EAL

English as an Additional Language

As the name suggests English as an Additional Language recognises the fact that many children learning English at our International School are already fluent in one or more other languages.

At Elckerlyc we offer support not only to children learning English for the first time but also to those who although quite fluent still require continued support in order to develop the language skills necessary for educational achievement.

The Department
At Elckerlyc we have a team of specialist EAL teachers who work closely with these children to achieve:-

  1. Continual progress in the acquisition of English
  2. Increased recognition and understanding of their own bi/multilingualism and confidence in using all their languages for learning – we take care to promote Mother Tongue exposure and encourage families to actively pursue the development of the Mother Tongue within the home
  3. Raised awareness of the range of strategies they can use for their linguistic, cognitive and academic development.

 

Significantly each or our teachers has personal experience in relocating their own families and placing their children in a foreign school environment.  This allows them the insight into the challenges facing the family unit as a whole. We are therefore especially aware of the emotional stresses placed on all concerned. Our focus is the emotional and social well-being of the child.

Our support extends from academic areas to those of the child’s personal comfort levels and his/her overall feelings of security and well-being within the class and the school. We aim to ensure the children are happy and feel safe and secure and this in turn results in a motivated and content child who is eager to learn and communicate with others. This support extends to the family as well by way of,

  1. introducing parents to established parents of like cultures
  2.  having an ‘open-door’ policy whereby parents may speak with us  before and after school as the need arises
  3. being available to listen and help them make the transition as easy as possible


We are very aware that a relaxed environment at home will help to achieve this end.

English Teaching Programme
Prior to joining the class the children are assessed either by way of an informal interview with a staff memberor by means of information received from parents and the previous school. Children with very little or no English have the opportunity to participate in our unique month long Intensive English Course. This launches the child quickly and competently into the language providing the necessary ‘survival’ skills to allow them to function most successfully in the larger class group.
(Additional costs are applied for the Intensive English course)

The children receive 9hrs contact time each week for four weeks in a happy and caring environment with the EAL Intensive Course teacher. Upon successful completion of the course the child is accepted into the mainstream class and the support is continued on a twice weekly basis where the child joins the EAL teacher for support sessions from 45-60mins.  This is the second phase of structured English Support.  Children with an elementary level of English are accepted into the school and according to their ability levels and age begin in Phase 2 progressing to Phases 3 and 4 where the support is reduced to one extraction period per week and then finally to a process of monitoring and vocabulary building designed to bridge the gap between native and non-native English speakers.

In conclusion, our main aim is to provide a happy, caring environment where the support is not simply designed to teach students English, but encompasses the social and emotional welfare of students and families. A child’s desire for social integration is high and the team works with the children to ensure this is made possible both quickly and easily.