Identifying SEND in multilingual learners

Before placing a multilingual child on the SEND register, bear in mind the following:

A child or young person does not have a learning difficulty or disability solely because the language (or form of language) in which he or she is or will be taught is different from a language (or form of language) which is or has been spoken at home.
Children and Families Act 2014 Section 20 (4)
Core principles

Lack of English should not be equated with lack of knowledge, skill or understanding. Multilingual learners are no more likely to have special educational needs/disabilities (SEND) than any other pupil.

Growing up in more than one language does not impede language development. Multilingual children’s language will emerge around the same time as monolingual children’s. Families can be a good source of information about their child’s early language development and understanding. Practitioners should gather background information about their multilingual learners as part of the child’s transition into school, using interpreters where required.

Progress will be impacted by provision in the mainstream classroom and practitioners’ understanding and application of EAL pedagogy in their teaching.

Multilingual learners acquire social, conversational English (BICS – ‘Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills’) relatively quickly and it is important that teachers are not misled by pupils' surface fluency.

Some pupils take time before they feel confident enough to participate actively in classroom activities and use the English they have learned. A 'silent period' is natural and should not be construed as the child having learning difficulties. Lack of progress may be due to the abstract nature of tasks rather than underlying learning difficulties.

The following should be considered:

  • children who are new to English may experience a 'silent period' as they become accustomed to the language and to their new school.
  • children may be adjusting to a different approach to education, especially if they have come from an educational system which relied heavily on rote learning and/or more traditional methods.
  • children may find curriculum content very different. Some subjects may be completely new to them.
  • children may need more time to process what is being taught because they are working across languages.
  • children will benefit from peer support to understand school routines and become familiar with collaborative approaches to learning.
  • children may have undiagnosed health conditions, including issues with their hearing and/or eyesight.
Monitoring progress

Establishing a baseline and tracking progress in the pupil’s use of English are important steps. Use an EAL-specific tool such as the Bell Foundation EAL Assessment framework to do this, alongside implementing EAL-friendly strategies in the classroom.

Avoid standardised tests; these are norm-referenced on a monolingual population and may not provide an accurate reflection of the multilingual learner’s abilities.

Further guidance and training

For more information about multilingualism and SEND, see EAL and SEND, EMTASMoodle.

For short articles about multilingualism and SEND, see SEND, EMTASMoodle.

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