English as Another Language

The EAL Centre
The Centre is open to all overseas students and is staffed during all normal school hours. Students are timetabled to the Centre during lessons and also ask for extra help on an individual basis. There are facilities for private study.



We try to offer some teaching in students’ home languages. At the present, we can provide Chinese - both Mandarin and Cantonese - Japanese, Spanish, French and German, plus some help with Russian. We also arrange for students to take both GCSE and A level examinations in these languages.

All 6th form students who do not have a suitable English qualification for further study in UK or USA are offered tuition for IELTS or TOEFL.

Philosophy and Aims of the Department
The Centre for English as a Another Language exists as part of Taunton School to offer help and support to all students for whom English is not their first language. This help is a mixture of academic and pastoral and extends to all areas of school life, as these students are learning not only a second language but also how to survive in a new culture.

Our main aims are:
- to teach all aspects of the English language
- to provide subject-specific support in all areas
- to provide pastoral support, liaising with House and subject staff
- to help students to achieve any English qualifications necessary for their continued academic progress.

The Department hopes to be able to give overseas students a secure base in the School, so that they have somewhere they can view as a haven if necessary or, hopefully, a stepping stone into the life of the School.

Even the most integrated and confident of students will occasionally need a breathing space or more specific help than can be accommodated in the mainstream classroom and we try to be ready to cope with any of the problems they present to us.
If these students are to gain from the English education system, we must provide them with the fullest possible backing in all areas of school life, understanding the impact their respective cultures will have on their learning and their relationships.
The Department also tries to act as a conduit if necessary between students and subject staff, working in all subject areas to help with communication and to resolve learning difficulties. We very much hope that living and working in a multi-cultural environment proves to be an enriching experience for all concerned.


How the Centre functions
In forms 3, 4 and 5, the overseas students are timetabled to the EFL Centre when other students are studying a foreign language. This is also the case with TPS students. These classes are specifically English classes, teaching grammar, vocabulary, reading and writing techniques. They are designed to support and reinforce as much as possible the work being done by the students in their mainstream English classes, where most of them are studying English Language and Literature.

All these classes have a homework requirement which fills the time allotted to a foreign language for the other students and which is set in accordance with School policy.

In the 6th form, students are required to take part in General Studies where we offer them the opportunity to study for IELTS or TOEFL as well as several short courses of general interest.
Those students who wish to continue their studies in Higher Education in England must have either a grade C in GCSE English Language or IELTS, while those who wish to study in USA or Australia need TOEFL. Again, these classes carry a homework requirement and all students are encouraged to spend as much time as they can reading, listening to the radio and watching TV or video.

Outside this timetabled time, the staff are always available - providing there is room on their timetables - to see students individually or in small groups, either for the whole year or on a 'first aid' basis as and when problems arise.
The Head of Department also participates in specialist ‘subject clinics’, working in tandem with the subject department, usually during lunchtime or after school hours. These clinics are either at the request of the students or put in place by subject staff concerned about the progress of their students.

We also offer support in the subject classroom in a variety of areas, either on a short or long term basis and we hope to increase this as much as timetabling allows. This is particularly valuable when there are several overseas students in a group. It also often benefits the English students in that group! The main object of our work is to make sure that the students remain in mainstream classes, following a normal curriculum and taking GCSE and A level exams in the subjects of their choice which will enable them to move on to university either here or elsewhere.
When it does become necessary to withdraw a student from a particular subject, we do our best to apply accelerated learning so that the student can return to the classroom as soon as possible.

Public Examinations
The main public examination for which we submit candidates is IELTS. This is accepted by universities as an English qualification if the student has not got a pass in GCSE English Language. We also offer students the opportunity to enter for Cambridge First Certificate and the Oxford Preliminary, though neither of these is recognised by Higher Education institutions. We have students who have successfully completed TOEFL, which is required by all American universities.
We also offer overseas students the opportunity to take GCSE and A level in their own home language if this is not already on the school curriculum.