Question reference: S5W-01449
- Asked by: Ruth Maguire, MSP for Cunninghame South, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 13 July 2016
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Current status: Answered by John Swinney on 28 July 2016
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it plans over the next five years take to encourage learning foreign languages in (a) schools and (b) communities.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to full implementation of the 1+2 languages policy in schools by 2021, leading to more and earlier language learning, as a normal part of a broad, relevant school education. We will continue to support local authorities in securing this significant change in the coming five years, including funding. Since 2013 we have already provided £16.2m of additional developmental funding and have supported Scotland’s National Centre for Languages (SCILT) and the Confucius Institute for Scotland’s Schools (CISS), which both provide practical support for language learning and teaching. A Strategic Implementation Group leads this process and is working with local authorities, Education Scotland, SCILT and other bodies in planning, delivery and raising expectations of enhanced language learning in schools.
Scottish Government’s strategy New Scots: Integrating Refugees in Scotland’s Communities has an active group for Education which works to identify the role of refugees in promoting linguistic diversity in Scotland’s communities.