Education United Kingdom Project #14068

Inner-City Latin

by The Latin Programme

Project Report | Jan 19, 2016
School grades 'linked to where you live'

By Kimcha Rajkumar | Programme Director

A study out this week reveals that the geographic area in which a child lives has an impact on their academic achievement. The research, by The Social Market Foundation, compared the performance of 11-year olds born in 2000 with those born in 1970 and examines inequality by region, income and ethnicity. The findings show that "the geographic area a child comes from has become a more powerful predictive factor" than in the past. Regional differences in attainment are apparently already discernable by the end of primary school and remain present even after other factors, such as ethnicity and income, are considered.

The initial research also showed that a very low proportion of pupils who receive Free School Meals end up achieving 5 A* to C grades at GCSE level (40%) compared to those not receiving Free School Meals (70%), indicating that parental income is still very much a factor in children’s levels of attainment. In primary school children the study found that high ability children at age 11 are much more likely to come from families in the top income deciles and low ability children to come from families in the bottom income deciles.

The good news is that students in London have the highest results in England. But even in the capital results vary by location. Kensington and Chelsea, one of London’s most affluent boroughs, (where the average earnings in 2012/13 were £116,350) has the highest percentage of pupils achieving five good GCSEs in state schools across all of England. While just a few miles away Barking and Dagenham (where the median income is £29,420) is among the bottom 20 local authorities in all of England for primary school inspection outcomes

At the Latin Programme we know that by the time children are seven, nearly 80% of the difference in GCSE results between rich and poor children has already been determined, which is why we focus our work in primary schools. Our mission is to support all children, regardless of borough, ethnicity or family income to attain and improve their literacy skills, as being literate increases opportunity in all aspects of life, laying the foundations for better health, community involvement and employment,

Please support the Latin Programme in our work to open the future to all children through improving literacy.

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Oct 20, 2015
mens sana in sano corpore - a healthy mind in a healthy body

By Kimcha Rajkumar | Programme Director

Inspired by the work of the Latin Programme, the staff and pupils of St Peter’s Eaton Square decided to embrace the traditions of the ancient world by giving their annual Sports Day a Latin theme. The children prepared banners which staff and parents used to enthusiastically cheer on the competitors, yelling Latin words of encouragement. For those going for gold, there was the motto nulli secundus/secunda (second to none), those trying to beat their personal best took encouragement from vincit qui se vincit (he who conquers himself is victorious), and for those bringing up the rear, there was nil desperandum (never despair).

This nod to the ancient world does seem rather apt given that the Greeks gave us the Olympic Games and the Romans carried on the tradition of competitive sport. Transported to ancient Rome you might have seen gladiatorial contests in the Colosseum or chariot-racing in the Circus Maximus, and we also have the Romans to thank for the motto mens sana in sano corpore (a healthy mind in a healthy body).

The Latin Programme currently teaches 150 children at St Peter’s. They have achieved such impressive results to their literacy levels that the school has now designated Latin as their Foreign Language, meaning that it is taught all the way through Key Stage 2 in Years 3 through 6. We know that the more years of Latin students have the greater the impact on their literacy levels and by extension their life chances. After one year of Latin, 60% of students in the programme achieve expected literacy levels, this rises to 78% after two years and to an amazing 98% after three. Nicola Cottier, Headteacher at St Peter’s, describes the Latin Programme’s presence as a “fantastic development", commenting that "the children love it”.

Thank you for helping us improve literacy among disadvantaged and at risk children in London – we think the results speak for themselves!

Links:

Head Teacher explaining why her students love Latin

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Jul 20, 2015
Why I volunteer with The Latin Programme

By Lillian Babayan | Volunteer Teaching Assistant

Lillian working with Year 4 student

I volunteer as a teaching assistant for the Latin Programme in a large primary school near the university I attend in central London. I chose to volunteer with The Latin Programme because I have very fond memories of learning Latin at school. I come from a household where Armenian, Russian and Iranian are spoken, so languages have always been an important part of my life.

This year I have been working with two Year 4 classes and my experience with each has been very different. In one, I help children improve their English through Latin, while in the other I assist children in improving their Latin through English.

In the classroom where I am helping children improve their English through Latin I have been working with two boys who have just joined the school this year. One of the boys is from Guinea and has never been to school before and the other is from Saudi Arabia and is just learning to speak English.

Of course, teaching Latin through English when English isn’t a child’s first language is a Herculean task. However, as I have worked with them over the year, I have seen a significant improvement in their basic skills and understanding. Interestingly, their growing ease with English has also influenced their grasp of Latin. They are now beginning to connect English meanings to Latin words—it’s very exciting.

At the beginning of every class the children greet the teacher with a resounding, “salve magistra!” This has made such an impression on one of the boys that on the way up the stairs from playtime he now shouts to me, “salve magistra! Hi, Miss!”

Before I started learning Latin, English was not a subject I was particularly good at. Learning Latin helped me understand why sentences work the way they do and immensely improved my general literacy and facility with English. In fact, I attribute my decision to take English at A level completely to Latin. Latin greatly influenced and changed my time at school for the better and this is why I believe the work of The Latin Programme is so important. I have loved working with the children and seeing their progress this year so much that I have decided to come back and volunteer with The Latin Programme again in September!

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