Language table

Key language skills for EAL/D

The key language skills described below provide a focus for language instruction in any unit at students’ point of need and should be taught in context and if relevant. Students should be given the opportunity to develop and demonstrate these skills in a variety of contexts. By the time students have completed Unit 4, they should be proficient in these language skills. This table is not an exhaustive list; rather, it is a guide to focus teachers on some essential skills that students should develop.

Phonological features:

pronunciation, stress, rhythm, intonation and pitch for emphasis
phonemes and morphemes.

Non-verbal language features:

using culturally appropriate gestures and behaviours.

Orthographic competence:

using punctuation as required
spelling subject-specific vocabulary correctly
using subject-specific abbreviations, signs and symbols
understanding common logographic signs
distinguishing and using print, cursive and diverse fonts.

Lexical competence:

gradually increasing a word bank of vocabulary in SAE, for example subject-specific vocabulary
understanding and using metalanguage correctly
using discourse markers, for example, for showing cause and effect
understanding and using collocations, idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms
using synonyms and antonyms as required
using lexical chains to achieve cohesion
choosing vocabulary appropriate to purpose and audience
using descriptive, rhetorical and persuasive language
understanding and using formulaic and fixed expressions and collocations
understanding proverbs
understanding word order within clauses and sentences.

Grammatical competence:

clause and sentence structure
questioning (including rhetorical questioning)
types of verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, articles, prepositions and affixes
verb structures and tenses
modality
voice (active, passive)
clause type (declarative, interrogative, imperative and exclamative)
nominalisation
additive, comparative, temporal and consequential conjunctions
use of correct noun-verb agreement
negative questioning
direct and indirect speech
use of reference items to achieve cohesion.

Semantic competence:

listening for specific content
understanding and using words appropriate to the different semantic fields of SAE
identifying shifts in meaning according to syntax
identifying inferred meanings in texts
identifying ambiguous or inappropriate communication
using appraisal to express engagement, attitude and gradation
distinguishing between fact and opinion
understanding the SAE classification systems used in academic environments.

Sociolinguistic competence:

questioning for clarification as needed
negotiating meaning
understanding how language is used to persuade
experimenting with the register of texts (tone, language, audience)
initiating, sustaining and ending conversations in casual and formal contexts
identifying the organisation of thoughts and ideas within SAE texts (rhetorical patterns).

Sociocultural understanding:

identifying register variations between familiar, semi-formal and some formal contexts
recognising some common cultural references
recognising some irony and how humour is created
using culturally accepted politeness conventions in listening, speaking and written protocols
recognising cultural variations in acceptance of novice and expert knowledge
understanding cultural differences in eye contact and personal space
identifying cultural variations in symbolism, classification and gender behaviours.