17 June 2015
A partnership has been launched to help strengthen the learning, teaching and assessment of the English language in Malta.
The two-year collaboration between the Government of Malta and Cambridge English Language Assessment will involve a benchmarking exercise to investigate how the English skills of Maltese pupils compare to international standards. Announced by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, the collaboration will also involve the consolidation and improvement of Maltese teachers’ English teaching and assessment skills.
Dr Hanan Khalifa, Head of Research and International Development at Cambridge English, is working with the Malta Ministry for Education as a member of the project board.
She said: “The level of English in Malta is already high in comparison to other European countries, and we’re very excited by the opportunity to help teachers and pupils to achieve even higher standards.”
To celebrate the collaboration a spelling competition was held at a school on the island, St Ignatius Middle School in Tal-Handaq. More than 250 students, aged between 11 and 12- years-old, took part in the competition. Sixteen winners were presented with certificates by Minister for Education Evarist Bartolo.