The PLP-RW was produced by the Native-speaking English Section of the Education Bureau, and our school has joined this programme since 2009. It promotes the use of the five teaching strategies for reading: Storytelling, Reading Aloud, Shared Reading, Guided Reading and Independent Reading; and the two teaching strategies for writing: Shared Writing and Process Writing.
The Native-speaking English teacher (NET), local English teachers and classroom assistant have reading and writing lessons with students twice a week. During PLP-R/W lessons, two teachers co-teach in the same class in order to allow effective student-teacher interaction and cater to learners' diversity. An advisory teacher from the Native-speaking English Section supports the school regularly to provide school-based professional development, classroom support, and resources for teachers. Teachers receive professional training regularly which leads to improvement of students' literacy levels.
During the reading and writing lessons at school, teachers facilitate different kinds of learning activities to improve students' literacy levels. There are basically three types of learning activities: whole class activities e.g. phonics games, shared-writing; leveled group activities e.g. shared-reading, group discussions related to story endings; and individual learning e.g. editing and writing.
An annual Primary One (P1) parents meeting is held by our school teachers to educate parents about the program every September. They are introduced to the teaching approaches used in the PLP-R/W, which can help consolidate their children's learning at home. Every week, students take home a mini-book to read, which is also related to the learning focus of the week. Thus allowing students to revise what they have learnt by reading to their parents or reading by themselves.
The Key Stage 2 Integration Programme has started with a well-timed response to the success of the PLP-R/W. Upon proceeding to Key Stage 2, a literary approach builds on and reinforces the prior knowledge and skills students have accumulated in KS1 and incorporates innovative teaching strategies that support and extend students' development capacities. The KIP allows a continuation of shared reading and guided reading in key stage 2.
The KIP uses a 'workshop' approach to teach reading and writing. It provides reading workshops (shared reading, guided reading and reading aloud), and offers process writing workshops with an emphasis on active learning.
To keep up with their good reading habits developed in Key Stage 1, students are encouraged to borrow an English reader of their level for home reading. Students can practice reading different texts by reading with their parents or by themselves.
Our school has always placed great emphasis on students’ English learning. Teachers put effort into moving learning beyond the classroom and into other learning contexts. Excursions or interviews are facilitated on different levels in order to allow students to use English in an authentic context as well as allow more in-death learning on the selected topics. Such experiential learning is not only pleasant for students, but also practical and profound for them.
e-Learning is an important element of learning English in our school in recent years. Students use iPads to read eBooks through reading apps and use various learning apps such as phonics during English lessons. We expect our teachers and students make good use of the e-resources to enhance our teaching and learning.
Different English Activities are carried out in our school such as Christmas, Easter Egg Hunt and A Taste of the World. Also, we organize Singapore Study Tour every year. We hope students can learn in a fun way and to know more about western culture. Students are eager to learn and they enjoy these activities very much!