"Language Skills in English," a three-year project designed to explore the application of mastery learning techniques to solve the reading and writing problems of secondary school students in Scotland, is discussed in this paper. Background information provided in the first section of the paper concerns the context of the project, its aims, and its proposed implementation in three trial schools. Other sections of the paper offer syllabus and assessment guidelines in English at foundation level, formative and diagnostic assessment procedures, information on the use of a mastery learning approach to teach reading and writing processes, and a proposed classroom methodology to be used in the project. (RL)