A comprehensive program of assessment, training, and intervention supporting speech and language in elementary schools.
The NELI Program
The NELI Program provides schools and districts with a way of identifying early language difficulties and is proven to improve students’ language skills and behavior in school.
NELI helps students aged 4-6 years old with the weakest oral language skills catch up with their peers through targeted small group and individual sessions. It focuses on developing students’ vocabulary, listening and storytelling skills. Large scale trials have shown NELI helps students make 3-5 months’ additional progress on top of what they would be usually be expected to achieve.
NELI was developed out of decades of research into students’ early language development and is the only early years language intervention to be awarded 5/5 for evidence strength by the UK’s Education Endowment Foundation.
Program Structure
The NELI Program includes three main components. Reliable and easy-to-use language screening, easy-to-access professional development, and the 20-week pull-out intervention program.
Language Assessment
Schools first assess with LanguageScreen – a quick, reliable and highly accurate language assessment. Any adult in the school can, in less that ten minutes, obtain a comprehensive overview of a child’s language ability. LanguageScreen is used to assess the language skills of all students in the class at the beginning of the year and identify the students who need additional targeted support. At the end of the year it is used to ensure all students are still meeting age-expected outcomes as well as evaluate the progress of those students who received the intervention.
Professional Development
The NELI Program includes comprehensive online training for teachers and paraprofessionals. It is delivered completely online so you can complete the courses at your own pace, courses will take 10-12 hours to complete. The courses explore language development, critical strategies to support language skills, how to deliver NELI and videos of NELI in action. You are mentored throughout by speech and language professionals.
Individual and Small Group Sessions
The NELI intervention is a 20-week program consisting of weekly small group and individual sessions. NELI develops students’ vocabulary, listening, and narrative or storytelling skills through scaffolded activities. Each week students are introduced to new vocabulary as “Special Words” as well as consolidating their learning from previous sessions.
The research and evidence behind NELI
NELI is the world’s best evidenced oral language intervention and is the only early years language intervention to be awarded 5/5 for evidence strength by the UK’s Education Endowment Fund.
A series of randomized controlled trials and independent evaluations have shown that it brings about educationally meaningful improvements:
- NELI students made 3-5 months’ additional progress in language skills in just six months.
- Students from less advantaged backgrounds made an average 7 months’ additional progress in their language skills.
- NELI students’ behaviour was shown to improve significantly (compared to the control group).
- English Language Learners (ELL) made the same additional progress as students speaking English at home.
- NELI is the only early years language intervention to be awarded 5/5 for evidence security by the Education Endowment Foundation.
- NELI is not expensive to implement – the EEF’s cost rating is ‘very low’.
- NELI’s positive effects can be seen long-term, with improvements in language and word reading being seen in students two years after the intervention.
Communication and language impacts on everything, including life skills and NELI gives them the grounding they need before we concentrate on other areas of the curriculum, such as reading and writing.
Shushila Bhanderi, Assistant Headteacher,
Uxendon Manor Primary School
NELI has been a wonderful addition to our early childhood provision. The children have absolutely adored working with Ted! After NELI, children are more confident, ambitious in their vocabulary choices and ready to continue great progress.
Alex Davies
St Thomas More Primary School