Sats success for pupils who speak English as a second language

Forty per cent of London's 81,000 primary school pupils who took Sats last year did not speak English as their first language.

Yet the vast majority went on to pass their tests in English, with girls in this group achieving better results than the average for all pupils in the capital.

Children from Chinese and Indian backgrounds in particular achieved a high proportion of top grades, while headteachers paid tribute to the work ethic of many families recently arrived from eastern Europe.

At Nelson Primary School in East Ham, pupils speak 53 different languages. For three-quarters of children at the school, their first language is not English.

Nelson headteacher Tim Benson said parental expectations were key to children's success. "Within certain parts of the Asian community, particularly in my school the Sri Lankan Tamil community, the parents have high aspirations for their children," he said.

Mr Benson added: "The eastern European families that are coming over at the moment also have very high aspirations and you can hear them telling their children the only way they are going to achieve is by having a good education."

Teachers at Nelson use a range of classroom strategies to help children master English. The school operates a "buddy" system in which older pupils help new arrivals. Teachers use pictures to help children learn essential vocabulary such as where to eat and how to ask to go to the lavatory.

Today's results from the Department for Children showed that 80 per cent of all primary pupils in London achieved the expected national curriculum Level 4 in their English Sats last year. But girls in the capital who had English as an additional language achieved even better results, with 81 per cent reaching Level 4, the grade expected of 11-year-olds. And in some boroughs the results were much higher.

Tower Hamlets contains some of London's most deprived communities and has a very high Asian population. Two-thirds of pupils in the borough do not speak English as their first language.

Nevertheless, Tower Hamlets children from non-English speaking homes still achieved the London average, with 80 per cent passing their Sats in reading and writing. Once again, girls from non-English speaking homes performed even better, achieving an 84 per cent pass rate.

In the more technical subjects of maths and science, London pupils who spoke English as an additional language generally kept pace with their native English-speaking classmates.

John Dunford, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said London schools are "an example to the rest of the country, particularly in relation to the achievements of children with English as an additional language".