Chapter 11:Supporting Beginning Language Learners

Ali Pravda, Lacey Braun, Davin Fischer

1. Functional Language:

Goal is to use the language richly and flexibly. Must start by learning the language of daily life, i.e. :

a) Survival Expressions: Teach these expressions by modeling, using visuals, repetition, choral practice, and role plays.

b) Basic Vocabulary: Select words that students will hear others using and will use themselves (e.g. classroom objects, paces in the school, and the names and job titles of the people, simple words relating to food, body parts, clothing, animals, and physical actions).

c) Simple Script: Need to learn to recognize the letters of the Roman alphabet, say their names, and use alphabetical order

2. Visual Support:

a) Pictures: From magazines, catalogues, flyers – organize into categories of food, clothing, furniture, school, home, sports, etc. Include people of numerous ethno-cultural backgrounds and both genders in numerous roles and contexts. Picture ditctionaries. Pictures can prompt oral retelling, writing captions and speech balloons.

b) Manipulatives: (e.g. math – blocks), Can be used to learn prepositions (e.g. on, under, beside, next to).

c) Physical Objects: Collecting real-life objects, such as clothing, fruits, and vegetable, and household items.

3. Copying and Labeling

4. Physical Activity:Doing the movement/action with the word. Referring to body parts as (e.g. bend your knees).

5. Choral Work, Songs, and Role Plays (*Doing activities in groups)

6. A Rich Print Environment:

Encourages them to, recognize, read, and write words. Labeling classroom objects, give environmental print (e.g. street signs, brand names, labels, advertisement), computers and software, provide reading material written at a suitable level, create a word wall with charts of words and phrases.

7. Experience-Based Learning: Hands-on experience

8. Language Experience StoriesTeacher and student work together to create story based on a personal/shared experience (e.g. field trips, a film, etc.).

9. Listening to Stories on Tape

10. Games and Puzzles: Simple language games

• e.g. Simon Says, I Spy, Crossword puzzles, Information-gap activities, teacher-created board, bingo games and card games.

Chapter 13:Planning Instruction and Assessment

Meeting the needs of EAL students at each stage of the developmental process

Stages of Development in English as a Second Language

Know and Understand that Developmental Stages are on a Spectrum:

From 0 years: No knowledge of English to 5+ years: Proficient to the level of a

native speaker of the same age or grade.

BICS and CALP Revisited

• Learner’s fluency can be misleading.

• Without continuing language instruction and support, English language learners may take much longer than five years to achieve CALP, and many never will.

The Cummins Model

Quadrant AMostly BICSSome CALP

Quadrant BBICS and CALP

Quadrant DMostly CALP

Some BICS

Cognitively Demanding

Cognitively Undemanding

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3 Year 4 Year 5+

The Cummins Model

Context Embedded – Context ReducedContinuum indicates the degree of contextual support or scaffolding that is provided.

Cognitively Undemanding – Cognitively DemandingContinuum represents the demands that are placed on the learner’s thinking processes.

Using the Cummins Framework to Plan Instruction

• Quadrant A (beginners):– Maximum contextual support for, or scaffolding of,

tasks that are engaging but not academically challenging.

• Quadrant B (Intermediate):– Students continue to receive maximum support

for comprehension and language production, but the tasks become more academically challenging.

Using the Cummins Framework to Plan Instruction

• Quadrant C:– Activities are neither cognitively demanding nor

embedded in a meaningful context. Activities like these are unlikely to enhance deep conceptual understanding or promote the development of CALP.

• Quadrant D (Advanced):– Students continue to work on academically challenging

tasks. Gradually, over a period of several years, less scaffolding is required, until by the end of this stage.

Alternative Learning Outcomes

• To be meaningful, learning outcomes must be attainable.

• In some cases, the learning expectations for English language learners may be different than the expectations for students who begin with a greater knowledge of English.

• Modifications may include:– Revising the expectations– Reducing the number of expectations– Substituting alternative expectations that are more

appropriate.

Alternative Assessment Strategies

• Reduce the Language Requirement• E.g. Using visual representations; phrasing questions as

simply as possible.

• Provide Opportunities for Practice and Feedback

• E.g. Practice exams; extensive feedback on first assignment, but only the second counts for marks.

• Provide Thinking Time

Alternative Assessment Strategies

• Create Performance-Based Assessment Tasks• E.g. Have a variety of models to show understanding

(videos of oral presentations, etc.)

• Use Portfolio Assessment• Work from throughout the year – shows significant

growth in English; opportunities for both parents and students to be involved in selecting and assessing the student’s work.

• Provide Dictionaries

Standard Language and Literacy Assessment

To assess the reading and writing skills of these learners fairly, assessment tasks and procedures must be adapted:

• Reading Assessment • E.g. Reading aloud for assessment purposes is inappropriate;

ask the student to read the passage silently, then respond to oral questions.

• Writing Assessment• Know first language writing development; Make sure that the

writing assignment has relevant content (e.g. not hockey); Present in a familiar form by showing examples of different conventions.

Evaluation and Reporting

• Use progress over time as the major criterion for evaluating their performance.

• Give greater consideration to more recent evidence of achievement.

• Use checklists and observation forms based on developmental continua used in jurisdiction.

ScenarioYou are mainstream teachers who have EAL beginners in your class. You have decided to try ______ technique in your classroom. Come up with an activity/resource that uses the technique and teach the rest of the class using the activity/resource.

1) Physical Activity2) Games and Puzzles3) Experience Based Learning4) Visual support

Evaluation and Reporting• Large-Scale Assessment

» I.e. Assessing education systems (such as school districts, or province).

o Early stages should not be includedo Students who are capable to reflect the schooling they have

received, should be included.o Data should be gathered for each participating student.o Test results of those who have been in the country fewer than

10 years should be disaggregated, and reported separately. Further separation should be applied, in regards to various criteria (time in country; years of full-time schooling; country of origin; number of EAL instructional hours).

Discussion question:Using the Alternative Assessment Strategies and Cummins’ Teaching in the Quadrants Model, provide specific examples of how you would assess in each quadrant. Each group will discuss one particular quadrant. (You may refer to your own teaching area.)

Quadrant AMostly BICSSome CALP

Quadrant BBICS and CALP

Quadrant DMostly CALP

Some BICS

Cognitively Demanding

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3 Year 4 Year 5+

Cognitively Undemanding