This information should be read after reading and considering the Learner characteristic statement for a Beginning (B) phase EAL/D learner.
EAL/D learners enrol in NSW public schools at any stage of learning and any phase of English language proficiency. Students who have been assessed as Beginning (B) on the EAL/D Learning Progressions may be enrolling in either primary or in high school in a region without an Intensive English Centre.
Understanding EAL/D Learning Progression Beginning phase
EAL/D learners are assessed on the EAL/D Learning Progression across the 4 language modes – Speaking, Listening, Reading and Viewing, and Writing. More than likely, they will have differing English language skills across the 4 modes. For many students learning English as an additional language or dialect, receptive language skills (Listening and Reading and Viewing) develop in advance of productive language skills (Speaking and Writing). However, it is important to note, that individual students develop in the modes of language use according to a variety of factors, including proficiency in home language or dialect and literacy in home language. The EAL/D Learning Progression phase information on PLAN2 is taken from a professional assessment of your EAL/D students across the 4 language modes. A student assessed overall as a Beginning EAL/D learner may be Emerging in Listening and Beginning in Speaking, Reading and Viewing, and Writing.
What does this mean for literacy development?
When either assessing or viewing an assessment against National Literacy Learning Progression (NLLP) indicators, it is important to note what you know about your EAL/D learners’ English language proficiency (ELP) across the language modes, and in which modes they show stronger proficiency. This will help to contextualise the information.
Beginning phase EAL/D learners may be new to noticing print in English and most should have some understanding of print concepts in their home language. If these students have age-appropriate exposure to print and understanding of print concepts in their home language, then they can bring that knowledge to learning Standard Australian English (SAE). Older students will be able to draw on background knowledge of print and, depending on extent of prior schooling, curriculum concepts developed in their home language. This is a knowledge base to be harnessed in developing English language proficiency and literacy.
Beginning phase EAL/D learners will possess oral language skills in their home language and understand language as a means of expression and communication. Some Beginning phase students will remain silent for a considerable period of time. This does not mean that they are not listening and beginning to understand oral SAE. Some Beginning phase students may respond to spoken SAE with gestures or facial expressions. This may be a common cultural response for Aboriginal students at this phase of learning Standard Australian English as an additional dialect.
Until the student’s oral language in SAE develops, the student may only demonstrate NLLP indicators at either Early Communication levels or early levels. This will be applicable for older students, even though they may have proficiency in their home language and a highly developed understanding of literacy. The focus should be on developing oral language skills in SAE before working on reading and writing as oral vocabulary is the basis for literacy skills. As decodable texts have been designed to support explicitly taught phonics knowledge, they may not develop Beginning phase EAL/D learners’ knowledge of English as they do not expose students to a wide and contextualised vocabulary and literacy knowledge. At all stages of schooling, literacy skills will have to be explicitly taught.
What does this mean for numeracy development?
There is an interrelation between demonstrating numeracy skills and English language proficiency (ELP). Students’ ELP may distort the demonstration of what they know as they may not understand the context, question or instruction. It should be noted that mathematical notations can vary greatly across cultures and languages, and familiarity with another system of notation may influence the student’s demonstration of numeracy skills. English-language notation should always be explicitly taught. Cultural variations in mathematic notations should be explored in the classroom.
National Numeracy Learning Progression (NNLP) diagnostic assessment data on PLAN2 for students assessed as Beginning should be viewed through the lens of the student’s English language proficiency, rather than a reliable indicator of their numeracy skills and understanding. Older EAL/D learners assessed as Beginning may possess highly developed numeracy skills but are yet to develop the English language proficiency and English language knowledge required to show mathematical knowledge. Numeracy assessments which require verbal responses, such as Interview for Student Reasoning, should be optimally timed to allow students the maximum period of learning Standard Australian English before testing. Ideally, any numeracy assessment, including Best Start Kindergarten, should be undertaken in the student’s home language.
There is information on assessing English language proficiency on the Multicultural Education website, as well as advice on the use of decodable texts with EAL/D learners and the implementation of Best Start Kindergarten Bilingual Assessment. There is general advice on EAL/D literacy and numeracy on the Literacy and numeracy website.
For further information and advice contact: EALD.Education@det.nsw.edu.au