LEAP - principles and aims

The LEAP resource is presented in these sections: 

1. Language Enhancing the Achievement of Pacific Learners (LEAP): Principles and aims
2. Pacific peoples in New Zealand
3. Being bilingual
4. What helps students to learn?
5. Language and school
6. Supporting language development
7. Frequently asked questions
8. Student voice
9. Ministry of Education Pacific resources and ESOL resources
10. Glossary

Within each of the sections, you will find information, examples, and suggested learning material. Use the ideas in this resource to explore your own practice with bilingual Pacific students in your classroom or school. 

The LEAP resource complements key Ministry of Education teacher resources: 

• Quality teaching for diverse students in schooling: Best evidence synthesis 
• Working with English language learners: A handbook for schools 
• Effective literacy practice in years 1 to 4
• Effective literacy practice in years 5 to 8
• Effective literacy strategies in years 9 to 13: A guide for teachers

These documents include key guidance for teachers on the pedagogy of effective language teaching.

Supplementing LEAP is the Pasifika languages research and guidelines project, see Materials that come with this resource to download Literature review, which Franken, May, and McComish (.doc).

The guiding principles embrace the learners' language ability and direct teachers to understand what is effective for bilingual learners. 

LEAP principles 

• Bilingual students learn better when they can use their first or home language at school. 
• Students learn English as a second language at school when they are taught in effective, focused ways, compared to when they are left to "pick the language up". 
• To succeed at school, all students need to know and understand subject specific language. Consider the specific implications of this for bilingual students in your classroom. 
• Teachers are more effective when they:  
  • understand how bilingual students learn 
  • know and implement the principles of effective language teaching and learning. 

Through deliberate, explicit instruction, you can make subject specific language accessible to your students. 

The LEAP resource brings together key aspects of research about how to support bilingual Pacific students’ learning, especially in relation to students’ Pacific languages and English.  

The resource suggests ways teachers can: 

• explore, in practical ways, language teaching and learning principles effective for working with bilingual Pacific students 
• address the learning needs of their bilingual Pacific students 
• enhance the academic achievement of bilingual Pacific students in mainstream New Zealand classrooms. 

By using the LEAP resource, teachers can: 

• develop deeper knowledge of the cultural and linguistic backgrounds of the bilingual Pacific students 
• find ways to recognise and draw on Pacific languages in the classroom 
• incorporate proven approaches and activities for second-language teaching into their classroom programmes 
• plan and implement classroom programmes that meet the needs of a range of bilingual Pacific students. 

This resource has been updated to fit the aspirations of the Action Plan for Pacific Education 2020–2030. 

The original LEAP materials were developed by Johanne McComish, Professor Stephen May, and Dr Margaret Franken. Much of that content is still available in this resource. 

The Ministry of Education would like to thank the core research and development team at WMIER (Wilf Malcolm Institute of Educational Research, University of Waikato), which developed the materials in the resource over the period 2004–06.  

The authors acknowledge the support received from the Ministry of Education, the external reviewers, Professor Colin Baker (University of Wales) and Professor Patricia Duff (University of British Columbia), and the teachers involved in trialling the materials. They also acknowledge the support received from these WMIER staff: Emilie Sila‘ila‘i, Margaret Drummond, Thelma Miller, Ariana Donaghy, Ann Harlow, Ruth Kapoor, and Carolyn Jones. 

These materials are copyright © Crown, 2007. Please acknowledge the authors when referring to any or all of the content on this website.