Teachers identify students who are learning English as an additional language or dialect (EAL/D) by assessing:

• what students bring to learning and
• their language and literacy skills in English.

Curriculum outcomes, key concepts, learning intentions and learning and assessment tasks must be unpacked to identify language and cultural demands in relation to the learner group. Teachers should plan differentiated support which allows access to learning and appropriate assessment of learning.

Pedagogical practices should include explicit teaching and teaching in context. Lesson design should include front loading, field building, planned and contingent scaffolding of learning, opportunities for practice and revision, "message abundance" and talk around the task. The language required should be taught explicitly with opportunities for guided practice.

EAL/D support is most effective where EAL/D specialist and classroom teachers are able to work together. This may be done through collaborative or team teaching programs. Or, alternatively, through the joint development of programs that provide explicit language learning support in the context of the curriculum.

There are teacher guides exploring effective EAL/D pedagogy and describing how to implement these practices in the classroom.