Embed EAL expertise in departments
Make specialist involvement part of planning, teaching and review, with a clear remit.
Agree a bounded partnership
Choose a department, upcoming unit and four-week trial. Agree the EAL colleague’s contribution, timetable, planning access and realistic preparation responsibilities. Keep both subject and language goals in the shared plan.
Use time for different kinds of work
Allocate time to co-planning, a model or co-taught lesson, a short observation with a specific question and a review of learner responses. Avoid using all available time for ad hoc worksheet editing or permanent individual assistance.
Build department capacity
Invite another teacher to observe the model and rehearse it with their own material. Leave a reusable example, planning notes and criteria. Rotate which colleagues trial the practice so expertise does not remain with one pair.
Review contribution and workload
Compare learner responses and participation with the agreed starting point. Ask what the EAL involvement made possible and how much preparation it required. Adjust the partnership rather than assuming more time or more resources is always the answer.
Plan the handover
Identify what the department can sustain, what still needs specialist input and who will support new colleagues. Record the next contact and review date. Embed a small useful routine in existing planning documents.
Four-week example
Adapt this schedule to the material, team and available time.
| Phase | Activity |
|---|---|
| — | Week 1: audit a unit and co-plan one task |
| — | Week 2: model or co-teach; collect individual responses |
| — | Week 3: department colleagues rehearse and trial |
| — | Week 4: compare evidence, review workload and agree handover |
Worked example
An EAL teacher is attached to a science team for one investigation unit. Together they model a report conclusion, rehearse a feedback routine with two colleagues and review individual responses. The handover leaves a full model, a short planning checklist and a agreed review question.