House of Commons debate cites Department research
On Tuesday 23 June the House of Commons spent 1:20 minutes debating support for pupil with English as an Additional Language (EAL).
The debate was secured by Stewart Jackson, MP for Peterborough, to explore how the Government could assist a number of local authorities to deal with the consequences of large-scale migration of pupils with EAL and the impact of this on primary schools and pupils’ educational attainment. Speakers quoted extensively from the report by Professors Steve Strand and Victoria Murphy of the Oxford University Department of Education on EAL and educational achievement in England, and indeed the recommendation of the report were discussed in detail. The debate included a response from the Minister for Schools (Mr Nick Gibb).
In a related development, following from the recommendations of the report, the Educational Endowment Fund (EEF) have announced a new £2M fund to find best ways to improve outcomes for disadvantaged EAL pupils. This £2m fund builds on the Oxford research, commissioned by the three funders, that looked at the academic achievement of pupils classified as having English as an Additional Language (EAL). The reports found that there is a massive variation in the results achieved by pupils classified as EAL. While some EAL pupils catch-up with their peers by the age of 16, average attainment figures mask a huge range of different outcomes. The deadline for applications is 1 October 2015.
For the full text of the House of Commons debate see here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201516/cmhansrd/cm150623/halltext/150623h0001.htm
For the original research summary and full research reports see here: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/toolkit/eal-review/
Original coverage of the release of the research reports: http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2015-02-02-schoolchildren-without-english-first-language-catch
EEF announcement of the new £2M fund: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/apply-for-funding/raising-the-attainment-of-eal-pupils/