Report this comment
  • "
    JP Morgan and Chase wrote:
    freespeech wrote:
    Language has nothing to do with being racist, its a cop out by the ignorant to further support those that refused to speak the national tongue of this great nation. We are in England, where out language is English, it is not too much to expect others to speak English in England is it? Especially on the grounds that we are an integrated society..
    Try telling that to the British ex-pats who live in Spain.
    .
    Who like to have their own communities instead of integrating; who prefer to speak their own language as opposed to the (language) of the country they're living in.
    .
    Pretty ironic and hypocritical, don't you think? - since it's these kind of people that'll be the first to bleat on about why immigrants don't assimilate etc..
    those ex-pats probably have the money and means to look after themselves and are not ECONOMIC migrants. Should they then need or want to learn Spanish they would then simply learn the language.

    What we have here is entirely different. As those not/refusing to speak English mostly don't have the finnancial backing ex-pats do and have different motives for been here. What the article is saying is that Bradford's migrants will find it difficult to proper outside of their own community and are hindering their own progress by not been able to speak or pass exams etc etc.

    Ex-pats sat in the sun in paid for homes (out of their own money and not the Spanish government) don't have this problem. Ultimately they have a choice in the matter. Simarlarly so do the 3rd generation communities of Brasdford. However the continued discrimination of women/females in certain communties ensure that they do not already speak English, even taken out of school early so that they are then totally reliant on the males. They can also only then only communicate in their 'native' tongue. Its a feudal patriarchal system and language is a powerful means in this process."
  • This field is mandatory
  • This field is mandatory

  • Please note we will not accept reports with HTML tags or URLs in them.


  • Enter the above word in the box below

Please be fair, courteous and respectful to the views of others so we can build a vibrant community in a safe online environment. You are personal liable for your comments and action will be taken against anyone who offends, ridicules or posts malicious and damaging views. If you wish to complain, please contact us.

Union branch secretary Ian Murch says teachers face bigger challenge from pupils with English as a second language

7:30am Monday 4th July 2011 in News By Ben Barnett

Adeeba Malik, deputy chief executive of Bradford-based development agency QED Adeeba Malik, deputy chief executive of Bradford-based development agency QED

Tighter school budgets are causing greater challenges to schools where significant numbers of pupils speak English as a second language, it is claimed.

Ian Murch, Bradford branch secretary for the National Union of Teachers, said some schools had lost interpreter services due to staff cuts.

Some 28,000 children in the Bradford district do not speak English as their first language, representing 43 per cent of primary school pupils and a third of secondary school pupils, according to new figures published by the Department for Education.

Mr Murch said recent influxes of families from European countries was making the problem more acute.

“It’s a challenge for teachers, but it’s not a new problem and it’s one that is accelerated by the number of different home languages,” he said.

“It makes it more likely that schools won’t be able to communicate with the families via an interpreter or someone who works on the school staff.

“The cuts to central services that the Government has made have made it a lot harder to keep staff that they could use in these circumstances.”

Last week, Keighley MP Kris Hopkins accused parents of failing to ensure their children spoke good English.

Adeeba Malik, deputy chief executive of Bradford-based development agency QED, said more could be done at home to promote good English-speaking so that children had better prospects.

She said: “I think there’s generally a problem about the level of spoken English everywhere across the district. Young children need to be at a certain level and I’m surprised by now that the statistics are so high."

  • Read the full story Monday’s T&A

Local Businesses

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree