Reporting Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10

5. Reporting EAL proficiency and progress

The progress of English as an Additional Language (EAL) students in learning English should be reported against the levels of the Victorian Curriculum F–10 EAL Achievement Standards rather than the levels of the English Achievement Standards.

The department's Victorian Curriculum F–10 EAL Reporting Resource allows teachers and schools to report on EAL students' English language proficiency before they reach the achievement standards. This resource is designed to complement and support the Victorian Curriculum F–10 EAL and provide teachers with advice to assess and report against the proficiency descriptors for each EAL level.

5-point progress scale

An age-expected 5-point scale cannot be used for reporting against the EAL curriculum area as the language proficiency of EAL students does not necessarily correlate with students’ age.

Instead, the 5-point progress scale is recommended, also considering:

• refugee or migrant background and related life experiences
• previous educational experiences in their home language and English
• additional learning needs.

The teacher considers assessment evidence as well as these factors to make an ‘on balance’ judgement of each individual student’s expected progress in the EAL curriculum area.

The rating for this scale has the following descriptors:

• limited progress
• some progress
• satisfactory progress
• good progress
• excellent progress.

Students can be transferred to the Victorian Curriculum F–10 English for assessment and reporting purposes once they have reached the end of their respective A, B or C Pathway, and achieved the standard in all 3 language modes of:

• Listening and Speaking
• Reading and Viewing
• Writing.

It is not appropriate for an EAL student to be assessed against the English achievement standards in one mode, such as Listening and Speaking, and the EAL achievement standards in other modes. While the oral language proficiency of an EAL student may appear to correspond to that of their peers, as students progress through the year levels, the demands of the curriculum become more complex, and these students can struggle to cope with the academic requirements of the English curriculum.

For more detailed advice about when to transfer students, and information about the typical pathways EAL students might follow along the Victorian Curriculum F–10, refer to: Pathways and transitions.

For more information about the assessment of EAL students, refer to Tools for Enhancing Assessment Literacy for teachers of English as an Additional Language students (TEAL).

Interpreting services are available for communicating with parents and carers who require assistance in understanding their child’s progress. Refer to Interpreting and Translation Services.