Resources for English Functional Skills

This quote from the QCA may be useful when considering resources for English functional skills:

It is essential to think of learners becoming functional with their English, rather than thinking that there is a vital body of knowledge known as “Functional Skills”.

When considering the assessment of functional skills, it’s also useful to bear in mind that the relatively high pass mark required means that your students must demonstrate their ability to function in all the different areas of English - even when they are presented with questions set in very unfamiliar contexts.

What that means in practice in the classroom is … practice!

The guroo service provides you and your students with a wide variety of functional skills resources for English at level 1 and level 2:

• Learning challenges that set functional English in a variety of different scenarios that are relevant (and therefore engaging to) your students, and which are specifically designed to help your students practice their functional maths skills in different ways
• Modern media like podcasts and vodcasts to engage even reluctant learners
• Practice questions and tests for functional English
• Learning tasks and interactive activities

It all adds up to some 90 hours of learning activity across English, maths and ICT.

… and many English teachers who are perhaps not entirely “ICT confident” appreciate that the guroo service includes resources for English that are not purely online.

For example, many materials can be downloaded and used on paper (indeed we can supply printed workbooks), and every tutor gets a printed pack containing all the printable and photocopiable materials plus things like curriculum mappings and lesson plans for English functional skills.

The functional English lesson plans include versions you can use in a typical English dept classroom - you dont have to be in an ICT suite to use guroo! Indeed, the guroo service includes our “beyond training” Active Engagement Plan where our educational consultants work with you to integrate and embed functional skills in your English classes.

Want to know more? Contact us to arrange a demonstration or for a sample CD.

Can’t wait for the disc? You can download these free resources for functional English today!