EAL STAR is a well-established, globally used digital assessment, tracking and monitoring platform designed to support schools in understanding and responding effectively to the needs of learners using English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D). Developed by the creators of EAL HUB, EAL STAR was founded by Beth Southern, an experienced EAL consultant and school leader based in the UK, who works closely with schools to strengthen EAL/D provision and improve outcomes for multilingual learners, both in the UK and globally. 

Over many years of working directly with educators, Beth was repeatedly asked the same questions: 

How can schools assess EAL/D learners consistently? 
How can progress be tracked over time? 
How can teachers clearly understand where learners are and what support they need next?

At the time, there was no robust, standardised digital solution that combined assessment with meaningful tracking, monitoring and planning, so EAL STAR was created to fill that gap.

Developed over an initial 18-month period and refined continuously since, EAL STAR has grown into one of the fastest-growing EAL assessment platforms in the world, now supporting schools across a wide range of international contexts. The platform has been shaped not only by practitioner expertise, but also by insight drawn from tens of thousands of completed assessments, which are continually analysed in aggregated and de-identified form to fine-tune baseline accuracy, strengthen reliability, and ensure that assessment outcomes remain robust, fair and developmentally appropriate. 

Designed in response to the real needs of teachers and EAL/D coordinators, particularly those working under significant time pressure, EAL STAR provides a single, intuitive system where all EAL/D learners can be viewed, assessed and monitored in one place. Schools gain real-time insight into their EAL/D cohort, how learners are progressing, and where targeted support or intervention is required, all at the click of a button. Flexible access levels allow classroom teachers, school leaders and other stakeholders to view relevant data and evidence, supporting informed decision-making and more effective provision. The platform has been rigorously tested across diverse educational settings worldwide.

Working closely with partnership schools, EAL STAR evolved beyond assessment of the four language skills to become a comprehensive EAL/D solution that integrates assessment, tracking, monitoring, data sharing, EAL/D registers and pupil profiles and next steps strategies within a single platform. In response to school feedback, additional functionality was built in, including the ability to transfer pupils and data between schools, adaptive assessments that recognise when a learner is struggling and respond accordingly, and automatic population of data across key areas of the system to reduce workload and improve accuracy.

EAL STAR continues to evolve and expand. Recent developments include bulk data upload via CSV, multi-location functionality and infrastructure designed to support multiple jurisdictions, enabling tailored assessment for different education systems and frameworks.