Class Discussions
True or False: The way that English is used and taught in American educational institutions is called Proper English.
False - it is called Standard American English or Standard English.
Why did we use TeachLivE to teach quick lessons?
Using real children could have negative consequences on the children. They are not guinea pigs. :)
What city and state am I from?
St. Louis, MO
What do TESL and TESOL stand for?
Teaching English as a Second Language. Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.
True or false: Language objectives are important because they help students and teachers promote language skills, academic language functions, vocabulary, and language learning strategies.
True.
What was the purpose of watching the documentary Harvest of Empire?
To give context and historical background to immigration from Latin American countries. To show the need for continual education and learning about the world and our communities. To be informed citizens and educators.
True or False: It would be irresponsible to read a bilingual children's book to my class that only has a few students who speak both of those languages. It would be unfair to the students who only speak English.
False! Culturally Responsive Teaching means being inclusive of all students and integrating students' cultures into the classroom, not just the dominant cultures.
What grade do we find the greatest number of ELs? Why?
Kindergarten - they are still learning language and language components along with their native-speaker peers. Additionally, many families may choose to move and settle when their children are young.
What do BICS and CALP stand for and which comes first?
Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills. Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency. BICS come first.
The most common types of instruction for ESL students is ____ __, ____ ___, and _________ ___________.
push in, pull out, and sheltered instruction
Pushing in means the ESL teacher works with EL students in their regular classrooms.
Pulling out is when the ESL teacher takes students for a period of time to another classroom to work with them.
Sheltered instruction is the implementation of both content and language instruction in the regular classroom, or as a separate class (older grades).
Which city/town/village has the highest percentage of ELs in this area of Wisconsin?
Arcadia - about 41% of students are ELs.
True or False: content and language objectives should include lots of technical language because they are primarily for administration, not the students.
False!
What did Ms. Lea Matykiewicz say were the most important things to do as a teacher? (Name at least one.)
Build relationships, get to know your students, and advocate for them.
What is translanguaging and what is an example of it?
ELs using their full linguistic repertoire. An example would be completing an assignment in their L1 or chosen language(s), then discussing with the class in the target language.
Instead of seeing students, like ELs, from a deficit approach ("this student can't read fluently, is struggling with math, doesn't understand basic instructions..."), education is pushing for teachers to view students as what?
Funds of knowledge. Assets. What do they bring to the table? What do they already know? What do they know that can help them grow in their content and language abilities? What do they know that can contribute to our classroom?
True or False: Schools can require citizenship documentation in order to enroll students in school.
False - the 14th amendment protects students from being excluded in schooling based on immigration status.
In a SIOP lesson plan (or any good lesson plan), it's important to have both ______ ________ and _______ ________.
Content objectives and language objectives.
True or False: Giving students examples of the different varieties of English to listen to during lessons is irresponsible and might confuse them.
False! Learning and understanding the different varieties of English can be beneficial to all students.
What did WIDA used to stand for? What does it stand for now? What IS it?
1st definition: Wisconsin, Delaware, Arkansas
2nd definition: World-class Instructional Design and Assessment
WIDA means nothing now, (the WIDA consortium) and is used by 41 states to assess and track language proficiency of multilingual learners/emergent bilinguals.
What is comprehensible input?
In order to learn a new language, the input must be comprehensible to the learner. The speaker or teacher must create conditions in which the learner understands the message, even if they do not know every word.
What is scaffolding and what are some scaffolding techniques we can use in the classroom?
Scaffolding is a method in which the teacher delivers lessons in distinct and purposeful segments and slowly provides less and less support until the student is able to perform or produce on their own. Some examples include modeling what you expect students to do; providing visuals or graphic organizers at various stages of learning something new; activating and building background knowledge; having students brainstorm a topic and/or discuss with a classmate; providing extra supports during all stages of writing a paper or completing a project.
What is the difference between formative and summative assessments?
Formative assessments are ongoing and used by the teacher daily/weekly in order to see how students are doing throughout lessons. Can be a checklist, completing a graphic organizer, being able to use a complete sentence when sharing with a partner or the class, etc. Can be formal or informal.
Summative assessments are done at the end of a unit, the semester, or the year to gauge what the student has retained in sum. Typically formal.
True or False: Spanish is the official language of Mexico and most Mexicans speak only Spanish and some English.
False! Mexico, like the U.S. has no official language, rather they have a de facto language of Spanish. Indigenous languages are commonly spoken throughout Mexico, and the top indigenous language spoken is Nahuatl (primarily spoken in Central Mexico).
Fun fact: English has integrated some Nahuatl words such as avocado, chili, chipotle, chocolate, coyote and tomato (these words vary in similarity to the original Nahuatl words).
What does SLIFE stand for? What might this mean for the student?
Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education. This might mean the student is a refugee, comes from a war-torn country, has experienced trauma.
Choose one language policy or law that protects language rights we've discussed this semester and describe how it protects the rights of students:
Lau v. Nichols (1974); Castañeda v. Pickard (1981); Plyler v. Doe (1982); DACA and Dream Act (2010)
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
Civil Rights Act of 1964 – Title VI
Specifies that any entity, including schools cannot discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin
Includes English learners
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 – Title 7
Bilingual Education Act – rejected “sink or swim”/ immersion approach to teaching English learners
Recognized that immersion is not necessarily the best approach, bilingual education is more effective
NCLB and ESSA reauthorizations.
NCLB:
School districts decide entry and exit requirements
All students participate in standardized testing from grade 3 & up
Schools held accountable for improving English proficiency with limited funding
ESSA:
Entry and exit requirements made at state level
Newly arrived ELs are waived from being counted in standardized testing for three years (and count growth)
Schools build English proficiency rates into accountability – tied to more funding
More accountability with subgroups (gaps with specific demographics of students performing poorly) - if ELs are underperforming, the school will be flagged and must outline a plan to address the issue
Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974
Requires schools to take actions to overcome all students’ barriers to equal participation