Language Acquisition
A. New to English
A child may:
- Use first language for learning and other purposes.
- Remain silent in the classroom.
- Copy/repeat some words and phrases.
- Understand some everyday English expressions but have minimal or no English literacy.
- Follow day-to-day social communication in English.
- Begin to use spoken English for social purposes.
- Understand simple instructions and follow narrative/accounts with visual support.
- Develop some skills in reading and writing.
- Become familiar with some subject specific vocabulary.
- A child at this stage needs significant support.
B. Early Acquisition
A child may:
- Participate in learning activities with increasing independence.
- Express themselves orally in English but structural inaccuracies are still apparent.
- Requires ongoing support in literacy, particularly for understanding text and writing.
- Follow abstract concepts and more complex written English.
- A child at this stage requires support to access the curriculum fully.
C. Developing Competence
A child may:
- Developing oral English well, allowing successful engagement in activities across the curriculum.
- Read and understand a wide variety of text.
- Written English may lack complexity.
- Demonstrate evidence of errors in grammatical structure.
- A child at this stage needs support to access subtle nuances of meaning, to refine English usage, and to develop abstract vocabulary.
D. Competent
A child at this stage can operate across the curriculum to a level of competence nearing to that of a pupil who uses English as his/her first language. They may still make grammatical errors and need support to develop their linguistic skills.
E. Fluent
A child at this stage can operate across the curriculum to a level of competence equivalent to that of a pupil who uses English as his/her first language.
