SUPPORTING SCHOOL SELF REVIEW
ENGLISH AS AN
ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE EAL
ROCHDALE SCHOOLS SERVICE
ETHNIC MINORITY ACHIEVEMENT TEAM
ROCHDALE ETHNIC MINORITY ACHIEVEMENT TEAM School Self-Evaluation – English as an Additional Language
As part of its inclusion agenda and its intention to raise standards for all, the government has emphasised the importance of the issue of ethnic minority achievement and English as an
Additional Language. Recent publications, such as ‘Removing the Barriers’ (DfES), ‘Evaluating Educational Inclusion’ (Ofsted) and the Ofsted inspection documents ‘Inspecting Subjects 5-13’
and more specifically ‘Inspecting Subjects 11-16 - English as an Additional Language’ stress the importance of this area and the need for it to be included in the school self-evaluation process.
This document is intended to aid schools in auditing their EAL provision through a series of broad questions. It is based on our knowledge of good practice in the field of EAL, previous Ofsted inspections and the expectations of the new inspection guidelines for EAL and for inclusion.
Ian Jones, Senior EAL Consultant, Rochdale LEA, 7/01
Some publications which might be useful in the context of self evaluation of EAL
Removing the Barriers – Raising Achievement Levels for Minority Ethnic Pupils – DfEE 2000 Evaluating Educational Inclusion – Ofsted 2001
Inspecting English as an Additional Language 11-16 – Ofsted 2001
Inspecting Subjects 5-11 - English as an Additional Language – Ofsted 2001 Learning for All - Standards for Race Equality in Schools –CRE 2000
The General Duty to Promote Race Equality - Race Relations (Amendment) Act – CRE 2000 The Distinctiveness of English as an Additional Language – NALDIC 2000
Supporting Pupils with English as an Additional Language - NLS 2000 Supporting Pupils with English as an Additional Language - NNS 2000 A Language in Common – QCA 2000
NASSEA Assessment System – NASSEA 2001
Raising the Attainment of Minority Ethnic Pupils – Ofsted 1999
Making the Difference: Teaching and Learning Strategies in Successful Multi-ethnic Schools – Blair,M and Bourne, J, Ofsted 1998
Recent Research on the Achievements of Ethnic Minority Pupils, Gilborn, D and Gipps, C. Ofsted 1996
Data
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1. Appropriate data broken down by ethnicity is collected to support the work.
2. Attainment and achievement data is analysed by ethnicity, gender and economic groups and used to monitor performance and
progress against targets.
3. Data is cross-referenced with levels of EAL development.
4. The analysis of data is used to inform action plans and to set targets for groups and for pupils.
5. There is an awareness of the LEA’s targets for ethnic minority pupils and how the school’s work feeds in to them.
6. Records are updated using Form 7 and interviews.
7. Staff are made aware of whole school, appropriate key stage, unit and departmental data broken down by ethnicity.
8. Staff are aware of the different backgrounds and groupings that exist within the school.
Policy Planning and Priorities
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1. There is a language policy which supports bilingual pupils in addressing their social and pastoral needs, their access to learning, their L1 development and their development of English 2. The language policy links to
policies on inclusion, anti-racism and equality.
3. The school development plan takes account of ethnic minority and EAL pupils.
4. There is an EMAG action plan which sets out the priorities in relation to ethnic minority achievement and English as an Additional Language.
Policy Planning and Priorities
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5. The Ethnic Minority
Achievement Grant is spent in line with the priorities set out in the EMAG Action Plan.
6. The EMAG Action Plan is reviewed annually through involving all stakeholders.
7. A member of staff is responsible for EAL in the school and for implementing the EAL policy.
8. Procedures in place to accommodate the particular needs of asylum seekers and refugees.
9. Any new initiative (internal or external) is evaluated in relation to its impact on bilingual pupils.
Monitoring
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1. The effectiveness of approaches is formally monitored.
2. Records are kept of how the EMA Grant is spent.
3. Comparisons are made with other similar schools through
benchmarking.
4. Progress towards targets is regularly monitored.
5. Governors are informed and take an interest in the use of EMAG.
Staffing
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1. Teaching and non-teaching staff are suitably qualified and aware of good practice in the field of EAL, bilingualism and strategies to support language
development.
2. There is an appropriate balance of teachers and teaching
assistants to meet the EAL needs of the pupils as well as their first language, social and curricular needs.
3. Qualified and experienced EAL staff play a strategic role in school offering advice, training and producing resources.
Training
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1. Staff new to the work are provided with appropriate training and more experienced staff are able to access training to keep abreast of developments in the field.
2. Information is obtained about current developments and about good practice in the field of EAL and incorporated into the work.
3. Use is made of the LEA's core team and the resources it can offer.
Organisation
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1. An appropriate balance exists between access to the curriculum through the use of first language, and the acquisition needs of EAL pupils.
2. A position has been established where languages are
complementary rather than parallel or in isolation.
3. Support for first language maintenance and development is ensured.
4. Pupils at the early stages of learning English are
appropriately supported both in their language development and in their access to the curriculum.
5. Pupils who arrive higher up the school are appropriately
accommodated and account is taken of their prior knowledge.
6. Isolation and the provision of an alternative curriculum or low- level tasks is avoided.
7. As it normally takes 7 or more years for an EAL learner to become fully proficient in academic as well as social language, continuity of
progression from beginner to the advanced stages of language acquisition is ensured.
Teaching Approaches
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1. EAL specialist and bilingual support staff work together to plan and deliver the curriculum while meeting the linguistic needs of all pupils.
2. An environment is created in which there is space for language development and in which pupils' languages are valued.
3. Co-ordinated partnership or in- class support approaches are used.
4. Staff analyse the language as well as cognitive demands of the curriculum.
5. Staff determine the appropriate language inputs for pupils at different levels of English acquisition and set appropriate challenging language outcomes.
6. Individual pupil targets for aspects of EAL are set where appropriate.
7. Pairings and grouping for purpose are operated effectively for EAL pupils
8. There are opportunities for pupils to work collaboratively in
appropriate contexts.
9. There are opportunities for pupils to hear and see appropriate language modelled.
National Strategies
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1. The approach to the Literacy and Numeracy Strategies and to other subjects supports the acquisition of English.
2. EAL pupils are supported effectively in the literacy and numeracy lessons.
3. Effective use is made of IT in relation to EAL and language learning.
4. EAL staff play a key role in implementing of the NLS.
Assessment/Identifying Need
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1. Pupils’ language development is monitored and use is made of profiles to feed into the target setting process.
2. Pupils’ progress in relation to EAL is measured using EAL assessment procedures.
3. Staff have had access to appropriate training in EAL assessment.
Parents and Community
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1. Parents and the communities are kept informed and involved in their children’s educational and language development.
2. Strategies to meet parents’
language needs have been adopted.
Special Educational Needs
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1. The distinction between EAL and SEN is made clear and is
understood by all staff.
2. The needs of EAL pupils and SEN pupils are clearly
differentiated while at the same time the needs of EAL pupils with Special Educational Needs are appropriately met.
Resources
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1. Resources are monitored to ensure that they are appropriate linguistically and culturally as well as conceptually.
2. Specific resources to support EAL pupils and asylum seekers have been obtained and
produced.
Other
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Other
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