Post by Focus on Jul 2, 2013 6:22:52 GMT
A survey of the nation's classrooms, which provides an accurate snapshot of the composition of schools in England, shows a radical transformations taking place.
Change : Nearly three in 10 primary school pupils are from ethnic minority, new data shows. (File picture)
During the past five years alone, the number of pupils without English as a native language has increased by almost 250,000.
The figures also show an increase in the number of pupils in England who are classed as being from an ethnic minority background.
Now nearly three in 10 primary school children in this category.
In the last year, the numbers of children who speak English as an additional language have risen by almost 54,000, according to statistics published by the Department for Education (DfE).
More than 18 per cent of the 4.3 million primary school pupils had a first language that was not English - an increase from 17.5 per cent in 2012.
In secondary schools the proportion falls slightly, with nearly 14 per cent of the 3.2 million pupils surveyed revealing that their first language was not English - an increase from 12.9 per cent in 2012.
That equates to almost one in five primary pupils, aged between five and 11, and around one in seven of those in secondaries, who are between 11 and 16 years of age, who speak another language at home.
Overall, the figures show that 1,061,010 million children in England’s state primary, secondary and special schools, as well as pupil referral units (PRUs) had a first language that is known or believed to be other than English.
This is up from 1,007,090 youngsters in 2012 - an extra 53,920 pupils.
In 2008, around 832,790 children spoke English as a second language, although this figure does not include those being taught in PRUs.
It means that the numbers have risen by around 227,000 in the last five years.
Language barrier : The number of primary school pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue has increased by 250,000 over the last five years, according to Department of Education figures (File photo)
The DfE statistics provide a record of the composition of England’s schools was taken in January, this year.
A Department for Education spokesman said: 'Many schools teach pupils whose first language is not English successfully.
'Through the school funding formula, councils can provide more support for pupils whose first language is not English for up to three years from when they first enter education.'
A recent evidence review by NIESR for the Migration Advisory Committee examined statistical evidence on attainment of pupils with English as an additional language and found that these pupils perform almost as well as those whose first language is English.
A breakdown of the data shows that 18.1 per cent of primary school pupils speak a first language that is not English, along with 13.6 per cent of those in secondary schools, 12.7 per cent of those taught in special schools and 8.7 per cent of those at PRUs.
Almost a million primary school children - 965,110 in total (28.5 per cent) are considered to be from a minority ethnic background, along with nearly a quarter (775,710, or 24.2 per cent) of those taught in state secondaries, the figures show.
Last year, 27.6 per cent of primary-age children and 23.2 per cent of those in secondary schools were classed as being of 'minority ethnic origin'.
SCHOOLS WITH MAJORITY OF PUPILS WHERE ENGLISH IS NOT HOME LANGUAGE :
English-speaking children were in a minority in 1,600 schools, according to a 2012 census.
The figures particularly startling in the 14 inner London boroughs, where there were 98,000 non-native English speakers compared to 78,000 who could list the language as their number one.
Nationwide, there were 97 schools where the number of pupils speaking English as a mother tongue was fewer than one in 20 of the school population.
After London, Birmingham had the highest concentration of 'foreign' pupils, followed by Bradford and then Leicester.
Punjabi was the most widely-spoken first language.
London has the highest concentration of schools with a majority of pupils who do not have English as their first language at home.
Across the 14 boroughs that make up Inner London, there are 98,000 schoolchildren whose first language is not English, compared to just 79,000 native English speakers.
Within the London boroughs, Newham had the highest amount with 79 schools, followed by Tower Hamlets with 70, Brent with 57 and Ealing with 55 schools.
London was followed by Birmingham with 117 schools where the majority of pupils do not have English as their mother tongue.
Bradford came next with 59 schools followed by Leicester with 40 schools.
Manchester has 35 schools, while Lancashire has 30 schools and Kirklees has 27.
Luton has 22 schools and Slough 19.
The local authority areas with the smallest proportion of pupils who have English as a second language are Halton with 0.9 per cent and Redcar and Cleveland also with 0.9 per cent.
They were closely followed by Derbyshire with 1.3 per cent, Rutland 1.5 with per cent, St Helens with 1.5 per cent, and Cornwall with 1.6 per cent.
The infestation is thriving!! - Fx
