English Speaking Board (International) Ltd

Author: Liam Morton

  • Government minister visits Foxes Academy

    Penny Mordaunt visits Foxes Academy

    Penny Mordaunt, Minister for Disabled People, Work and Health recently visited Foxes Academy in Minehead for an event at the Academy’s very own Foxes Hotel.

    After a dinner prepared by the learners, seven of them gave a presentation on their passion for working, and put forward their ideas on how to decrease the learning disability employment gap.

    Said Penny:

    Foxes Academy is a real asset to the Taunton area, helping empower local disabled people in the workplace. As a leader in our Disability Confident scheme, they are also showing employers across the country how they can make the most of the huge pool of untapped talent that disabled people offer.

    The unique Foxes Hotel, which provides educational and vocational training for young people with disabilities, equips learners with the practical skills needed for future employment. As part of their Functional Skills programme, learners at Foxes Academy achieve nationally recognised qualifications with ESB.

    ESB examiner, Jane Cross, who attended the event, said:

    Foxes Academy is an amazing place and ESB qualifications are certainly an integral and very important part of their Functional Skills programme. They provide learners with essential communication skills to use in a work environment.

  • Celebrating success! Young Speaker of the Year 2016

    2016: ESB Young Speaker of the Year Award

    English Speaking Board International) Ltd. held its second Young Speaker of the Year awards on Saturday November 12. Winners travelled to The Old Palace in Worcester to attend the celebration and receive their prizes.

    The five winners were selected from 14,000 youngsters who took ESB speech examinations in 2015/16.

    The 2016 winners of English Speaking Board’s Young Speaker of the Year were:

    Gwendoline Hall – Red Maids’ School, Bristol

    Matthew Grayson – Wakefield Independent School, West Yorkshire

    Eleanor Latham – Blessed Trinity RC Collage, Burnley

    Katie Tarrant – Rainham Mark Grammar School, Kent

    Harriet Lang – Moreton Hall School, Shropshire

    Each student performed for an audience of family and friends during the celebration, impressing everyone with their skills and abilities, and their maturity and confidence.

    ESB’s Chief Executive, Tina Renshaw, says:

    Our mission at English Speaking Board is to extend communication skills, to offer opportunities to excel and to inspire confidence. We do this in a learner centred way with our students choosing their own topics, poems and books. It is wonderful to hear of their success and then share their passions at Young Speaker of the Year.

    Harriet Lang from Moreton Hall, said:

    I’ve loved Shakespeare since I was 11 years old and I’m hoping to study English at Oxford. The ACLA (Advanced Certificate in Language Arts) allowed me to choose the topic closest to my heart, which gave me the freedom to explore Shakespeare even further. I relished the opportunity.

    Matthew Grayson from Wakefield Independent School, focused his talk on his love of food. He said:

    Back in May when I did my ESB assessment, the number one place I wanted to visit to experience its food was Copenhagen. This year, my parents took me for my thirteenth birthday so I was able to give an update during my speech at the ceremony.

    The Young Speakers of the Year were joined on the day by the winner and runners up of our successful Sixty Second Shakespeare Competition. The national competition, held to celebrate Shakespeare’s 400th anniversary, displayed the talents of pupils from across the country. They joined the Young Speakers in presenting their winning sonnets to family and friends.

  • In the spotlight: Epsom College Malaysia

    Epsom College in Malaysia

    Hundreds of schools, colleges, training centres, universities and prisons deliver ESB qualifications every year. We want to highlight the incredible work our centres do by putting them ‘In the Spotlight’ on our website. The centre we are going to feature this month is Epsom College in Malaysia.

    An international boarding school for students from ages 3-18 based near Kuala Lumpur, Epsom College in Malaysia runs the English National Curriculum, GCSEs and A levels. Head of Drama, Sophie Hill told us more:

    Epsom College in Malaysia is the ‘little sister’ of Epsom College UK and was founded by old Epsomiams including Tony Fernandes. Opened in September 2014, the College now hosts pupils from the UK, America, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea as well as Malaysia itself.

    The prestigious organisation has been working with ESB for two years and teachers have been really impressed with the results. Sophie said:

    As the only centre in Malaysia to offer ESB qualifications, this represents a significant investment by the College to subsidise the cost of bringing an examiner out here but, for the second year running, we feel it is well worth the investment due to the significant benefits to our students.

    Those who take part rapidly gain in confidence and develop a range of skills vital for the world of work and for the higher levels in the college. Students who participate are able to extend their skills in public speaking, performance, memorisation and research which benefits them right across the curriculum and beyond.

    The department has now decided to extend its ESB portfolio to include EAL qualifications. Sophie explained how this is integrated into Epsom’s Academic English Programme:

    We offer a one year language focused course which offers biweekly speech and drama lessons focused on the skills and language confidence assessed in the ESB EAL qualifications and this is supported by the specialist EAL teachers.

    As our first year entering EAL candidates, we are hugely proud of the achievements so far. Probably one of the best examples of this is Arata Mabuchi who arrived at the College in September with almost no English and low confidence. His achievement of a Distinction in March represents a huge rate of progress for this student.

    Sophie added:

    Seeing the students work towards ambitious performance challenges has been incredibly rewarding and the growth in confidence from their successes has really paid off for us.

  • Are you looking for an ESOL Skills for Life qualification?

    English Speaking Board (International) Ltd. (ESB) assess ESOL Skills for Life from Entry 1 to Level 2 in all modes. Our assessments are funded by the SFA.

    All ESOL Skills for Life qualifications are based on the ESOL Core Curriculum and are accredited by Ofqual.

    What can ESB do for your students?

    1. External Assessment

    • All assessments are examined externally by ESB leaving you free to teach
    • Reading and writing papers are marked and moderated by ESB markers
    • Speaking and listening learners receive a personal written report

    ​2. Quick Turnaround

    • Dates for the assessments are chosen by you so you can organise assessment dates around your timetable
    • Speaking and listening assessments can be booked up to 4 weeks before the assessment date and Reading and Writing assessments can be booked up to 2 days before the assessment date, so you can enter your learners when they are ready
    • Results will be issued five working days after the assessment date or, in the case of Reading and Writing, five days after receipt of papers to the office

    3. Online Resources

    • Examples of assessments at every level are available on our website: Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3, Level 1, Level 2
    • Speaking and listening videos are available on the ESB website for practice and mock examinations