The ‘how long’ question: language learning trajectories of EAL learners in NSW schools

Achievement gaps for English learners with disabilities

Investigating First Year Undergraduate EAL Students' Academic Literacy Experiences.

Background/Context Previous research shows that class teachers often have little training to teach students with English as an additional language (EAL), so they may operate on a trial-and-error basis, become frustrated easily, feel negative, and have little confidence in their ability to be successful with EAL students. In addition, mainstream teachers may be reluctant to prioritize relevant professional development if there are just a few EAL students in the class. Teacher educators may therefore struggle to help these teachers, particularly because the existing literature seldom provides any guidance on how to adapt effective EAL pedagogic frameworks for use in a busy mainstream class setting. Purpose This inquiry sheds light on the realities for teachers who have small numbers of EAL students in their mainstream classes, and the factors that influence their practice decisions with regard to these students. Setting The investigation was undertaken in four primary schools in the central North Island of New Zealand, a region that characteristically has just small numbers of EAL students. Each of these schools became the setting for the study for one term over the course of a four-term school year. Participants In each school, 1 teacher in a Year 1-2 class and 1 in a Year 5-6 class took part. The 8 class teachers had a range of general and EAL teaching experience. Research Design A qualitative approach, which used in-class observations interspersed with a series of in-depth reflective discussions with each class teacher, allowed for the evolution of in-depth insights over time. Findings/Results It was found that some teachers generated strategies for EAL students within the context of regular class instruction, whereas others worked with individual EAL students within the class. However, most teachers reported they experienced stress when trying to balance the individual needs of EAL students with those of the rest of the class. Ultimately, it emerged that the teachers’ efforts to develop useful working theories and practices with EAL students were influenced by the dynamic interaction of factors within and across three contextual layers: the personal-professional, the immediate classroom interaction, and the wider educational context. Conclusions/Recommendations In conclusion, it is argued that simply providing teachers with professional input on existing EAL pedagogy addresses just one part of the problem. If teacher educators intend to significantly influence teachers’ practice decisions with EAL students, it may be important to take a broader sociocultural approach that considers the interaction of factors within and across the three contextual layers of teachers’ professional lives.

This article presents an Australian perspective on the issue of standards‐based education and the place of students of English as an additional language (EAL) who are working within mainstream schools. Beginning with an overview of the various standards documents that impact the lives of teachers and their students in mainstream Australian schools, the discussion turns to the kind of knowledge required of teachers in their work with EAL students. The author draws on prior research completed over an extended period of time to address questions about teacher knowledge and specifically to address the domains of knowledge required for the effective design and implementation of programs with EAL students. She argues that, while standards can and do play an important role in legitimising knowledge, in themselves they cannot provide the depth of theoretical and professional knowledge that is required of teachers in the planning and implementation of effective teaching practices that both challenge and support their students, including their EAL students.

Academic writing is social interaction between writer and reader, during which writers can employ discursive and non-discursive features to construct their identities. However, many student writers who are users of English as an additional language (EAL) may find it challenging to construct their identities in academic writing. Properly constructed identity in academic writing can help EAL student writers develop a stronger sense of self, exercise their agency, and negotiate the academic discourse. Therefore, this paper reviews empirical studies on EAL student writers’ identity construction when they write in English to investigate the features of identities that EAL student writers construct in texts and the factors that influence their identity construction. The findings show that, compared with expert writers and native-English-speaking (NES) counterparts, EAL student writers tend to present a weak authorial identity. Furthermore, EAL student writers tend to be more engaged with texts than with readers and lack commitment to their claims. The identities that EAL student writers construct in academic writing are also interwoven with EAL students’ English proficiency levels, educational experience, disciplinary conventions, genre affordances, and audience awareness. The findings of this literature review can help teachers and educators raise EAL students’ identity awareness and facilitate students in strategically constructing writer identities in academic writing.

An international association advancing the multidisciplinary study of informing systems. Founded in 1998, the Informing Science Institute (ISI) is a global community of academics shaping the future of informing science.

Embedding international benchmarks of proficiency in English in undergraduate nursing programmes: Challenges and strategies in equipping culturally and linguistically diverse students with English as an additional language for nursing in Australia

There has been increasing attention on mainstream teacher beliefs on English as an Additional Language (EAL) students in their classrooms, particularly in regards to how these beliefs impact on teacher expectations and actions. With many teachers holding deficit beliefs towards EAL students, many have argued that professional development is one way to counter these beliefs. However, with a push for the regional settlement of migrants in Australia, there is limited understanding of mainstream teachers’ beliefs about EAL students in regional contexts. Drawing on Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and field, this study investigates the beliefs of teachers and principals in two regional secondary schools in Victoria, Australia. The findings suggest that while many teachers hold common misconceptions regarding EAL students, their views regarding the inclusion of these students are generally positive and both the teachers and principals are open to additional training and support. However, the prevailing issue regarding supporting EAL students is time and/or timing—a commodity that both teachers and students do not have. This paper argues that EAL support in a regional context needs to be further interrogated, identifying a variety of approaches, such as professional development for mainstream teachers, additional EAL specialist support, and after-school programs, to better meet the needs of EAL students in regional areas.

One method to support English as an additional language (EAL) students in higher education is through the development of an extracurricular support program catered to the specific academic and psychosocial needs of post-secondary EAL students within an individual faculty. In 2009, the Mount Royal University (MRU) EAL Nursing Student Support Program (NSSP) was created to support the EAL student population within MRU's Bachelor of Nursing (BN) faculty. Following over a decade of support program success documented in a series of scholarly publications, this study aims to capture the longitudinal impact of EAL NSSP on the continued success of its alumni within the academic, professional, and personal domains. A hermeneutic approach to phenomenology was used to measure the perceived impact of the student support measures on their professional and personal development. Participant interviews revealed six themes: (a) skills and knowledge obtained from membership in the support program, (b) continued engagement in professional development and leadership opportunities following support program involvement, (c) accomplishments attained following support program membership, (d) future goals, (e) eagerness to help future generations of EAL students, and (f) the need for continued EAL student support. The findings from this study demonstrate the importance of EAL student support in higher education, showcasing the profound, long-term impact that an effective and intentional EAL student support program design can have.

Almost one in five students in UK schools are recorded as speaking English as an additional language (EAL), a label which encompasses a hugely diverse group of students in terms of their first language(s), educational background, socio-economic status and attainment profiles. A growing body of evidence suggests that attainment gaps between EAL students and their English-as-first-language peers decrease substantially as they progress through their schooling. In spite of this, in some areas EAL students remain relatively less likely to continue with their studies beyond the age of 16. There is therefore a pressing need to further explore the factors which influence choices made by this particular group when considering progression to higher education. To this end, an exploratory, qualitative study was conducted in three secondary level institutions in a large city in the North of England, each with a high proportion of EAL students. Group interviews were conducted with a total of 52 staff and EAL students. This paper presents key findings which relate to sources of information and support for EAL students and identifies particular barriers to higher education for students, institutions and parents. We conclude with several practical recommendations for widening participation.

Informed by a sociocultural perspective on second language teacher education, the present qualitative study investigates three preservice teachers’ (PSTs) writing instruction during the English as an Additional Language (EAL) practicum in Australian secondary schools in relation to the multidimensional context of the practicum and the PSTs’ personal backgrounds. Sources of data included individual interviews with the PSTs and their school mentors, lesson plans and recordings, teaching materials, the PSTs’ self-reflections, and analysis of the schools’ EAL programs. Data analysis revealed that the main factors shaping PSTs’ writing instruction included the EAL programs at the schools, school teachers and the mentors support, EAL students’ background, proficiency levels and responses to tasks, and the PSTs’ knowledge, prior education and work experiences. Based on the findings, the paper discusses implications for enhancing the quality of EAL teacher education, especially for promoting productive coursework and placement experiences for PSTs.

This paper explores the perceptions of New Zealand teachers and principals about how English as an additional language (EAL) students are faring in the profound changes to the architectural design of school building structures. A national online survey was sent to teachers, middle management and principals in schools and provided qualitative responses to gage the perceptions of participants. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight teachers at four primary schools. The perceptions of these key people provide a range of lenses to better understand the interplay between EAL students’ learning, physical classroom environments and culturally inclusive pedagogical practices. The study found that the innovative architectural design of classrooms may benefit EAL students when the following factors are taken into consideration: (i) peer teaching and student collaboration, (ii) teacher support for EAL students, (iii) classroom noise, and (iv) teachers’ perceptions of EAL students’ personality/cultural traits.

The EMI literature has predominantly focused on non-Anglophone countries, leading to the implicit assumption that the use of English as the medium of instruction in traditional English-speaking contexts is relatively unproblematic. Yet the linguistic outcomes of EAL students with English as an Additional Language (EAL) in Australia, for example, have come under considerable scrutiny in recent years and been shown to warrant consideration. For this reason, this chapter problematizes the current definition of EMI, proposing a broader view. From this standpoint, this chapter first describes the policy discourse in the Australian context, and then summarises three areas of research evidence from Australian higher education in relation to (1) EAL students’ linguistic outcomes, (2) the impact of such outcomes on employability, and (3) EAL students’ views of English language proficiency. The chapter provides evidence that language improvement is not guaranteed over the course of an undergraduate degree program even in Anglophone contexts, and cautions higher education institutions (HEIs) against complacency. It concludes with implications and suggestions, particularly for HEIs in Anglophone EMI contexts, including the recommendation that English language proficiency be explicitly attended to as part of a University’s core business.

Internationalisation of higher education has increased the number of EAL students studying in Anglophone countries, including Australia. Required English language proficiency tests (e.g., IELTS) do not reflect discipline-specific terminology nor prior learning necessary for successful study. Furthermore, anatomy study, the focus of this paper, requires an extensive terminology, predominantly derived from Latin or Greek, that creates significant learning challenge for all students, particularly EAL students.This pilot study was based in a large first-year anatomy course at an Australian university, with >30% EAL students. To address challenges for EAL students (as identified by teaching staff), translanguaging pedagogies were implemented through repeated cycles of action research. Translanguaging approaches, beyond simply translation of resources, employ EAL students’ full linguistic repertoire in the classroom to support acquisition of discipline content and the target language.Collaboration between the teaching team, a translanguaging expert and past EAL students identified specific translanguaging strategies for implementation. These strategies included a translanguaging workshop for teaching staff, encouragement of students’ use of home languages and targeted translated documents. A mixed methods approach was applied to evaluate the implementation. Initial findings show a positive response from both staff and students with additional reflections for future implementation and transferability to similar educational contexts.

Service-learning is an experiential pedagogy which integrates curriculum and volunteer service through ongoing reflection. Research suggests that service-learning offers notable benefits for post-secondary English-as-an-additional-language (EAL) students. However, most of the researchers have studied EAL students within the United States; far fewer have examined EAL students in the Canadian context. This paper reports on a study of the impact of service-learning on EAL students at a Canadian university in British Columbia. A first-year service-learning elective has been offered at the university since Fall 2009. This course is taught by faculty from the ESL Department who have a Master’s degree or equivalent in a related field. This study investigated the impact of the elective on EAL students’ English proficiency. Data were collected from students through surveys, interviews, and journals. Additionally, the grade point averages (GPA’s) of EAL students in first-year university English composition were examined, comparing those EAL students who took the service-learning elective (Group A) with those who did not (Group B). Grade analysis showed whereas Group B had a GPA of 2.15 on a 4.33 scale for first-year English composition, the subset of Group A who took first-year English composition in the semester immediately following service-learning achieved a GPA of 2.55. The results supported service-learning as an effective pedagogy for EAL students.