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EAL

Situation

How are you dealing with up to a seventh of pupils not having English as their first language? Don’t you find that:

  • - It’s hard to work out how able the pupils are while they’re still struggling with English
  • - It’s seems impossible to give pupils work that’s geared to their real ability level
  • - Pupils get frustrated working at an elementary level because of their limitations in English
  • - Pupils are confused by the complexities of a new language when what they’re searching for are essential messages to help their understanding
  • - You’ve a rising level of anxiety that unless these pupils find learning meaningful, they will soon disengage and cause real problems?

 

Solution 

Using visual tools by–passes the restrictions of working with a limited grasp of English. They capture and clarify key information quickly and directly. And it gives pupils a mechanism to work with to develop their understanding and communicate their thinking. What’s more, the vocabulary used in the visual tools provides a wonderful boost to learning English.

 

Benefits 

When visual tools are embedded in the daily learning of pupils with English as an additional language, you can expect to see your pupils:

  • - Grasping, and engaging with, the key points of a lesson
  • - Explaining their misunderstandings more effectively
  • - Questioning peers about their understanding
  • - Discussing their ideas through the framework of a visual tool
  • - Collaborating more productively in group work
  • - Extending their grammatical skills as they explain their thinking

 

Links 

As you can see, these benefits have an impact on other areas of learning. Click on the following to read about Literacy, Thinking Skills and Assessment for Learning.