Appraisal

published:July 2009

Robustness
This study set out to evaluate a pilot project introduced by The Primary National Strategy (PNS) in partnership with the Ethnic Minority Achievement (EMA) Unit to raise the attainment of bilingual pupils. In 2005 the pilot, which took place in 21 local authorities (LAs), became the English as an additional language (EAL) Primary National Strategy programme. The researchers collected data over a three year period to evaluate the impact of the programme and provide recommendations for further development for primary EAL provision.

The evidence for the study is based on both qualitative and quantitative data consisting of:

• telephone interviews
• face-to-face interviews with school and LA staff
• analysis of pupil performance data.

The outcomes of the evaluation are set out in two reports. The first interim report was published in 2006 and details the messages emerging from the interviews concerning impact on teacher confidence, the nature of the interventions, and the effectiveness of management arrangements. The second report, published in 2007, reviews the outcomes for pupils participating in the pilot in their Key Stage 2 (KS2) English, mathematics and science tests.

Relevance
The prevalence in England of families who do not have English as their first language means that increasingly teachers are looking for approaches which mean they can enhance the learning of all pupils. Much of the research on provision for bilingual pupils emanates from the USA, so it is particularly timely to have a window on how this group can be accommodated in the English context. The report not only provides detail on the types of intervention that teacher reports and pupils’ English outcomes suggest work, but also looks at the wider picture of how other agencies, in particular LAs, can support schools with EAL pupils to improve their provision.

Applicability
The study identifies a link between the approaches taken during the pilot and improvements in teacher confidence and pupil performance in KS2 English tests. In particular it focuses on:

• teaching and learning approaches identified as particularly helpful, including planned opportunities for speaking and listening, and encouraging the use of first language for learning
• the role of local authority consultants in supporting teachers to develop their practice –consultants, for example, conducted diagnostic visits, modeled teaching and team taught with practitioners, helped teachers integrate strategies within existing units of work, and observed and fed back to teachers as they introduced new strategies
• other support provided by LAs, such as ensuring coherence with other initiatives and facilitating access to resources, and
• developing home school links by providing school staff with liaison skills and involving minority ethnic parents more widely in school life.

Writing
The language in the report is accessible and transparent. As always with DCSF commissioned research, the executive summaries provide a helpful overview of the main features and findings of the study, and signpost where more detail can be found. The description of the approach to the statistical analysis is detailed enough to provide a basic understanding without drifting into over-technical language. The authors have also formulated a series of questions for policy makers, LAs, and schools to prompt their thinking on taking provision for EAL forward.