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More U.K. schools to teach Latin

Latin - Level 4

The UK will spend $5.5 million on teaching Latin. The Latin Excellence Programme aims to "level up" students in 40 government-run schools. Latin was spoken in Rome 2,000 years ago. It is taught in 49% of the UK's "elite" schools but only 2.7% of state schools. The UK said: "Latin has a reputation as an elitist subject...for the privileged few, but the subject can bring so many benefits." It said Latin could help with learning foreign languages.

The programme has sparked a debate. Many people ridiculed it as a "poorly-funded gimmick". A politician said Latin is elite because only rich people with family connections "can afford to waste time on ...understanding...the dialogue in [ancient] books". An author said she only uses Latin to "translate things on tombs". A teacher said money should be spent on living languages like Chinese that could help children "get ahead in the world," or on computer coding.

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11 online activities    |    8-page printable   (PDF)

Latin - Level 5

The UK has announced a $5.5 million programme to teach Latin at 40 of its schools. The Latin Excellence Programme aims to "level up" opportunities for students in some government-run schools. Latin was spoken in the area around Rome 2,000 years ago. It is taught in 49% of the UK's "elite" private schools but only 2.7% of state schools. The UK's education secretary said: "Latin has a reputation as an elitist subject, which is reserved for the privileged few, but the subject can bring so many benefits to young people." He added: "Latin can help pupils with learning modern foreign languages."

The programme has sparked a heated debate. Many people have ridiculed it as being a "poorly-funded gimmick". A politician wrote: "Latin is elite because only people who are guaranteed successful careers, thanks to family connections, can afford to waste time on ...understanding...the dialogue in [ancient] books." An author said she only uses Latin to "occasionally translate things on tombs". A teacher said money would be better spent on living languages like Chinese that would enable children "to get ahead in the world," or on computer coding.

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11 online activities    |    8-page printable   (PDF)

Latin - Level 6

The U.K. education secretary Gavin Williamson has announced a new $5.5 million programme to teach Latin at 40 schools across the country. Mr Williamson said the Latin Excellence Programme aims to "level up" opportunities for students in some government-run schools. Latin is a language that was spoken in the area around Rome over 2,000 years ago. It is taught in 49% of the UK's "elite" private schools but only 2.7% of state schools. Williamson said: "Latin has a reputation as an elitist subject, which is reserved for the privileged few, but the subject can bring so many benefits to young people, so I want to put an end to that divide." He added: "Latin can help pupils with learning modern foreign languages."

The initiative has sparked a heated debate about the benefits of Latin. Many people have ridiculed the programme as being nothing but a "poorly-funded gimmick". Politician Tim Farron wrote: "Latin is elite because only people who are guaranteed successful careers, thanks to family connections, can afford to waste time on a subject whose only practical application is in understanding...the dialogue in [ancient] books." Author Emma Kennedy questioned the use of a "dead" language. She uses Latin to "occasionally translate things on tombs". A teacher said money would be better spent on living languages like Chinese or Arabic that would enable children "to get ahead in and engage with the world," or on computer coding.

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25 online activities    |    27-page printable    |    2-page mini-lesson