§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he will issue a circular encouraging local educational authorities to appoint a specialist English adviser with the specific responsibility of supporting schools in all aspects of language in education;
(2) if he will give priority to ensuring that every local education authority establishes a reading clinic and remedial centre to assist those children whose language retardation would benefit from attendance at such centres.
(3) what are his current plans for development of language ability in the preschool, nursery and infant stages.
§ Mr. ArmstrongIt is for local education authorities in the first instance to review their own priorities in these matters. My right hon. Friend has already said that he expects to have discussions with representatives of the teachers and local authorities after they have had the opportunity of considering the Bullock Report.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if, in view of the recommendations of the Bullock Report, he will take steps to provide improved resources to secondary schools in terms of staffing, accommodation and ancillary help;
(2) if, in the light of the recommendations of the Bullock Report, he will seek to provide additional assistance to combat problems of reading retardation.
§ Mr. ArmstrongAllocation of resources of staffing and school accommodation is largely a matter for the local education authorities and many of the report's recommendations call for a change of approach and redirection of effort rather than for additional resources. The Secretary of State expects to have discussions with associations of teachers and local authorities on the report. As the Bullock Committee acknowledged, recommendations with financial implications must be subject to current constraints; and for the time being action on those which would involve additional resources must be postponed.
176W
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will issue a circular to local education authorities to establish a national scheme designed to monitor reading ability at an early age and, in particular, to identify children with specific reading difficulties.
§ Mr. ArmstrongMy right hon. Friend is considering the Bullock Committee's recommendations about a system of monitoring national reading standards. The introduction of early screening procedures for individual children is a matter for local determination.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to improve the standards of language skills among the children of families of overseas origin.
§ Mr. ArmstrongThe White Paper "Educational Disadvantage and the Educational Needs of Immigrants" (Cmnd. 5720) presented to Parliament in August 1974 acknowledges that a good command of English is of crucial importance to immigrant pupils and indicates how the Government intend to assist local education authorities and teachers to improve standards. The relevant recommendations in the Report of the Committee on Reading and the Use of English will receive careful study.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will establish a national centre for language in education.
§ Mr. ArmstrongMy right hon. Friend is considering the Bullock Committee's recommendation that there should be such a centre.
§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give advice on the level of consultation between schools where it concerns the onward transmission of records of children with special reading problems when they progress from primary to secondary education as raised in the Bullock Report.
§ Mr. ArmstrongNo. The Bullock Report deals at length with the question of records and I hope that teachers and local authorities will consider the report's recommendations.