St Jean Hulst
Case Study

How are you using First News newspaper and Engage Pro with your classes?

With years 9 and 10, we often go to the IT room and the students in teams have half the lesson to select and prepare a short oral presentation on an article they have enjoyed on Engage Pro and then they present to the class. Otherwise, they can read an article and prepare their own comprehension questions and give their version to another team to work on and see who can be first finished.

Years 8 to 11 have access to Engage Pro to enrich their language (ESL), increase their familiarity with reading texts exclusively in English and, most importantly, enhance their understanding of contemporary British culture. Students who already have a solid grasp of the language (B1 towards B2) genuinely enjoy using Engage Pro. Students in years 7, 8 and 9 need more help in understanding the language and often need detailed explanation of the cultural implications of certain issues or articles.

“The reaction has been overwhelmingly positive to this learning tool. I notice that the students who are already anglophiles become incredibly motivated, even competitive, and use [Engage Pro] on a regular basis”

Where has First News Education provided the most value for your school?

Transmission of culture, as reading articles in English has boosted the confidence of the pupils, while simultaneously enabling them to have a deeper understanding of modern British culture. The emphasis on animal stories, environment stories and interviews are the three most popular types of article that are read. The debates have also been on topics that the students are keen to express their opinion.

What results did you see?

By and large the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive to this learning tool. I notice that the students who are already anglophiles become incredibly motivated, even competitive, and use Engage Pro on a regular basis. [Engage Pro] is quite simply a fun, easy and interactive tool that helps French native speakers to explore and better understand the UK in an authentic manner. In doing so, they increase in confidence and improve their accuracy level without even realising that their vocabulary is becoming increasingly rich.

“[Engage Pro] is quite simply a fun, easy and interactive tool that helps French native speakers to explore and better understand the UK in an authentic manner. In doing so, they increase in confidence and improve their accuracy level without even realising that their vocabulary is becoming increasingly rich”