NCELP has received a funding boost for free, research-informed professional development for language teachers
The University of York has received £1.17 million of government funding for the National Centre for Excellence for Language Pedagogy (NCELP) to continue its work to support the teaching of French, German, and Spanish in schools.
The extension funding, confirmed by the Department for Education (DfE) in April 2021, will help NCELP extend the reach of its work to improve language curriculum design and pedagogy.
Launched in December 2018, the Centre for Excellence (now backed by £4.8 million over four years) works to provide research-informed professional development and classroom resources for the teaching of French, German, and Spanish. NCELP also helps support teachers to deliver the recommendations of the Teaching Schools Council’s 2016 MFL Pedagogy Review.
NCELP is currently coordinating the work of nine Lead Schools – which are working with 36 other schools and sharing best practice – to boost the teaching of Spanish, French and German. NCELP has run a series of successful training courses for teachers, and created the NCELP Resource Portal – an open database containing hundreds of research-informed and classroom-ready resources for teaching phonics, vocabulary and grammar in engaging and culture-rich activities. A suite of recorded NCELP-based lessons is accessible to thousands of pupils via the state-funded online school Oak National Academy. NCELP has produced a complete scheme of work in French, German and Spanish for Year 7 and Year 8, and is currently completing Year 9 resources.
Professor Emma Marsden, Director of NCELP, said the funding will allow the Centre to extend its reach from the current network of 45 schools to many more schools across the country and to deliver freely available Key Stage 4 Schemes of Work and resources for 14-16 year olds.
“We are delighted to be granted an extension to build upon the firm foundations established during these first three years. This would not have been possible without the support and commitment of the Hub Schools. Many teachers and teacher educators tell us that they find NCELP CPD and materials very useful, and, most importantly, they tell us how the resources are improving students’ learning, their sense of progression, and enjoyment.
“Year 4 will bring a new phase of our CPD delivery. Expert instructors drawn from the hub network will deliver free professional development courses on Curriculum Design and Pedagogy to over 1,400 teachers nationally. We are pleased to announce that we are inviting expressions of interest in the courses that will commence in January 2022.”
The CPD course will include a series of five remote learning sessions over one term, complemented by an online peer and instructor support network. Places will be limited but all teachers will be able to access an online self-study course, also at no cost.
Read more about the free NCELP MFL CPD course and hear sample presentations from earlier versions of some of our CPD materials.
