Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG): Its use in Schools

Earlier this year, the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) published two reports on primary and secondary schools that use the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) effectively. The reports, both entitled Managing the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant, highlight the importance of creating an inclusive community for raising the achievements of minority ethnic pupils in schools.

The Grant supports schools and local education authorities (LEAs) that address the specific needs of minority ethnic students. For example, educational institutions may direct funding toward providing teaching or support in English as an additional language, increased resources, mentoring, and/or extra-curricular activities.

Both reports noted that the primary and secondary levels shared effective strategies when meeting the educational needs of these pupils, such as:

• partnership teaching, whereby subject teachers work closely with the EMA co-ordinator;
• good use of data to track progress and set targets for individuals and groups;
• resource productions, particularly the rewriting of schemes of work to incorporate differentiation and inclusion;
• home/school liaison to encourage parental involvement and wider community participation;
• mentoring;
• extra-curricular provision;
• training for mainstream staff; and
• joint working of the EAL and SEN departments.

Challenges met by schools during this process included the recruitment and retention of qualified specialists; the lack of specialist training courses for EAL teachers and bilingual assistants; the reduction and uncertainty in funding provision.

The schools that implemented the EMAG shared a vision of high achievement, equal opportunities, cultural diversity, and working with parents and the community as a whole. 

For more information, visit the OFSTED website at: www.ofsted.gov.uk.