The Educator Magazine U.K. September - December 2025 issue. - Magazine - Page 54
How FlashAcademy®
is equipping The Oaks Academy
to support every EAL learner
(225) have focused on English language, but students also
access subject-specific content to prepare for GCSE study,
including biology (25 lessons), economics (20) and chemistry
(9). Progress is monitored by the EAL teacher, with
FlashAcademy® used to reinforce language development
and improve access to curriculum content.
The Oaks Academy is a thriving, oversubscribed secondary
school in Crewe where EAL learners make up around 40% of
pupils. In September 2020 the school joined The Learning
Partnership (formerly The Learning Alliance) and in April 2024
– for the first time in its history – the school was graded ‘Good’
by Ofsted. To support its growing EAL intake, the school
adopted FlashAcademy® to deliver structured, trackable
English language support.
Establishing a clear baseline for EAL support
When Louise Ellmans took on the role of EAL Lead, she was
tasked with building a stronger, more structured programme
for learners with English as an additional language. “To ensure
EAL students had access to the same ambitious learning
experience as everyone else, I needed to make sure the data
we had on their proficiency was accurate and up to date,” she
explains. The school had already invested in FlashAcademy®,
and Louise led its rollout by enrolling and assessing every
EAL learner within the first half term. “We rolled out the digital
assessment across the whole cohort — and for the first time,
we could clearly see where each student was across
listening, speaking, reading and writing.” This insight gave
Louise the foundation to plan targeted support. “It was the
missing piece,” she says. Since September 2023, 520
assessments have been completed — forming the basis of
the school’s EAL strategy.
Structured intervention and subject-specific vocabulary
Setup and lesson management have been straightforward,
thanks to FlashAcademy®’s integration with the school’s
MIS — first SIMS and now Arbor. As well as being used as
an assessment tool, FlashAcademy® is a key part of the
intervention timetable at The Oaks Academy. Learners
working at Bands A to C complete regular lessons set by
the teacher, tailored to their level of ability. “We aim for 90%
success as standard,” explains Louise. “If students don’t reach
that, they repeat the lesson. For more difficult tasks, we lower
the target slightly to 75–80%, depending on the student.”
Since October 2023, pupils have completed 7,217 lessons —
339 of those in the past three months. The majority of lessons
Confidence, consistency and Trust-wide visibility
FlashAcademy® has transformed how The Oaks Academy
supports its EAL learners — giving staff reliable data and
giving pupils the tools to thrive. Learners look forward to
intervention sessions, enjoy tracking their results and often
revisit lessons to improve their scores. “They are able to work
at their own pace through the lessons, and the boys in
particular enjoy making the 90% a competition between
them,” says Louise. Printable class-based resources are
used to consolidate learning, but students prefer the digital
platform. “They enjoy seeing their results,” she adds. “Because
they’re assessed across four areas, there’s usually some
element of progress to recognise — even if they haven’t
moved up a full band.” All assessment data is saved in
FlashAcademy®. “I have to regularly report to the Trust and
governors, so for me FlashAcademy® is a great tool to show
progress — and the fact that students really enjoy it is
fantastic for them!”
Helping schools and Trusts deliver measurable EAL progress
FlashAcademy® helps schools and Trusts accelerate English
language acquisition and deliver consistent EAL provision
while reducing teacher workload. The newly launched
AI-assisted marking feature saves 150 hours of teacher time
each year, while real-time tracking supports effective planning
and intervention. The platform includes a teacher dashboard
for assessment and progress monitoring, alongside a learning
app with curriculum-aligned lessons. With 48 home
languages, MIS integration, regular webinars for teachers
and printable resources, FlashAcademy® supports
measurable EAL outcomes across diverse classrooms and
settings.
To find out more, visit www.flashacademy.com
