Abstract:
Today the presence of immigrant students in Europe has led to a series of measures and actions to tackle this multicultural reality. In this study we present the functioning and characteristics of language support classrooms and compare Temporary Language Adaptation Classrooms (ATAL, from its initials in Spanish) in Andalusia and the teaching of English as an Additional Language (EAL) in England. Similarly, this study presents the opinion of the students and teachers regarding the materials and activities used in the ATAL and EAL classrooms. Our investigation, which involved 202 students and 23 teachers, employed a descriptive and correlational method with data collected through a series of questionnaires that measure the opinion of students and teachers regarding the materials and activities used in these classrooms. The results obtained indicate the existence of positive and negative aspects of both programmes and show the levels of student-perceived appropriateness of target language materials employed by teachers in the support classrooms. This study concludes with an overview of the current situation and considerations for possible future improvements