Research profile
Adele Ward
PME in Primary Education
Teaching provides Adele with the opportunity to have a positive impact on the lives of children and help develop a range of fundamental skills for adulthood. She has an ongoing passion for learning and would like to pass on that love for learning to the next generation.
Research Paper Title
The Teaching of Students with English as an Additional Language (EAL) from a Mainstream Primary Teacher Perspective
Abstract
This integrative literature review (ILR) critically analyses the issues and challenges Irish mainstream primary teachers encounter when teaching children with English as an additional language (EAL). Findings uncovered a lack of systematic, relevant EAL-focused training for pre-service teachers in their teacher training programmes, along with an acknowledgement of the importance of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) in the development of teachers’ EAL knowledge and skills. Differentiated EAL teaching methodologies are utilised to support EAL learners, albeit in an ad hoc manner. Findings demonstrate a lack of standardised EAL assessment regulation and identified that assessment tools show no differentiation between language and learning difficulties. Conflicting beliefs on home language utilisation in the classroom were identified, with cultural diversity described as a positive influence within the school environment. The findings also provided further research and teacher practice recommendations to facilitate mainstream primary teachers in effectively supporting EAL learners with their language and learning development.
Biography
After graduating with a Bachelor’s Honours Degree from the University of Limerick in Business Studies with German, Adele Ward has worked for numerous years within the advertising and marketing industries in both Ireland and Germany. She was responsible for developing strategic marketing, communication and advertising campaigns (digital, social and traditional) for a diverse range of clients. Adele had long harboured a desire to work as a primary school teacher and having recently graduated with a First-Class Honours in the Professional Master of Education (PME) in Primary Education from Hibernia College in 2022, she has finally fulfilled this dream. She is currently teaching in a primary school in East Cork. Teaching provides Adele with the opportunity to have a positive impact on the lives of children and help develop a range of fundamental skills for adulthood. She has an ongoing passion for learning and would like to pass on that love for learning to the next generation. The ultimate reward for Adele is knowing that she is helping to nurture the development of children through education, thus providing a solid foundation for their future lives and career paths.
Research motivation
Can you tell us a bit about your research project?
This integrative literature review (ILR) critically analyses the issues and challenges Irish mainstream primary teachers encounter when teaching children with English as an Additional Language (EAL). Using the two research questions, which evolved from initial national and international EAL policy research, as an analytical compass, three predominant themes emerged including EAL training, support for students with EAL and inclusion. Findings uncovered a lack of systematic, relevant EAL-focused training received by pre-service teachers in their teacher training programmes, as well as an acknowledgement of the importance of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) in the development of teachers’ EAL knowledge and skills. Differentiated EAL teaching methodologies were utilised to support EAL learners, however in an ad hoc manner. A lack of standardised EAL assessment regulation was uncovered, with a key finding identifying that assessment tools showed no differentiation between language and learning difficulties. Conflicting beliefs on home language utilisation in the classroom were identified, with cultural diversity described as a positive influence within the school environment. The findings also provided further research and teacher practice implications, in assisting mainstream primary teachers to effectively support EAL learners with their language and learning development.
What motivated you to undertake this research?
The central tenet of this dissertation originated when I was completing both my first and advanced school placements, where my class students included an EAL student, with a limited knowledge of the English language and several Ukrainian refugee children, with zero English language knowledge. Following discussions with different classroom teachers in determining the strategies they incorporate to promote an inclusive classroom environment for EAL learners, it became apparent that each teacher was developing and testing their own alternative teaching methodologies to accommodate the EAL learner’s requirements, as no specific, tailored support curriculum was in-situ. From a personal viewpoint, I had received no training in teaching EAL students and therefore lacked confidence, as well as the relevant skills and expertise to effectively teach such students. This piqued my interest in exploring how mainstream primary teachers effectively support EAL students to ensure they receive a fully inclusive education.
What impact has it had on your practice?
My research has had a significant impact on my teaching practice. As findings in this review have underlined the value of Continuous Professional Development (CPD), specifically in EAL-focused teaching pedagogy, I am engaging in ongoing EAL-related CPD courses to increase my knowledge in this area and apply my learnings to classroom teaching practice.
I have also incorporated the teaching methodologies and resources, which the findings in the review deemed successful in supporting EAL learners in the classroom, into my teaching. To support both academic and social language development, examples include adult modelling, peer tutoring to increase interaction, incorporating specific vocabulary into daily activities such as break time, pre-teaching the relevant vocabulary before group reading, explaining the word meaning using pictures, and putting the word into different sentences to illustrate how to use it.
To support learning development, examples include the use of gestures, actions or hand motions in order to communicate with children with EAL; integrating thematic planning within lesson content; using visual resources in the form of graphic organisers for vocabulary teaching, vocabulary charts and picture usage to illustrate meaning; when teaching reading, focussing on vocabulary development, modelling it in specific contexts, repeating it regularly during the day and choosing texts to support EAL learners in meeting academic language and not just basic conversational language; and encouraging the use of their native language in the classroom environment such as displaying bilingual visual images. Such methodologies and resources have enabled me to provide an active and stimulating learning environment for children with EAL.
How important do you feel research will be in your future practice?
I believe that it is extremely important to continue carrying out research, to enable me to positively contribute to my teaching practice. Through research I have the ability to ask questions, gain further insight into teaching and learning, and become a reflective and agentic teacher, which ultimately benefits the learning and education of the children.
