English Takes You Around the World

Caxton College offers English classes on Saturday mornings for all ages and levels. These can be complemented by extracurricular activities such as swimming, ballet or Artificial Intelligence.

The professional demand for English language skills continues to rise in an ever more globalised labour market. A second language opens new windows onto the world, and when that language is English, the number of opportunities on the professional horizon become significant.

A growing global labour market has made mastery of the English language an essential skill that companies look for when recruiting staff. Reinforcing knowledge of the English language is therefore a must.

Getting an early start

Ideally, second language learning should begin at an early age, when children have a great facility for learning. If good teaching practice is followed, pupils can achieve a very high level of fluency.

During the childhood stage, it’s important for learning to take place through play and for “teachers to inspire confidence in the learning process, so that this complementary study isn’t too rigid and children enjoy it. It shouldn’t be a burden on top of their normal routines”, said Laura Coeli, who is in charge of the English language academy on Saturdays at the British school Caxton College. It’s also important for this learning to take place in a relaxed atmosphere whilst using resources that allow for lessons to be dynamic and entertaining. “At Caxton College we have ample outdoor space, which allows teachers and students to enjoy casual encounters and for play to be the basis that facilitates children’s learning in Early Years and Primary education”.

Additionally, studying a new language has a very positive effect on intellectual growth and enriches the mental, linguistic and emotional development of the child.

Academic experience

For learning to be solid, the language should be taught as a cultural as well as a grammatical concept. Methodologies that include activities involving music, cinema, literature and areas of day-to-day life as part of the language teaching will help any student to learn more easily, no matter the age. In fact, for adults, “it’s important to connect with their social and professional lives, their hobbies, what they’re reading, to promote their speaking and communication skills, which is what is really going to help them in the short term”, said Laura Coeli, who also emphasised the importance of the teacher’s work. “In my opinion, teachers at a school dedicated to the teaching of English must be native speakers, or at least have a long experience of teaching in an English-speaking country, in addition to having the pertinent teaching qualifications. They must also demonstrate that they are able to effectively teach groups following a standardised system”.

From the age of 12, it’s also important to provide students with resources that attract their attention so that they are drawn into the learning process and find it easy. At this stage it’s also advisable for them to start to test their knowledge by sitting external examinations, allowing the development of their learning process to be evaluated objectively.