building ells' academic language proficiency: putting it all together grade 6 - 12

Building ELLs' Academic Language

Proficiency:Putting it All Together

Grade 6 - 12 Presented by Jennifer Scoggin

jennifer.litlife@gmail.com

NYC Charter Center

Who is here today?

LitLife 2011

LitLife’s Core Values

Equity

Dignity

Collaboration

Workshop Goals

• Academic Vocabulary: Background and Strategies

• Test Specs and Changes: NYSESLAT and ELA• Practical Strategies for Test Preparation

All with the lens of supporting the ELLs in your classrooms

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ACADEMIC VOCABULARY

What is Academic English?

Academic English is the language of the classroom, of academic disciplines (science, history, literary analysis) of texts and literature, and of extended, reasoned discourse.

By: U.S. Department of Education (2007)

Characteristics

Informal English Academic English

Uses hedges kind of, sort of

Does not use hedges

Uses I Avoids using IUses simple connectors Uses sophisticated

transition wordsUses slang Uses academic words

and content vocabulary

Consider: Type of Text

Two types of written text:• Narrative text tells a story and usually follows

a familiar structure. Narrative text may be the invention of an author, the reporting of factual events, or the retelling of a tale from oral tradition. It is often written in informal, everyday English.

• Expository text provides an explanation of facts and concepts. Its main purpose is to inform, persuade, or explain. It is usually written in academic English.

So what?

How does building academic English help readers and writers?

BICS vs. CALP

Research shows that students develop social language known as Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) through interacting with peers in formal and informal settings and that this type of language is distinct from the variety of English required for academic success (Collier, 1987; Cummins, 1984).

In his now classic work, Cummins notes that BICS is typically acquired over a period of one or two years, but academic language, termed Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) can take up to five to eight years to master (Cummins, 1984).

You may already realize that…

A common misperception is that students learning English as a new language should be expected to complete academic tasks on par with other native English-speaking students once they can communicate in English for social purposes.

What this means for the classroom teacher is that appearances can be deceiving. Although an English language learner may seem fluent, if she experiences difficulty with academic tasks in content areas or language arts, it may be due to a lack of CALP.

However…

English learners do not need to master conversational oral English before they are taught the features of academic English.

In reading, knowledge of academic English helps students gain perspective on what they read, understand relationships, and follow logical lines of thought.

In writing, knowledge of academic English helps students develop topic sentences, provide smooth transitions between ideas, and edit their writing effectively.

Reading, discussing, and writing about texts needs to be a central part of the English language development instruction dispersed throughout the day.

Stages of Second Language Acquistion

Stage Characteristics App. Time Frame

Teacher Prompts

Preproduction The student •Has minimal comprehension•Does not verbalize•Nods “Yes” and “No”•Draws and points

0 to 6 months

•Show me…•Circle the…•Where is…•Who has…

Early Production

The student•Has limited comprehension•Produces one or two word responses•Participates using key words and familiar phrases•Uses present tense verbs

6 months to 1 year

•Yes/no questions•Either/or questions•1 or 2 word answers•Lists•Labels

Stages of Second Language Acquisition cont’d.

Stage Characteristics App. Time

Teacher Prompts and Activities

Speech Emergence

The student •Has good comprehension•Produces simple sentences•Uses beginning dialog•Does not yet grasp jokes, idioms, etc.

1 to 3 years

•Why…? How…?•Explain…? Predict…?•Phrase or short-sentence answers•Writing process/conferences•Book talks•Basic paragraphs•Dialogue journals

Intermediate Fluency

The student•Uses complex statements•States opinions•Makes few grammatical errors•Asks for clarification•Shares original thoughts

3 to 5 years

•What would happen if…•Why do you think…?•Analyze…Interpret…•Paraphrase•Charts, graphs, webs•Read and write multiple genres•Discussion and debate

Advanced Fluency

Can participate fully in grade level work with support in academic language and background knowledge

5 to 7 years

•All of the above with adaptations and support as needed

Specific Recommendations

• Teachers must understand that instruction with ELLs should include time and focus devoted to the development of academic English even in primary grades.

• Daily academic English should be integrated into the core curriculum.

• Conversational English does not need to be established prior to regular instruction in academic English.

Gersten et. al, 2007

Experts agree that English learners require time each day when the primary instructional goal is developing academic English (as opposed to mastering the academic content).

Consider devoting a daily block of time to developing this type of language with ELLs.

So what could this look like?

Mrs. Barker’s Classroom:Making Classroom Routines Rich

Vocabulary Experiences

How did she do that?

• Select words carefully• Provide multiple encounters with targeted

words• Provide direct instruction of word meanings• Provide daily guided practice• Give opportunities to use new words across a

variety of contexts• Periodically review words and their meanings

Selecting Words to Teach

• A 3-tier process:

– Basic words (such as house, car, toy)

– Words key to comprehension (such as curious, drowsy, gazing)

– Low-frequency words usually associated with specific content (such as proton, peninsula)

Classroom Routines: Tier 2 Words

Classroom Behavior: Tier 2 Words

But...developing students’ vocabulary is NOT just about teaching a group of

new words. It’s also about teaching strategies for inferring

word meaning.

WORD CONSCIOUSNESS

Fostering Word Consciousness

Six elements to consider:1. Create a word-rich environment2. Recognize and promote adept diction3. Promote word play4. Foster word consciousness through writing5. Involve students in word investigations6. Teach students about words

Creating a word-rich environment

Sit in one student’s seat.

Take a 360-degree scan ofyour classroom.

Think about what the texts your students’ READ, HEAR and USE.

Word Walls

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Types of word walls:* name* seasonal or monthly* synonym* content* high-frequency* word wall brainstorms

“Lexicon Lounge”: Word Stations

What can you include in a word station?* word card files* photographic word books* wordplay and riddle books* dictionaries and thesauri* class word games

Sentence Walls

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Classroom Labels

Classroom elements to consider labeling:* supplies* furniture* areas of the room* the library

Actively engage studentsin creating labels WITHyou.

Classroom Libraries

Do you have...* a wide variety of genres - both informational

and expository?* a variety of reading levels?* books with rich vocabulary?* books that explore word use?

Fostering Word Consciousness

Six elements to consider:1. Create a word-rich environment2. Recognize and promote adept diction3. Promote word play4. Foster word consciousness through writing5. Involve students in word investigations6. Teach students about words

Classroom talk

• What words or terms are YOU using?• What words or terms are YOUR STUDENTS

using?

Are we elevating students’ vocabulary through example? Remember Mrs. Barker?

Read AloudProvides implicit and explicit exposure to new words

Some tips:• Discuss new and interesting words

• Explain the meaning of new words• Provide examples of the word’s meaning• Help students connect the new word to their experience

• Read the same text three or four times in a week• Have students keep personal word notebooks

Remember, choose read alouds from a wide variety of genre - both informational and expository!

Fostering Word Consciousness

Six elements to consider:1. Create a word-rich environment2. Recognize and promote adept diction3. Promote word play4. Foster word consciousness through writing5. Involve students in word investigations6. Teach students about words

Games

• I Spy games (available at www.briarpatch.com)• Apples to Apples Junior• Concentration (picture and words)• Applause, Applause• Word Associations

Wordplay books• Why the Banana Split by Rick Walton• Double Trouble in Walla Walla by Andrew

Clement• Miss Alaineus: A Vocabulary Disaster by Debra

Frasier• Donavan’s Word Jar by Monalisa Degross and

Cheryl Hanna• The Boy Who Loved Words by Roni Schotter and

Giselle Potter

Fostering Word Consciousness

Six elements to consider:1. Create a word-rich environment2. Recognize and promote adept diction3. Promote word play4. Foster word consciousness through writing5. Involve students in word investigations6. Teach students about words

Revising

Make careful consideration of word choices aroutine part of revising.

• Use those synonym word walls.• Become word hunters.• Rely on mentor texts.• Use word wall brainstorms.

Writing our way to a better vocabulary!

Engage your students in writing activitiesdeliberately designed to focus on words.

Try...vocabulary driven shared writing, paired writingor individual writing

Fostering Word Consciousness

Six elements to consider:1. Create a word-rich environment2. Recognize and promote adept diction3. Promote word play4. Foster word consciousness through writing5. Involve students in word investigations6. Teach students about words

Word Detectives

Examples of potential word investigations:* The vocabulary used by certain individuals in the

school (the art teacher, the PE teacher, the technology teacher)

* How vocabulary changes from the classroom to the playground

* How vocabulary changes at home and in school* Different ways people address or greet each other

Fostering Word Consciousness

Six elements to consider:1. Create a word-rich environment2. Recognize and promote adept diction3. Promote word play4. Foster word consciousness through writing5. Involve students in word investigations6. Teach students about words

Four Levels of Word Knowledge

1. Never seen it before2. Knowing there is such a word, but not

knowing what it means3. Having a vague and context-bound meaning

for the word4. Knowing and remembering the word

With each new encounter with a particular word, depth and knowledge increases.

Key Ideas To Point Out To Students

• Many words have more than one meaning

• Word meanings are interrelated (e.g. the word airplane influences the way you understand helicopter and aircraft)

TESTING

NYSESLAT

• The NYSESLAT was developed in collaboration with Pearson and various teachers/schools

• It is administered annually to all LEP students K-12– Mandated by NCLB– Results determine if student continues to be

classified as LEP which is linked to services

Speaking

Speaking

Speaking

Listening

Listening

K - 1 Writing Conventions

2 - 4 Writing Conventions

2 - 4 Writing Conventions

2 - 4 Writing Conventions

K - 1 Writing

K - 1 Writing

K - 1 Writing

K - 1 Writing

K - 1 Writing

2 - 4 Writing

Reading

Reading

K - 1 Reading

2 - 4 Reading

Accommodations

The NYSESLAT is untimed, but special accommodations are available for students with special needs.

Test Preparation

What do you wonder?

Research Suggests Test Preparation should be:

• intensive - directly before the test and should be only for short periods each day

• cooperative - teachers and students should work together to discuss and negotiate meaning, the teacher should model problem solving ideas and listen to the students ideas

• non-threatening - the mention of reward or punishment for test performance should never arise, this is not a competition but a chance for students to show what they know

• short - the longer students dwell on tests and preparation the poorer the performance according to most research, students burn out and by the time the tests are there they have seen too many

Major Issues in Test Prep

Developing Stamina • what is needed to get through the test• self-efficacy• not giving up• resting eyes, stretching• drinks and candy• understanding what is expected

Major Issues in Test Prep

Analyzing Test Questions • what language is used in the questions• the difference between AN answer and the BEST

answer• what phrases are used; mostly, central idea, except for• learn to paraphrase questions – what are they asking• many questions are the same thing asked different

ways• where will the answer be found—in the text, in my

head, etc.

Major Issues in Test Prep

Choosing an Answer• don’t rely on memory – check the passage• rereading passage• go with your first thoughts• don't overanalyze – making every answer

seem possible

When Teaching Test Taking Strategies: Remember

Apprenticeship

Lesson Format:Warm-up

TeachTry

Clarify

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Demonstrate

Rehearse and Coach

So what? Now what?

And the best test prep is…

LitLife 2011