{"id":1944,"date":"2023-08-15T16:27:15","date_gmt":"2023-08-15T15:27:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/engagement-and-impact\/?p=1944"},"modified":"2025-03-28T14:50:58","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T14:50:58","slug":"helping-multilingual-children-find-their-voices-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/engagement-and-impact\/helping-multilingual-children-find-their-voices-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping multilingual children find their voices"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]US and Reading teacher educators have joined forces with UK multilingual primary schools to improve teaching for children whose home languages are not English. By coaching teachers to talk less, and let their children talk more, teaching has become more intentionally conversational and multilingual children have found their voices.<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https:\/\/youtu.be\/aCCxwEg85Js”][vc_column_text]Children whose first language is not English may make less progress than their English-speaking peers \u00a0but there is limited professional development to support teachers in the practices that address this.<\/p>\n

A unique partnership between Professor Naomi Flynn, Indiana University\u2019s Professor Annela Teemant, and Aspire Community Trust schools in Southampton tackled both challenges. With PhD student Aniqa Leena and Reading\u2019s Professor Suzanne Graham, they adapted and tested Teemant\u2019s Enduring Principles of Learning (EPL) approach which encourages teachers to design classroom activities which are talk-rich and culturally sustaining.<\/p>\n

After a pilot EPL professional learning project in 2019\/20, Flynn observed improved teaching and pupil engagement in Headteacher partner Emma Kerrigan-Draper\u2019s Southampton school of 98% multilinguals. This fostered the four-school 2022 Talk-Rich Teaching Project, where test results showed that where teachers used the UK adaptation of the EPL this boosted multilingual children\u2019s English speaking, listening and reading skills.<\/p>\n

Involving schools\u2019 staff as equal partners was critical to the project\u2019s success because schools need professional learning bespoke to their settings. Project outcomes will inform the design of a toolkit for upscaling roll out of school-led, sustainable change for enhancing multilingual children\u2019s educational success. Internationally the project continues as a two-way trans-Atlantic collaboration seeking solutions to shared educational challenges.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cNow our children are routinely described as being strong orators, articulate children, who increasingly are transferring those skills into their reading, writing and other curriculum outcomes.\u201d \u2014 Emma Kerrigan-Draper, Headteacher<\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Project name: <\/strong>Bringing Successful Teaching for Multilingual Learners from the US to the UK<\/p>\n

Partners:<\/strong><\/p>\n