Post on 17-Dec-2015
Improving Academics through Language
Acquisition
Presented by: Elizabeth Suman
ARE YOU A CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHER?
Definition
• “The validation and affirmation of the home culture and home language for the purposes of building and bridging the student to success in the culture of academia and mainstream society. Simply put, CLR is going to where the students are culturally and linguistically for the aim of bringing them where they need to be academically. Metaphorically, CLR is the opposite of the sink and swim approach to teaching and learning.” Sharrocky Hollie PhD
Components• You can define it
• Something that you are not that you do
• You are not confused about your identity
• You know who you are serving or not serving
• You don’t celebrate Black History Month
• Practice every day in every way
ACRONYMS
How many of these acronyms can you identify?
• ELL• LEP• FLEP• ESOL• ESL• TESOL• LAB-R• L1
• L2• HLQ
• BICS • CALP• SIOP• LEAP• SIFE• NYSESLAT
HOW IS AN ELL/LEP STUDENT IDENTIFIED?
Types of programs RCSD has for LEP/ELL students
• Free Standing ESOL : This is the type of program we have at School #41
• Bilingual: Spanish/English • LEAP (Learning through English
Academic Program) : It’s a self-contained class for LEP/ELLs who are newcomers.
What does Free Standing ESOL at School #41 Look Like?
• Can be push-in or pull-out: I do pull-out only• Students are grouped together by grade level
and language ability which is determined by the NYSESLAT score
• The NYSESLAT is given every May and includes 4 parts: Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing. It is also given by grade level: K-1, 2-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 9-12.
• NYSESLAT scores are either Beginning, Intermediate, Advanced or Proficient(When a student reaches proficient, they exit the program)
Free Standing ESOL at School #41 Cont.• According to the NYS regulations for ESOL found in
CR Part 154, beginning and intermediate students should receive 70 minutes of ESOL a day and advance students should receive 35 minutes a day.
• Currently all of my students are receiving 35 minutes of ESOL a day due to my being stretched so thin between three schools.
• ESOL focuses on building all four language skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking
• Lessons are alligned with what their classroom teachers are teaching
• ELL/LEP students also receive test accommodations which include: separate location, extended time, and listening passage read three times.
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION BASICS
Language Development Basics
• BICS (Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills) 1-2 yrs. to develop
• CALP (Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency) 5-7 yrs. to develop
Stages of Language AcquisitionStage Characteristics Approximate
Time FrameTeacher Prompts
Preproduction The student: • Has minimal comprehension• Does not verbalize• Nods “Yes” and “No”• Draws and points
0-6 Months • Show me...• Circle the...• Where is...?• Who has...?
Early Production
The student: • Has limited comprehension• Produces one- or two-word
responses• Participates using key words
and familiar phrases• Uses present-tense verbs
6 Months-1 year
• Yes/no questions• Either/or questions• One- or two-word
answers• Lists• Labels
Speech Emergence
The student :• Has good comprehension• Can produce simple
sentences• Makes grammar and
pronunciation errors• Frequently misunderstands
jokes
1-3 years • Why...?• How...?• Explain...• Phrase or short-
sentence answers
Intermediate Fluency
The student :• Has excellent
comprehension• Makes few grammatical
errors
3-5 years • What would happen if...?
• Why do you think...?
Advanced Fluency
The student has a near-native level of speech.
5-7 years • Decide if...• Retell...
STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING LANGUAGE ACQUISITION
Activity
• Can you read the story The Traveler?• This is how students with lack of CALP see
the reading tasks we give them. • What can we do to make something like
more meaningful? • One way to do it is through the SIOP
model.
SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol)
• Lesson Preparation• Building Background• Comprehensible Input
• Strategies• Interaction
• Practice/Application• Lesson Delivery
• Review/Assessment
Lesson Preparation
• Content Objective• Language Objective
• Content concepts appropriate• Supplementary Materials
• Adaptation of content to all levels
• Meaningful Activities
Building Background
• Concepts explicitly linked to students’ background
experiences• Links explicitly made between
past learning and new concepts
• Key vocabulary
Comprehensible Input
• Speech appropriate for students’ proficiency level
• Clear explanations• A variety of techniques used to
make content concepts clear
Strategies
• Ample opportunities provided for students to use learning
strategies• Scaffolding Techniques• A variety of tasks that
promote higher order thinking skills
Interaction
• Frequent opportunities for interaction and discussion
• Grouping configurations• Sufficient wait time for student
responses• Ample opportunities for students to
clarify concepts in L1
Practice/Application
• Hands-on materials and/or manipulatives
• Apply content and language knowledge
• Activities integrate all language skills (reading,
writing, listening and speaking)
Lesson Delivery
• Content Objectives clearly supported
• Language Objectives clearly supported
• Students engaged approximately 90%-100% of the time• Appropriate Pacing
Review/Assessment
• Review of key vocabulary• Review of key content
concepts• Regular feedback
• Assessment of student comprehension and learning
CULTURAL MISCUES
Some Examples
• Talk: When it is and is not appropriate to talk in a classroom
• Personal Space• Clothes• Materials• Male and Female roles• Asking questions• Entering and Leaving the classroom• Classroom movement (group work, amount of
movement)• Pace, time• Different teachers with different expectations
Code Switching
• We speak differently in different situations• We need to validate the way our students
speak in addition to teaching them standard English
• Many children don’t know that there is any other way to speak
• Through literature and the use of role play we can both validate our students’ home language and teach standard English
• Different registers of language can also be explored in writing
Final Thought
“Equality means getting what you
need, not the same thing”