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Girl online learning
Download Teaching 'online English' resource including flashcards
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Author: Catherine Brennan, Better Bilingual

To mute or to unmute? To reply to one or everyone? To use gallery or speaker view?

Like it or not, everyone involved in education in early 2021 is learning a relatively new and constantly evolving language... the language of digital/online/remote learning. Of course, having access to digital devices - and the Wi-Fi or data to use them - as well as the ongoing support of teachers and parents, are vital for pupils, but remote learning also needs a degree of fluency in the language of 'online English'. Arguably true for all pupils, I'm going to focus in this article on those pupils who are 'remote learning' through English as an Additional Language (EAL) - and specifically, those at the early stages of English language acquisition.

EAL pedagogy and/or online learning?

I've been lucky enough to have worked with hundreds of teachers (mainly primary) in London and Bristol over the years, exploring together how to identify and develop effective strategies for teaching EAL pupils. Does this EAL pedagogy apply to online learning? From my perspective, the answer is a resounding 'yes'. Can we use our EAL expertise when planning and teaching online lessons? Yes! In our changed world of having to spend huge amounts of energy on digital development, let's remember that our teaching skills and expertise remain - and let's find new ways of applying them to the online learning context.

What do we mean by EAL pedagogy?

Ahead of this, let's remind ourselves of some key elements of EAL pedagogy:

  1. Knowing our EAL pupils' linguistic profiles - which languages do they speak and write?
  2. Developing vocabulary - breadth as well as depth; everyday as well as technical
  3. Scaffolding sentence structures - for both speaking and writing, linked to functions

Applying effective EAL approaches to the online learning context

Regardless of the curriculum focus, it can be useful to consider elements 1-3 above when planning a lesson or series of lessons for a topic in any subject area. As remote learning is the topic of interest here, I'm going to suggest some content and strategies to develop early stage EAL learners' fluency in 'online English', so that they can better engage remotely.

The resource accompanying this article gives examples about how to consider these elements when planning lessons for the topic of 'online English', including vocabulary and language structure flashcards. You can download the resource by clicking on the buttons at the top and bottom of this article.

Summary

It's all about access and comprehensibility. As in the face-to-face classroom, pupils at the earlier stages of English language acquisition will be better able to understand and respond during online lessons when the language - in relation to the content - is made clear, starting with fluency in 'online English'.

References:

Further information on Language Demands

NALDIC website

Download Teaching 'online English' resource including flashcards
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Further learning - Blog

Case study: Teresa's experience with a new EAL arrival

Created: Mon 3rd Mar 2014

Teresa has worked at St John’s C of E for over 2 years. She differentiates for all ability levels but, up to now, she has never had to consider the needs of a child new to English in her class. Teresa admitted to initially feeling a little anxious, however, after seeking advice, referring to the new arrivals procedures at the school, working closely with her teaching assistant, Rumena Aktar, and giving a lot of careful thought to her planning, Teresa put the following in place:

Before arrival:

Should EAL learners be withdrawn from the mainstream classroom?

Created: Mon 9th Oct 2017

While it can be argued that EAL learners have an entitlement to experience a full and varied curriculum through complete class immersion and no withdrawal, some would argue that learners benefit from being withdrawn for time limited support to help them develop their English language in order to assist them in accessing the curriculum (NALDIC, FAQ Podcast, 2017).

If learners are unable to access the lesson content, they can feel frustrated and a sense of failure. Learners need to feel confident and successful.

Forest road

21st century skills for EAL learners

Created: Tue 6th Mar 2018

The term 21st Century skills is becoming significantly part of the classroom learning environment, but what exactly does that mean? There are a few definitions, however, in essence, these are the skills that our learners need to prepare them for their future (Puchta & Williams, 2014), taking them from their studies, to their futures as adults.

The Four C's

Many researchers today acknowledge the 4C’s. They are known as:

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