The Language Ambassador Scheme

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Two years ago I attended a presentation by the inspiring Rachel Hawkes that focused on the multiple unique selling points of languages. In her presentation she mentioned how she had set up a Student Leadership Award at her school and how it had been a magnificent success. As she put it, the results were so good that, in hindsight, running the award appeared to be a “no brainer”.

Her experiences inspired me to adapt her Student Leadership Award in languages and led to the launch of our very own Language Ambassador Scheme on the European Day of Languages in September 2009. The Language Ambassador Scheme is designed to last one academic year and aims to develop the potential of our best linguists in the senior school by involving them in the planning and delivery of language lessons to younger pupils in our infant and junior schools.

In its maiden year, the Scheme was open to pupils in Year 11 as well as 6th Formers. The Language Ambassadors and I then started meeting regularly, focusing termly on different aspects of teaching and learning languages. The students were placed in pairs and trained in how to deliver language lessons to Reception and Year 4 classes. The Scheme gave them invaluable insight into learning and teaching, as they were encouraged to step into a teacher’s shoes and develop their presentation, project management, organisation and leadership skills.

Initially, in the autumn term, our Language Ambassadors learned how to teach, structure and pitch a lesson to specific age groups. This proved to be a challenge as it soon became apparent that a lesson focusing solely on verb tenses would mean little to a class of four and five-year-olds!

In the spring term, we moved into the lesson planning stage. Having simplified their ideas, they began looking at strategies for ensuring retention and thinking about what vocabulary they could introduce and how.

They delivered their planned lesson at the start of the summer term, sharing with their young pupils a truly enjoyable and worthwhile experience for all concerned.

Indeed, the Scheme received an exceptional response from the pupils in our infant and junior schools. The Head of our infant school said “Our boys look up to the older students, seeing them as role models and what they aspire to be. The boys were enthused and the scheme strengthens the ties between the different parts of the School, as well as enriching language learning.”

The Scheme has helped the boys to contextualise language learning – as the learners have become the teachers they have begun to appreciate the process involved in teaching a language. The Scheme has also made the boys more rounded individuals, encouraging them to see things from different perspectives and helping them to make informed decisions, thus acquiring transferable skills that will be useful to them and will remain with them for life.

The Scheme has been an astounding success this year and we already have pupils queuing up to become Language Ambassadors next year, when the 2010/2011 Language Ambassadors Scheme is announced on 26th September, the next European Day of Languages.