TBG Limited, an industrial holding company, which moved to Malta in 2009, has sponsored the English-Speaking Union of Malta’s study on English language skills at St Margaret College, Zabbar Primary A.

ESU Malta has been conducting its Arm of Support Programme at Zabbar Primary A for a number of years.  The programme engages children between the age of 3 and 7 in the English language through play.

ESU felt it should now invest in a formal study of the programme to act as a case study and so as to contribute to the research on child language acquisition in Malta. The study, financed by TBG, is being undertaken by the Centre for English Language Proficiency (CELP), a specialised unit within the Department of English at the University of Malta.  During the study a number of children were filmed at school as they interacted with their tutors or with staff from CELP.

Two TGB executives, Clifford Thring and Una O’Brien, were impressed with the progress achieved by the students, which was detailed by the School’s Headmaster, Mr Alfred Debattista, and his Assistant, Ms Anna Muscat.  “We remain even more supportive of ESU’s efforts which, if they come to fruition, should have a major positive impact in Malta and for Malta in the future,” said Mr Thring.

The school management maintained that, over the past few years, they have not only noticed enhanced progress in the students’ competence in the English language, but also improvements in other subjects, usually exposed using English text books, as well as a beneficial change in their attitude toward the English language.

This stance was also noted in the children’s parents, who acknowledged the need for proficiency in English to guarantee a more secure social and economic future for their offspring. Many of the parents have also enrolled in English language courses run by ESU.