CHILDREN FROM eastern Europe now make up almost a third of the Dundee pupils who need extra help in learning English, writes Grant Smith, education reporter.

Last year there were 65 such children being aided by the specialists from the bilingual pupils’ support service (BPSS).

This year the total has jumped to 90, reflecting the continuing rise in the number of workers coming from countries such as Poland and the Czech Republic who have brought their families with them.

Overall, the number of pupils needing assistance from the BPSS has dropped slightly year-on-year, from 340 to 320.

The EIS teaching union has warned that Scottish local authorities need more help from central government to provide the necessary resources for the children of migrant families.

General secretary Ronnie Smith said, “With the massive increase in pupils who are new to English, schools and teachers are becoming seriously overstretched due to a lack of sufficient specialist support available for these pupils.

“The EIS is calling for additional resources and training for teachers, together with an increase in specialist language teachers to support pupils from migrant families.”

Many of the eastern Europeans have taken jobs in the agricultural and horticultural industries, putting particular pressure on education services in the more rural local authorities.

While the number of migrant children with limited English skills has risen in Dundee, the numbers are said to be manageable.

An education department spokesman said, “The city council provides support for children who do not have English as a first language through our long-established Bilingual Pupils’ Support Service.”

The service’s aims include ensuring that children have full access to the curriculum, aiding them in their attainment, and supporting schools in delivering their anti-racist policies.

It caters for pupils aged three to 18, whether they are permanent residents or short-term visitors, and its teachers have special qualifications in teaching English as a foreign language.

Bilingual assistants, with a range of languages, can also be employed on a sessional basis.

There are thought to be about 1000 children in Dundee who speak the language of their country of descent as well as English, with about 60 languages represented.

The BPSS has already been involved in a pilot scheme run at Morgan Academy and Harris Academy in a national programme called English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL.)

This work, which included after-school study sessions, has been highlighted as an example of good practice by the exam body the Scottish Qualifications Authority.

One pupil quoted in the case study—who had gone on to apply to university— said, “I learned language skills which I could adapt to other subjects.

“In the Scottish system Standard Grade English might not be the most suitable for those pupils who come to secondary school in S3 like me. The ESOL courses as an alternative can help you with other subjects.”

One of the authors of the report concluded, “I believe that offering ESOL national qualifications to bilingual pupils who arrive in Scottish secondary schools with little exposure to English is the way forward.”

The Scottish Government recently announced a funding boost for English language projects for migrant workers in further education colleges.

In 2006, there were 334 migrant children in Perth and Kinross Council schools, a small number in relation to the overall school population, writes Mark Mackay.

To assist pupils, schools have access to a Polish community link worker, English as an additional language teaching staff and also translation and interpretation services.

A spokeswoman for Perth and Kinross Council said it was not possible to say how many of its migrant pupils hailed from eastern Europe.

“We don’t record this information at present but are looking at ways of doing so in the future,” she said.