MESHGuides

In the BATOD Magazine there have been articles presented by Qualified Teachers of Deaf Children and Young People and other professionals in deaf education that prove useful in supporting the provision of better acoustics or supportive technology such as assistive listening devices and soundfield systems. The research links provide the academic evidence.

In planning for multilingual learners it is important to pre-identify the language demands of any task you are setting in relation to a given learning objective. This is the same for children at any level of English proficiency and might relate to specific vocabulary, to particular concepts or to unfamiliar expression (idiomatic or technical phrases). The difficulties might relate to the need to understand spoken or written language and to the need to use spoken or written language.

In conjunction with this section, you will find it helpful to read the sections on both Spoken English development and Reading because the development of each of these areas is crucial to successful writing in English for EAL learners. 

The numbers of multilingual learners and the range of languages spoken in UK schools have risen substantially in the past 15 – 20 years. In England, in 2023, 22% of primary and 18% of secondary pupils have EAL, meaning that at least one in five pupils is multilingual. However, their language learning backgrounds are by no means the same; in fact this group is extremely heterogeneous.   

It is generally accepted among researchers that a first language is ‘developed’ while a second or subsequent language is ‘acquired’. This would be different for children who are raised by parents with two languages and who develop full bilingualism in two languages from birth. However, for most practitioners using this guide we assume that the pupils with whom they are working are acquiring English, or other target language, while at school. There are a number of different theories related to second language acquisition, and we acknowledge that there is some disagreement in this field.

Room acoustics describes how sound behaves within a closed space. In a classroom, the acoustics of the room influence speech intelligibility, and a classroom with good acoustics and good listening conditions will benefit everyone; children and young people (CYP), teachers and support staff.

Some CYP in educational settings may not make the progress of which they are capable because they cannot consistently hear speech clearly. 

Adesope, O., Lavin, T., Thompson, T., & Ungerleider, C. (2010). A Systematic Review and MetaAnalysis of the Cognitive Correlates of Bilingualism. Review of Educational Research, 80(2), 207 - 245

August, D., & Shanahan, T. (2006) Developing literacy in second-language learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on language-minority children and youth, Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum

Baker, C (2011) Foundations of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, Clevedon: Multilingual Matters Birmingham

Accessible technology to support bilingualism, speaking listening, reading/viewing and writing 

Harnessing the power of technology. Technology Enhanced Learning, Pim, C. NALDIC Journal. Spring 2020. 

Mobile devices 

There are many other references to web - based materials within other sections of the guide. Those below are a selection of sites that have a range of resource materials and research-informed advice. 

Local Authorities and other associations 

The Bell Foundation

Bracknell Forest EAL and Diversity