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IDIOMThat effective collaboration benefits students (and teachers alike) isaffi rmed by the well-deserved at-tention it has received most recently in the professional literature (see, for example, DelliCarpini, 2008, 2009;Ho-nigsfeld & Dove, 2010; NACTAF,2009; NEA, 2009; Pawan & Ortloff,2011) and in the TESOL educational com-munity (e.g., themes of 2011 NewYork State and Kentucky TESOLconferences). Acknowledging theimportance of collaborative ex-changes among teachers is not a completely novel idea, though. Close to three decades ago, Judith Warren Little (1982) examined the differences between more and less effective schools and found that the more effective ones had a greater degree of collegiality. She noted four unique characteristics of collegiality (or col-laboration) in successful schools, where teachers participate in the fol-lowing activities:• Teachers engage in frequent, continuous,and increasingly concreteand precise talk about teachingpractice.• Teachers are frequently observedand provided with useful critiquesof their teaching.• Teachers plan, design, evaluate,and prepare teaching materialstogether.• Teachers teach each other thepractice of teaching (pp. 331–332).Consider what Warren Little’s

(1982) frequently quoted four key ideas could mean for ELLs in today’s schools. What if we translated her seminal find-ings into a contemporary framework of four Cs, in which“collaborative” serves as a defi ning adjective, followed by a key activity or desired teacher behavior necessary for improved student learn-ing?• Collaborative Conversations:Through enhanced communication,allteachers have the opportunity to devel-op ownership and shared responsibility for ELLs’ learning.• Collaborative Coaching:Through an encouraging schoolclimate and supportive framework,teachers offer and receive feedbackon their teaching practices.• Collaborative Curriculum Develop-ment:Through curriculum mapping and alignment and collaborative materials development,teachers match both their longtermand day-to-day instructional.

Collaborative Conversations..1 Conversations in Support...3

Acting..4 Resources for the Common Core..6

Talking is learning..10 Small Talk..14

Conversation Table..24Promising Practices..8

Book Review..12 SIGs and Regions..17

Members Only Website ..18 Editorial Notes..22

Upcoming Idiom Themes..22 Calendar and Announcements..22

NEW Membership Form..23

This issue’s theme: Conversations

Collaborative Conversations by Andrea Honigsfeld

CONTENTS

Vol. 41, No. 3 http://www.nystesol.org Fall 2011

NYS TESOL2

New York State Teachers of Englishto Speakers of Other

Languages

Officers and Executive Board 2010-2011President, Nanette DoughertyNYC Public Schools

First Vice President, Rebekah JohnsonLAGCC, CUNY

Second Vice President, Christy Baralis South Huntington School District Sec-ond Vice President Elect, Olivia Limbu Pace UniversityPast President/TESOL Liaison, Con-stance Dziombak Mount Vernon City SchoolsSIG Coordinator, Laura Van TassellSouth Huntington School DistrictSIG Assistant Coordinator, Jennifer ScullyConsultantRegions Coordinator, Tina VillalobosHicksville Public SchoolsAssistant Regions Coordinator, Lynn EllingwoodBrighton Central School DistrictMembership & Marketing Chair, Patricia JuzaBaruch College, CUNYAssistant Membership Chair, Drew FaganTeachers College, Columbia UniversityCurriculum and Standards Chair, Maria DoveMolloy CollegeAssistant Curriculum and Standards ChairPosition OpenProfessional Concerns ChairPorfi rio Rodriguez, East Ramapo CSDProfessional Concerns Assistant ChairPosition OpenPublications/Technology Chair, Fran OlmosYonkers Public SchoolsIdiom Editor, Cara Tuzzolino WerbenNassau Community CollegeDialogue Editor, Sue PetersonSt. John’s UniversityWebmaster, David HirschNew York CityBusiness Manager/TreasurerL. Jeanie Faulkner, Cornell UniversityCertifi ed Public AccountantJim StotzNYS TESOL Executive Board Meetingsand General InformationMembers are welcome to attend Boardmeetings. For information, contact:NYS TESOLBox 185Teachers College, Columbia University525 W. 120th StreetNew York, NY 10027Tel./Fax: (212) 678-3074

Dear Colleagues,I hope you have been enjoying a happy, healthy and restorative summer.I would like to update you on some chang-es and challenges facing educators.On July 13, I attended the Bilingual/ESL COP (Committee of Practitioners)meeting at Teachers College, Columbia University. The most major changesinclude the New Evaluation Law for K-12 teachers and principals:1. Annual evaluations for all teachers and principals2. Clear, rigorous expectations for instruc-tional excellence, prioritizingstudent learning3. Multiple measures of performance4. Multiple ratings: Four performance levels to describe differences inteacher effectiveness5. The new system should encourage regu-lar, constructive feedback andongoing development6. Signifi cance: results are a major factor in employment decisions.You can view all documents discussed at the COP Meeting at the followinglink: http://www.p12.nysed.gov/biling/bilinged/BilingualESLCOP.html. Formore information about the Common Core Standards, please consult the website at: http://www.corestandards.org/ and see the article in this issue.Though it was not considered at this meet-ing, the 14 Bilingual/ESL TechnicalAssistance Centers (BETACs) across New York State closed permanently onJune 30, 2011. This puts both our schools and our LEP/ELL populations at risk of not having the appropriate resources to meet their educational and programmatic needs over the next five years. Our new Commis-sioner of Education, Dr. John B. King, Jr., may not be familiar with the importance of the resources offered by the BETACs. You may e-mail him directly at: jking@mail.nysed.gov. In addition, you may email the NYS Board of Regents on this issue at: RegentsOffi ce@mail.nysed.gov. At the Melville Marriott October 28-29th, I will be passing the gavel to our incoming Presi-

dent, Rebekah Johnson. I would like to thank the many wonderful mem-bers of my Executive Board and the many SIG and Region Leaders for their service to the organization. Special thanks to Cornelia Randolph, a constant support and inspiration, and Fran Olmos, for her guidance. You will be receiving ballots for the Executive Board slate in the mail shortly. Thanks to our Nominating Committee, led by Cornelia Randolph and Terri Brady-Mendez, for their time and efforts. Members, please do not forget to vote for your new leadership in our organization by returning your ballots. As always, please continue to keep in touch with issues, concerns, and ideas on how our organization can best serve you. Best wishes for a great school year to all. Peace and blessings to you, Nanette Dougherty, President, NYS TESOLP.S. We’re so very excited to be launching our new Members Only website - please read more about it in this issue and log in soon to check it out. Please contact us with ideas!

From the President’s Desk by Nanette Dougherty, NYS TESOL President

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Adolescent ELLs are secondlanguage learners who are still de-velopin their profi ciency in academicEnglish. Moreover, they are learning English at the same time they are studying core content areas through-English. Thus, English language learners must perform double the work of native English speakers in the country’s middle and high schools. At the same time, they are being held to the same accountability standards as their native English-speaking peers (Short& Fitzsimmons, 2007, p. 1).Conversations with ELLs andcolleagues are viable ways for ESL teachers to help their students navigate academic challenges. My shorttime at Jamaica High School has been filled with conversations that have driven my instruction to best support the ELLs in my charge. Curriculum Experiments Based on Conversations with ELLs At Jamaica High School, an ESL support class is offered zero period, 7:22 to 8:06 a.m., to provide intermediate ELLs with additional targetedinterventions. September 2011 will be the third year I am teaching zero period, and each year is an ongoing curriculum devel-opment action research experiment. I conduct the course as a combined resource room and advisoryclass model. Based on daily con-versations with my students about their challenges, I provide home-work help;teach problematic topics in mathematics, science, and so-cial studies; and assess and teach diverse skills necessary for academic success. The first year of the experi-ment, my curriculum included math-ematics symbols and word prob-lems; the living environment topics of scientifi c method, evolution, and organ systems; social studies topics of feudalism, estates, and analysis of political cartoons; English language arts topics of idioms, formal versus

informal language, and dictionary/glossary skills; and academic readiness intest-taking strategies, study skills, time management, notebook organization, public speaking skills, and computerskills. I also taught graph skills across the disciplines. This class was one of a select few Jamaica High SchoolEnglish and ESL classes that benefi ted from TeenBiz3000 (Empower3000),a Web-based individualized readingprogram by Achieve3000.Conversations with ELLs form partof the data collection that drives my curriculum changes. Several first-year students (participants in Experi-ment) reported the lessons and activities helped them pass content-area finals and New York State Regents examinations. When asked how the support class could be improved for thefollowing year, ELLs suggested thatI allot more time to science, continueteaching math and social studies,and retain computer instruction onTeenBiz3000. One student, who wasparticularly resistant to my teachinganything but ESL all year, later admittedhe benefi tted from content-areainstruction by his ESL teacher. Allstudents expressed a deep appreciationfor the bilingual content area glossariesI provided.In the second year (Experiment II),I spent less time on dictionary/glossa-ryskills; did not teach idioms; and,upon careful review of recent livingenviron-mentRegents exams, added anecosystem unit, a lesson on pH, andgroup activities on bar and line graphs.I replaced the formal versus informal Eng-lish lesson with daily academic English and everyday Englishexplanationsand defi nitions. Studentsassessed their multiple intelligences (Gard-ner, 1983; Gardner, 1993, 2996; McKenzie, 1999), and learing styles(Dunn & Dunn, 1993; Dunn & Griggs, 2003, 2004, 2007; Missere & Dunn, 2005). I added native-language translations of key content vocabulary tomy student notebook grading rubric. Groups researched continents andexplorers and presented their Power-

Pointslide shows to ELLs in otherclasses. TeenBiz3000 was replaced byStudy Island, Web-based instruction built on New York State standards, that provided all Jamaica High Schoolstudents practice for English, mathematics,science, and so-cial studiesRegents exams; and for ]nationalScholastic Achieve-ment Test (SAT)and Advanced Placement (AP) exams.Based on requests from Experiment Iparticipants for Internet re-sources for speaking practice, I created lists ofWeb sites and links with pod-casts and speaking exercises.As I gear up for Experiment III inthe 2011-2012 school year, I plan todevote more time to dictionary skills,such as alphabetizing, and contentarea textbook structure, with specialattention to text-book glossaries andindices; the participants in ExperimentII were lacking in dictionary/textbookresearch skills and did not make optimumuse of these resources. I pro-videda list of Web sites and links forRegents practice and bilingual glossaries,and will again provide copies ofbilingual glossaries in Experi-ment III.I have decided to step up test-takingstrategies and content writing practicein the zero period support class beginningin September.Conversations with FamiliesIndividual writing conferences

Conversations inSupport of HighSchool ELLs by Victoria Pilotti

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SActing is a sport. On stage youmust be ready to move like a tennisplayer on his toes. Your concen-trationmust be keen, your refl exes sharp;your body and mind are in top gear;the chase is on. Acting is en-ergy. In thetheatre people pay to see en-ergy.—Clive SwiftGood teaching is one-fourth preparationand three-fourths theater.—Gail GodwinIf “acting is energy,” teaching ismany things: a combination of knowledge,experience, aware-ness, expertise,tand care. It is also the energy we,as language instructors, bring into the class-room that absolutely affects theorder of the day. As a theater lover andpast occasional performer, I have oftenthought about the parallels betweenteaching and acting. Here are a fewthat come to mind.You’re on stage. All eyes are on you. You’re the initial focal point of attention. Your presence shifts the energy in the room. Some-times, youliterally have a podium, with desks arrayed in rows before you like patronsat a theater. There is noise, chatter,laughter, shuffl ing in the room untilthe lights dim. Curtain up! Enter stage

left, the professor. Cell phones getput away, or at least discreetly placedto the side. Chitchat dies down. Theroom is hushed a moment, the pauseof anticipation before the fi rst wordsof dialogue are spoken. All eyes are on you. An actor uses her body to convey informa-tion about her character before she even speaks. So do you. How are you dressed? Does what you wear convey some mes-sage about your position in this play, your role, your persona asteacher, leader, or facilitator of theenergy in the room? How do you walkin? Are your eyes downcast, refl ectingyour students’ spent energy at the endof a long week, or do they sparkle? Doyou walk in the room with pizzazz,transmitting vital energy to them, tocreate the cycle of give-and-take neces-sary for effective language learning? Do you use gestures, winks, and nods to con-vey information, emotion, even comedy? These are things worth thinking about, because one of the mostimportant ways you are like an actor is in this all-important function. Your energy and presence set the tone. Just as audiences must have faith in actors and suspend their disbelief to fully enter into the world the actors are creating, your students must agree to the unspoken contract of trust that bonds them to you in a vulnerablelearning situation. Your ability to create that atmosphere of trust is important; your dy-namism helps your class generate energy that in turn feeds you and helps the learn-ing environment be dynamic. This is impor-tant for learning as well as for the teacher’s ability to sustain energy and passion both within a class and over her entire run.Actors use their voices as tools,relying on not just word choice butinfl ection, intonation, varying volume, and the judicious use of pauses to capture the audience’s attention, rivet them, spellbind them, draw them forward in their seats wondering “What’s next?” You too can use

All the World’s a Stage:Ways in Which Teaching Is Like Acting by Elizabeth Fonseca

your voice itself as a tool that weaves the bewitching spell of energy, dyna-mism,and trust that makes for a lively and effective learning environment.The show must go on. There aredays when you can’t imagine gen-erating that energy at all. On those days, you have to “act as if”: put on your teaching persona as an actor dons a mask or stage makeup, pre-paring herself to go before the lights. If you don’t show up, or show up without energy, you might fl op. This leads us to the all-important teaching persona. As an actor slips intoa role through preparation, curiosity,and the desire to share emotion andinformation with an audience, you canslip into your teaching persona, com-prisedof your sincere and genuine selfwith a soupçon of public-role poise,strategic sass, and teacher’s toolsyou’ve learned throughout your teachingdays that help you on the way.Is your persona the classic scholar?Do you have a little playful clownthrown in? Are you the compassion-ateguide, leading students to the knowl-edgethey already possess? Can youswitch hats to that of the taskmaster,pushing for and demanding the verybest? It can be useful to think of theteacher role as composed of these differentpersonae that serve useful functionsin the various processes of learning,including enabling you to reachstudents of different backgrounds,needs, and learning styles. Even if youare not like that, your alter ego, “Pro-fessorPicky”, can be. Although you

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classroom, here are some suggestionsto get you started:• Take an acting class. Learn howto use body language, breath, andvoice to create energy and atmo-sphere.• Take a public speaking class.Learn relaxation techniques, visual-izationtechniques, and tips foreffectively conveying a message.• Join a group such as ToastmastersInternational, where you’ll learntips for public speaking.• Listen to and read poetry aloud.Learn about cadence, rhythm, andvolume to use your voice moreeffectively—and to save it fromtoo many of those hoarse, raggedy,“I’ve-spoken-too-much” days!• Similarly, take a vocal or voicetraining class. Learn specifi cbreathing exercises to strengthenyour voice and to become expertin effectively and effi ciently usingand saving your voice.Here is a web-site to get you thinking about your own parallels between acting and teaching: http://www/ jbactors.com/actingphilosophy/ actingquotations.html.References Godwin, G. (1974). The Odd Woman.New York: Ballan-tine Books.http://www/jbactors.com/actingphilosophy/actingquotations.htmlElizabeth Fonseca is an avid trav-eler who has taught ESL/EFL in such countries as Italy, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. Her work has been published in the Arabia Review and the Traveler’s Tales series, among others. Her interest in acting stems from high school and community theater days, as well as more recent poetry readings.She currently teaches at Nassau CommunityCollege in New York.<Elizabeth.fonseca@ncc.edu> NYS TESOL Remembers Jeanette D. Macero. The field of ESOL has lost

one of its most revered members, Jea-nette D. Macero, who died May 9, 2011. Jeanette was passionate in her dedication to non-native speakers of English as ex-emplifi ed by her teaching, mentoring and participation in professional organizations. Jeanette, one of the founders of NYS ESOL BEA (now NYS TESOL—seenote below), was a leader in that organiza-tion nonstop until her retirementfrom Syracuse University in 1998, as as-sociate professor of English andTESOL coordinator of languages, litera-tures and linguistics. She moved toMedfi eld, MA to be near her family.Many NYS TESOL members will testify to the mentoring they receivedfrom Jeanette, who held leadership posi-tions in the organization for her entirecareer. Jeanette graduated with a BA in English from Barnard College, an MAin linguistics from Columbia University, and did doctoral study in linguisticsat the University of Michigan. She was president, second vice presidenttwice, and chair of various TESOL com-mittees: publications, paper selection,awards and nominations. Twice, she re-ceived the NYS TESOL DistinguishedService Award.In addition to Jeanette’s full-time teaching at Syracuse University, shepublished skill books for beginners of English through Laubach Literacy(now known as ProLiteracy), as well as a number of scholarly papers and ad-dresses,edited books of readings, and acted as consultant to many groups.All those who knew Jeanette are aware of her many accomplishmentsin professional organizations and her skill-ful teaching, but those closest toher will remember most her kind and compassionate manner to all she metand worked with, her hearty laugh, and her engaging personality. Jeanette’sfriends and colleagues have lost a trea-

sure.Vel Chesser, retired from Syra-cuse University, can be reached at<vfchesse@syr.edu>Editor’s note: With thanks to NYS TESOL historian George Morris: Thevery fi rst organization was called NY TESOL (No “S” for State), then NYSESOL BEA. The founding date is 1970 (hence our 40th anniver-sary in 2010). The split into NYS TESOL and NYSABE was in the early 1980s.

NYS TESOL Remembers Jeanette D.Maceroby Vel Chesser

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SThe Common Core Learning Standards(CCLS) have been adopted bydozens of states. The NYS Board ofRegents adopted the new P-12 CCLSfor ELA, Literacy, and Mathematics inJanuary 2011; it will be phased in overthe next year. Beginning in school year2012-13, NYS assessments for EnglishLanguage Arts and Mathematics willmeasure student achievement of theP-12 CCLS. Find New York State’scomplete CCLS timeline at www.usny.nysed.gov/rttt/docs/ccsstimeline.pdf.The initiative began in the springof 2009 and was coordinated by theNational Governors Association(NGA) Center for Best Practices andthe Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSO). The advisory group forthe initiative comprises Achieve, Inc.,ACT, the College Board, the NationalAssociation of State Boards of Education(NASBE), and the State HigherEducation Executive Offi cers (SHEO).The Common Core State StandardsInitiative released a draft of the mathand language arts content standards forpublic comment in September 2009,and the individual K-12 grade-levelcontent standards in these subjectswere released for public comment inMarch 2010. Both sets of content stan-dardswere fi nalized in 2010.Criteria for DevelopmentThis process differed from paststandards initiatives because it wasstate led and had the support of educatorsacross the country as well asprominent education, business andstate leaders’ organizations.The standards were developed by thefollowing criteria:• Aligned with expectations for collegeand career success;• Clear, so that educators and parentsknow what they need to do tohelp students learn;• Consistent across all states, so thatstudents are not taught to a lowerstandard just because of wherethey live;

• Inclusive of both content and theapplication of knowledge throughhigh-order skills;• Built upon strengths and lessonsof current state standards and stan-dardsof top-performing nations;• Realistic, for effective use in theclassroom;• Informed by other top-performingcountries, so that all students areprepared to succeed in our globaleconomy and society;• Evidence and research based(Quay, 2010);• Application of the Standards forEnglish Language Learners.Common standards can potentiallyprovide a greater opportunity for statesto share experiences and best prac-ticeswithin and across states that couldlead to an improved ability to serveELLs. The K-12 English-language artsand mathematics standards do in-cludeinformation on the Application ofthe Standards for English LanguageLearners, located at http://www.corestandards.org/assets/application-forenglish-learners.pdf.One segment of the Applicationof ELA Core Standards recommendsthat to help ELLs meet high academicstandards in language arts it is es-sentialthat they have access to:• Teachers and personnel at theschool and district levels who arewell prepared and qualifi ed to sup-portELLs while taking advantageof the many strengths and skillsthey bring to the classroom;• Literacy-rich school environmentswhere students are immersed in avariety of language experiences;• Instruction that develops founda-tionalskills in English and enables

Resources for Implementing the Common Core for ELLs

by Diane Garafalo

NYS TESOL7

Hakuta, a professor of education at Stanford University, a member of the Common Core Validation Committee, and a long-time expert on ELLs; and Maria Santos, the former director of programs for ELLs for the New York City school system, are co-chairs of this national effort to write standardsfor ELLs to parallel the Language Arts and Mathematics Standards of the Common Core, as well as the Sci-ence Standards that are expected to be developed. This grant award fi lls the gap in the process of implement-ing the Common Core for ELLs (Zehr, 2011).The grant, which lasts for two years,is called “Building on Common-Core Standards to Improve Learning for English-Language Learners.”“The effort is to think about the content areas in the common core thatoffer strategically fertile areas aroundwhich language instruction can take place,” Dr. Hakuta explained. “The standards will elaborate on what ELLs should know and be able to do in the content areas at different English proficiency levels,” he added. (Zehr,2011).Preparing ELLs for the Common Core—A Webinar On May 5, 2011, Dr. Hakuta presented a we-binar at www.teachscape.com called “Research to Practice: PreparingELLs for the Common Core.”He offered his thoughts and ideasduring the webinar under the topicof planning for the Common Core,including:• Recognize that language is neces-saryto teach, learn, and demonstrateunderstanding in schoolsubjects, and that this is true for allstudents, but especially for ELLs;• Engage in the idea that excellencein instruction and assessmentaround content revolves aroundthe idea of rich language use;• Build the professional developmentaround the idea that languageinstruction is the domain

of all teachers, not just EnglishLanguage Arts and ESL teachers;• Identify your objectives, assessments,and best practices inclassrooms and ensure that you’remaking progress toward thoseobjectives;• Use the Common Core to recognizeand amplify the opportunityfor rich language development forELLs and for all students (Hakuta,2011).According to Dr. Hakuta, there aresome key elements for ELLs regardingthe Common Core, including:• The Common Core provides astrong incentive to examine therole of language in content instructionand in assessment; there is arole for leadership to take advantageof this opportunity;• Even though the Common Coresays nothing about the EnglishLanguage profi ciency expectationsof ELLs, there is a requirementthat English language profi ciencybe aligned to the Common Core;• There will be more commonalityacross states in the identifi cationof students because there will bemore common profi ciency tests;• The Common Core has the potentialto move ELL performance/profi ciency both across schoolsand across the country (Hakuta,2011).Criteria for Writing Common CoreCurriculum MaterialsLast summer, the nonprofi t groupCommon Core issued a set of free curricu-lummaps. The maps are designedto give an understandable sequence ofthematic curriculum units that connectthe skills provided in the ELA

Some Helpful Resources

♦ Common Core Curriculum Maps:www.commoncore.org/free/♦ Common Core Standards andEnglish Language Learners:www.colorincolorado.org/educators/common_core♦ Common Core State StandardsInitiative Web site:www.corestandards.org♦ Common Core Standards Workfor ELLs: The Importance ofLinking English Language Profi -ciency Standards to the CommonCore Standardswww.colorincolorado.org/powerpoint/ELLELPStandardsPPT%20Slide.pdf♦ K-6 Units in ELA Aligned withCommon Core Standards:www.elementarytests.com/blog/k-6-ela-common-core/♦ P21 Common Core Toolkitwww.p21.org/images/p21_toolkit_fi nal.pdf♦ www.thejournal.com/articles/2011/08/02/common-core-toolkit-aligns-standards-with-21stcentury-skills-framework.aspxWebsites of the members of theadvisory board to the Common CoreInitiative:Achieve, Inc.: www.achieve.orgACT: www.act.orgThe College Board:www.collegeboard.comNational Association of StateBoards of Education:www.nasbe.orgState Higher Education ExecutiveOffi cers: www.sheeo.org

NYS TESOL8 NEW

SIdioms pop up everywhere in Englishmedia, often met with confusedlooks by our students. Even more ad-vanced students have diffi culty usingthem with any degree of competence,especially if the idioms are culturallydifferent from their own (Irujo, 1986).Given their importance, more attentionshould be paid to teaching idioms inESL settings (Cooper, 1998). It is upto teachers to help students not onlylearn idioms, but also to encouragetheir usage in an intelligible manner.How can we incorporate idioms intoclassroom settings in a relaxed, communi-cative,and student-centered way?More important, how can we teach theintonation of idioms to achieve students’maximum intelligibility? I havefound the following three activities tobe helpful for my students.BYOI—Bring Your Own IdiomEach student chooses one idiom to“teach” the class. They may choosefrom any source, and learn it wellenough to be able to explain it in frontof their classmates. This is a greatwarm-up; it’s student-centered andexciting, since they have chosen theseidioms themselves based on theirown interests. Don’t be surprised if anumber of idioms come from GossipGirl or Glee, American television programs-centering around high-schoolstudents, so idioms relating to datingand shopping tend to surface quiteoften (i.e., It’s on me; She’s into him;Those shoes are totally you). Duringthe students’ explanations, I stay offto the side and will assist only if thesituation calls for it; I have even donethis activity remotely via Skype whenI was home sick in bed. Having thestudents in charge of this activity madeit quite manageable. It can also act asa springboard for all kinds of cul-turerelateddiscussions.Where Is the Change?A major obstacle facing our students

is intelligibility, especiallywhen using idioms. While pronuncia-tionmay be a factor, an equallyimportant factor is proper intonation.As the pitch in our voices rises andfalls, these changes in intonation areprocessed by the listener (Crutten-den,1986). If you have ever studiedChinese, Thai, or Vietnamese, youmay be familiar with the inextricablelink between the proper tone and communication.In English as well, whenlanguage is given the correct intona-tion,communication can be greatlyenhanced. To emphasize this pointwith my students, I imitate the “wawa” teacher from Charlie Brown. Iwalk around the class, lock eyes witha student, raise my hand, and slowlysay “Wa, wa wa Wa?” What I amactually saying is “Hi, how are You?”Students inevitably guess correctlyand are quite surprised that they canunderstand what I am saying. Oncethey have caught on, we can then createcontextual situations and apply theproper intonation. A mini-dialogue Imight have with a student in front ofthe class, in which my role would beB, is as follows:A: What are you doing this weekend?B: This weekend? Nothing special.I’ll probably just hang OUt.A: OK. Give me a call.B: Alright.After the classmates have heardthe dialogue, I will ask them, “Whereis the change?” Hopefully, they willhear “OUt” on the fi rst try. I will thenmark it on the board. The rise in pitchat the beginning of “OUt” rather thanon the word “hang” is essential to theintelligibility of the idiom as well asto the rest of the dialogue. Teachersplay a vital role here. Once an idiom

Promising PracticesThis is an ongoingcolumn, featuringadvice for effectiveteaching. Please sendarticle submissions tothe column editor, AnnC. Wintergerst (contactinformation on page 22 of this issue).

Piece of cake! Idiomactivities and the importance of proper intonation

by Andrew EdisonSchneider

NYS TESOL9

Piece of cake! Idiomactivities and the importance of proper intonation

dialogues supply the context neces-saryto achieve natural usage andeffective communication (Nippold& Martin, 1989). The task is to writemini dialogues, where each dialoguecontains at least one idiom from class,either from our text or from one ofthe students’ BYOI. There should bejust enough context (4-6 lines) for theexchange to be meaningful (Nippold& Martin, 1989).Make sure the students understandthat even though these dialogues arebeing written down, they should bestriving for spoken and not writtenEnglish. I also ask them to considerthe roles of the speakers as in the followingstudent dialogue (the professoris putting on her coat as her studententers the offi ce):A: Excuse me. Professor? Are youbusy?B: I’m running LAte, actually. I’ll behere tomorrow.A: Ok, thank you.B: Alright.This exchange meets the criteria inthat it is a spoken dialogue, the rolesare defi ned, at least one idiom is used,and the idiom is marked with the properintonation. Once their dialoguesare done, I collect, correct, and returnthem. Afterward, I circulate, takingstudent questions on my corrections.Then, I have each pair practice andperform at least one of their dialoguesin front of the class. Eye contact, bodylanguage (students must sit facingeach other), and voice managementshould be emphasized during prac-ticetime. Be sure to circulate, as somestudents will simply read the dialoguetogether. I walk around with a blank

sheet of 8½ x 11 paper, which I use tocover up the dialogue they are workingon. This forces them to look up and,hopefully, at each other. The studentsthen perform at the front of the class.I act as the director, yelling “Action!”and opening/closing my cell phonelike a director’s slate. The class listensfor the idiom used in the dialogue. Thisis always fun, as students enjoy watchingtheir classmates perform. I like tosupply props/wigs to spice it up. Beprepared for the cameras to come out!I also quiz them on the idiom and theintonation right after each dialogue.ConclusionEnglish continues to be a globallanguage. Proper knowledge and usageof idioms are powerful tools foranyone requiring English in daily communi-cation.By focusing on the properintonation for our students to achievemaximum intelligibility, we are betterequipping them for the English-speakingworld. It is important for us asteachers to go the extra mile.ReferencesCooper, T. C. (1998). Teaching idioms.Foreign Language Annals, 31(2),255-266.Cruttenden, M. (1986). Intonation.Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UniversityPress.Irujo, S. (1986). Don’t put your legin your mouth: Transfer in theacquisition of idioms in a secondlanguage. TESOL Quarterly, 20,287-304.Nippold, M. A., & Martin, S. T. (1989).Idiom interpretation in isolationversus context: A developmentalstudy with adolescents. JournalSpeech & Hearing Research, 32,59-66.Nunan, D. (2003). Practical Englishteaching. New York: McGraw Hill.Scott, W. A., & Ytreberg, L. H. (2000).Teaching English to children. NewYork: Longman.

Greetings Idiom readers,I am delighted to combine mybackground in publishing with mylove of TESOL as the new editor ofIdiom. Thank you to my predecessor,Julie Dziewisz, for her great workand help with a smooth transition. Ialso thank the column editors, copyeditor, NYS TESOL leadership andmembers for the warm welcome.My career began with a B.A.in journalism from NYU. After Iswitched to marketing, and laterfundraising, I volunteered in anESOL classroom and loved it. I enrolledin Teachers College, ColumbiaUniversity, graduated with an Ed.M.in TESOL, and began working as anadjunct at Pace, CUNY, andColumbia.Presently, I work in an intensiveEnglish program at Nassau CommunityCollege. We focus on improvingstudents’ skills through an integrated,holistic approach, so that they canexit our program and be prepared forcollege-level work. I also instruct andmentor aspiring TESOL teachers atthe Literacy Assistance Center.I welcome the chance to meet withinterested writers during the Annualconference in October. See you there!--Cara<idiom@nystesol.org>

Introduction from the new Idiom Editor, Cara Tuzzolino

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NYS TESOL10 FEAT

URES ESL teachers employ a variety of

instructional tools in the classroom.Conversation can be used to helpstudents practice pronunciation, to prepareand develop a well-thought-outparagraph, and to enhance listeningskills. Most important, conversationalactivities tap into students’ schemato help them fully develop criticalthinking skills in English. Below areseveral activities I have used with mystudents.To introduce the concept ofstudents’ origins, I show students howto use the Reporter’s Questions (Who,What, When, Where, Why, and How)to gather information. Students partnerwith one another to ask these questionsand record the answers. When theclass comes together again, I ask thegroup, “Who has a partner comingfrom a country whose name beginswith the letter A?” Students mightanswer Argentina. The class thenidentifi es which continent Argentinais on. Students check the map inthe classroom to know more abouttheir partner’s home country. This isrepeated until the end of the alphabet.Students work with their partners tosee what they already know aboutthese countries. This prior knowledgehelps students realize that they knowmore than they think about geographyand other topics.Next, the class discusses the varietyof languages spoken by the students.After obtaining this information, studentsput the names of these languageson the board. This fi rst conversationin class provides information neededfor the fi rst writing assignment, whichis the biography of a class member.The fi rst draft begins in class andis peer reviewed for content by thestudent’s conversation partners. Theirhomework is to review the draft andto rewrite it at home on the computer.The next day, I review the homework with students and focus my comments on a grammatical topic, such as verb tense us-age. I choose to focus my feedback on one

or two aspects of the writing assign-ment so that a completelymarked-up paper does not increase students’ writing anxiety.The next assignment involves reading a biography about a famous Ameri-can. It might be a commonly known American like George Washington or someone from a particular fi eld. After forming groups and prior to reading, students discuss what they already know about the person and what they expect to see in the article. I intro-duce the concepts of topic and main idea as well as vocabulary specifi c to the story. After reading the biogra-phy, students individually answer the Reporter’s Questions from the article, and then share their answers with theirconversation group. in groups, stu-dents generate their own questions using the Reporter’s Questions. When the class comestogether, one student from each con-versation group writes one question on the board—the questions should not be duplicates of other groups’ questions. Students read each ques-tion aloud. I ask the whole class for grammaticalcorrections to the questions. Aftercompleting the exercise, students write a summary of the biography—they can use these questions or the ones from the conversation group—and show this to their conversation partner forfeedback. Their homework is to cre-ate a revised version of the in-class written summary that incorporates their partners’ feedback. They staple the draft to the top of the rewrite. Using conversation sheets, such as those available at www.boggles-worldesl. com, also provides oppor-tunitiesfor interaction. Each conversationsheet centers on a theme such as

For ELLs, Talking Is Learningby Elaine Caputo Ferrara

Come to the Annual Conference

October 28-29, 2011

New York State Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages41st Annual Conference “Enhancing English Learning: Connecting Communities Through Collaboration”Marriott Hotel Melville, NY For further information, go to www.nystesol.organd check your e-mail on the NYS TESOL Listserv If you are interested involunteering or have questions,contactConference Chair Christy Baralis atvp2@nystesol.org

NYS TESOL11

seasons, media, habits, and cus-toms. These can be used to talk about the topic in conversation groups, to learn vocabulary specifi c to a topic, and topractice pronunciation. I ask students to look up defi nitions of highlighted words on the sheets. As an instructor, using these sheets is a way to determinestudents’ familiarity with American culture and to plan class trips. Stu-dents can also conduct research to enhance their knowledge about media. I used these conversation activities with levels 3 to 7 students (as measuredby the Best Plus) enrolled innon-credit ESL CUNY courses for a semester or more. Students ranged from 18 to 60 years, were from all over the world, and spoke a wide variety of languages. Some were recently arrived professionals who had universitydegrees; others had a basic educa-tion in their native country.Students developed a sense ofcommunity because of the shared-conversation exercises. Many good friendships began in class and continued after graduation. These friendships made it more enjoyable for many toattend class on a regular basis and did lead to fewer absences. By the end, students learned how to express their ideas more clearly in English and how to formulate ques-tions for futureeducational use. Their critical think-ing skills were used to evaluate the new information and to compare it to what they already knew.

Elaine Caputo Ferrara received a Mas-ter’s degree from N.Y.U. in educational psychology, with a specialty in reading and special education. At the College of Staten Island, she teaches reading and writing to college

CALL FOR AWARDS

Exceptional ProfessionalsTo honor contributions made within our fi eld, NYS TESOL presents severalawards

annually, including:

James A. Lydon Distinguished Service AwardOutstanding Teacher Award

Recognition AwardLifetime Achievement Award

James E. Weaver Memorial AwardSpecial Award

Year Award Honoree 2010 Recognition Award Dr. Anita Batisti Outstanding Teacher Dr. Maria Dove 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award Estee Lopez Recognition Award Dr. Walter Sullivan & Saul Cohen Outstanding Teacher Barbara Suter 2008 James E. Weaver Memorial Award Alison O’Neil Recognition Award Sam Hoyt Outstanding Teacher Donna Bove 2007 James A. Lydon Distinguished Service George Morrisw Recognition Award Maria Neira Outstanding Teacher Dr. Andrea Honigsfeld & Caryn Bachar 2006 James A. Lydon Distinguished Service Dr. Frank Tang Outstanding Teacher Patricia C. La Rose 2005 James A. Lydon Distinguished Service Diana Segovia Praus

2011 Award Winners will be presented at the41st Annual Conference

October 28th & 29th, 2011Please review our available awards and criteria for submission at

www.nystesol.org.Submit all nominations and supporting documentation as attachments

via e-mail to:Meredith Van Schuyler, awards@nystesol.org

All submissions due September 23, 2011.

NYS TESOL12

More Grammar Games: Cognitive,Affective and Movement Activities forEFL Students. By Mario Rinvolucriand Paul Davis. Cambridge UniversityPress. Cambridge. UK. (2010).176 pp. ISBN: 978-0-521-46630-1Reviewed by Kathryn NorthMario Rinvolucri and Paul Davis’More Grammar Games: Cognitive,Affective and Movement Activities forEFL Students provides a revamping oftheir earlier work Grammar Games,which was originally published in1984. The authors designed the textto provide EFL/ESL teachers witha framework for games that can bemodifi ed to be appropriate for differentage groups and varied Englishprofi ciency levels. Therefore, whilethe usefulness of the book as a supplemen-taltext in the adult ESL classroomis the main purpose of this review, itsutility can be applied to various teachingscenarios.The text is divided into nine sectionsincluding “Competitive Games,”“Cognitive Games,” “Feelings andGrammar,” “Listening to People,”“Movement and Grammar,” “Meaningand Translation,” “Problem Solving,”“Correction” and “Presentation,” fora total of 81 games, or mini-lessons.As the titles suggest, many lessons arerooted in the principles of well-knownEnglish language learning methodologiesincluding the Silent Way, as wellas Counseling-Learning/CommunityLanguage Learning (CLL). The bookbegins with a table of contents notingthe games and page numbers. Thisis followed by a detailed map of thebook with the game titles, grammartopics covered, and levels and timeneeded. The introduction also includescommentary from the authors on howthe book can be used and their rationalefor the methodologies utilized bysection.Each game begins with the titleof the game and a box restating thedetails from the map of the book. Ifthe game can be adapted for other

structures and levels, a sub-box statesthis. To start the main portion of themini-lesson, the authors note anypreparation required before class. Thisis followed by a breakdown of thein-class procedures of the game. Theauthors also include examples, varia-tions,a rationale overview, and notesor acknowledgements when neces-sary.Lastly, any required handouts are provided.On a minor note, the examplesand handouts are written using BritishEnglish vocabulary. In the case ofclasses in the United States, instruc-torswill need to rewrite these in StandardAmerican English.The fi rst section includes competitivegames, which are designed toincrease motivation by fostering col-laborationwithin groups while creatinga safe, spirited environment. Manyof the games in this section focus onthe correction of material provided bythe teacher. This, of course, means thatthe instructor must devote time to thepreparation of the game. For some thiscould be less than ideal.The cognitive games in section twoare unique in their structure as, accordingto the authors, the exercises aremostly open-ended ones: this dif-fersfrom many grammar exercises thatrequire one correct response. The fl exibilityof the activities allows studentsto discover various aspects of theBO

OK R

EVIE

WThis is an ongoing column,featuring reviews of books

and other materials forESOL teachers and students. Please

sendarticle submissions to the column editor,Nanette Dougherty (contact information

is on page 22).C

Book Review

NYS TESOL13

new language, and give validity to thefi rst language (Baker, 2006; Gibbons,2009). Therefore, if instructors usethese mini-lessons, they may fi nd thatwhen properly administered, deeplearning can take place during gamesthat use translation.The last three sections are lesssubstantial. Section seven deals withproblem solving. Section eight offerstechniques for self, peer and teachercorrections. Finally, section nine rec-ommendsalternatives for the presentationof new grammar topics to a class.Both students and teacher havemuch to gain from More GrammarGames. The authors offer ideas forgames that appeal to many differentlearning styles. With the exception ofmusical and natural intelligences, thisbook contains games that promoteall the multiple intelligences (Gardner,2006). The book also lists gamesspecifi cally designed to strengthen receptiveskills to help students becomemore active listeners and readers. Furthermore,utilizing grammar games,an instructor can adeptly introducegrammar topics without the use ofovert grammatical language. Althoughthe discussion of teaching grammati-calform vs. focusing on communicativeinteractions is still very predominantin the ESL teaching fi eld, research hasshown that the integration of gram-marwith contextualized language createsthe most effi cient mode of learning(Larsen-Freeman 2001).To offer some criticism, the organiza-tional

structure of the text can bechallenging. For those who normallyorganize lessons in a progression ofscaffolded topics, the division byunderlying pedagogical approachesmay be less intuitive. In addition, theorganization within the sections is unclearand fi nding a game for a specifi cgrammar topic or level requires somehunting within the map of the text.Further, many of the games, especiallyin sections one and two, require a fairamount of setup. While an instructormay hope to use a book of games asa quick reference for lesson ideas, thetime required for fi nding an appropriatelesson and setup prevent the bookfrom being used in that manner. Finally,while one would assume that allof the games are related explicitly togrammar, some have a more semanticfocus. This does not deter the studentfrom gaining knowledge but should benoted.ReferencesBaker, C. (2006). Foundations ofbilingual education and bilingualism(4th ed.). Toronto: MultilingualMatters.Gardner, H. (2006). Multiple intelligences:New Horizons. New York:Basic Books.Gibbons, P. (2009). English LearnersAcademic Literacy and Thinking:Learning in the Challenge Zone.Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.Larsen-Freeman, D. (2000). Teachingand Principles in LanguageTeaching (2nd ed.). New York:Oxford University Press.Larsen-Freeman, D. (2001). Teachinggrammar. In M. Celce-Murcia(Ed.), Teaching English as a Secondor Foreign Language (3rd ed.)(pp. 251-266). Boston: Heinkle &Heinkle Thomson Learning.Rinvolucri, M., & Davis, P. (1995).

More Grammar Games: Cognitive,Affective and MovementActivities for EFL Students. NewYork: Cambridge University Press.Kathryn N. North is a recent graduateof New York University’s Master’sProgram in TESOL. An ESOL instructorwith the New York Public Library,Kathryn also tutors writing and developmentalreading at the Borough ofManhattan Community Col-lege.<knnorth@gmail.com>

NYS TESOL14 BOOK

REV

IEW

Engaging English Language Learners(ELLs) in a few minutes of smalltalk prior to the start of ESL class canbe a very useful strategy. The purposeof small talk is not about gauging howgrammatically correct my students canspeak in English -- although I do makemental notes of students’ grammaticaldiffi culties for subsequent lessons.It provides the opportunity for mystudents to be heard in a very relaxedsetting, while allowing their English toemerge. It certainly can be a challengeto insert those few minutes during thefast-paced schedule of a typical schoolday, but I have found it to be a sourceof valuable information.I often begin the small talk sessionwith an informational “wh” questionsuch as “How was your appointmentat the dentist?” or “What did you doafter school yesterday?” The responsesare quite revealing. Some students,especially those in middle school, areinitially guarded, while others seemsurprised that I want to know moreabout them. Gradually as they learnto trust me as well as their classmates,the students slowly open up. It isgratifying to see a once painfully shykindergarten student now coming toclass with daily announcements suchas, “You know what? Yesterday, I lose(sic) a tooth.”There are other times when studentsexpress more sensitive issues,which we discuss further in private.One example of this occurred when anELL in third grade told me during oursmall talk session that one of the otherstudents in the mainstream class madefun of his speech and called him “stupid.”Neither his classroom teachernor I had noticed any tension betweenthese two students. The fact that theELL who mentioned this incident hadalways felt self-conscious about hisability to speak English prompted my

immediate arrangement of a meetingwith his teacher and the other stu-dent.Fortunately, we were able to resolvethe situation, but it taught me tobecome more vigilant when workingwith ELLs in the mainstream class-room.It is impressive to listen to a studentretell a story or incident, but the mostgratifying part is when he or she isable to connect it to a new concept.When studying the concept of causeand effect during a reading lesson, Isensed that only a few students un-derstoodthis concept, while many didnot. Suddenly, one student an-nounced,“Do you remember when I told youthe story about how I accidentallyspilled water on the kitchen fl oor?”He proudly continued, “That wasan example of cause and effect. Thecause was when I spilled water on thefl oor. The effect was when my mombecame angry.” His classmates nod-dedtheir heads in agreement. It was as if alight bulb had been turned on! I couldnot have provided a better example ofcause and effect!As ELLs become more confi dentin speaking English, more of their personalitiesemerge. During one of oursmall talk sessions, I asked a begin-ningELL in the fi rst grade, “Wheredoes your brother go to school?”Without hesitation, she stated, “Mybrother go (sic) to Sleepy HollowSchool. Zzzzzzzz. Sleepy School. I amsoooo sleepy!” as she put her head onthe desk and pretended to sleep.

Small Talk: A MeaningfulConversation Tool by Joy Scantlebury

NYS TESOL15

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NYS TESOL16

Above: Everyone listens as Ufualè Afola Amey talks about learning English from her teacher Dave, a Peace Corps volunteer.

Right: Sonia Portugal, Peru, performs Floating Words, a dance she choreographed to portray the spirit of English language learning.

Below: Ahmed El-Habashi, Egypt; Tomoko Kihira, Japan; Ufualè Afola Amey, Togo; Osiris Romero, Dominican Republic and Elena Lyumanova, Russia, come together in anticipation of their panel presentation.

NYS TESOL17

Resources forImplementing...

standards with recommended stu-dent objectives, texts, and activities. Examples of these thematic cur- riculum units include: Grade 1: The Amazing Animal World; Grade 3: The People, the Preamble, and the Presi- dents; Grade 6: Folklore: A Blast from the Past; Grade 9: Literary Elements of a Short Story; and Grade 12: Euro-pean Literature: Renaissance and Reforma- tion. Common Core is working with schools and districts in different states to implement the maps. Arizona and North Carolina are using them state- wide to help districts put the stan-dards in place (Gewitz & Robelen, 2011). Two writers have recently crafted documents outlining Common Core curriculum criteria. Working under a contract with the Bill & Melinda Gates

Foundation, a strong supporter of the standards, David Coleman and Susan Pimentel, co-authors of the Common Core Standards for ELA/Literacy, wrote two documents highlighting the key ideas of the standards and de- scribing the qualities of instructional materials they consider an accurate refl ection of them (Gewertz, 2011).

Common Core Assessments and PARCC

According to the National Gover- nor’s Association/CCSSO, the Com- mon Core State Standards will also ultimately be the basis for a system of high-quality assessments. New York State is a governing member of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), which was awarded Race to the Top Assessment funds in 2010. The PARCC Web site can be viewed at http://parcconline.org/. Over the next few years, New York and 25 other tates will develop a set of English Language Arts and Mathematics as-

sessments, which will be fi nalized in 2014-15 (NYSED, 2011). Com-mon Core Standards Assessment Resources are located at http://education northwest.org/resource/1331. Idiom will work to keep read-ers aware of all the upcoming changes.

References August, D., Cortese, A., La Fonde, S., Leos, K. (2010). Making Com-mon Core Standards work for ELLs: The importance of linking English Language Profi ciency Stan-dards to the Common Core Stan-dards. October 21, 2010. AFT Educa- Resources for Implementing... (continued from page 7)

NYS TESOL18

Check out the new Members Only website! We’re very excited to announce the launch of the new Members Only website for NYS

TESOL. We are just gearing up, but hope this will become a major resource and networking site for our members.

Current members were sent an email alert in early September containing their username and password. Of course, your email system may have fi ltered our message into a spam folder —

if you are a current member and did not receive a notice with your login information, please contact us at businessmanager@nystesol.org.

With annual conference registration already under way, please act quickly to login and verify your profi le data and networking preferences.

What’s There Coming Soon • Your profi le page

• Membership renewal • Discounted event registration

• Members Only online publication, Dialogue • Discussion boards • Networking options • SIG/Region E-lists

• Job Coach/Career Mentoring • Service opportunities and awards

Your PRIVACY This site is viewable only by active members. And, because this is new, we have also

blocked your contact information from members. So, unlike Facebook, where you decide what to set as ‘private,’ we’ve already done this. The only information visible to other members is: your Name, Member Type, Region and SIG preferences. You can privatize these, too, if you

wish, by updating your profi le. However, for those of you who want to network with other members, there are 2 optional

fi elds – an “email to share” and a “website/blog address” both set up as viewable by all mem- bers. And you can upload a photo. You control the privacy settings for these fi elds and

can edit them at any time. What’s Next?

We’d like you to tell us! Please look around the site, update your profi le, join a discussion board, and send us ideas for additions and improvements.

Discounted Membership Update NYS TESOL is committed to providing members with the most up-to-date resources, news and educational

tools. To enable access by all members of our fi eld, NYS TESOL offers discounted memberships. Recently, we revised the documentation policy for discounts to align with other non-profi t organizations as well as to create

greater consistency and transparency. Please check the new requirements when you prepare to renew. For questions regarding membership status and discounts, please contact us at membership@nystesol.org.

NYS TESOL19

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• Collaborative Craftsmanship: Through conscious efforts for continuous improvement of the craft of teaching, teachers explore ways to enhance instructional time, language development, and content area resources, and offer support for each other. Table 1 shows how the concept of collegiality and collaboration may offer a system of support in a linguistically and culturally diverse school context by including the four Cs with ample examples. Collaborative Conversations* (continued from page 1)

Collaborative Conversations

Talk about Students’ needs Students’ lives Students in and out of school work Curriculum and instruction Teachers’ own struggles Teachers’ own successes What matters to you, the teacher

Collaborative CurriculumDevelopment Align Lesson objectives (language objectives and content objec-tives) Unit goals Curriculum maps Primary and supplementary instructional materials Adapted texts and materials Resources

Collaborative Craftsmanship Explore ELLs’ background knowledge ELLs’ prior learning Peer coaching Planning instruction collaboratively or in the context of co-teaching Effective methods for aligning curriculum and objectives Using time more effectively Making the most of collaborative efforts

Collaborative Coaching

Use peer coaching to improve Lesson planning Lesson delivery Unit design Use of supplementary materials Adapted content Modifi ed instruction Assessment practices

Collaboration may start out as a small, grassroots effort, involving only two or three teachers who share the responsi- bility for some of the same ELLs and are concerned about their students’ progress. It may involve an entire grade level.

Some examples include grade clusters working together to develop or enhance curricula in elementary schools; an inter- disciplinary team of math, science, social studies, English, and ESL teachers (sharing responsibility for a cluster of classes

in middle schools); or a discipline-specifi c department (focusing on preparing all students to meet graduation requirements of high schools). Regardless of the local context, all these collaborative efforts start with professional conversations,

through which teachers collaboratively explore their students’ needs and responsive practices.

References DelliCarpini, M. (2008). Teacher collaboration for ESL/EFL academic success. The Internet TESL Journal, 14(8). Re-

trieved from http://iteslj.org/Techniques/DelliCarpini-TeacherCollaboration.html

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DelliCarpini, M. (2009, May). Dia- logues across disciplines: Prepar- ing English-as-a-second-language teachers for interdisciplinary collaboration. Current Issues in Education (Online), 11(2). Re- trieved from http://cie.ed.asu.edu/ volume11/number2/

Honigsfeld, A., & Dove, M. (2010). Collaboration and co-teaching: Strategies for English learners. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future (NAC- TAF). (2009). Learning teams: Creating what’s next. Retrieved from http://www.nctaf.org/docu- ments/NCTAFLearningTeams- 408REG2–09_000.pdf

NEA (2009). NEA reiterates collabora- tion as key to keeping teachers. Retrieved from http://www.nea. org/home/31477.htm

Pawan, F., & Ortloff, J. H. (2011). Sus- taining collaboration: English-as- a-second-language and content-ar- ea teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27, 463-471.

Dr. Andrea Honigsfeld is associate dean and professor in the Division of Education at Molloy College, Rock-

ville Centre. She is the co-author with Maria Dove of a recently published

book, Collaboration and Co-Teaching: Strategies for English Learners (Cor-

win Press, 2010). <ahonigsfeld@gmail.com>

*Sections of this manuscript have grown out of the author’s collabora-tive conversations with Dr. Maria Dove and are featured in their coauthored book, cited above. tional Policy Forum. http://www. colorincolorado.org/powerpoint/ ELL-ELPStandardsPPT%20Slide. pdf Colorin Colorado (2011). Common Core Standards and English Lan- guage Learners. Reading Rockets. WETA Learning Media. http://

www.colorincolorado.org/ educators/common_core/ Gewertz, C. (2011). Common Core Writers Craft curriculum criteria, July 22, 2011. Education Weekly. http://www.edweek.org/ew/article s/2011/07/21/37curriculum.h30.ht ml?tkn=UPSFLpcFv4ebJmsg2qZx 2C7B8rKm7AL%2FiacG&cmp=c lp-sb-ascd Gewertz, C., & Robelen, E. (2011). Curriculum maps aim to bring ELA Standards to life. July 25, 2011. http://blogs.edweek.org/ edweek/curriculum/2011/07/the_ nonprofi t_group_common _cor. html

Hakuta, K. (2011). Webinar: Research to practice: Preparing ELLs for the Common Core, Teachscape, May 5, 2011. http://marketing. teachscape.com/K12Kenji ELLMay2011WebinarAccess.html Lopez, E. (2010). ELA Standards: Shifting the focus to the Common Core comments, standards and curriculum, NYS TESOL, October 2010. http://www.nystesol.org/ curriculum-standards/swtandards. html

Nagel, D. (2010). Feds award $330 million to fund alternatives to high-stake bubble tests. The Jour- nal, September 2, 2010. http:// thejournal.com/arti- cles/2010/09/02/feds-award-330- million-to-fi nd-alternatives-to- high-stakes-bubble-tests.aspx?sc_ lang-en

NYSED (2011). FAQs—Common Core learning standards. http:// www.p12.nysed.gov/ciai/com- mon_core_standards/faq.html NYSUT (2011). Educational Resourc- es for English Language Learners. http://www.nysut.org/cps/rde/ xchg/nysut/hs.xsl/k12_13765.htm Quay, L. (2010). Higher standards for all: Implications of the Common Core for equity in education. Civil Rights Research Roundtable on Education, Berkeley Law, April 2010. http://www.law.berkeley. edu/fi les/Education_Roundable_ Standards_Brief_ 4_10.pdf

Washington State School Board (2010). Common Core Stan- dards—Process FAQs. http:// www.sbe.wa.gov/documents/ FAQ%20Common%20 Core%Standards%20Process.pdf

Zehr, M. A. (2011). Conference: Implementing Common Core Standards for ELLs, Learning the Language Blog, August 11, 2010. Education Weekly. http://blogs. edweek.org/edweek/learning-the- language/2010/08/conference_ implementing_common.html Zehr, M. A. (2011). Stanford to lead creation of ELL standards for “Common Core” Learning the Language Blog, July 12, 2011, Education Weekly. http://blogs. edweek.org/edweek/learning-the- language/2011/07/stanford_to_ lead_creation_of_e.html Diane Garafalo is a former ESL teach- er at Oswego City School Dis-trict. She was also a secondary English teacher, with a total of fi fteen years of public school teaching experience. Diane’s previous positions include work-ing as an adjunct professor of written com- munications for ITT Technical Institute and a human resources and training manager for a variety of Fortune 500 companies. Currently, Diane is an HR and workforce literacy consul-tant for DRG Associates. <dgarafalo@earthlink.net> Resources for Implementing... (continued from page 17)

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APPL

YNew York State Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages

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Special Interest Groups (SIGs): Please select your top 2 priorities from the interest groups listed below by marking a “1” and a “2” next to your top choices.

Renewal:____ New Member:____

_____ A ESL in Adult Education _____ B ESL in Bilingual Education_____ E ESL in Elementary Education _____ S ESL in Secondary Education_____ H ESL in Higher Education

_____SE ESL in Special Education _____TE ESL Teacher Education _____ L Applied Linguistics_____ T Teaching English Internationally

1st SIG. This is your primary interest group with NYS TESOL. You may hold office and vote in this SIG. w2nd SIG. You may receive information from this SIG. Region (check one) ____Buffalo ____Capital District ____Hudson Valley ____Long Island ___New York City ____Rochester/Syracuse

_____ Please omit my name from mailing lists provided to other organizations. ___ Please sign me up for the NYS TESOL E-list.

Membership Category (select one) NOTE two-year savings! Individual Member: $40.00/yr. ___ $70.00/2 yrs. __ Discounted Memberships: Proof of Eligibility Reqd. Documentation requires completion of the Eligibility Webform and written confirmation as described below.

Part-time / Adjunct: $35.00/yr. ___ $60.00/2 yrs. ___ Documentation: A letter on your employer’s letterhead confirming that you do not have full-time employment. Aide/TA/Para (Please circle your category): $20/year ___ Documentation: A letter on your employer’s letterhead confirming your position in the organization. Retiree: $20/year ___ (Documentation may vary. Please access Eligibility Webform to begin process.)

Full-time Student (3-year limit): $20/year ___ Documentation: Proof of full-time status in a degree-granting program (transcript w/ min. 12 credits per semester or letter of confirmation from Registrar). Please submit your documentation within 30 days. Access Eligibility Webform at: http://www.nystesol.org/membership/applicationform.html If you are unable to provide the required documents, you have the option to pay the balance to subscribe as an Individual Member.

Payment Information: ____ Check payable to NYS TESOL enclosed Please charge my: ___ VISA ___ MasterCard ___ Discover Please write numbers clearly and sign: Card #:_________________________________________ Exp. date:___________

Signature: _________________________________

Send to: NYS TESOL Teacher’s College, Box 185 525 W. 120th Street, Z-316

New York, NY 10027

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