Context
Barranquilla, one of Colombia’s most dynamic and rapidly developing cities, has made English language education a cornerstone of its vision for social mobility and global competitiveness. The district’s education authority, Secretaría Distrital de Educación de Barranquilla, has been implementing the long-term bilingualism strategy Barranquilla es Bilingüe, launched in partnership with the British Council and other strategic collaborators. The initiative seeks to strengthen English language teaching and learning across all 153 public schools in the district, reaching more than 300,000 learners and 1,600 teachers. Recognising that English proficiency opens pathways to employment, higher education, and international engagement, the programme has positioned English as a vital component of the city’s wider development agenda.
Rationale for Curriculum Reform
Despite significant progress in expanding access to English instruction, early evaluations revealed inconsistencies in teaching approaches, learning outcomes, and curriculum alignment across schools. Teachers lacked unified guidance on progression and assessment, and the materials in use did not consistently reflect communicative methodologies or CEFR-aligned learning objectives. To address these challenges, the district commissioned the design of a new, contextually relevant English Language Curriculum that would serve as a coherent framework from primary through secondary education. The goal was to create a curriculum that not only standardises learning expectations but also empowers teachers with flexible, practical resources and professional development to improve classroom delivery.
TELT’s Approach
Working closely with the British Council, the District Secretariat of Education and local teacher trainers, TELT developed a comprehensive, multi-faceted CEFR-linked curriculum for students from pre-K to 11th grade. The approach emphasises communicative competence, learner-centred pedagogy, and integration with Barranquilla’s broader bilingual policy goals. It incorporates diagnostic assessment, CEFR-based level descriptors, and a clear progression map for all stages of schooling. By aligning policy intent, teacher development, and classroom practice, the new curriculum provides a sustainable model for English language learning that reflects both international standards and local realities.
Phase 1
The first phase of the transformation of EFL in Barranquilla involved desk research on existing EFL policies, curriculum, materials and resources; stakeholder engagement through surveys, participatory workshops and interviews; developing a scope and sequence for EFL instruction from 3rd to 11th grade, providing a coherent progression of language skills and competencies integrating priority themes and content; and for Pre-K to 2nd grade, making suggestions to introduce limited English vocabulary and phrases through songs, games, and other playful activities to serve as a linguistic foundation.
Phase 2
Phase 2 of the project built upon the foundational work done in Phase 1, specifically focusing on constructing a detailed syllabus and schemes of work that integrates the principles and components established in the first phase, while ensuring alignment with national and international education standards.
Final outputs included:
- A comprehensive report detailing the constructed syllabus and schemes of work, including the integration of curriculum principles, teaching methodologies, suggested lesson plans and suggested assignments and tests.
- Summaries of stakeholder meetings, documenting key insights and feedback gathered during consultations.
- A comprehensive syllabus and detailed schemes of work, including suggested lessons, teaching strategies, and proposed assignments and tests, for review by SED and the educational community in both Spanish and English.
- A presentation to the Local Education Authority and stakeholders to communicate the findings, curriculum framework, and implementation strategies.
Impact
As the project moves from design to implementation, Barranquilla stands as a national example of how locally owned, globally informed curriculum reform can transform language education at scale.