1. Global Village, Global Voices WELCOME Auchterderran Centre March 17th 2012 Dr James More Rector Balwearie High School

2. Global Village, Global Voices • Key challenges for a Secondary School • Valuing bi-lingual learners in the school community? • How can we best support bi-lingual learners in the classroom? • How best to work with EAL services to support staff and pupils in the school?

3. Messages from research which have informed Balwearie’s efforts • Get learners into mainstream classes from the start (develop social language first) • Learners acquire English best through tasks across the curriculum but be careful in how you build from social fluency to academic language • Bi-lingual learners grasp of academic language may not progress in line with the demands of the curriculum

4. Balwearie High School/Fife EAL approaches to meeting needs • Supporting bi-lingual learners • Gathering information (skills of EAL staff) • Support for pupils at different stages • Support for parents • Support for staff (building capacity) • Attainment/Achievement (use of ESOL) • Diversity within the bi-lingual learner group • Learner stories (Natalia, Martina, Gabriella, Mark, Exchange students)

5. Balwearie bi-lingual learners – a progress report Strengths • Promoting a welcoming and inclusive culture and ethos • Making effective use of the expertise and skills of interpreters and EAL service • Building capacity within school staff and using peer support to meet needs • Communication with bi-lingual learners and their families Areas for improvement • Class teacher awareness of strategies to support bi-lingual learners • Opportunities for learners to use and develop their home language • Making key information documents available in several languages