do is to give them a ball and let them play a game. They will be talking to each other in no time flat!

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WHAT A LOT OF LINGOS! There are 14 different first languages in this group of Malmesbury Park School pupils. There are about 30 in the whole school WHAT A LOT OF LINGOS! There are 14 different first languages in this group of Malmesbury Park School pupils. There are about 30 in the whole school

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