Community Links
Welcome to Community Links
Business Language Classes
Following the success of the ‘Talking Business’ project run on behalf of the East Riding Council, we have continued to encourage local businesses to become involved in language training for their staff. Since September 2004 we have organized:
- Beginners’ German for Haulage contractors at Liftrans Ltd., Goole 30 hours over 10 weeks.
- Intensive Mandarin for Sales Staff at Holliday Pigments Ltd, Hull 20 hours over 1 week.
- French Intermediate for management at Farm Force Engineering Ltd, Driffield – 30 hours over 10 weeks.
There have been ongoing negotiations with other companies, with the support of the Regional Languages Network/Yorkshire and Humberside, Humberside Forum, the Learning and Skills Council and the TUC.
Adult Education
We have continued to work closely with the Hessle and Wolfreton Adult Education Centre in the provision of language classes for adults. Languages include French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Russian and Japanese, at beginners and intermediate levels. There are also classes for families in French and Spanish held at local primary schools. Training for tutors in the use of interactive whiteboards and computers is given by our staff.
The Language College subsidises from its community funding those classes with small numbers which would otherwise be declared uneconomic. This averages four classes at a cost of around £600 per term.
We have provided a weekly drop-in session using computers to learn a wide range of languages, led by the Community Languages Consultant. It is hoped to revive these classes from September 2005.
Family courses such as Japanese culture and calligraphy, and Spanish wine-tasting are now being offered (based in the primaries).
Extra activities in school
We are meeting the demand for additional classes for languages from our own pupils. For example an Italian course for sixth formers has been run before a planned trip to Rome, Japanese for a pupil in Year 8, and courses are planned for minority languages in the Sixth Form next year. We have continued to provide courses in Arabic and Greek, and have just introduced Farsi at GCSE level and Italian at AS level.
Language College staff were involved in the very successful International Enterprise Days in June and July. Language skills in French, Spanish and German were an essential part of these days. A video and DVD were produced.
We have been at the forefront of introducing vocational language courses for Key Stage 4 in East Riding schools as from September 2005, and the school has embarked on the Certificate of Business Language Competence in Year 10.
We have provided a course in French for Teaching Assistants from Wolfreton and our Cluster schools, and hope to expand this in 2005-6.
