Transcript Supporting Children with EAL

Language Education Policy for Learners of EAL in
Multilingual Scotland: opportunities, imbalances and
debates.
Andy Hancock
University of Edinburgh
[email protected]
Presentation overview
Taxonomy of Language Planning and Action
(Lo Bianco, 2007)
jurisdiction (legal authority and directives of the state)
sovereignty (territories vested with local autonomy)
influence (persuasion and promotion)
retention and recovery (bottom up planning processes from
diasporic/migrant communities)
acquisition (top-down language planning involving
foreign/additional language instruction)
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The Reflexive Teacher
‘taking a listening stance implies entering
the classroom with questions as well as
answers, knowledge as well as a clear
sense of the limitations of that
knowledge’.
Schultz et al (2008,155)
Who are our learners of EAL?
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Traditional settled minority communities with heritages in
Pakistan, Bangladesh, China (Hong Kong), India
New European Union accession states
Poland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania (Romania, Bulgaria, 2014)
Government’s ‘Fresh talent’ initiative
‘elite’ bilinguals
Refugees and Asylum seekers dispersed to Scotland
Afghanistan, Somali, Iraq (Kurds), Palestine, Zimbabwe
So what are the challenges of super-diversity (Vertovec, 2007) for a
Language Education Policy for learners with EAL?
Children living in multilingual worlds
“Hakka is our first language, English because of the children,
Cantonese is used at the Chinese school and we speak Putonghua to
the kitchen staff. My daughter is going to dance classes and the
teacher only speaks Putonghua so I have to teach her that language”
Diversity within diversity
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Two schools for Cantonese and Hakka-speaking children with heritage
ties to Hong Kong
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One school set up by academics and professional parents for
Mandarin-speaking children from mainland China who often have
short-term residences.
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One school for Cantonese and Hakka-speaking children with heritage
ties to Hong Kong and affiliated to the True Jesus Church
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Intersectionality (race, religion, age, gender,family structure, family
income, geographical location, health, parents’ educational background
and parental aspirations for their children)
(1) Jurisdiction
Article 19 of the European Social Charter (revised, 1996) which refers to
signatories’ undertaking ‘to promote and facilitate, as far as practicable,
the teaching of the migrant worker’s mother tongue to the children of the
migrant worker’ and recommendation 1740 (2006) of the Parliamentary
Assemble ‘it is desirable to encourage, as far as possible, young
Europeans to learn their mother tongue (or main language) when this is
not an official language of their country’.
EU states interpretation of language entitlement (Finland, Sweden,
Netherlands)
Opportunities opened up by an independent Scotland?
(2)Sovereignty
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National Cultural Strategy (2000)
‘to ensure that through their initial training and continuing professional development (CPD),
teachers are well prepared to promote and develop all pupils’ language skills’ and ‘to
consider how the languages of Scotland’s ethnic minorities can be supported and how
their contribution to Scotland’s culture can be recognised and celebrated’
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Additional Support for Learning legislation
and code of practice (incorporation of EAL
within the spectrum of need)
Curriculum for Excellence (2004 - )
‘I enjoy exploring and discussing …the richness and diversity of the languages of
Scotland’ The languages of Scotland will include the languages which children and
young people bring into the classroom (Literacy and English Outcomes)
(2)Sovereignty
Education, Culture and Sport Committee Report
(2003) Commitment to introduce a national language strategy
Draft Language strategy (2007)
‘We do not bear the same responsibility for the development of other world
languages which are used by communities with their roots now in
Scotland’ (page 5 paragraph 5).
Language Learning in Scotland: A 1+2 Approach, Scottish
Government languages working group report and
recommendations (2012)
A long and winding road….
(2)Sovereignty
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New political steer and a resurgence of interest in
language as a marker of identity
Scottish Government (2010) Report of the Ministerial
Working Group on the Scots Language. Edinburgh:
Scottish Government.
Scottish Government (2011) Scots Language Working
Group Report: Response from the Scottish Government.
Edinburgh: Scottish Government.
Second five-year National Plan for Gaelic in 2012
(3) Influence
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Gaelic lobby and parent power
Shifting ideologies and language hierarchies (Japanese in
1990)
New era of educational cooperation between China and
Scotland (China Plan 2006-08; 2008-11; Scotland-ChinaHong Kong Plan 2012 )
Confucius Hubs
(4) Retention and recovery
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Provision as a consequence of ‘Linguistic apartheid’
(Li Wei, 2006)
Agency and the capacity of parents to act independently
(Bourdieu,1990)
Unique and ‘safe spaces’ for isolated learners
(Cresse, 2006).
Backward-looking traditions or allied to global youth
culture (Martin-Jones et al. 2012)
Opportunities for languaging (García, 2009)
and negotiation of identities
(4) Retention and recovery
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Over 100 classes, schools or centres and provision
for 21 languages (McPake, 2006)
High level of commitment but patchy provision and
lack of official recognition
Poorly resourced and budgetary constraints
‘Volunteer’ students and parents as teachers
Faced with two competing languages
one of which is the language of
power and education.
Language shift within three
generations (García, 2009)
(5) Acquisition (of English)
A need for additional support does not imply that a child or young
person lacks abilities and skills. For example, bilingual children or
young people, whose first language is not English, may already have
a fully developed home language and a wide range of achievements,
skills and abilities. Any lack of English should be addressed within a
learning and teaching programme which takes full account of the
individual’s abilities and learning needs.
(Scottish Government 2011: 25)
Supporting Children’s Learning Code of Practice (Revised edition)
Count Us In: A sense of belonging
Meeting the needs of children and young people newly
arrived in Scotland (HMIe, 2009)
Strengths:
Staff from EAL/Bilingual services provide
valuable support for learning and specialist advice to
class teachers
Schools are making use of dual language resources to
help learners access the curriculum
Count Us In: A sense of belonging
Meeting the needs of children and young people newly
arrived in Scotland (HMIe, 2009)
Aspects for improvement:
Taking better account of children’s prior knowledge and
experience as well as their language proficiency
Ensuring that learning activities provide appropriate
support and challenge
Making better use of children’s first language to enable
them to understand and take part more fully in
activities
Using appropriate assessment methods
(5) Acquisition (MFL): Current picture
Patchy provision in primary schools
25 foreign languages which can be taught and chosen as a
subject for examination (SQA 2011)
European languages (French, Spanish and German);
Scandinavian languages (Finnish and Swedish); classical
languages (Greek and Latin), languages of ‘migrants’
(Urdu, Mandarin/Cantonese, Polish)
Choice? 97.3% S grade (French, Spanish and German)
Latin uptake greater than Gaelic, Italian and Urdu
Divergence in pedagogical practices in primary and
secondary schools?
Working Group Recommendations
Earlier access to language learning for children at the
primary stage
 Diversity of techniques (including CLIL)
 Enhanced partnership between primary and secondary
schools
 Closer collaboration across all sectors of education
(FE?HE)
 More extensive and more effective use of technology
 Regular access to native speakers
Engagement with children, young people and parents from
minority groups?
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Which languages and the menu
of possibilities?
Recommendation 2: The Working Group recommends that Local Authorities
and schools develop a 1+2 strategy for language learning within which
schools can determine which additional languages to offer. As part of this
strategy, consideration should be given to teaching modern European
languages, languages of the strong economies of the future, Gaelic, and
community languages of pupils in schools.
RESPONSE
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Accept. Scottish Government will support and work with local authorities
to help them develop language plans that take account of local
circumstances and priorities.
A 1 + 2 Approach or 2+ 1 Approach?
Recommendation 32: The Working Group recommends that EAL work and
delivery is incorporated into local authority strategies for the 1+2 policy
delivery in schools.
RESPONSE
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Accept. As with Recommendation 13 it is important that local language
plans are inclusive of the needs of all learners and take account of local
communities and circumstances.
Policy into practice….(but with an
EAL lens)
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Is there enough funding for the Scottish Government proposal?
Do existing teachers have the skills and resources available for
language tuition?
What is the capacity within the curriculum to accommodate greater
language study?
The choice of languages for teaching - which should children be
learning and why?
The role of languages in economic development – which languages
should pupils be learning to benefit themselves and Scottish
economy?
European and External Affairs Committee February 2013
Responses by February 2013 and Panel of Experts
Challenges and Issues
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Responsibility of developing plans placed on LAs and
schools (understanding the local context)
How does EAL align with Language Plans
Budgetary constraints (concordat?)
Embracing languages of learners: what languages?
GTC(S) professional recognition of qualifications beyond
UK
Teacher expertise and CPD needs
Learning from research (Scotland, UK, international)
All political rhetoric but no action?
Making a difference……
‘most language policy research remains
national in scope, focusing on top-down
policies and analysing written policy
statements overlooking the central role of
classroom practitioners’.
Menken and Garcia (2010:1)
Taking action…
Ways of learning from children/young people and affirming
identities
Identity texts (Cummins et al 2005)
Bilingual story telling (Sneddon, 2009)
Ways of working
Operational partnerships with complementary schools (The
National Centre for Languages 2008; Kenner & Ruby
2012)
Ways of knowing
Sharing practice, expertise and knowledge (NALDIC,
SATEAL)