ABSTRACT
Over recent years we have witnessed mounting pressure upon primary teachers to improve the quality of English teaching (Wray and Medwell 1994, Peel and Bell 1994). Increasingly, the development of English teaching within the school has fallen to co-ordinators, who Ofsted (1994c) indicate have insufficient time to do this effectively. In the face of external pressures to deliver the National Curriculum there is a grave danger of ‘playing safe’, with English teaching becoming stolid and unchallenging, the enthusiasm and thrill burned out of it for fear of not getting it right. Despite this, the fundamental job of the English co-ordinator is to raise the profile and quality of language work within the school. This chapter will explore the ways in which the co-ordinator can support and develop colleagues so that their teaching of English can be exciting and challenging. It will do so by looking first at the general issues of co-ordination of language throughout the school with specific reference to:
• marking policy; • study skills; and • books.
