Colleagues from clusters are collaborating on developing and refining the LA Language Strategy, drawing on evidence internationally, nationally and locally to suggest how we might best develop language 3-16 in our multi-lingual context.
The resources and ongoing refinements to the strategy are held in this Google site https://sites.google.com/hwbcymru.net/penfro-language-strategy/home - additional Welsh resources continue to be hosted on Y Gromlech
During Spring 2023, schools began to develop case studies and evaluations to support the inclusion of insights of a range of approaches/partners that are having a positive impact on language development in Pembrokeshire schools. These will be added to the LA Language Strategy site and inform the ongoing development of the overall strategy.
Pembrokeshire Language Strategy 2023-26
- Summary of evidence to support strategy development
Vision
We all communicate effectively with each other
in Welsh, English and international languages,
by developing our knowledge and skills, and sharing our opinions and ideas,
so that we can hear and be heard with clarity and empathy,
and grow our sense of collaboration, connectedness and belonging.
The distinction between language and literacy is an important one. Literacy and language are related closely.
Language learning refers to the explicit and intentional learning and teaching that takes place to develop the language skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. (Acquisition)
Literacy refers to the skills that allow us to: (Transfer)
•understand written and spoken language
•interpret what has been written or said
•draw inferences from evidence
•communicate fluently, cogently and persuasively.
In Curriculum for Wales, developing learners’ literacy continues to be a cross-curricular responsibility for all teachers. Estyn, 2021
Languages, Literacy and Communication (LLC) aims to enable learners to gain knowledge and skills to communicate effectively in Welsh, English and international languages, including British Sign Language where chosen. Different languages and their literature should be explored in relation to one another, so too the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. This multilingual and plurilingual approach enables learners to transfer what they have learned about how languages work in one language to the learning and using of other languages. This includes translanguaging.
Pembrokeshire is committed to being evidence-informed, learning from successful practice elsewhere and locally, and collaborating to co-construct even more successful ways forward. There are approaches that are supported by evidence of impact in a narrow sense, for example an approach may increase reading or writing competence in the short term, i.e. for the duration of the programme. However, these may also have unintended, and possibly unmeasured, consequences, such as instilling a loathing of reading or writing. As we focus on learner progression, quick wins that are counter-productive to the long-term aspirations and purposes within Curriculum for Wales are to be avoided. Opportunities such as the Siarter Iaith framework encourage positive engagement with, and attitudes to, becoming bilingual +1 learners and communities.
The strands of language development below must be considered collectively to develop a cohesive approach to language development across all languages. Of critical importance is that schools/clusters consider how adopting their own specific blend of approaches/resources, especially for those that fall beyond those described below, will impact on each learner and cohort as they progress 3-16. How will each child make sense of these approaches, develop their understanding of language and apply, transfer and develop their language skills in new contexts?
Well-developed oracy skills are fundamental to the realisation of the four purposes, as we learn to talk and learn through talk. Systematic teaching, application, transfer and development of listening and speaking skills across a wide range of opportunities brings a wide range of other benefits to learners, including improved wellbeing, self-regulation, collaboration and leadership.
Listening and speaking are often lumped together, but listening skills need to be taught explicitly and distinctly if oracy skills are to flourish. Voice 21 strategies are effective.
In 2021, Estyn recommended that primary schools: support learners’ early understanding of language by modelling and demonstrating a gesture or movement that conveys the meaning of words; beneficial extra-curricular opportunities, including within the local community, for learners to develop their language skills; use rich and varied contexts, such as participating in the Urdd, to teach learners specifically how to listen and talk; listening and speaking are skills to be developed in their own right, rather than as a support to reading and writing.
A focus on explicitly growing a rich and increasingly sophisticated vocabulary is central to strong language development, particularly for learners who do not come from a literacy-rich background. Addressing the vocabulary deficit for those affected by disadvantage early and robustly is a key factor in securing equity of access to excellence in language development. Closing the Vocabulary Gap (Quigley, 2019) is a useful resource for schools.
There is strong evidence that Systematic Synthetic Phonics (SSP) programmes, such as RWI and Tric a Chlic, support the development of reading skills. It is not known which programme is most effective, but where programmes are not implemented as designed it is likely the impact will not be as advertised. SSP programmes need to be complemented by wider approaches to developing reading-rich cultures within schools, eg exposure to high quality texts.
Structured approaches to the teaching and development of reading, such as guided and reciprocal reading, have been found to be effective in developing comprehension, analysis, synthesis etc. Many schools across several clusters have successfully worked with Empathy Lab in order to more carefully curate the reading experiences of learners. This develops wider goals, such as empathy, and include greater diversity into the curriculum, as well as develop reading skills and attitudes.
In 2021, Estyn recommended that primary schools: strong focus on developing learners’ pre-reading skills, for example through songs, rhyme and music; fostering a love of reading and literature is a priority; whole-school strategies for promoting reading for pleasure: reading to learners, providing opportunities for learners to read aloud, sharing complete novels with learners, and providing time for daily independent reading; teachers are advocates for reading; do not stick too rigidly to a reading scheme that stifles learners’ enjoyment; whole-school strategy to improve decoding skills, build vocabulary knowledge, or develop learners’ responses to what they read; take sufficient account of learners’ developmental stages and avoid introducing phonics teaching too early; encourage disadvantaged learners and their families to enjoy reading; opportunities for adults to role-model reading in key stage 2, including Welsh literature in Welsh-medium provision.
The essential building blocks of pre-writing physical development are critical. To develop writing in a precise, granular and structured manner, The Writing Revolution offers useful guidance and support. Ensuring that authentic purposes for writing are woven through the curriculum and that learners are scaffolded and stretched to develop and apply their skills meaningfully and successfully is a key consideration for all planning and implementation. Learners achieving fluency and legibility in writing is important; no evidence that cursive writing is the only way to achieve this.
In 2021, Estyn recommended that primary schools: improve the teaching of writing through consistent approaches to developing skills, for example in sentence construction, punctuation and spelling; teach learners to understand the conventions of form and genre, and of writing as a process; provide learners with a real reason to write and audience to write for; high expectations of learners, including the more able, to write well in different, challenging forms; opportunities for learners to write freely using the range of writing skills that they already have; extended writing opportunities and the expectation for learners to check, correct and re-draft their work.
Where schools/clusters determine their own systematic approach to developing grammatical awareness and application, expectations should at least match those described in the literacy framework. Discussions continue regarding how explicitly and to which degree of specificity and sophistication grammar should be taught; currently tending towards teaching grammar in context where meaning/precision/application/transfer is enhanced. GRAMA10 plan and resources will be further developed to improve the linguistic accuracy of learners in Welsh-Medium settings.
Engaging and stimulating literature is central to language development and wider curriculum purposes, such as the development of empathy and creativity. Strategic and sustained support from and collaboration with partners, such as Empathy Lab, can support clusters in making informed choices regarding curriculum choices, to complement a literature-rich culture that all learners should enjoy and broaden and deepen their understanding of themselves and others. Literature can provide windows into worlds within and beyond our own lives, supporting cross-cutting themes of RSE; local, national and international contexts; careers and work-related experiences; human rights education and UNCRC; and diversity. These themes can then be considered through the lens of our own cynefin.
Blessed with over 50 languages spoken within our school communities, including British Sign Language,* schools celebrate and incorporate these languages into their curriculum to add to the richness and within their curriculum, even if they are not languages in which they are planning for learners to develop the higher levels of competence. PowerLanguage (French and Spanish) is a useful resource, as is the EPI approach designed by Gianfranco Conti to develop fluency in additional languages.
Within the strategy and related Google site, insights from Pembrokeshire schools and wider resources are shared.