Following the successful GLA EAL Project in London, Hounslow Language Service now have a new Project with Challenge Partners and Lampton School. We have gained funding by EEF (Education Endowment Fund) for a 2 year Programme to support school led improvement through high quality teacher training.
This programme aims to support EAL pupils in the mainstream classroom. It is designed to build expertise and capacity among classroom teachers so they can provide the best teaching and learning for EAL pupils, so reducing the need for specialist support. Classroom teachers will be provided with training in how to plan lessons with EAL pupils in mind, develop specific resources, and differentiate between pupils with different language skills. At the core of approach is a focus on academic language, and the training would support classroom teachers’ use and understanding of grammar, core vocabulary, and spoken language, which are key to helping EAL pupils within a whole class context, and which are also likely to have benefits for children more broadly.
The partnership of Challenge Partners, Lampton School, and Hounslow Language Service has together developed five training modules aimed at teachers at different levels of expertise (including trainee teachers, Teaching Assistants, and experienced teachers), which have been piloted with 58 schools over the last year. Evidence from the pilot evaluation for the London Schools Excellence Fund found that all teachers reported increased levels of confidence and a wider repertoire of skills used in the classroom to support EAL students. Pupil surveys also showed that students developed their confidence in speaking in class as a result of the interventions designed by course participants. The approach is now ready to be tested more widely using a Randomised Controlled Trial.
Further information can be found on the EEF website
https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/evaluation/projects/eal-in-the-mainstream-classroom/
Meanwhile, HLS continue to run Day Courses and bespoke whole-school training on improving the academic language of EAL Pupils.