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Getting behaviour 'right' is crucially important for all schools. Ensuring that we have a 'fit for purpose' behaviour policy that caters for all pupils throughout their schooling - including EAL pupils - is vital for the feel and culture of our schools, as well as for allowing pupils to feel safe and be in the right environment to learn to their full potential.
As we all know - and as a quick Google search will tell us - different countries have different expectations for their pupils. Expectations that may differ from country to country (to name just a few) include elements such as:
For example, when showing that they are listening to a teacher in a class conversation, some pupils may have been taught to cross their arms, while other pupils may look down as a sign of respect, and others may have been trained to track the teacher to demonstrate active listening.
When we are designing and realising our behaviour policies, it is important to be mindful of our EAL pupils. With pupils joining us from an array of different backgrounds and cultures, with different expectations and experiences of norms of acceptable behaviour in schools and towards teachers, how do we create a fair and enforceable behaviour policy? And how do we unpack this policy for our pupils, so that they can be fully functioning and happy participants in class and in the school community as a whole?
With all the minutiae and variants of responses and behaviours that pupils can show and experience, it is not surprising that arriving at a school can be overwhelming and confusing for new pupils. That is why it is vitally important that we spend time unpacking behaviour policies, empathising with pupils and pre-empting things that may go wrong, as well as modelling and emphasising those behaviours that we do want to see.
Here are a few ideas of some practical actions that we can take to support our EAL pupils when thinking about acceptable behaviour:
You can download a template for a behaviour chart with space for translation by clicking on the buttons at the top or bottom of this article.
These are just some of the many ways that we can unpack our behaviour policies for our EAL pupils, and scaffold positive behaviour in school. Using images and translation, we can make our expectations clear, and help new arrivals navigate the often confusing school environment, to reach their full learning potential.
References:
Cowley, S. (2001). Getting the buggers to behave. London, Continuum
Scott, C. (2020). An English as an Additional Language Programme: Learning through images for 7-14-year-olds. Abingdon: Routledge
Scott, C. (2012). Teaching English as an Additional Language 5-11: A Whole School Resource. Abingdon: Routledge
Worth, D. (2021). ‘Creating behaviour policies in multicultural settings’, TES, Viewed 20th November, 2021, access here
You might be an experienced teacher, new to teaching, or support staff, but you have never taught any EAL learners before. You are in for an exciting journey! You may initially feel overwhelmed and frustrated by the barriers to communication with your new learners, but you will soon find that your lessons have potential to be creative, interactive and a heap of fun!
Maths is often a subject that is not given the same priority as others when it comes to the teaching of learners with English as an additional language (EAL). You may have heard the statement that maths is a universal language: there is often an expectation that EAL learners will be able to access the subject in the same way as their monolingual peers, without being given any additional consideration.
Learners may have difficulties expressing their own ideas, thoughts and feelings.
Tip or Idea: Name the emotions. Use puppets, flashcards or simply hide and uncover your own face. Who can be first to name the emotion? Extend by giving a reason why e.g. He is happy because…
Learning Village resource: Feelings Snakes & Ladders game - land on a picture. Describe it and move forward 1 space! (I am happy when…/I am sad when…/I am shocked when…)