Supporting the educational development of Slovak Roma pupils in Sheffield: The Roma Language and Education Tool (RoLET)

This study illustrates the development of the Roma Language and Education Tool (RoLET) as an analytical model for schools, teachers and other professionals working with newly arrived Slovak Roma pupils in the UK. The RoLET is based on the Traveller and Roma Gypsy Education Tool (TARGET), an analytical model developed by Wilkin et al. (2009b; 2010), combined with the findings of an empirical study conducted in a secondary school in Sheffield, as well as drawing on the broader literature on Gypsy Roma Traveller (GRT) and migration research. Based on the findings of the study, this report highlights that the TARGET model designed for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, does not entirely fit the specific situation of newly arrived Eastern European Roma pupils when entering the UK education system. It is argued that the situation of Eastern European Roma communities coming to the UK is different to ‘traditional’ GRT communities and can, rather, be compared with the experience of migrant groups coming from non-English speaking countries to the UK. Therefore, including Eastern European Roma communities under the GRT term is challenged in this study. A key purpose of this research is to support professionals working with newly arrived Eastern European Roma pupils in UK secondary schools by providing them with the RoLET that illustrates influential factors which need to be considered when developing strategies for improving the educational outcomes of Eastern European Roma pupils in the British education system.