...our richly unique and diverse children...

All pupils need to feel safe, accepted and valued in order to learn effectively and become successful members of society. For pupils, who are learning English as an additional language, this includes recognising and valuing their home language and background. As a school, we are aware that bilingualism can be a useful learning tool and that all EAL pupils can make a valuable contribution to their school community. We take a whole school approach, including ethos, curriculum and education against racism.

Learners with EAL have a dual task at school: to learn English (language) and to learn through English. For this reason, EAL teaching aims to teach English using the mainstream curriculum as the context.

At Archbishop Courtenay a considerable proportion of our children enter the school speaking English as an additional language – 49% compared to the national average of just 20%. We have a total of 34 different languages spoken.

We are fortunate to have a dedicated EAL Teaching Assistant - who works alongside our children to assess, support and liaise with teachers to help ensure that pupils make progress quickly. When a child joins our school from another country, our experienced EAL team support the children and their families and welcome them to our school Community. 

Joanna Mochol - jkarpiuk-mochol@abc.aquilatrust.co.uk

Did you know you can translate our website in to over 100 different languages? Click on the button in the top right hand corner to translate all our written pages.