Competency 7: Teaching English Language Learners (ELLs)

The Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA)

- A content-based approach to language acquisition that makes content and learning strategies the main focus of instruction, while language skills are acquired in context as needed

Parent Leadership Council

- A group that provides parents an opportunity to be involved in and participate in their students' educational programming - Majority of the parents must be parents of ELLs - Must be consulted prior to submission of the ELL district plan to the state for approval

Florida Consent Decree

- A settlement agreement reached in 1990 between the state of Florida and a coalition of eight groups who were advocating for the rights of ELLs (referred to as LEP students at the time of the Decree) in Florida - Contains six sections: Sec. 1) Identification & Assessment Sec. 2) Equal Access to Appropriate Programming Sec. 3) Equal Access to Appropriate Categorical and Other Programs for LEP Students Sec. 4) Personnel Sec. 5) Monitoring Issues Sec. 6) Outcome Measures

ELL Student Plan

- A written document or electronic file that identifies student name, plan date, instruction by program (including programs other than ESOL provided), amount of instructional time or schedule, date of ELL identification, assessment data used to classify or reclassify as ELL, date of exit, and assessment data used to exit student from the ESOL program - Every ELL student must have an ELL student plan on file

The Input hypothesis

- Acquiring second language ability requires that learners receive comprehensible input that slightly exceeds their current level of ability - Comprehensible input is advanced by the use of visuals, graphics, gestures, and actions along with multiple and frequent exposure to the words and concepts

The Affective Filter hypothesis

- Affective factors such as emotions, feelings, and dispositions can impact second language acquisition - Negative affective factors can create a "mental block" or imaginary filter in the brain that makes input unavailable for acquisition

The Acquisition-Learning hypothesis

- An adult's second language ability is acquired through two interrelated systems: subconscious language acquisition and conscious language learning - Subconscious acquisition requires meaningful interaction and natural communication in the second language - Conscious language learning occurs through formal instruction and is characterized by error correction and explicit teaching of rules

The Natural Approach

- An approach based on Krashen's stages of language acquisition designed to develop communicative language skills, both oral and written, through experiences with words in accordance with the way children acquire language naturally

Language Experience Approach

- An approach based on the idea that students can produce language from firsthand experiences, and that this then can be turned into written material for reading - It consists of eight steps: providing an experience that stimulates students' thinking and language production, facilitating language production, having the students graphically depict the experience, involving students in group sharing about the experience, writing and organizing students' statements into a story about the experience, reading the story, having the students copy the story (appropriate for older learners), and engaging students in follow-up activities such as creating a class book of student-created stories - For younger learners, an appropriate writing activity is having them write one sentence about the story/experience using self-generated sentence structure and invented spelling (phonetic spelling)

Total Physical Response (TPR)

- An approach developed by James Asher that uses commands and physical activity to increase language retention and understanding - This approach has been shown to be effective with initial language instruction - Students demonstrate understanding through physical responses and are not pressured to respond orally -Ex.) The teacher may say "stand up" as he or she demonstrates standing up from a seated position. The teacher then would gesture for students to engage in this activity as he or she again says "stand up".

ESOL Sheltered-Instruction/Structured Submersion

- An approach used to make academic content comprehensible to ELLs using ESOL strategies - The students are "sheltered" since their classes include only ELLs - Students can share the same home language or have different home languages - Students may use their home language in class. However, English is the teacher's language of instruction and is adapted to the students' proficiency levels and contextually supported with gestures, models (including manipulatives and concrete representations), and visuals

Dual Language (Two-way Developmental Bilingual Education)

- Classrooms are composed of both ELLs and native English speakers - Instruction in all subject areas is in English and in the ELLs' native language, so both groups of students become proficient in both languages

ELL (or LEP) Committee

- Committee composed of the ESOL teacher(s), the home language teacher (if any), an administrator (or designee), plus a guidance counselor(s), social worker, school psychologist, or other educators appropriate for the situation - Parents are also invited to serve on their child's ELL Committee and/or attend any committee meetings

ESOL Mainstream/Inclusion Instruction

- ELLs are instructed in regular education classes fluent English speakers where they are taught by a subject area qualified ESOL-endorsed and certified teacher, along with additional instructional supports and services as needed to make inclusion successful for the ELLs - Teachers use ESOL strategies to make academic content comprehensible to ELLs

Home Language/Maintenance (or Developmental) Bilingual Education (MBE)

- ELLs are taught basic subject areas by a bilingual teacher in their native language in classes composed of only ELLs - The aim is to preserve and build on ELLs' native language skills as they learn English

Multiculturalism

- In Florida, multiculturalism, is probably best defined as celebrating diversity

Integrated Language Teaching

- Language learning is interwoven with instruction in the content area, rather than treated as an isolated topic in which instruction concentrates on grammar rules and verb conjugations - Students build literacy skills while learning academic subject matter

Cummins' 4 levels of increasing language difficulty

- Level 1) Cognitively Undemanding & Context-Embedded (Ex.: Having a conversation with friends; ordering food at a cafeteria; playing sports; talking at parties) - Level 2) Cognitively Undemanding & Context-Reduced (Ex.: Ordering food over the telephone; following instructions given on a tape-recorded message; reading a letter from a friend) - Level 3) Cognitively Demanding & Context-Embedded (Ex.: Solving math problems using graphs, charts, figures, diagrams, or manipulatives; doing a hands-on science experiment; playing an interactive computer simulation game) - Level 4) Cognitively Demanding & Context-Reduced (Ex.: Proving math theorems; writing a research report; listening to a presentation on an unfamiliar topic)

Basic Subject Areas

- Reading, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, and Computer Literacy instruction

Other subject areas

- Refers to areas of instruction other than basic ESOL or basic subject areas

Student Supportive Services

- Services provided by guidance counselors, psychologists, social workers, visiting teachers, occupational placement specialists, health service providers, school administrators, district level program coordinators, teachers as advisors, or parents

Home Language Survey

- Survey that is given to all Florida students at the time of enrollment - Must include the following questions: a.) Is a language other than English used in the home? b.) Did the student have a first language other than English? c.) Does the student most frequently speak a language other than English? - A student who responds "yes" to one or more of these questions is assessed to determine whether the student is an ELL - If the student's "yes" response is to question (b) or (c), or both, the student is placed in an English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) program and coded LY, pending assessment to determine if the student is an ELL - A student who responds "yes" to question (a) only does not need to be placed in an ESOL program pending assessment

Whole-Language Approach

- Teaching literacy through the integration of listening, speaking, reading, and writing

Storytelling/Retelling

- Telling or reading highly predictable or familiar stories that make regular use of patterns and that can be easily pantomimed or dramatized

Teaching English Language Learners

- Term that describes research-based practices and strategies that teachers use with English Language Learners (ELLs)

The Monitor hypothesis

- The crux of this hypothesis is that conscious learning can be used only as a monitor for the language attempts of the acquisition system - Language that is acquired through natural means is edited, either before or after production, for correctness and accuracy by the conscious learning system

The Natural Order hypothesis

- The grammatical rules and structures of a language are acquired in a predictable order

Home or Native Language

- The language normally used by an ELL student or the student's parents

Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP)

- The language skills required for academic achievement, are seldom acquired as easily as BICS - The cognitive demands of the language of the classroom are usually much higher than those of social situations - The contextual support that is often found in social situations (i.e., gestures, facial expressions, and so on) cannot be counted on for academic tasks - According to Cummins, it takes 5-7 years for students to acquire CALP after initial exposure to the second language

Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS)

- The language skills required for everyday activities - The language skills that are used to communicate with others in a social environment - Ex.) children acquire BICS in a natural way from their friends, the media, and day-to-day experiences

Ethnocentrism

- The natural tendency to view one's own cultural or familiar ways of doing things as best and most acceptable

The Comprehensive English Language Learning Assessment (CELLA)

- The state-approved assessment for English language proficiency - Florida uses CELLA to measure ELLs' progress toward attaining English language proficiency in oral language skills (listening & speaking) and literacy skills (reading & writing)

Basic ESOL

- The teaching of English to students whose native language is other than English using the English language as the medium of instruction - Basic ESOL programs must include instruction to develop skills in speaking, listening, reading, and writing English to enable the student to be English proficient

District ELL plan

- The written state-approved plan prepared by the district that describes the district's proposed procedures and methodologies for serving ELLs - Must rely upon and incorporate home language instruction in basic subject areas in addition to basic ESOL instruction - Must be updated and resubmitted every three years

ELL code categories

1.) LY: K-12 grade ELL enrolled in classes specifically designed for ELLs 2.) LP: 4-12 grade ELL who is aural/oral full English proficient based on testing, but for whom the reading/writing test is pending 3.) LF: K-12 grade former ELL who is followed for a 2-year period after having exited from the ESOL program 4.) LZ: K-12 grade former ELL who exited the program more than 2 years ago 5.) ZZ: K-12 grade non-ELL

False Cognates

A pair of words in two different languages that are the same or similar in appearance but differ in meaning Ex.) boot (boat in German) and boot (footwear in English)

Dialect

A variation of a language used by a particular group of people

Register

An appropriate form of language determined by the setting and the relationship to the person or persons to whom the speaker is speaking

Idioms or Idiomatic Expressions

Expressions, peculiar or characteristic of a given language, that are difficult to understand when translated literally

Overgeneralization

Extending a grammatical rule inappropriately, such as adding -ed to the end of irregular verbs (i.e., goed instead of went)

Receptive language skills

Listening & reading

Overcorrection

Overdoing a grammatical rule by applying it unnecessarily, such as adding -s to a plural form of a noun (i.e., peoples instead of people)

Submersion

Placing ELLs in regular, English-only classrooms with little or no support

Expressive Language Skills

Speaking and writing - Also called productive language skills

Literacy

The ability to read and write

Code-switching

The alternate use of two languages interchangeably within a language utterance Ex.) "Good, hijo (son)"

Function

The intended use of language 1.) Instrumental function: to satisfy wants and needs 2.) Regulatory function: to control the behavior of others 3.) Interactional function: to exchange information with others 4.) Personal function: to maintain contact with others 5.) Heuristic function: to assert identity, make choices, and take responsibility 6.) Imaginative function: to pretend and create images 7.) Informative function: to inform

Target language

The second language being learned

Morpheme

The smallest unit of meaning; for example, the word dogs has two morphemes: the root dog and the s that indicates plural

Phoneme

The smallest unit of meaningful sound

Linguistics

The structural aspects of a language

Morphology

The study and description of word patterns and how words are formed

Phonology

The study of speech sounds

Semantics

The study of the meaning of words

Syntax

The systematic arrangement of words in a sentence

Jargon

The technical language of a discipline or profession

Pragmatics

The use of language in social contexts

Lexicon

The vocabulary used in a particular profession, subject area, or social group

Cognates

Words that are related in meaning and form to words in another language Ex.) animal in English and animal in Spanish are cognates