The influx of immigrants into the United States has resulted in the growing increase of ESL students into the classroom. Odds are good that most teachers will encounter one or more ESL students during their teaching career. These students vary in English language acquisition and cultural assimilation. It is imperative for teachers to understand their role and be equipped with tools for their ESL students of all levels to survive in a regular classroom. English Language Arts instructors carry a larger burden of not only helping the ESL students to understand and speak the English language, but insure the rules of grammar and Standard English are conveyed in a relatable manner. Additionally, ELA teachers need to convey to their colleagues that language teaching is not restricted for the ESL or ELA teacher, but every instructor should have a role in the success of ESL students. The success of all students including ESL students should be the priority of all departments in the school system. The resources used in this report discuss how teachers can help assimilate …show more content…
Teachers need to show their students that writing is work for everyone and demonstrate their own struggles during the process, which allows students to feel they are not alone and can succeed in learning the English language. Again, many of these articles discuss the importance of understanding ESL students’ backgrounds and cultures to be able to focus on how these students will best respond to instruction. Teachers should embrace the prior knowledge the ESL students have from their native language and build from there. Teachers need to understand that secondary students are not blank slates and have accumulated knowledge for many years, which can be used to teach the English
As a baseline, teachers should be trained to acknowledge the resources and backgrounds all children so that they may be able to recognize the strengths of non-native English speakers. A wholistic evaluation of minority groups is necessary for their successful integration in to the education system, if traditional practices are to continue in society. Many children in poorer areas are forced to “code-switch” between their home dialect and the dialect spoken in school. Teaching one “correct” way to speak and write can have major implications for a young person’s confidence and
Because all students should have the right to an equal education, ELL’s should have equal access to the same resources that other students have. The whole school should be on board with welcoming, supporting, and making the ELL student’s transition easier (Rance-Roney, 34). Teachers can also make a global community classroom, by doing so, it will create a culture rich environment inviting ELL’s and educating their peers on other cultures. Teachers can also adopt a dual curriculum for the ELL students that support their second language development but also teaches them the required standards (Rance-Roney,
The struggles ELL students face within the education system may have been a bit different than blatant racism, but the core idea of poor quality assurance is rampant. Florida's own consent decree was created to help ensure the identification and processes for students in need of help with the language to better prepare ELL students for their schooling career. The struggles of course still remain as the students will need to overcome barriers of language in an environment where the teacher may or may not be ESOL endorsed. This of course is the major problem students will face in Florida, to teach in the state a teacher must have an ESOL endorsement within two years of getting their first student of another language (FDOE, 2017, p. 24). While teachers of English or language arts have to have training within their degree, teachers of science, math, social studies, and other secondary classes do not, and are only required to seek the training you once a student classified as an ELL is placed into their class.
Summary Pulling from the experience of successful strategies and accommodations used by educators, chapter 3 outlines how English language learners can be supported in the classroom. Strategies for enhancing instruction through planning, supporting student involvement, building vocabulary and fluency, as well as comprehension are discussed. In regards to planning, it is recommended that educators plan with high expectations in mind and not underestimate the knowledge and abilities of ELLs. Higher order thinking such as creating, synthesizing, evaluating, analysis, and application are encouraged as approaches to instruction that is combined with engagement traits such as personal response, clearly modeled expectations, emotional and intellectual
Numerous factors have motivated me to want to become a school leader, such as colleagues who are role models in my life, my desire to make a change and to be an advocate for students who may struggle to support themselves. However, one project that I have been involved with that has ignited my desire to become a school leader was becoming the first English Language Learner (ELL) educator in my building in my first year as a full-time teacher. In previous years, my district had struggled with ELLs entering our middle school because we were such a low-incidence district. Due to a lack of enrollment and being on the cusp of the RETELL initiative, we did not have any teachers who were SEI endorsed or prepared to meet the various needs of the incoming ELL students. However, after some time as a long-term substitute English Language Arts educator, my administration asked if I would be interested in pursuing a master’s degree that would align with the needs of the ELL students.
During the 1970’s, California was in an uproar of submersion of bilingual education in the public education system. This period of permissive was a landmark for bilingual education because Lau V. Nichols marked a movement that lead to assimilation to redefine unification of the Americanization in the United States during this period. First, to understand the movement, in 1906 the Nationality Act passed that implicated the first legislation that required incoming immigrants to speak English as the dominant language (Barker, 2011). I believe in order to understand what is going on in the present you have to understand the history.
In the essay Rodriguez challenges the idea of bilingual education, he takes us through his personal experience of a bilingual childhood where he talks about what he encountered in America as he attempts to adjust to the American culture, and how he preserved his intimacy with his family even through the language barrier. Throughout the essay, we soon see that his identity and success is tied to the place and how he was raised, his parents are a major part of his success. Richard Rodriguez was Born in a Mexican immigrant family, him and he’s family moved to California, so he had to adapt to the new and unfamiliar situation, where the culture and language is completely different, therefore making him feel like he did not belong in the American culture. There was something Richard said that was really interesting, he said “An accident of geography sent me to a school where all my classmates were white.”
Though there is a low percentage of ELLs in this district, there is a strong importance placed on the district’s ELL program. The district views their ELL program as a way to enhance the general education classroom experience for their students. The district has a positive view of their ELLs, stating on their website, “We value the native language, culture, and background knowledge of each of our students” (Sycamore Community School District #427, 2017). The district does not seem to have a specific definition for what defines an ELL in their district. When we asked the ESL director how the district defines English language learners, he just told us that an ELL in the district is any student who qualifies for services.
This, consequently, qualified me for a spot in my elementary school’s ESL program, which was implemented into my class schedule. Only a seven year old at the time, I recall sitting amongst a small group of ten students, whose diverse ethnic backgrounds spanned three
Hello. Your post talks about the importance of communication between the ELL (English Language Learner) student and their teacher, and how communicating with pre-production and early production student can be challenging. I agree with you, finding appropriate leaning material is essential to helping ELL aquire English as well as stay interested in learning class content. I believe the most challenging aspect of an ELL teacher is helping students become proficient in English, while teaching the student grade level content.
This standard documentation gave an in-depth analysis of all the areas of the English section; reading literacy, reading information, reading foundational, writing, speaking & listening, and language. This documentation reveals what students are expected to learn, how they will learn it, and the direction they are heading in as they continue to reach their goals. This portion of the document examines every aspect of the English/Language Arts components, with given pointers as how to ensure that they are all followed correctly. Looking at this documentation shows that all 2nd grade students of the Language Arts will know how to do such given goals prior to moving on to 3rd grade English/ Language Arts, The only weakness that was fond in this section was the expectations from the teacher. When conducting and analyzing strategies, it is very imperative to ensure that the expectation of the instructor is given.
Students may feel disconnected from language because it is not allowing them to express themselves as much as it should so Dr. Hanauer presents his approach and method to ESL instruction in a way that allows students to feel more contextualized and human in their writings and expressions of English. His approach focuses on students being able to write poetry in English to describe very memorable or important events in their lives. The human connection and emotional connection
Migrants undergo the pressure of learning a new way of life and become familiar with the language and laws within the United States. Language barriers are fundamental obstacles for immigrants. They hinder migrants from making vital connections within their communities and even to get around on a daily basis (Garrett, 2006). Daily tasks such as taking a bus or grocery shopping can be overwhelming as they may have to communicate with other people in terms of being aware of their surroundings through conversations, reading signs or even to make purchases. Immigrants reported facing language barriers when they go to the public library, saw a doctor, at their children’s school, and when lost and seeking directions (Garrett, 2006).
It is a hard journey for both the students, families, and the teachers. But, their journey is not taken alone since there are about 5 million English language learners in the United State. ELL, or English
English-language learners (ELLs) with special needs belong to a minority group and require specific direction for educators on how to help these students in the school context and how to help to improve their educational outcomes. This is one of the most important topics in the field of education in the USA. The main issue of the teachers is to decrease the achievement gap between ELLs and their peers. Though, the educational needs of ELLs are diverse and rather complicated. English language learners face many obstacles due to their cultural and linguistic diversity.