Pedagogy for EAL Classrooms: Understanding Language Learning Journey of Diverse Learners

PEDAGOGY FOR EAL CLASSROOMS
PEDAGOGY FOR EAL CLASSROOMS
Name of the Student
Name of the university
Author’s note

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PEDAGOGY FOR EAL CLASSROOMS
Introduction
Australia has been a linguistically and culturally diverse country and the modern nation
consists of over 200 ethnic backgrounds. Many different languages are taught at homes and
communities all over the Australia and in many primary schools, English is being taught as an
additional language or a dialect (Baker, 2012).
The main aim of this paper is to describe the identity of the learners and their specific
language learning journey. This paper would also reflect on the experiences of the students in
this language learning journey supported by their personal experiences. Finally this paper would
also reflect on the different resources that the linguistically different students bring to the
classroom that helps in their language learning, the ways in which they are taught about the
English language. All these will be described on the basis of the language learning theories.
Who are the students in our classroom?
Most of the learners in the classroom came from a large number of different nations with
diverse cultural and ethnic background. Students came all over from Europe, South America,
Middle East, Asia and pacific Islands. They come with diverse language and culture. The
learning background of the students differed with the time span for which they have spent in
Australia. Students also come from Saudi Arabia, China and UAE.
It is important that the teachers become familiar to the cultural and the linguistic
background of the students. The teachers should thrive to develop the classroom environment
that utilizes, values and explores the diverse and the rich cultural and the linguistic resources and
the heritages that the children brings with them (Conteh & Meier, 2014).

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PEDAGOGY FOR EAL CLASSROOMS
Particular context in which they are learning
Multilingualism has been a part of the Australian mainstream agenda. With the growing
prosperity of Australia, the immigrants have chosen Australia as the place of their residence.
Multilingualism in the Australian classrooms are a long drawn concept (Conteh & Meier, 2014).
The Australian government has long been trying to assimilate the aboriginal Australian to
the Australian cultural and many aboriginal students are also being admitted in the Australian
schools. It should be remembered that the immigrant communities when stand in the new
gateway are faced with several challenges and so do the teachers (Conteh & Meier, 2014). The
students often face difficulties to cope then up to the complex ethnic and the racial patterns
created due to the immigration. It is an irony that the teachers who have traditionally focused on
the binary issue of black and white have to teach increasing number of students with different
cultures. Immigrant students often faced with structural challenges such as high stakes testing
environment that has not been designed for the immigrant students (Turner & Cross, 2016). The
educational policies that have been implemented for the political rather than for the pedagogical
reasons are also one of the barriers. An unequal high enrollment in the linguistically and the
racially isolated schools and low resources schools and finally, the racism that is being faced in
few situations. These are the few factors that guide the experience of the learners in a
multilingual classroom. The syllabus or the stories that they are learning in the English language
can be influenced by the local history that can act as contradictory for the linguistically
background students. Furthermore, in most of the students having English as the second
language face difficulties while conversing with the peer students or during classroom interaction
and discussions.

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PEDAGOGY FOR EAL CLASSROOMS
Language is the part of a culture and is shaped by the culture. It is also the carrier of
culture and is shaped by culture. Language and culture are closely related. Hence cultural
assimilation should be encouraged in the classroom (Murray & Christison, 2011). In most of the
cases the English learning is occurring in the multilingual classrooms. In a multilingual
classroom the teachers and the students can experience difference cultural practices and rituals
that might not be acceptable to different students. Hence the learning should be such that it suits
to students coming from any cultural background.
What are the different trajectories - personal, academic, cultural, ethnic, linguistic
trajectories - which they negotiate as the come to the classroom?
Different student have different cultural views and life trajectories. They have negotiated
with their identities and have assimilated with the new linguistic and the cultural notions, but has
been done within the institutional terms and the conditions. Learners have to sacrifice many of
their personal belief and notions after coming to the classroom, where they have to accept new
cultures and practices (Hilburn, 2014). The classroom composition of the student is always
influenced by the immigration policy, the economic and the political scenarios, and the
increasing demand of English in all aspects of life. Teachers and the students located within
similar geographical context often have common cultural, academic, linguistic behavioral pattern
and understanding. The teaching experiences while handling students from Islamic countries are
different due to their different cultural practices. Hence it is necessary to imbibe cultural
sensitiveness among the students (Hilburn, 2014).
In most of the cases the student has described that the pedagogy of the language learning
can be made more systematic as it is necessary to make up the grammatical base, which they did