For context, I’m creating an ‘academic English’ syllabus for Year 7 EAL learners. So, I currently have: The above is our core coverage. While the Tier 3 vocab has a ‘select, not cover’ approach to make sure it is addressed… Read More ›
teaching
Beyond the coursebook for tiered EAL provision (Part 3: sub-skills)
For context, I’m attempting to build an ‘academic English syllabus’ for an international school. I initially set out to create suitable alternatives to coursebook-driven provision, or to at least suggest enhancements to that model. Am I getting anywhere, or am… Read More ›
Research in Brief: Input Enhancement and L2 Grammatical Development
The research: Leow, R. P. (2008). Input enhancement and L2 grammatical development: What the research reveals. (Open access, see here) Type of research A meta-analysis of research into the effectiveness of different input enhancement techniques. The range of studies were… Read More ›
Our EAL exit process
As mentioned previously, our EAL learners follow a bespoke curriculum. Here’s some info on our exit process for learners moving from ‘EAL support’ into mainstream English classes. Step 1: A learner is referred by EAL teachers & coaches for possible exitWe… Read More ›
EAL recruitment: sharing information with candidates
In this post, I will provide an example of the information we share with applicants for our EAL roles. I’ll start with the example, then I’ll outline: So, here it goes… This is a copy-paste of the information we shared… Read More ›
IGCSE ESL LinkedInLit (Volume 1)
Here’s a collection of my #LinkedInLit posts about IGCSE English as a Second Language. These are my latest ELT funnies, following on from TEFL Sniglets, Materials Writing Conversations and Crusader of Materials Writing The story of Bob and the BlackBerry… Read More ›
One of our research areas is missing
I’ve been flicking through Jamie Clark’s Teaching One-Pagers recently, and overall I’m a big fan. Evidence-informed summaries of research and practice – informative, accessible, perfect for the staffroom coffee table. As Oliver Caviglioli points out in the foreword, One-Pagers is… Read More ›
Leading EAL: quality assurance processes
Our senior leadership team (SLT) oversee a broad-ranging quality assurance process at our school. Here are some of the processes we have undertaken as a department to reflect on/ensure the quality of EAL provision in our context. These may seem… Read More ›
Reflection: Drop-in observations
Informal drop-in observations are the way forward. Well, they’re the norm in many places. But where they’re not, they should be. Why invest all that time in recruitment, have teachers go through round after round of interview, sometimes do demo… Read More ›
Year in review
It’s been a busy one! I still have writing projects to wrap up before the Xmas break, but I’m taking a moment off for some reflection. So, how’s everything been this year? Teaching I’ve learnt quite a bit from my… Read More ›
ELT Planning 