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FLINTSHIRE INCLUSION SERVICE FLINTSHIRE INCLUSION SERVICE ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE SERVICE POLICY ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE SERVICE POLICY Meeting the needs of pupils who are learning English as an Additional Language POLICY STATEMENT Updated April 2010 The EAL Service works in partnership with schools to raise the attainment of pupils whose first language is neither English nor Welsh in order to enable them to access the breadth of the National Curriculum and to reach their full potential. CONTACT DETAILS Lisa J Davies - Learning Advisor, EAL and Gypsy Traveller Pupils Nant Mawr Inclusion Service Nant Mawr Road Buckley CH7 2PX Tel. 01244 551077 E-mail: [email protected] Flintshire’s EAL Service aims to achieve the following objectives: - To encourage a sympathetic ethos towards pupils with EAL within schools, including supporting the development of successful home/school partnerships. - To provide support/training for school staff in strategies that will best address the needs of pupils with EAL. - To support the smooth admission and integration of pupils with EAL into mainstream classrooms. - To support pupils with EAL in their acquisition of English language skills. - To ensure that all pupils with EAL participate in, and gain access to mainstream National Curriculum provision.

FCC EAL policy 2010

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POLICY STATEMENT Updated April 2010 ENGLISHASAN ADDITIONALLANGUAGESERVICEPOLICYENGLISHASANADDITIONALLANGUAGESERVICEPOLICY Additional Language Meeting the needs of pupils who are learning English as an Flintshire’s EAL Service aims to achieve the following objectives: supporting the development of successful home/school partnerships. Curriculum provision. language is neither English nor Welsh in order to enable them to accessthe breadth of the National classrooms. language. pupils with EAL.

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Page 1: FCC EAL policy 2010

FLINTSHIRE INCLUSION SERVICEFLINTSHIRE INCLUSION SERVICE

ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE SERVICE POLICYENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE SERVICE POLICY

Meeting the needs of pupils who are learning English as an Additional Language

POLICY STATEMENT Updated April 2010

The EAL Service works in partnership with schools to raise the attainment of pupils whose first

language is neither English nor Welsh in order to enable them to access the breadth of the National

Curriculum and to reach their full potential.

CONTACT DETAILS

Lisa J Davies - Learning Advisor, EAL and Gypsy Traveller PupilsNant Mawr Inclusion ServiceNant Mawr RoadBuckley CH7 2PXTel. 01244 551077 E-mail: [email protected]

Flintshire’s EAL Service aims to achieve the following objectives:

- To encourage a sympathetic ethos towards pupils with EAL within schools, including supporting the development of successful home/school partnerships.

- To provide support/training for school staff in strategies that will best address the needs of pupils with EAL.

- To support the smooth admission and integration of pupils with EAL into mainstream classrooms.

- To support pupils with EAL in their acquisition of English language skills.

- To ensure that all pupils with EAL participate in, and gain access to mainstream National Curriculum provision.

- To assess and monitor the progress of pupils in the acquisition of English as an additional language.

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Service Documentation/EAL Policy

Parents make contact with schools.Schools take contact details and arrange to phone

the family back as soon as possible

Schools to contact the EAL Advisor

Induction Meeting – Organised with the EAL service

Admission arrangements agreed with parents

Advice, support and training for school staff if required

Pupil admitted

EAL assessment of pupil

EAL support allocated to individual pupils, teachers or schools.

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Procedures and Operational Guidelines

Admissions Procedures

The admissions procedures outlined above ,have been agreed by Flintshire’s Inclusion Service as the protocol for best practice. They aim to ensure that both pupils and schools are adequately supported.

Procedures for New Arrivals.1. When a family makes initial contact with schools, schools should collect names, dates of birth,

and the telephone numbers of a contact person/ people. (Where possible, this would include the phone number of an English speaking friend or relative who is trusted by the family). Arrangements should then be made to re-contact parents with the date of an ‘Induction Meeting’.A telephone interpretation line is available for use by all schools if required.

Language Line 0800 028 0073County ID Code 569859

2. Schools should then contact the EAL Advisor as soon as possible to inform them of the proposed new admissions.

3. The EAL Advisor will facilitate a meeting with parents, school staff, and pupil. (Interpreters may be provided if necessary/possible).This meeting will be vital to share and gather information regarding:-

o First language, dietary restrictions, religion, health needs and siblings (Including the accurate completion of standard admissions forms and EAL/school documentation)

o Pupils previous experience of English and linguistic abilities.o Pupils’ previous educational experience and attainment, including school

reports and documentation regarding ALN.o Pupil and parental expectations of the Welsh Educational System, including

term dates and holiday entitlements.o School Routines and procedures (times, dinners, uniforms, PE etc).o Pupils’ likes/ dislikes/ strengths and weaknesses.

4. At the end of this meeting arrangements for admission will usually be agreed between the parents, school and EAL service. In some cases, it may be appropriate for the pupil to start on a part-time timetable, or in a different year group. The EAL Advisor can support schools when considering these options.

5. If requested, the EAL Advisor will offer advice, support and training toschool staff.

6. The pupil will be admitted into school.7. An EAL teacher will carry out an initial assessment of the pupils language acquisition levels

based on the 5 point WAG Scale – See appendix 1.8. Support will be allocated according to individual need. This may be in the form of specialist

English language teaching, first language support, advice, resource packs or guidance notes,

Admission at the beginning of a Key StageSchools should identify any pupils who may have EAL needs, and inform the EAL Service in the summer term prior to pupils being admitted through standard admissions procedures (i.e. Nursery, Reception, Year 3, and Year 7). The EAL Service will then make arrangements to assess the needs of the pupils, and set up appropriate support prior to the pupils starting school in the September.

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Good Practice following admission.

- Use of home language, tours of the school, and buddies can all help to make pupils with EAL feel welcome within the new environment.

- It is important to check the correct pronunciation of a pupil’s name and their preferred name for school use.

- Individual language targets can be planned and taught through a range of strategies integrated into the mainstream curriculum. The EAL service can provide advice and support with this.

- Teaching strategies and pupil groupings should be matched to pupil’s needs, interests and abilities, taking into account the demands of the curriculum. Research demonstrates that a pupil with EAL should not be automatically placed in lower ability groups.

Language Development and Assessment

- EAL learners can appear to make rapid progress, especially during the early stages. However, schools must be aware that research demonstrates it can take 2 years to gain the Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) required for communication, but up to 10 years to gain the language necessary to fully participate in the curriculum. (Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency –CALP) See appendix 2 for further information.

- Literacy in a pupil’s home language directly impacts upon a pupil’s ability to acquire literacy in another language (e.g. English). It may therefore be useful to conduct a first language assessment. It should be noted that in some instances pupils already speak more than one language on a regular basis.

- Standardised Tests have rarely been standardised against EAL learners, (BPVS version 3 is the exception to this) and results should be treated with extreme caution.

- Exam officers need to be aware that in some cases pupils with EAL may be entitled to concessionary arrangements.

NEWBE statusAssessment and record keeping relating to pupils with EAL should comply with the procedures used for other pupils, but their results may be disregarded from whole school aggregate statistics for 2 years following their arrival into the UK.

‘End of Key Stage Teacher Assessments must be recorded for all pupils who have arrived from a non-English based, or non-Welsh based education system within the preceding two years. These assessments must be reported to parents and included in schools electronic neck file. By correctly flagging the pupil record in the school’s MIS to show that the pupil has a NEWBE status, and entering a valid date of entry, results for NEWBE pupils will be disregarded in the calculation of aggregate statistics’

WAG guidance for Statutory Assessment

Pupils who have arrived on/after 1st September in the 2 Years preceding are eligible to be flagged as NEWBE pupils.

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Assessment data collection.

- All pupils with EAL will receive an initial assessment by a member of the EAL service team.

- All pupils who are receiving support from the EAL service will be assessed by a specialist teacher on their levels of English language acquisition using the WAG National guidelines, and the A-E Criteria – attached. These assessments will take place in November and May.

- Schools are individually responsible for assessing all other ethnic minority pupils against the same A-E criteria. This combined data must then be added to a schools PLASC return in January.

- Please contact a member of the EAL service team if you are unsure about the assessment of these pupils or the codes that are required by PLASC.

Special Educational Needs

Legal Guidelines‘‘The identification and assessment of the special educational needs of children whose first language is not English or Welsh, requires particular care. It is necessary to consider the child within the context of his or her home, culture and community.’SEN code of Practice 2004. 5:15 / 6:14

‘‘Lack of competence in either English or Welsh must not be equated with learning difficulties as understood in this Code. At the same time, when children who have English or Welsh as an additional language make slow progress, it should not be assumed that their language status is the only reason; they may have learning difficulties.’SEN code of Practice 2004. 5:16/6:15

Specialist resources/ and support may be required, and the curriculum may require adaptation for pupils with EAL in order that they are able to realise their full potential. In this sense these pupils are considered to have additional learning needs (ALN).

Pupils with EAL do not usually require an Individual Education Plan although they will probably need individual language targets.

The support offered by the EAL service does not automatically mean that a pupil is at the ‘School action plus’ stage of the code of practice. It is not necessary to place all pupils with EAL onto the schools SEN register.

In some instances Schools may be concerned that a pupil has Special needs in addition to their EAL needs. In this case please contact the EAL service for further advice and support.

Flintshire’s Inclusion Service has produced a guidance document on the Identification of ALN in pupils with EAL to assist schools with this process. This is available on the EAL ‘Moodle’ page.

Conclusion

The best progress in English Language learning is made when school staff and the EAL team members work closely together with the co-operation of the pupils themselves, parents and other agencies.

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It is evident that the progress of EAL learners is significantly influenced by school and community ethos, and teacher attitude. It is therefore important that schools value and celebrate cultural and linguistic diversity.

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