Case Study

Introduction

Nottingham Chinese School was founded in 1999 and is sponsored by Nottinghamshire County Council as a complementary school. More than 50 pupils attend the five classes and the teaching is based on textbooks specially designed for overseas students studying Chinese. The teaching covers from beginner to GCSE and A level Chinese.

Alderman White School has specialist status as a language college. Apart from teaching modern foreign languages, they offer courses in Arabic, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin and Urdu. Some of these courses are accessible by pupils from other schools as part of their community remit.

The partnership started off when the Chinese School experienced problems outgrowing their premises. When the Head of the Chinese School attended a local authority conference for complementary schools, he was put in touch with Alderman White School. Both school leaders saw opportunities for development and mutual enrichment. The move to the maintained school has brought with it good accommodation and the opportunity to use facilities and equipment.

The partnership

The partnership was set up in 2006. Apart from the shared premises, the Chinese School benefits from the use of ICT, with teachers and pupils able to make use of interactive white boards and computers. The maintained school has made available software that has enabled the Chinese School to move forward in terms of interactive teaching. In-service training has taken place aimed at developing pedagogical practice which has led to improved teaching quality in the complementary school. Accreditation at all levels is being explored in order to recognise and celebrate pupil achievement at all levels and ages.

A language 'taster' session has been held in the maintained school, using a teacher from the Chinese school, focusing on both language and culture.

Adult evening classes in Mandarin have been launched at the maintained school, using a teacher from the Chinese School. The same teacher delivers an
extended school class for local primary school pupils.

Impact

One of the benefits observed by the leaders of the Chinese School, following the move to the maintained school, has been improved behaviour and increased pupil interest in the complementary school lessons. Parents have responded positively to the improved premises and they have welcomed the improved atmosphere and the ethos of learning that has followed the move. Pupils and parents have welcomed the opportunities to benefit from Alderman White’s ICT equipment as well as the other facilities offered within the maintained school.

The quality of teaching in the Chinese school has improved and other activities such as music and dance are now possible, whereas in the previous overcrowded accommodation, there was no scope for anything other than formal lessons.

Whilst Alderman White School does not have any pupils attending the Chinese School, the Director believes there has been a positive impact on the life of their school, in terms of links with primary schools and a sense of the school serving its community. The taster session mentioned above is one of several activities that have contributed to community cohesion and raised international awareness throughout the school.

Successes

One of the benefits of the collaboration has been the achievement of stability in the teaching structure of the Chinese School. The availability of accommodation has meant that the Chinese school has been able to organise the children into structured learning groups which facilitates progression. Performance measurement is being introduced for all ages, although the school already has a good record in GCSE. The Asset Languages package is being trialled.

From the point of view of the maintained school, the interaction between the school and the wider community, bringing children and adults into the school, has been a key benefit of the collaboration, helping to “embed” the school in the community and raise the profile of the school. The visible enactment of family learning and inter-cultural links have been other plus points, as has been the contribution of the Chinese School to broadening the languages base of the maintained school in its work as a specialist languages college. Four primary schools are currently involved in extended school activities with links to the partnership with the Chinese School. A local languages festival is also planned.

Challenges

For the Chinese School, the move has meant additional costs although Alderman White School has tried to keep these to a minimum. The complementary school was self financing for its first three years, after being founded in 1999. Since then, two thirds of the complementary school’s funds come from a County Council grant, with a third coming from parental contribution. It is important, therefore, that the benefits of the collaboration are clear and continue to be recognised both by parents and by the local authority.

Both schools say they benefit from the partnership, and would not have done anything differently.

Issues for development

• More work on teaching development, including lesson observations in support of the Chinese School staff.
• In terms of pupil participation in their own learning processes, the headteacher of the Chinese School wants to introduce the opportunity for pupils to comment more formally on their learning experiences
• One of the teachers in the Chinese School wants to become a teaching assistant in the maintained school.

Additional information

The Chinese School has produced a handbook for parents, which offers sound advice for parents in support of their children’s learning at the complementary school.

The Local Authority’s Head of Ethnic Minority Achievement visits the school to check on its wellbeing and progress. She has noted improved teaching and that the growing partnership between the complementary and maintained schools has had a positive impact on community cohesion. The local area has a sizeable Chinese population and Alderman White is increasingly seen as a very positive contributor to its community in terms of resources and cohesion.

About the Schools