In other countries, where speaking another language is second nature and something the majority of the population succeeds in doing, the ability of schools to recruit primary school teachers with language skills should be fairly high. In marked contrast, the UK’s newly qualifying teaching stock will soon be of the generation where language learning was made non-compulsory in schools. This reduces the teachers available at a time when the need for them will be at its greatest. Teachers will also need to feel that they are confident and competent to teach languages, as the confidence (or lack of it) that they pass on to their pupils will be crucial in the learning process.
Richard Bradford
Brighton