Vblog 3: ESL Teacher Interview
As teachers we tend to get caught
up in making sure our students learn the material that the TEKS want the
students to know. We also make it a focus to ensure our students pass the state
test so we “don’t get in trouble”. It is because of where we have these
priorities that we tend to forget that the most important thing is that our
students show growth. For ESL students this is very important in their proficiency
in English. We should be able to see a change in their ability to speak and
write in English but tend to get caught up in how well our test scores are.
Wright (2015) says that we are all language teachers, and it is our responsibility
as language teacher to develop a language learns proficiency in English. IN our
career we will all have an English language learner in our class at least once,
and even if we do not speak their native language or are ESL certified, it is
still our duty as teachers to make sure they grow in their proficiency in the
language. When interviewing Martha, she reminded me of this fact.
Another
thing that stuck out to me while speaking with Martha was her methods to help
aid her ELL and ESL students in the class. She used a variety of methods that I
feel fall in the Natural Approach addressed by Wright in our textbook. Wright
(2015) stated that this Natural Approach uses a wide variety of techniques to provide
meaningful communication that facilitates in comprehensible input. Martha uses
techniques such as labeling things around the room (light switch, trash can,
desk, cabinet) to make that visual connection between the word and the object.
She also tries to allow the students work talk among their peers to promote
meaningful conversation and allow her students to hear vocabulary they don’t know
being used by their peers. These are just a few things Martha does that stuck
out to me that provides a comfortable and meaningful learning experience for
her students.
References:
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners:
Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015.
Print. Second Edition.
Hi Haylee! One of the strategies that your teacher mentioned she uses in the classroom was allowing students to talk to each other other when she asks a question, then she asks the class for someone to volunteer. Wright (2015), calls this strategy "Think-Pair-Share". If a student doesn't understand what the teacher asked or if their answer isn't quite right, their partner can help them before coming back together as a class. Wright (2015) mentions, "One the most important and beneficial listening and speaking that students will do is through interaction with others." Allowing students to interact with one another, they are getting the chance to learn from one another.
ReplyDeleteWright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice (Second ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon.
Hey April,
DeleteI think you and I both used the same experience about how she lets her students speak to each other when she asks a question. When Wright (2015 p. 29) says that "teachers may be their first contact with the social world outside the home" , I feel like teachers have a big responsibility in delivering an introduction to a new language to their ELL students. I feel like teachers should also be careful with the judgements they make about a ELL student. Wright (2015) states "everyday judgements and responses ... and referral for evaluation."
Teachers have a big role in making learning a new language engaging and meaningful. We have to get to know our students, their background, culture, environment and so on so we can help them grow better academically.
Hi April, I agree with how you stated that when students interact with each other they have the opportunity to learn from one another which is why Think-Pair-Share can be such a useful strategy to use for ELL’s. The interaction between ELL’s and non-ELL’s gives ELL’s the opportunity to listen to how their partner speaks and practice what they are going to say. According to Wright (2015), “if they are asked to report their answer to the class, they have already had a chance to practice with their partners and thus can answer with greater confidence” (pg.171). The use of Think-Pair Share provides ELL’s a “safety net” of some sort in that since they are not immediately reporting an answer to the class they have the chance to discuss their answer with their partner who can guide the ELL in the right direction if their answer is incorrect or simply they are mispronouncing words. This can relieve some of the stress that an ELL student may have when they are called on in class.
DeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015, Print. Second Edition
Hi Melissa, giving ELLs the chance to interact with other students has many benefits like the ones you mentioned. Another major component that plays into build ELLs confidence is allowing “wait time”. Wait time is whenever the teacher asks a questions to the studnets the teacher must patiently to allow studnets to gether up their thoughts. Wright (2015) mentions that some students use this time to formulate what they will say in English and also to recall vocabulary they have learned. Once the teacher gives all of the studnets an apppropiate wait time then a discussion can begin.
DeleteWright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice (Second ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon.
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DeleteApril, thank you for your interest in my video. Yes one of the things that she uses frequently is allowing her students to collaborate and discuss the material. I think this is a very beneficial tool for second language students. Wright (2015) states that, "when students are in situations where they must communicate with others and create comprehensible output, they may become aware of gaps in their developing language". I think that Martha allowing her students to speak among one another allows them to grow their vocabulary and phonetic awareness by listening to their peers speak, giving them the examples needed to close those gaps.
DeleteHi Angelica!
DeleteI completely agree with you. Teachers have a huge responsibility in regards to making a new language engaging for students as well as helping the students adjust to their new culture. Many ELL students are not from America and the culture is different from their native land. Wright (2015) mentions that teachers are an agent of socialization for immigrant students. Teachers may possibly be the first point of contact for these students. It is important for them to respect the students culture so the student will feel comfortable in their new environment.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015, Print. Second Edition
Hey Haylee!!,
ReplyDeleteI loved the experience your teacher talked about! It's amazing how she has 13 years of experience. I felt like she has the qualities and characteristics of an effective teacher when she says that she lets her students have some freedom. The freedom I am referring is that she allows her students to have conversations with each other when she asks a question. We know from what Wright (2015) says on page 29 about being a teacher as agent of socialization "students from immigrant and minority homes... All classrooms are language environments, and language is the heart of teaching and learning". This may be helpful to ELLs by giving them an opportunity to get their thoughts and words together as they're sharing their answers with their classmates. according to Wright (2015 pg. 29) "Teachers need to think linguistically", this means to me that teachers need to understand the language and understand what students don't understand that way they can they can teach what is needed.
I think it is very important for the teacher to advocate as a gateway to a comfortable learning environment were children can feel better about learning a new language.
Angelica, thank you for your interest in my video. I too think that Martha is a wonderful teacher, and she has really been able to modify her teaching to whatever works best for her students. Martha uses what Wright (2015) calls cooperative learning. This is when she allows her students to collaborate in pairs or small groups to solve a problem or complete work. I think its great that she allows for such an open classroom.
DeleteHi Haylee, I like the strategy that your teacher uses of labeling things around the room. I’m sure this is very helpful especially when it comes to ELLs. Last semester I observed a teacher who taught ELLs and she also used this strategy. She labeled a lot of things around the room in both English and Spanish. Another thing that stood out to me is that she lets her students talk with their peers as she listens for their vocabulary. Wright says that cooperative learning is a form of scaffolding provided by classroom peers that contributes to the oral language development of ELLs in several ways (Wright, 2015, pg. 170). When I read that on your entry it reminded me of cooperative learning because students get to work together and collaborate which helps with their oral language development and vocabulary. This is especially helpful for ELLs because it’s something they’re trying to work on.
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hey Janet,
DeleteI think that labeling things around the room helps students become better readers and spellers. For example, if the student looks at the pencil box and see's it labelled "pencil" with a picture of a pencil on it, then chances are the student can memorize most of the word for future references because the student see's the label consistently every time he/she grabs a pencil. Labeling can also help students jump up from tiers faster. In chapter 2, Wright (2015, pg. 49" says that "a current trend now distinguishes three tiers of vocabulary... basic words, sophisticated words', and specific content area words. I feel like labelling will help the kids move tiers quickly.
I also wrote about her teacher letting her students talk with each other when she asks a question. Wright 2015 says "teachers who respect their students...education and development" (pg 29). I feel like this saying not only goes for children, but also adults who are learning a new language.
We need to come together to make a difference.
Hi Angelica, teachers letting students talk to each other about a question that they just asked is a very good strategy for ELLs and very helpful for them. This is the reason why I like the think-pair-share strategy that they talked about in the book. Wright said that after letting students use the think-pair-share strategy, if they are asked to report their answer to the class, they have already had a chance to practice answering with their partners and thus can answer with greater confidence (Wright, 2015, pg. 171). This is especially important for ELLs because sometimes they might feel self-conscious when speaking in front of the entire class. Having an opportunity to practice it with just one of their peers is very helpful.
DeleteThank you for your interest in video Janet. I too thought it was very interesting that Martha would label things around the room. Wright (2015) states that, "Reading is an excellent source of comprehensible input that enhances second language development." I feel this is the case in Martha's classroom. She labels things to be able to continually provide support for those English language learners, while still allowing them to learn the language. Between that and other strategies, she does whatever she can to help her ESL students succeed.
DeleteHi Janet!
DeleteI agree with you. Students should be given many chances throughout the day to communicate with one another. Think-Pair_Share is a great way this can be done in the classroom. Another way this can be incorporated in the classroom is though collaborative learning. According to Wright (2015), "Cooperative learning is a form of scaffolding provided by classroom peers that contributes to the oral language development of ELLs in several ways" (p.170). Collaborative learning helps students with their listening and speaking skills.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hello, Haylee!
ReplyDeleteI think it's awesome that your interviewee uses visuals and labels to help students make a connection between the object, their native language, and the language they are learning (which in this case would be English). According to Wright (2015), labeling classroom objects is a good literacy strategy especially if the labels are made by the students. As an ELL myself, I can recall a few times when I was in lower elementary in a monolingual classroom where there was an object which I knew the Spanish word for but was at a loss when attempting to recall the English word for it. I think having the objects labeled would help prevent any feeling of hopelessness or confusion as well as help build confidence in learning and recognizing words as well as helping with phonics.
Erika, thank you for your interest in my video. I also think it is very clever and a useful tool for the students to have objects around labeled. Wright (2015) states that, "Reading is an excellent source of comprehensible input that enhances second language development." I think this provide the support needed to hep those students. It also allows for them to make that connection between the object, word in their native language, and the word in English as you stated.
DeleteHi Haylee,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your interview. It was great to hear from someone who has had a lot of experience with ELL students. I noticed that Martha spoke about some of the strategies she uses that help her students with linguistics. When relating this back to the WIDA Consortium, I see that pointing to pictures, words, and phrases as well as sorting/matching pictures, words, and phrases fall under Levels 1 (entering) and 2 (beginning) of the descriptors for English language proficiency (Wright, 2015). Based on her descriptions of the students she has, it seems as though the types of support and strategies she uses would indeed help them in the ELA classroom.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Danielle, thank you for your interest in my interview. While those are great strategies, and Martha does have some students in her class that do not speak any English, most of them are able to speak, read, write, and comprehend most of what is said to them in English. Because of this i would classify most of her students as level 3 students. Wright (2015) classifies these students as being able to locate and selection information from text, formulates hypotheses, and sequence pictures and events.
DeleteHi Haylee! Great interview. You stated something that really stood out to me. When you mentioned how your mentor teacher uses strategies from the natural approach to help her students, I was very impressed. Something so simple as labeling items around the room must be a great help for English Language Learners, and I can imagine how much her students have benefitted from it. I would love to implement this approach into my classroom one day. I also think that what you mentioned about allowing students to talk amongst one another is crucial. As Wright states, cooperative learning is very beneficial to our ELL's because it allows for the use of hands on activities and for students to share ideas.
DeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.