*** This website is currently archived (some links may be broken/missing) – to visit our new website please go to https://naldic.org.uk ***
href="integrating-school-age-learners-NRMODE=Published&NRNODEGUID=%7B0B63F298-F9F9-4FFE-A280-497AA1CF201B%7D&NRORIGINALURL=%7Cresearch-and-information%7Cresearch+summaries%7Cintegrating-school-age-learners&NRCACHEHINT=NoModifyGuest&time=635844768326752917.html#pageTitleContainer" style="position:absolute;top:-1000px" accesskey="s" title="Skip standard navigation and move directly to the main content of this page (Access Key: s)" class="skipNavigation">Skip navigation |
  • Print this page
  • -guid=%7B0b63f298-f9f9-4ffe-a280-497aa1cf201b%7D&site=62513ba1-8231-4f00-a102-89be4e17cc7e.html" accesskey="" title="Email to a friend: Send an email message containing a link to this page." class="thickboxIframe" onclick="_gaq.push(['_trackPageview', '/postingactions/EmailToAFriend/research-and-information/research+summaries/integrating-school-age-learners']);">Email to a friend
  • =%7B0b63f298-f9f9-4ffe-a280-497aa1cf201b%7D&site=62513ba1-8231-4f00-a102-89be4e17cc7e.html" accesskey="" title="Link to this page: Generate the HTML you need to add a link to this page to your site." class="thickboxIframe" onclick="_gaq.push(['_trackPageview', '/postingactions/LinkToPage/research-and-information/research+summaries/integrating-school-age-learners']);">Link to this page

Integrating school-aged ESL learners into the mainstream curriculum

Pupils learning English as an additional language (EAL) in the mainstream classroom raise issues not only of language and pedagogy, but also of rights and entitlements, social integration and equality of access to public provision. The author addresses these multi-dimensional aspects of integrating EAL pupils through analysis of curricula and practices in three locations: England, California, and Australia.

The distinctiveness of each situation is discussed in terms of

  • Its public social and educational policy stance
  • The desired and/or possible language outcomes
  • Underlying assumptions about language education
  • Pedagogic approaches to language in the classroom

For example, in England:

  • De facto policy since the mid 1980s is that EAL pupils, with all pupils, have equal access and equal opportunity, with English as the preferred school language for minority pupils.
  • Minority languages are valued and celebrated as worthwhile. However, academic attainment is only achieved through the medium of English.
  • The priority to develop English is the underlying assumption about language in the classroom; minority language development is not addressed systematically.
  • Mainstream curriculum provision is the universal English-medium curriculum, with no dedicated English as an Additional Language extension for minorities.
  • Statutory assessment for pupils with EAL is the same as assessment for native or mother-tongue English speakers.

These are contrasted with very different sets of policies, outcomes, assumptions, provision and approaches in Victoria State in Australia and in California in the United States.

Tensions often exist between these five dimensions: in England, policy statements support and endorse the value of bilingualism and multilingualism - but the curriculum infrastructure ensures that pupils' first languages can only used when circumstances permit (e.g. if a teacher and pupil share a common language other than English). EAL work has often been influenced by wider policy change. Factors having little or nothing to do with language (such as funding constraints and shifting interpretations of access to mainstream provision) often determine language provision and influence pedagogy.

In untangling the social, educational and political aspects of integrating EAL pupils into the mainstream, Leung argues for the development of an analytical framework to pinpoint those factors that are language related in order to better define arguments for or against different forms of EAL provision.

Related reading

Leung. C. (2001) English as an Additional Language: distinct language focus or diffused curriculum concerns? Language and Education Vol 15 no.1
Rampton B, Harris R. & Leung C. (2001) Education in England and Speakers of Languages Other Than English. Working Paper 18, King's College London Working Papers on Urban Language and Literacies