Supporting English Learners in the Later Grades

Michael J. Kieffer, Ed.D. New York University

National Academy of Sciences Meeting Mary 28, 2018

Focus Topics

• English literacy trajectories of ELLs beyond Grade 3

– Evidence from longitudinal research

• Effective instructional methods for ELLs in upper elementary and middle school grades

– Evidence from experimental & quasi-experimental field trials

• Gaps in these bodies of research

Developmental Trajectories: Converging Evidence

• Developing academic English proficiency (particularly in reading & writing) is a long-term process (e.g., Conger, 2009; Cook et al., 2011; Hakuta et al., 2000;

Kieffer, 2008, 2011; Umansky & Reardon, 2014).

• Underachievement of students who enter school as ELLs persists after many years of U.S. schooling – but may be more related to poverty, limited

opportunities to learn, and other risk factors than language background per se (e.g., Kieffer, 2008, 2010 2011, 2012a, 2012b; Lesaux & Kieffer, 2010)

Growth Trajectories in English Reading (Kieffer, 2011)

• Examined reading growth between Kindergarten and Grade 8 for language minority learners of differing initial English oral proficiency, as compared to their native English-speaking counterparts

• Drew on data on a nationally representative sample of students from Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten, 1998 Cohort

Research Questions

1. How do English reading growth trajectories differ among – iELLs: Parent report of another language at home & who

enter kindergarten with limited oral English proficiency on K LAS-based screener

– iBilinguals: Parent report of another language at home & proficient on K LAS-based screener

– Native English speakers 2. How do these trajectories differ when comparing

students from the similar socioeconomic backgrounds attending schools with similar concentrations of poverty? – Family SES: Income, Parental Education, Occupation – School concentration of students receiving free/reduced

lunch

Initial-ELLs remain far below national norms

d = -.78 2.4 years behind

iBilingual

d = -.57 2.1 years behind

Native English

iELL

Engl

ish

Rea

din

g (T

het

a)

(Kieffer, 2011)

But, initial-ELLs converge with their classmates from the same SES backgrounds

d = -.15 1/2 year behind

Engl

ish

Rea

din

g (T

het

a) iBilingual

Native English

iELL

d = .10 1/3 year ahead

(Kieffer, 2011)

Initial-Bilinguals pull ahead of their classmates from the same SES backgrounds

d = .24 0.7 years ahead

Engl

ish

Rea

din

g (T

het

a) iBilingual

Native English

iELL

d = .32 1.2 years ahead

(Kieffer, 2011)

Gap between Reading Words & Comprehending Texts: Converging Evidence

• Language minority learners reach adequate levels of decoding, but struggle with reading comprehension (see meta-analysis by Lesaux et al., 2006 in

August & Shanahan, 2006). • This pattern persists through the upper

elementary and middle school grades (e.g., Lesaux et al., 2010; Lesaux & Mancilla-Martinez, 2010, 2011; Nakamoto et al., 2007).

• English vocabulary and listening comprehension are common sources of reading difficulties (e.g., August et al., 2005; Lesaux & Kieffer, 2010; Mancilla-Martinez & Lesaux, 2011; Proctor et al., 2005).

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90P

erc

en

tile

Ra

nk

Grade 4

Grade 5

Grade 6

Grade 7

Grade 8

Word Reading Fluency Oral Language Reading Comprehension

(Lesaux, Crosson, Kieffer & Pierce, 2010)

Gap between Reading Words & Comprehending Texts

Word Reading: Pre-K to Grade 5

(Mancilla-Martinez & Lesaux, 2011)

English

Spanish

Monolingual Norms

(Mancilla-Martinez & Lesaux, 2011)

Oral Vocabulary: Pre-K to Grade 5

d=1.8

d=1.0

English Spanish

Monolingual Norms

Effective Instruction for English Language Learners in Grades 4-8:

Evidence from Experimental & Quasi-experimental Studies

Panel

• Scott Baker (Chair) – Executive Director, Center on Research and Evaluation, Southern Methodist University

• Esther Geva – Professor, University of Toronto

• Michael J. Kieffer – Associate Professor, New York University

• Nonie Lesaux – Professor, Harvard University

• Sylvia Linan-Thompson – Associate Professor, University of Texas at Austin

• Joan Morris – Teacher Specialist, Pasadena Unified School District

• C. Patrick Proctor – Associate Professor, Boston College

• Randi Russell – Curriculum Support Specialist, Miami-Dade County Public Schools

WWC Practice Guide on Teaching English Learners

Recommendations

1. Teach a set of academic vocabulary words intensively across several days using a variety of instructional activities.

2. Integrate oral and written English language instruction into content-area teaching.

3. Provide regular, structured opportunities to develop written language skills.

4. Provide small-group instructional intervention to students struggling in areas of literacy and English language development.

(Baker et al., 2014)

Recommendation WWC Level of Evidence

Studies

1. Academic Vocabulary

Strong 1 Study in PreK-2 5 Studies in Grades 5-7

2. Integration with Content

Strong 1 Study in PreK-2 4 Studies in Grades 5-7

3. Writing Minimal 1 Study in Grade 6 1 Study in Grades 6-12 Inconsistent results

4. Small-group intervention

Moderate 5 Studies in K-2 1 Study in Grades 6-8 Inconsistent results

Supporting Evidence (that met WWC standards)

(Baker et al., 2014)

Gaps in these Bodies of Research

• Literacy development & instruction in high school

• Writing development & instruction

Gaps in these Bodies of Research

• Identifying the active ingredients within multi-componential interventions

• Effective instruction for sub-groups of English language learners

– adolescent & pre-adolescent newcomers

– “Long-term” ELLs

– Former ELLs

– ELLs with disabilites

References

August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C., & Snow, C. (2005). The critical role of vocabulary development for English language learners. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 20(1), 50-57.

Baker, S., Lesaux, N., Jayanthi, M., Dimino, J., Proctor, P., Morris, J., Gersten, R., Haymond, K., Kieffer, M. J., Linan-Thompson, S., & Newman-Gonchar, R. (2014). Teaching academic content and literacy to English learners in elementary and middle school (NCEE #2014-4012). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

Cook, H.G., Boals, T., & Lundberk, T. (2011). Academic achievement for English learners: What can we reasonably expect? Kappa, 93, 66-69.

Conger, D. (2009). Testing, time limits, and English learners: Does age of school entry affect how quickly students can learn English? Social Science Research, 38, 383-396.

Hakuta, K., Butler, Y. G., & Witt, D. (2000). How long does it take English learners to attain proficiency? (Policy report). Santa Barbara: University of California Language Minority Research Institute.

Kieffer, M. J. (2008). Catching up or falling behind? Initial English proficiency, con- centrated poverty, and the reading growth of language minority learners in the United States. Journal of Educational Psychology, 100, 851–868.

Kieffer, M. J. (2010). Socioeconomic status, English proficiency, and late-emerging reading difficulties. Educational Researcher, 39, 484–486.

Kieffer, M. J. (2011). Converging trajectories: Reading growth in language minority learners and their classmates, kindergarten to grade eight. American Educational Research Journal, 48, 1157-1186.

Kieffer, M. J. (2012a). Before and after third grade: Longitudinal evidence for the shifting role of socioeconomic status in reading growth. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 25, 1725-1746.

References

Kieffer, M. J. (2012b). Early oral language and later reading development among Spanish-speaking English language learners: Evidence from a nine-year longitudinal study. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 33, 146-157.

Lesaux, N. K. (with Koda, K., Siegel, L. S., & Shanahan, T.). (2006). Development of literacy in language-minority students. In D. August & T. Shanahan (Eds.), Developing literacy in second-language learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth (pp. 75–122). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Lesaux, N. K., Crosson, A., Kieffer, M. J., & Pierce, M. (2010). Uneven profiles: Language minority learners’ word reading, vocabulary, and reading comprehension skills. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 31, 475-483.

Lesaux, N. K., & Kieffer, M. J. (2010). Exploring sources of reading comprehension difficulties among language minority learners and their classmates in early adolescence. American Educational Research Journal, 47, 596-632.

Mancilla‐Martinez, J., & Lesaux, N. K. (2011). The gap between Spanish speakers’ word reading and word knowledge: A longitudinal study. Child development, 82(5), 1544-1560.

Nakamoto, J., Lindsey, K. A., & Manis, F. R. (2007). A longitudinal analysis of English language learners’ word decoding and reading comprehension. Reading and Writing, 20(7), 691-719.

Proctor, C. P., Carlo, M., August, D., & Snow, C. (2005). Native Spanish-Speaking Children Reading in English: Toward a Model of Comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97(2), 246.

Umansky, I. M., & Reardon, S. F. (2014). Reclassification patterns among Latino English learner students in bilingual, dual immersion, and English immersion classrooms. American Educational Research Journal, 51(5), 879-912.