Teaching Reading to LEP Students

Trinity UniversityEDU 989A

Instructor: Ms. Jennifer W. Estenós

Essential for some,

useful for all.

Introductions

Share your name/position/school.

What is one hobby that you enjoy (that you might be enjoying if you weren’t in this class )?

Ground Rules

Be open to share personal experiencesRespect the opinions and experiences of

othersAsk questionsActively participate in group discussionsBe on timeLimit Distractions to the Class

Silence cell phones Cell phones should not be used during class Save texting for breaks

Session 1 at a Glance

Guide to ESOL terms and acronyms Linguistic Theorists Stages of Language Learning Common Errors Process and Factors involved in Second

Language Learning Strategies for Beginner and Intermediate

Learners

Terms and Acronyms

ESOL—English to Speakers of Other Languages ESL—English as a Second Language TESOL—Teachers of English to Speakers of Other

Languages ELL—Engish Language Learner R-ELL—Reclassified English Language Learner ELL Plan—An Accomodations document for ELLs and

some RELLs LEP/LM—Limited English Proficient/ Language Minority TOEFL—Test of English as a Foreign Language for college

admissions BICS—Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (6mo-2

years) CALP—Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency

More Terms and Acronyms

Plug-In Pull-outCo-teaching LAS LinksBilingual EducationBilingualismCode SwitchingL1 vs. L2

RECLASSIFIED ENGLISH LANGUAGE

LEARNERS(R-ELLs)

ELLs who have exited the ESOL program within the past 2 years

ESOL STUDENTS

ELLs presently enrolled in the ESOL program receiving ESOL instruction

from the ESOL teacher using theESOL curriculum

NON-LEP SUBGROUP

ELLs who have exited the ESOL program more than 2 years ago

ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS

(ELLs)

LEP SUBGROUP(Limited English Proficiency)

Current ESOL students andcertain former ESOL students

Working withEnglish Language Learners

is a whole-school effort!

Who are ELLs?

Division of ESOL/Bilingual Programshttp://www.mcps.k12.md.us/curriculum/esol

3/7/2008

Acronym PreferencesConnotation of terms and acronyms

Society attempts to teach acceptance of language diversity

Our language/terminology reflects some discrimination for non-native English speakers◦ Limited English Proficient (LEP)◦ Language Minority (LM)

Course preference◦ English Language Learner (ELL)◦ English for Speakers of Other Languages/ English as a

Second Language (ESOL/ESL students)

B.F. SkinnerBehaviorist theory of language development

Children learn language through stimulus, response and reinforcement

Child’s mind is a tabula rasa, blank slate

Could not explain: Novel utterances Sentences that were grammatically

correct

Children automatically recognize when language is produced incorrectly as a part of the LAD.

Noam ChomskyCurrently Professor Emeritus of Linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Language is innate Babies are born with a

predisposition to learn language

Children learn the rules to a language as they hear it

Language Acquisition Device: Understanding of the rules

helps children to produce new sentences that they have never heard

Universal Grammar: There is one language with

many local variants

Universal GrammarUniversal language rule: All sentence structures include at least 3 parts; the subject, verb and object.

SVO: The teacher gave a lecture.◦ 75% of all the world’s languages

SOV: The teacher a lecture gave.◦ Japanese and Tibetan

VSO: Gave the teacher a lecture.◦ Welch

VOS: Gave a lecture the teacher.◦ Malagasy (spoken in Madagascar)

OSV: A lecture the teacher gave.◦ Extremely rare◦ Yoda from Star Wars

Stephen KrashenCurrently Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern California

Emphasis on interpersonal aspects of language

Meaningful interactions are the key to learning a language

Classrooms need to be engaging and non-threatening

Comprehensible Input= i+1 i=level of proficiency 1=the level just beyond

the learners current level

Reflection

Can you think of learning experiences in your life that involve i+1? Instances where your skills can only improve with the input of something slightly above your comfort level?Example: learning to ski

Jim Cummins

BICS—Basic Interpersonal Language Develops in 6month-2 years Language to have conversational communication

CALP—Cognitive Academic Language Develops in 4-7 years (up to 10 years) Language to express more cognitively demanding concepts –

require the speaker to synthesize information

Ease of language learning depends of the context Context Embedded vs. Context Reduced

Language Skills depend on cognitive demands on the student Cognitively demanding vs. Cognitively undemanding

Take a deeper look at BICS and CALP

Which skills are developed as a part of BICS

Which skills require a deeper language knowledge

Context Embedded vs. Context Reduced

Context embedded—communication occurs in a context that offers help to comprehension◦ Visual cues◦ Gestures◦ Expressions◦ Meaning is relatively obvious due to help from physical or

social nature of conversation

Context Reduced—few cues as to the meaning of the communication apart from the words themselves—language is likely to be abstract◦ Listening to a lecture◦ Reading dense text◦ Phone Conversations

Cognitively Undemanding vs. Cognitively Demanding

Cognitively Undemanding Minimal abstract or critical thinking Conversation on the playground Yes/no questions

Cognitively Demanding Analyze and synthesize information with

abstract concepts Academic content lessons Multiple choice test

Michael Long & Catherine DoughtyCurrently Professor at Hawaii University

Interaction Purposeful communication of language

Strategies Pronunciation practice Teach how to form questions Comprehension checks Repetitions of key words and phrases

Successful Language Acquisition

Language Theories Influence Language Instruction

Components of ESOL Speaking

Listening

Reading

Writing

Group Work

Describe this stage of language development.

What is important for teachers to know about this stage of language development?

Are students learning BICS or CALP at this stage?

Create a skit to show how a teacher would interact with students at this stage.

Question for Thought

What challenges do you think challenges do English language learners face when they attempt to read?

Younger vs. Older Students

Background knowledge

Knowledge of sentence structure

Ability to communicate fluently

If the student has not had formal education they will more than likely take longer to acquire English

Selecting the Right TextReading Levels

Too easy will make students get bored or will not sufficiently challenge students

Too hard will frustrate students Limited meaning Students may give up!

Instructional reading level challenges students with text that has the appropriate level of: Sentence complexity New vocabulary

"Awaken people's curiosity. It is enough to open minds, do not overload them. Put there just a spark."

- Anatole France

Purpose of Running Records Determine or confirm a student’s instructional

reading level 95-100% Independent 90-94% Instructional 89% and below Frustration

Identify the cueing system(s) a student uses when encountering an unknown word Meaning Structure Visual

Create a record of Reading Progress over time Plan for instruction

Analyzing Student Errors

Meaning (makes sense in that book) Example: She has one rabbit in her hair. (ribbon)

Structure (sounds right in English) Example: She has one red ribbons in her hair.

(ribbon) Difficult for ESOL students who don’t know what

really sounds right

Visual (looks right in print) She has one red bow in her hair. (ribbon)

Stage 1: Silent/ Receptive StageImportant Vocabulary/Topics for Reading Text Greetings

Dialogue Practice

Routines Calendar Weather Daily Schedule

Places in the School

Classroom Vocabulary (Unique per setting)

Yes/No Questions

Labeled classroomA literacy rich classroom helps students have a greater understanding of the purpose of print

Great On-line Resource

Mes-English—Worksheets and flashcards for picture support of numerous topics Activities for language support

http://www.mes-english.com/

Questions to Demonstrate Comprension

Yes/No Questions

Multiple Choice Questions

Questions with Picture Support

Fill in the Blank with a word bank

Graphic Organizers

Provide a basic scaffolding for writing

Organizes and Prepares students for more complex writing Vocabulary Ideas

Answer: This language structure includes do, don’t, does, doesn’t, did and didn’t.

Question: What is an auxiliary verb?