EAL Teaching in Irish Primary Schools: Assessment, Resources and Recorded Preparation

Updated for the 2024 SET Guidelines and the 2026 Updated Guidance on Preparation for Learning, Teaching and Assessment.

Teachers who are beginning an English as an Additional Language (EAL) role often ask the same questions:

• What am I actually supposed to teach?
• How do I assess a newly arrived pupil?
• Which curriculum should I use?
• Does every EAL pupil need a Student Support File?
• What long-term and short-term recorded preparation is required?
• How should EAL teaching connect with learning in the mainstream classroom?

Unfortunately, the answers are scattered across several different documents, some of which are now quite old. There is no single, current Department of Education document that clearly brings together information about EAL assessment, teaching, target-setting and recorded preparation.

This guide explains the main documents and resources available to primary teachers in Ireland and offers a practical approach to organising EAL support and recorded preparation.

How is EAL support provided in Irish primary schools?

Historically, schools received separate language-support teaching posts to support pupils for whom English was an additional language.

The revised Special Education Teacher allocation model subsequently brought different forms of support under one SET allocation (Circular 0013/2017). As a result, pupils requiring EAL support may now be taught by:

• A special education teacher whose caseload includes pupils with EAL
• A teacher primarily or exclusively responsible for EAL support
• A combination of EAL, SET and mainstream class teachers

The Department’s current allocation model includes an element for EAL support within the overall SET allocation. Schools with particularly high numbers of eligible EAL pupils may also qualify to apply for additional temporary EAL support. Current arrangements and application criteria are available on the Department of Education and Youth website.

Regardless of how the support is allocated, the pupil remains a member of the mainstream class. EAL support should therefore not operate as an entirely separate programme. The EAL teacher and mainstream class teacher need to work together so that the pupil can use developing English to participate in classroom routines, relationships and curriculum learning.

A brief history of EAL guidance in Ireland

One of the difficulties facing EAL teachers is that several of the main teaching and assessment resources were developed under an earlier language-support model.

Circular 0015/2009 described the work of the language-support teacher as including:

• Identifying pupils who require language support
• Assessing their proficiency in English
• Devising appropriate language programmes
• Delivering those programmes
• Recording and monitoring progress
• Collaborating with parents and mainstream class teachers

Although the organisation of support teaching has changed considerably since then, these remain useful core functions of EAL support.

The NCCA’s English as an Additional Language in Irish Primary Schools: Guidelines for Teachers also provides helpful background information. However, its advice about classroom and school planning is broad and does not clearly explain what teachers should record in their current long-term and short-term preparation.

The two resources teachers continue to rely on most heavily are the Primary School Assessment Kit and Up and Away. Both remain available through the NCCA, although their age and presentation can make them difficult for a teacher new to EAL to navigate.

 

The publication of the revised SET Guidelines in 2024 and the updated Guidance on Preparation for Learning, Teaching and Assessment in 2026 provides a more current framework for assessment, target-setting, support planning and recorded preparation. However, neither document offers an EAL-specific planning model. Teachers still need to bring the different sources of guidance together.

  

What should happen when a pupil with little or no English arrives?

A newly arrived pupil should first be welcomed into the school and supported to understand essential routines, expectations and sources of help.

Before worrying about a long list of curriculum vocabulary, consider the language the pupil most urgently needs to:

• Indicate that they need the toilet, a drink, food, help or a break
• Communicate pain, illness, worry or discomfort
• Understand essential safety messages
• Follow familiar one-step classroom instructions
• Recognise important people, places and routines
• Greet others and respond to simple social language
• Join classroom activities and begin making connections with peers

Information should be gathered from the pupil, parents or guardians and mainstream class teacher. Where the pupil has little or no English, their views can be gathered through photographs, visual prompts, gestures, drawing, play, an interpreter or an appropriately used translation application.

The Initial Interview Assessment for a New Pupil in the Primary School Assessment Kit (p.17) can also support this process.

How should pupils receiving EAL support be assessed?

The main formal assessment resource for primary EAL is the Primary School Assessment Kit, or PSAK.

The PSAK assesses four areas of English-language proficiency:

• Listening.
• Speaking.
• Reading.
• Writing.

It is important not to assume that a pupil will be at the same proficiency level in all four skills. For example, a pupil may be working at A2 in listening, A1 in speaking, A1 in writing and B1 in reading.

This is particularly possible when a pupil has:

• Developed conversational English more quickly than academic English
• Learned to read and write in another language
• Had considerable informal exposure to spoken English
• Experienced interrupted schooling
• Had limited previous opportunities to develop literacy in any language

The PSAK assessments should be administered in the sequence specified in the kit:

1. Placement assessment.
2. Set 2.
3. Set 3.

The placement assessment establishes the pupil’s starting proficiency profile. Set 2 and Set 3 are used subsequently to monitor progress.

The PSAK indicates that pupils in junior primary classes are not formally assessed in reading and writing through the kit. This does not mean that infant pupils should have no experience of books, environmental print, drawing, mark-making or emergent literacy. It means that formal EAL assessment and target-setting for these pupils should focus principally on listening and speaking, with literacy experiences selected according to the pupil’s age, developmental stage, prior literacy and classroom programme.

Is the PSAK enough on its own?

No single assessment provides a complete picture of a pupil’s language learning.

PSAK results should be considered alongside evidence such as:

• Teacher observation
• Language samples
• Classroom participation
• Pupil responses during routines and play
• Work samples
• Parent or guardian information
• The pupil’s own views
• Information from the mainstream class teacher
• Evidence that the pupil can transfer language learned during EAL support into classroom situations

This reflects the broader emphasis on assessment in the 2026 Guidance on Preparation for Learning, Teaching and Assessment. Effective preparation begins with knowledge of the child and their prior learning. Assessment is not simply a test completed at the beginning and end of support; it is an ongoing process that helps the teacher decide what to teach next.

Inspectorate findings have also highlighted the importance of timely assessment, specific and measurable targets, regular review and collaboration between EAL or SET teachers and mainstream teachers. Recent follow-through inspections found stronger practice where responsibility for assessment and target-setting was clear and the information gathered was shared with relevant teachers. Read the Inspectorate findings here or read an excerpt from page 13 below:

“In the thirteen primary schools where assessment was very good, teachers used a range of assessment tools to assess children’s English language needs. These included the Primary School Assessment Kit, teacher observation tests and pre-testing and post-testing of literacy initiatives. A number of these schools also used self-assessment by children and teacher self-reflection.”

What teaching resources should EAL teachers use?

The main curriculum-support resource for primary EAL remains Up and Away.

Up and Away contains Global Benchmarks of Language Proficiency at three levels:

• A1 – Breakthrough
• A2 – Waystage
• B1 – Threshold

The benchmarks describe the English pupils are expected to develop in listening, speaking, reading and writing. They can therefore be used to identify suitable learning priorities and targets based on the pupil’s assessed proficiency in each skill.

Page 41, of Up and Away states that the benchmarks “should be used to plan the language support programme”. 

Up and Away also organises language around 13 Units of Work:

• Myself
• Our School
• Food and Clothes
• Colours, Shapes and Opposites
• People Who Help Us
• Weather
• Transport and Travel
• Seasons, Holidays and Festivals
• The Local and Wider Community
• Time
• People and Places in Other Areas
• Animals and Plants
• Caring for My Locality

These themes can provide a helpful structure, but they should not be treated as a rigid programme that every pupil must begin in September and complete in a fixed order. A pupil may arrive at any point in the year. Themes, vocabulary and benchmarks should be selected and reorganised to reflect the pupil’s immediate needs, assessed language proficiency, age and classroom learning.

How does Up and Away connect with the Primary Language Curriculum?

The two should complement one another rather than being treated as competing planning frameworks.

The Up and Away benchmarks help the teacher to assess and plan for the pupil’s English-language proficiency. The Primary Language Curriculum provides the broader curricular context in which the pupil will listen, speak, read and write.

For example, the mainstream class may be working on:

• Retelling and sequencing a familiar story
• Giving and following instructions
• Using language to explain a mathematical process
• Asking and answering questions
• Writing a recount
• Discussing characters and events
• Learning vocabulary for a STEM or SEE topic

The EAL teacher can identify the vocabulary, language functions and sentence structures the pupil needs to participate in that learning. Relevant language can then be explicitly taught, visually supported, practised and applied.

EAL teacher planning does not need to reproduce every Primary Language Curriculum strand, element or learning outcome. It should record only those that are relevant to the pupil’s current language-learning needs and planned support.

What are evidence-informed approaches for EAL support?

Evidence-informed approaches are teaching methods supported by established professional knowledge, guidance, classroom evidence and research.

This does not mean that individual teachers must read academic research papers before selecting every activity! Teachers can draw on recognised guidance, professional learning, trusted teaching resources, assessment evidence and approaches known to support additional-language development.

Examples include:

• Explicitly teaching a small amount of essential vocabulary.
• Using photographs, symbols, real objects, gestures and demonstrations.
• Modelling and rehearsing useful words, phrases and sentence structures.
• Maintaining predictable routines.
• Allowing additional processing time.
• Using repetition and rephrasing.
• Teaching language through meaningful contexts rather than isolated word lists.
• Using Total Physical Response and other action-based approaches.
• Providing structured opportunities for interaction with peers.
• Using dual-language texts and valuing the pupil’s home language.
• Pre-teaching the language needed for upcoming classroom learning.
• Checking understanding through pointing, choosing, matching, sequencing or doing, not only through spoken answers.
• Revisiting and assessing taught language to establish whether the pupil can use it independently.

The most appropriate approach will depend on the pupil, their proficiency level, age, prior learning and current targets.

What are priority language-learning needs?

The Student Support File should identify the pupil’s priority learning needs. In the context of EAL, these are the aspects of language the pupil most urgently needs to communicate, participate and access learning.

They should not be a list of everything the pupil cannot yet do.

For a newly arrived A1 pupil, priorities might include:

• Communicating essential needs and safety messages.
• Understanding familiar one-step instructions.
• Learning the language associated with daily classroom routines.
• Using greetings, names and basic personal information.
• Joining familiar classroom activities.
• Establishing social interaction with adults and peers.
• Recognising key classroom signs, labels and personal words.
• Understanding and using vocabulary linked to immediate classroom learning.

Select only a small number of priorities at one time and rewrite them where necessary to reflect the individual pupil.

What targets should be included in an EAL plan?

Targets should arise from the pupil’s:

• PSAK proficiency profile
• Priority language-learning needs
• Classroom participation
• Age and developmental stage
• Prior educational and literacy experiences
• Current curriculum demands

The 2024 Inspectorate report on EAL provision identified specific, measurable targets informed by clear assessment data and reviewed regularly as a feature of very good practice.

A general target such as “improve speaking” is too vague. A more useful target might be:

By the review date, during familiar classroom and school routines, the pupil will use or select eight specifically taught words or phrases to communicate essential needs in four out of five observed opportunities, with agreed visual support.

Teachers do not need dozens of targets. A small number of well-chosen targets is more practical to teach, monitor and review.

What long-term recorded preparation is required for EAL?

For a pupil receiving ongoing EAL support, the Student Support Plan will function as the teacher’s long-term recorded preparation.

A useful EAL Student Support Plan and Review might include:

• Relevant pupil and language background information
• The pupil’s strengths and interests
• The pupil’s views
• Parent or guardian information
• Mainstream class teacher observations
• PSAK assessment result
• Priority language-learning needs
• SMART language-learning targets
• Evidence-informed approaches
• Resources required
• Relevant collaboration and curriculum links
• Arrangements for monitoring and review
• Evidence of progress and agreed next steps

The standard Departmental Student Support Plan template can be adapted. The Indicators of Effective Practice accompanying the revised SET Guidelines explicitly recognise that the Student Support Plan and Review may be modified.

This is important for EAL because a generic support-plan template may not provide enough space for:

• The pupil’s home language and previous educational experience
• Separate PSAK results for the four language skills
• EAL proficiency benchmarks
• Language-specific targets
• Translation or interpreter requirements
• The language needed to access classroom learning

A modified template is not about creating additional paperwork. Its purpose should be to make the plan more relevant, practical and useful.

An editable EAL Student Support Plan for A1–B1 pupils

I have created a purpose-built EAL Student Support Plan and Review for A1–B1 pupils to address the distinct planning needs of teachers providing EAL support.

It includes:

• A fully editable EAL-specific Student Support Plan and Review
• SMART target choices for A1, A2 and B1 proficiency levels
• Separate targets for listening, speaking, reading and writing
• A completed fictional example
• A comprehensive editable EAL Resource Bank
• Examples of priority language-learning needs
• A flexible annual roadmap based on the Up and Away benchmarks and themes
• Suggested vocabulary, curriculum connections and assessment opportunities
• Space to plan collaboration with the mainstream class teacher

Because pupils can be at different proficiency levels across the four skills, teachers can retain the relevant sections and delete those that do not apply.

What short-term recorded preparation is required for EAL?

The 2024 SET Guidelines indicate that short-term preparation for support teaching should be completed weekly.

The 2026 Guidance on Preparation for Learning, Teaching and Assessment identifies the following areas for short-term recorded preparation:

• A reference to the curriculum
• The focus or focuses of the learning
• The intended learning experiences
• Assessment

For EAL support, teachers may also find it useful to record:

• The relevant Up and Away benchmark or language target
• Key vocabulary and language structures
• Planned visual or communication supports
• Links with current mainstream classroom learning
• Brief reflection or progress notes

A short-term EAL plan should not repeat the entire Student Support Plan. The long-term plan identifies the pupil’s broader needs, targets and support arrangements. Short-term preparation breaks these priorities into manageable, teachable steps.

For example:

Long-term target: The pupil will understand and respond appropriately to familiar classroom instructions.

Short-term focus: Understand and respond to “take out”, “put away”, “sit beside”, “line up” and “show me”.

Learning experiences: Modelling, photographs, real classroom routines, Total Physical Response, matching instructions to pictures and a simple peer game.

Assessment: Observation of the pupil responding during EAL support and during the same routines in the mainstream classroom.

Editable EAL short-term recorded preparation

My editable EAL Short-Term Recorded Preparation Template and Completed Example has been designed specifically for EAL teaching.

It includes:

• A weekly editable template
• A completed EAL group example
• Curriculum reference
• Focuses of the learning
• Learning experiences
• Assessment
• Optional vocabulary input and language focus
• Reflection and an integrated cuntas míosúil
• Microsoft Word and Google Docs formats

It can be used for withdrawal, in-class support or a combination of both, and adapted for pupils across A1, A2 and B1 proficiency levels.

I also have completed EAL short-term planning packs for the entire school year available at each of the three Proficiency levels for teachers who would like more detailed suggestions for themes, vocabulary, benchmarks, learning experiences and assessment. Find them here. 

What is needed for the cuntas míosúil?

The cuntas míosúil is a record of the work completed during the previous month.

The simplest approach is to build it into the short-term planning document. The teacher can mark which learning focuses were addressed and add a short reflection about:

• Progress made
• Language that requires further teaching
• Targets that need to be adjusted
• Supports that were particularly effective
• Evidence that language transferred into the mainstream classroom
• Changes required for the following month

If a school requires a separate document, a dedicated EAL Cuntas Míosúil template can also be used.

How should EAL and mainstream teachers collaborate?

Collaboration does not need to involve lengthy meetings or additional forms.

Regular, practical communication can be enough. Teachers might agree:

• Current classroom topics or texts
• Essential vocabulary and language structures
• Relevant Primary Language Curriculum learning outcomes
• Classroom routines that require additional support
• Opportunities for pre-teaching
• Visual supports to be used consistently
• How the pupil can practise language in the mainstream class
• How progress will be observed and shared
• When targets will be reviewed

It may be helpful to identify only a small number of useful actions and review them as the pupil’s language proficiency and classroom demands change.

What resources are useful for EAL teaching?

The following provide a useful starting point:

• The NCCA Primary School Assessment Kit for assessing proficiency in listening, speaking, reading and writing
• Up and Away for A1–B1 proficiency benchmarks and Units of Work
• The Primary Language Curriculum for relevant curricular learning outcomes
• The PSAK Initial Interview Assessment for newly arrived pupils
• Visual timetables, now-and-next boards and routine cards
• Basic-needs communication boards
• Photographs, symbols and labelled classroom displays
• Real objects and practical demonstrations
• Dual-language books and bilingual dictionaries
• Translation tools used appropriately
• Picture-vocabulary cards and personal word banks
• Sentence frames and communication mats
• Songs, rhymes, repetitive stories, games and role-play
• The pupil’s home language as a resource for learning (not something that must be replaced by English)

The purpose of a resource is to support meaningful communication and participation. A large collection of worksheets will not replace explicit language teaching, interaction, practice and opportunities to apply language in real contexts.

The Department has a dedicated EAL page where you can find all of its resources including the PSAK, Up and Away and the inspectorate EAL report here. 

The NCCA EAL website also provides a workbook called “My First English Book” for children in Junior & Senior Infants. It is fairly basic and I have found in the past that I needed to supplement it with additional/ more relevant worksheets. For First Class upwards, there is a European Language Portfolio.

 

OIDE also have a very comprehensive EAL Padlet (pictured below) which contains links to numerous EAL resources and documents. It is the most comprehensive collection of Department of Education resources and publications on EAL that I have seen so it is well worth checking out.

 

Lastly, a key page to bookmark if you are working in EAL is the Oide EAL webpage itself. As well as links to EAL guidance, resources and professional learning materials, this is where Oide shares updates about upcoming EAL professional learning events and training opportunities. You can also sign up to receive Oide news and updates so you don’t miss new EAL training or registration dates.

Final thoughts

EAL provision can initially feel confusing because teachers are expected to combine information from assessment materials, an older EAL curriculum resource, current SET guidance, the Primary Language Curriculum and the updated guidance on recorded preparation.

However, the core process is relatively straightforward:

1. Gather information and assess the pupil
2. Identify proficiency separately in listening, speaking, reading and writing
3. Select a small number of priority language-learning needs
4. Set specific, measurable and achievable targets
5. Choose appropriate evidence-informed approaches and resources
6. Connect EAL support with classroom learning
7. Monitor progress and review the plan
8. Use short-term preparation to decide what will be explicitly taught next

The paperwork should support this process, not become the process.

A well-designed EAL Student Support Plan, practical weekly preparation and regular communication with the mainstream class teacher can provide both clarity for the teacher and more coherent support for the pupil.