Ref. 28348-58Every time a report on the state of Swindon's education system is publicised, it seems pupils here just don't make the grade in one of the most important subjects

POOR parental support, the increasing use of slang, and teacher recruitment problems have all been blamed for Swindon's apparent problem with English.

The problem was highlighted by the results of the Key Stage three exams released this week. The exams are taken by Year 9 pupils, aged 14.

English was Swindon's weakest subject, with just 64 per cent of pupils achieving the benchmark Level 5 grade five per cent below the national average.

At one school Headlands the percentage of pupils achieving Level 5 was just 33 per cent, less than half the national average.

The low scores have come as a surprise to many English teachers, who expected the new found popularity of children's books, like the Harry Potter series, to boost results.

The Key Stage three exams tests pupils' ability to analyse texts and use language to express themselves. It also examines their use of grammar and punctuation.

David Williams, executive headteacher at the Federation of Headlands and Kingsdown Schools, said there were many reasons for the problems in English.

He said: "Over the last year we have had problems recruiting English teachers, which is a national problem.

"English is also the most difficult subject to mark because it is subjective and there are no rights and wrongs.

"In three out of the last five years we have sent papers back to be remarked as we haven't agreed with the scores the pupils were given."

Staff at St Joseph's School have also had problems with marking in English.

Teachers sent around 200 papers back for re-assessment, and all but one of the scores was increased.

Mr Williams went on: "On a general level, I don't think there is as much emphasis on correct English as there used to be.

"And good English is not helped by the text messaging craze.

"Skills in English also depend a lot on parental support before children start school."

One of the best performing schools was Bradon Forest in Purton, where 81 per cent of students scored at least Level Five.

Head of English, Debbie Whittaker said using texts by current writers like Louie Sachar and Nigel Hinton helped make English more popular.

She said: "I find that children like English because it is all about their own opinions.

"I am surprised that standards are so low in Swindon because children are often exposed to so much reading matter nowadays, especially on the internet."

Wendy May, spokesman for Swindon-based finance giant Zurich, said good English was a vital skill in the business arena.

She said: "Anyone who applies for a job with us has to complete a literacy and numeracy test because the ability to communicate well is just so important in business."

John Lister, spokesman for the Plain English Campaign, said: "Without good English, pupils are going to struggle with other subjects like history, art and geography."

Tamash Lal