Elementary EAL Parent Information

Booklet

2011-12

What is EAL?

EAL is an acronym for English as an Additional Language. Our EAL programme caters for the special needs of students from non-English speaking backgrounds whose English language skills are not yet strong enough to meet the demands of the mainstream curriculum.

The provision of EAL at NIST, where English is the medium of

instruction, rests on the basic assumption that competence in English is vital to learning. To succeed, students have to under-stand what they hear and read at school; they must also be fluent enough in English to join in class discussions and to ex-press themselves in writing. Across all skills (listening, speak-ing, reading and writing) students need to be conversant in both social and academic English.

The primary goal of the EAL programme is to accelerate our students’ acquisition of the English they need to be successful in the classroom. Support by specialist EAL teachers in main-stream classes and direct targeted instruction in language skills help to achieve this aim. Competence in English, in academic and social settings, empowers ‘EAL’ students and allows them equal learning opportunities with their ‘non-EAL’ peers.

EAL teachers are specially trained to help their students de-velop skills and apply strategies to meet their learning needs in all aspects of their school life.

Why does my child need EAL?

Since all subjects at NIST, except for Language A and B, are taught in English, students who have difficulty understanding and using English are at a disadvantage. Native speakers find it diffi-cult to grasp aspects of concepts and ideas presented in lessons, which is a normal part of learning. However, for EAL students, learning is doubly challenging since they find it difficult to under-stand the English used in class. This lack of language also hinders their performance when they have to join in group activities, read literature and other material to extract information, and com-plete written tasks.

The EAL programme helps students overcome these language barriers and place them on a more equal footing with their non-EAL peers. For this reason, the EAL programme is not an ‘extra’ service, but rather, it is essential academic support which helps your child succeed at school. Spoken face-to-face English is very different to academic English which your child needs at school. Face-to-face language is much easier to master. Children who migrate to English speaking coun-tries take about 2 years to become ‘fluent’ in everyday English. However, these same children still receive EAL support at school. This is because ‘school language’ is very complex. There are many language skills that your child has to master in listening, speaking, reading, and writing and these skills differ from subject to sub-ject. The language and skills students need in Mathematics, for instance, are very different to those they need in a Unit of In-quiry.

How long will my child need EAL?

This is a very difficult question to answer since there are so many factors which affect second language learning. The age at which children start learning English, the amount of English they use and are exposed to (at home as well as at school), the stage they have reached in the development of their mother tongue, and their attitude and application to studying English are a few factors which determine how quickly students will become profi-cient in English.

Learning one’s first language is a slow and complex process; it requires 12 years to gain real fluency. Research findings in second language acquisition show that it takes a minimum of 5 to 7 years for EAL students to reach the average level of performance by na-tive speakers in academic tasks.

Does my child need EAL because

s/he is intellectually less capable?

Absolutely not. At the moment, your child simply lacks abil-

ity in English and this is hindering his/her overall progress.

With EAL assistance, your child will eventually become pro-

ficient in English. Once this is achieved, he/she will enjoy

the many benefits of being bilingual. Fully bilingual stu-

dents, on average, do much better than their monolingual

peers. So, EAL support at an early stage pays off in the long

run.

Is my child missing out when s/he is withdrawn for EAL?

EAL teachers are part of Year level teams and work very closely with homeroom teachers to plan, assess, and reflect on the material presented. In fact, EAL teachers spend much of their time giving EAL students in-class support with the homeroom teacher. Doing this allows the EAL students to re-main in the classroom with their peers, while receiving sup-port from both the EAL teacher and the classroom teacher. When the students are withdrawn from the mainstream class, they study the same concepts and skills targeted in main-stream classes in these EAL lessons. In this way, EAL students keep up with the work being covered in mainstream class-rooms when they are withdrawn for direct EAL instruction.

How do EAL teachers help my child?

Teachers of EAL help students bridge the gap that exists between the English they already know and the English they need to master to be successful in their studies. EAL teachers use a variety of techniques based on sound philosophy and methodology which incorporates up-to-date research findings in the field of second language acquisition. They help guide and speed up the language learning process of your child.

The EAL programme provides support in the following

way:

Individual basic language teaching geared for learners who are new to English

Withdrawal small group targeted skill support

Withdrawal small group pre-teaching and/or consolidation of concepts covered in the main-stream classroom

In-class small group teaching and learning

Whole class teaching/co-teaching with the class-room teacher

Collaborative planning with the class teacher to provide a modified and/or scaffolded pro-gramme for the EAL students

How is my child’s language

assessed?

All decisions regarding a student’s EAL status are made jointly by the homeroom and EAL teachers. At present, we formally test each EAL student in years 2-6 at the end of each semester. These results together with their portfolio work and observations carried out during the year help us to determine as accurately as possible their development. We plot the results on our English Language Learning con-tinuum which is communicated to parents through the EAL 3-way conference 3 times per year.

When we are fully satisfied that your child is capable of continuing their development without any hindrance from a lack of language ability then we will happily release them from any further EAL support.

On the following pages are examples of the English Lan-

guage Learning Continuum used in Years 1-2.

Beginner Stage Years 1 - 2

ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING (ELL) CONTINUUM

New to English Early Acquisition

Oral

Listens to an English speaker with guidance.

Follows one-step directions.

Uses context cues to respond appropriately to classroom routines.

Responds to greetings with nods and gestures.

Responds during classroom discussions with nods and gestures.

Participates non-verbally in the classroom.

Responds verbally to simple questions with guidance.

Expresses needs in English with single words and gestures.

Names simple objects with guidance.

Repeats English words and phrases with guidance.

Echoes single words and/or short phrases.

Produces single words and/or stock phrases with guidance. Reading

Shows interest in reading signs, labels, and logos (environmental print).

Knows some letter names and sounds.

Writing

Demonstrates awareness that print conveys meaning.

Begins to label and add “words” to pictures.

Writes first name.

Writes random recognizable letters to represent words. Attitude

Takes risks with learning English.

Demonstrates enthusiasm about learning English.

Oral

Begins to listen attentively to an English speaker.

Begins to follow illustrated stories and classroom instruction.

Follows two-step directions.

Begins to understand everyday classroom and subject area language with guidance.

Responds to greetings with single words and/or phrases.

Begins to respond to simple questions with one-word answers.

Begins to express needs and give basic information (e.g. “I’m fine” and “this car”).

Participates orally in classroom discussions with guidance.

Uses some basic classroom vocabulary.

Begins to repeat new English words and phrases clearly.

Begins to communicate using short phrases and simple language patterns, producing telegraphic sentences (e.g. “I want to go shop buy toy.”).

Reading

Begins to read signs, labels, and logos (environmental print).

Knows most letter names and some letter sounds.

Recognizes some names and words in context.

Rhymes and plays with words.

Demonstrates understanding of letter/sound relationship in reading.

Uses illustrations to tell stories.

Participates in reading of familiar books and poems.

Connects books read aloud to own experiences with guidance at a basic level.

Writing

Writes words to describe or support pictures.

Copies signs, labels, names, and words (environmental print).

Demonstrates understanding of letter/sound relationship in writing.

Uses beginning and ending consonants to make words.

Takes risks with writing.

Intermediate Stage Years 1 - 2

ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING (ELL) CONTINUUM

Becoming Familiar Becoming Competent

Oral

Follows multi-step directions.

Begins to understand classroom and subject area language independently.

Begins to use English in social situations.

Responds to simple questions with more than one-word answers.

Uses different language functions in discussions (e.g. predicting and describing) with guidance.

Participates in classroom discussions and offers opinions and feedback with guidance.

Begins to use expanding vocabulary that is less context-bound.

Begins to speak English clearly.

Communicates using short phrases and simple language patterns.

Begins to use connected discourse (e.g. “Yesterday I go pool and I swam.”).

Begins to retell a main event or idea in literature. Reading

Reads books with simple patterns.

Begins to read own writing.

Relies on illustrations to comprehend words.

Recognizes simple words.

Uses growing awareness of sound segments (e.g. phonemes, syllables, rhymes) to read words.

Writing

Writes 1-2 sentences about a topic.

Writes names and familiar words.

Generates own ideas for writing.

Experiments with capitals and punctuation.

Uses growing awareness of sound segments (e.g. phonemes, syllables, rhymes) to write words.

Spells words on the basis of sounds without regard for conventional spelling patterns.

Uses beginning, middle, and ending sounds to make words.

Attitude

Shows interest in improving language skills and accuracy.

Oral

Understands classroom and subject area language with repetition, rephrasing, or clarification.

Contributes to group discussions and offers opinions and/or feedback during discussions.

Paraphrases oral information with guidance.

Uses English in social situations.

Begins to respond to more complex questions.

Expresses needs and gives information independently.

Begins to ask questions to clarify content and meaning.

Begins to use more complex language functions (e.g. hypothesizing and reasoning) within an academic context.

Begins to use an extensive vocabulary, using some abstract and specialized subject area words.

Speaks English clearly.

Produces longer, more complex utterances using phrases, clauses, and sequence words (e.g. “next” and “then”).

Begins to use correct form when asking questions.

Begins to use correct verb tense to express present, past, and future.

Reading

Reads early reader books.

Reads and follows simple written directions with guidance.

Identifies basic genres (e.g. fiction, nonfiction, and poetry).

Uses basic punctuation when reading orally.

Learns and shares information from reading.

Uses meaning cues (context) and sentence cues (grammar) in reading.

Uses letter/sound cues and patterns (phonics) in reading.

Recognizes word endings, common contractions, and many high frequency words.

Begins to self-correct.

Retells beginning, middle, and end with guidance.

Discusses characters and story events with guidance. Writing

Writes several sentences about a topic.

Uses letter/sound cues and patterns (phonics) in writing.

Uses meaning cues (context) and sentence cues (grammar) in writing.

Writes short nonfiction pieces (simple facts about a topic) with guidance.

Revises by adding details with guidance.

Writes pieces that self and others can read.

Uses phonetic spelling to write independently.

Spells simple words and some high frequency words correctly.

Begins to use punctuation correctly.

How can I help my child?

Parents and teachers share responsibility for a child's language development. Activities at home aimed at im-proving language skills play an important role in a stu-dent's progress in learning English at school. However, it is important to keep all activities pleasurable so that learning does not become a chore. Some suggestions for home activities are given below.

DEVELOPING ENGLISH LISTENING AND SPEAKING SKILLS

Let your child explore language through English television shows, movies, videos, and recorded stories on cassette tape or CD.

Encourage your child to join in activities where s/he will have a chance to play with English speakers or others who do not speak your home language.

You could read a story in English and then discuss it or have your child narrate the story to you (in your home language if English skills are low) in order to check comprehension.

DEVELOPING READING SKILLS

Identify books that your child enjoys and read with or to your child every day. While reading let your child predict what might happen next through speaking or drawing.

Help your child explore topics of interest.

Have your child read his/her favourite stories in your home lan-guage first and then in English for better understanding.

Encourage your child to re-read his/her favourite books.

DEVELOPING WRITING SKILLS

Encourage your child to keep a diary every day to rec-ord events.

Don't worry about spelling or handwriting unless it im-pedes comprehension or communication. Your child might like to retell some stories in pictures.

Encourage your child to write postcards to friends and family when you are on holiday. Writing for a purpose motivates the child.

OTHER TIPS

Encourage your child to eat a full breakfast and sleep at least eight hours a night to ensure that she/he is well rested and able to concentrate in class.

Encourage your child to speak, listen, read and write in your home language. It has been proven that having a strong basis in one's home language enables a student to learn English more easily.

For more information visit our EAL Blog:

http://blogs.nist.ac.th/eal/

We hope that the information contained in this booklet answers

the questions that you may have about our EAL programme at

NIST. Should you have any other queries, we will be pleased to

answer them in person or via email.

Year 1 Cristina Landazabal clandazabal@nist.ac.th

Year 2 Eva Kucera ekucera@nist.ac.th

Year 3 Joanna Johami jjohami@nist.ac.th

Year 4 Nigel Sheppard nsheppard@nist.ac.th

Year 5 Aixa Avila Mendoza aavilamendoza@nist.ac.th

Year 6/

Coordinator

Kyla Kopperud kkopperud@nist.ac.th