Key Terms
What does WIDA stand for?
Nothing. Originally, it stood for Wisconsin, Delaware, and Arkansas, the founding states. Then Arkansas dropped out, and WIDA became the World-class Instructional Design and Assessment. Now WIDA does not stand for anything and is just known as the WIDA consortium. WIDA is used in Wisconsin.
What language(s) is/are the official language of the United States?
The U.S. does not have an official language, but English is the de facto language.
UPDATE: As of March 2025, English is the official language of the U.S.
True or False: Teachers should value linguistic diversity and see students as assets in the classroom.
True
What is the difference between assimilation and acculturation?
Assimilation is leaving behind one's culture/being forced out of one's culture and into the dominant culture by way of language, food, dress, and relationship-building. Acculturation is adapting aspects of the dominant culture while retaining one's individual culture. Forced assimilation has been a practice in the U.S. with many groups, notoriously with indigenous groups and First Nations.
Which grade level typically has the highest number of MLs? Why?
Kindergarten; this is because over time, MLs typically exit out of services and there are fewer as they get older.
What does SLIFE stand for?
Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education.
What is the annual assessment for English proficiency called that is used in the state of Wisconsin?
The ACCESS test.
About how long does it take for MLs to exit out of language learning services?
It typically takes 4-6 years to exit out of services.
What are the 5 principles of assessment?
1. Validity
2. Reliability
3. Practicality
4. Authenticity
5. Washback
What is a reason learning English might be easier for a German speaker than an Arabic speaker?
German is much closer to English than Arabic.
What are the four domains of language learning?
listening, speaking, reading, writing.
If a family shows up to Parent-Teacher conferences and does not know English, what is the school legally required to do?
The school must have professional translators and cannot use children to translate. Schools must also send any documents or papers from the school translated into the parent/guardians' preferred language.
What is the framework that we use for this class?
The 6 Principles: 1) Know your learners; 2) create conditions for language learning; 3) design high-quality language lessons; 4) adapt lesson delivery as needed; 5) monitor and assess language development; 6) engage and collaborate with a community of practice
What is co-teaching? Co-planning? Push-in and pull-out? Sheltered instruction?
Co-teaching is when the classroom teacher and EL teacher teach the students together.
Co-planning is when the classroom and EL or other specialist teachers plan lessons, but do not necessarily teach together.
Push-in is when EL teachers go into the regular classroom to work with EL students.
Pull-out is when EL teachers bring students to a separate room to teach students language development.
Sheltered Instruction is when students are taught content and language in a sheltered classroom. Language and content are taught, scaffolding and language supports are used; an EL teacher or classroom teacher with expertise/training teaches in these classrooms.
What is "broken English"? What is "proper English"?
These are not terms we use! English is a world language and many different Englishes are spoken around the world. No one type, dialect, or accent of English is better or worse than another. Many Englishes outside of the U.S., U.K., and Australia have their own structures and grammatical rules. They are simply different. Please do not use these terms!
What are BICS and CALP? Which comes first?
Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills - social English, everyday English
Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency - academic language, specialty language
BICS comes first in 1-3 years.
CALP comes in 4-7 years.
What are some of the rights of all children regardless of documentation or citizenship?
All U.S. children have the right to attend public schools; schools cannot ask for proof of documentation or documentation status; all children have the right to receive necessary services like EL services, special education, and free and reduced lunch, even if there is only 1 EL student enrolled. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 also protects families from discrimination on the basis of race and national origin.
What are language and content objectives? Why are both important?
Content objectives tell what students will be able to do by the end of the lesson in content areas. For example, a content objective for science might use a particular concept or process that students will be able to master by the end of the lesson/unit.
Language objectives tell how students will use the content in a language domain. For example, that same science lesson's language objectives might discuss how students will write out a scientific process using the correct academic language, or how students will be able to discuss (speak) with their peers about the results of the experiment.
Name some examples of comprehensible input and language supports teachers can use in the classroom to help MLs during lessons.
Modifying speech - slowing down the rate of speaking; using appropriate language (not using unnecessarily complicated language).
Using visuals - adding graphics, pictures, videos, media, or even hands-on materials to support lesson.
Using gestures and body language - pointing to things as you talk about them, acting out parts of the lesson if possible, modeling what is expected.
Using the languages represented in class to translate key terms.
Using strategies like translanguaging.
Multilingualism in education has not always been such a contentious topic. What are some reasons English-forward education has been more heavily emphasized over the years?
Prior to mass immigration during the Industrial Revolution, communities were more or less left to decide on how to educate their own.
Due to personal and political divisiveness over the years and immigration into the U.S. from increasingly non-European countries, English has become the emphasis. English has also become a world language and the lingua franca in much of the world.
More of a focus on standardized testing in English.
What does LTEL stand for?
Long-term English Learner - applied to ELs who have been in the program for 6+ years and requires additional support
Name one U.S. policy or supreme court case that protects the rights of language minorities and multilingual learners.
NCLB, or No Child Left Behind was signed into law in 2001. ESSA, or Every Child Succeeds Act was signed in 2015. NCLB included ELs in assessment data so schools would be held accountable; under NCLB, 100% proficiency rate was expected. Under ESSA, the 100% efficiency rate and AYP was taken out and states have more autonomy in measurement and achievement goals.
Lau v. Nichols (1974)
Schools must provide supplemental language instruction to English learners.
Providing the same education as for non-English learners violates their civil rights
Castañeda v. Pickard (1981)
Schools must provide adequate instruction to English learners
Provides criteria to do so
Plyler v. Doe (1982)
All children, regardless of immigration status, have the right to attend free public school
DACA and Dream Act (2010)
Undocumented children can attend higher education at in-state rates and avoid deportation.
Rescinded (2017), but recently (sort of) reaffirmed by the Supreme Court
What are the different types of assessments and what are examples of each type? Name three.
Formative: on-going; assesses all lesson, unit, or course objectives as well as learning processes; provides feedback to learner and teacher on progress in learning; provides for individual remediation
Summative: periodic, end of a unit or course; assesses selected unit or course objectives; often tests; used for decision-making (i.e. placement or passing) and results are reported to others
Assessments OF learning: usually summative; for teachers and administrators - standardized testing, finals, final projects
Assessments FOR learning: Students are partners and co-collaborators. Students have a voice and choice throughout assessment process. Increases student engagement and motivation. Examples: class discussions, exit tickets, peer reviews.
Assessments AS learning: Students actively involved; "a social and cultural activity where performance is co-constructed among students or students under the guidance of teachers" (p. 142). Helps develop student agency and allows learners to be more autonomous, self-regulated students. Examples: self-assessments, reflective journals, goal setting
What is translanguaging and what is one strategy to help implement it in the regular classroom?
The ability of multilinguals to move fluidly throughout their full linguistic repertoire to make sense of their environment/what they are doing and to interact. It is also a pedagogical approach to teaching in which teachers set up lessons to encourage the use of students' full linguistic repertoire.
Some strategies are to pair students with the same L1 together to work on a project or talk about classroom content; multilingual texts in content learning and classroom libraries; multimodal learning (teaching to different learning styles); multilingual word walls and graphic organizers
What document was recently rescinded and what impact might it make on ESL education in the U.S.?
The Dear Colleague letter, which offers advice and guidance on federal obligations to all MLs in public schools. The letter set out guidance (not legally binding regulation, but interpretive guidance) on how school districts could comply with these laws in serving students with limited English proficiency (LEP).
Without this letter, states may have more room to interpret laws and policies in their own way, which may lead to variation in how MLs are served; may lead some states to believe investigations into non-compliance may be minimized.