Supporting learners and families where English is spoken as a second language

Local authorities in Scotland provide support when required for children, young people and adults who have English as an additional language (EAL). The nature of this support varies depending on local circumstances, for example, some of the northern authorities have been supporting Polish communities working in the oil field areas. Some of the larger cities such as Glasgow have dedicated educational support teams working with relatively large groups of migrant families.

The importance of providing a welcoming supportive environment is acknowledged by all staff supporting the various groups of relocated families.

There have been a number of research projects looking into how best to support EAL including understanding the different ways in which we use language – social and academic. Children and young people who are totally immersed in the life of a school can pick up on everyday social language reasonably easily and be fluent speakers; however, that may hide difficulties in acquiring the more complex skills of reading and writing. This is an important barrier to progress for young people entering the UK at the senior secondary stage and undertaking formal examinations.

Scottish Government and Education Scotland are working together to ensure provision is in place for welcoming new refugees from Syria and that English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) practitioners across Scotland are adequately supported. A well-received ‘Teaching ESOL to Refugees’ event was held in Glasgow to support practitioners from local authorities that are new to working with refugees. The event was filmed and talks and materials are available on the National Improvement Hub site, for further information click here [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] example

Welcoming Our Learners, Scotland’s ESOL Strategy 2015 - 2020, provides the strategic direction to ensure we continue to support high quality learning and teaching of English language in Scotland.

Download Welcoming Our Learners, Scotland’s ESOL Strategy 2015 - 2020