EAL Progress Tracker

What is the EAL Progress Tracker?

The EAL Progress Tracker (previously known as the Profile of Competence) enables class, subject or support teachers to assess the English language skills of bilingual pupils and provides a framework for:

• monitoring and tracking the English language development of bilingual learners

• identifying next steps and planning targeted support

• assigning a stage of English language acquisition between 1 and 5 and updating SEEMIS twice a year – Autumn and Spring (as required by the Scottish Government).

How do I assess English language acquisition?

The Quick View document may be used in the first instance to assign a category to the pupil concerned. Lengthy paperwork is not necessary to assign a level for language acquisition and there is flexibility in the use of the Progress Tracker. Once an initial estimate is identified on Quick View, that section on the more detailed Progress Checker may be checked to ensure accuracy and to identify next steps for English language acquisition.

This more detailed Progress Tracker has separate checklists for Listening/Talking, Reading and Writing for staff to use to assess and track progress. Staff may wish to use the same document over the course of a year in order to track progress, for example by using different colours for each term. The checklists for Early Years, Primary and Secondary pupils and a glossary of terms are below:

Glossary of Terms

Pupils do not have to ‘fit’ neatly into one category and it is perfectly normal for ticks on the checklist to span across different levels. The final level should be based on a ‘best fit’ approach. Thus, it is not necessary for every component within a particular level to be achieved before a pupil is moved up to the next level.

A single level/stage is required for the EAL Service database, SEEMIS and ScotXed. It is important that this information is accurate. As individual learners are likely to show characteristics of more than one stage at one time across the three skill areas (Listening / Talking, Reading, Writing), a judgment is usually needed as to which level/stage best describes a learner’s language development. Where there is doubt, schools should consult with the EAL team at asnoutreach@stirling.gov.uk.

Who should complete the assessments?

Early years and primary teachers are perfectly placed to assess level of language acquisition. In secondary schools, English teachers tend to be a good choice for assessing EAL pupils for language acquisition but ASN or other teachers may also know the pupil well enough to make this judgement.

How do I update the language level?

Once assessments have been completed, an appropriate number should be put onto the pupil’s file on SEEMIS. This will require special access to SEEMIS and may involve passing the information on to a relevant principal teacher or member of the school management team for entry, or asking the SEEMIS administrator in school to allow you access to the language tab.

Click link below for an illustrated guide to updating SEEMIS levels.

Bell Foundation Assessment Framework

An alternative resource for assessing pupils' progress with English Language acquisition, produced by the Bell Foundation, can be downloaded below. Please note that this framework classifies levels as A (New to English) to E (Fluent) rather than 1 to 5 as in the EAL Progress Tracker above, but these levels are otherwise equivalent. You may find these useful as a different perspective for individual pupils.

Support Strategies for pupils at different language levels

The Bell Foundation has produced guides for primary and secondary schools which detail support strategies appropriate for bilingual learners at each stage of English language acquisition. You can click on the links in the document to access relevant resources. Please note that these guides classify levels as A (New to English) to E (Fluent) rather than 1 to 5 as in the EAL Progress Tracker above, but these levels are otherwise equivalent.