Presented by: Michelle Sluder, ESL Instructor/Arlington Community Schools Shelly Misenheimer, ESL Instructor/Collierville Schools Bridge To Success: Best Practices for Supporting Your EL Agenda I.Introductions/Brief Survey/EL Busters II.Cultural Aspects of EL Learning III.Objectives for EL Modifications IV.Modifications vs Accommodations V.Instructional Strategies/Visuals/Scaffolding VI.Assessing your ELs for Authentic Learning VII.Examples VIII.Question & Answer Session Bridging the Gap: All in Allse/a-language-immersion-story/ EL Buster: Truth or Myth Turkey runs the world's largest refugee resettlement program. According to Ten Facts About U.S. Refugee Resettlement by Randy Capps and Michael Fix, the United States runs the worlds largest refugee resettlement program.Randy Capps and Michael Fix Cultural Awareness Rationale: Focusing Your Content Tweak content for authentic measurement of mastery Measureable growth Authentic academic success for the EL student Removing the language barrier to assess content Student engagement Facilitates grade level learning Differentiated instruction and assessment Lau vs Nichols Its the law! *Think Evaluation Rubric! LSP vs IEP ELs do not have IEPs, but they do have LSPs (Language Support Plans); however, there are federal laws mandating schools to make the content accessible to language learners regardless of their immigration status. (Lau vs Nichols, Plyler vs Doe) One of the most concise is Lau vs. Nichols, summarized here: The Supreme Court ruled that equality of educational opportunity is not achieved by merely providing all students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum (because) students who do not understand English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education. The court ordered that districts must take affirmative steps to overcome educational barriers faced by non-English speaking students. LSP: Tools to Support Content Teachers Correlating WIDA to Proficiency Levels ELs & Depth of Knowledge Resource:14/English_Learners/ELLs_DOK_levels.pdf14/English_Learners/ELLs_DOK_levels.pdf EL Buster Truth or Myth Adolescent ELs face a greater workload, learning English at the same time as they are studying core content areas in English, more than any other age or grade level. Truth: Based on research, grades 6-12 prove to be the most challenging for ELs due to the expectations of learning social language simultaneously with academic. Instructional Strategies Visuals: A Clear Message? sinking https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_FFaOya5Nw Scaffolding Social Studies Content Visuals Visual & First Language Support - Supports Vocabulary Acquisition- L1 acts as bridge to L2 - Visuals build schema Anchor Charts EL Buster Truth or Myth Once an EL has mastered basic interpersonal communication skills (BICS), they will quickly gain the necessary skills for academic language to be successful in the classroom. Research shows that while it takes 2 to 3 years to acquire communicative English proficiency, it takes 6 to 8 years to acquire academic English proficiency. While many English learners: Speak in sentences Communicate socially with peers They continue to: Struggle with grade-level reading passages Struggle with academic vocabulary Struggle with comprehending content textbooks Modification vs Accommodation Modification any change made to the curriculum that enables a student to be successful in content classrooms Modifications are always made BEFORE the assignment or assessment is given. Modifications DO change what the student is expected to master. Course/activity objectives are modified to meet the needs of the language learner. Accommodation alteration of environment, curriculum format or equipment used, extended time, read aloud, bilingual dictionary, oral responses Accommodations tend to happen DURING or AFTER the assignment or assessment. Accommodations do NOT change what the student is expected to master. The objectives of the course/activity remain intact. The best rule of thumb is not to dumb-down the curriculum but rather to find ways to make it understandable. Assignments It is OKAY to give English Leaners (ELs) different assignments that measure the same skill. Shortened reading passages High utility, high frequency words Narrow the focus MAIN IDEAS & CONCEPTS Model Show the student how to do the assignment and provide an example of mastery. Projects to be completed at home? Content teachers should notify the ESL instructor for additional support. Many of our ELs do not have language/content support at home. Making Content Accessible Scaffold, Scaffold, Scaffold! When giving an assessment, determine the main concept(s) you are testing and what details are nonessential for understanding the concept(s). ELs are doing twice the work in school. Not only are they responsible for the content knowledge, but they are also simultaneously learning and acquiring English. This is why it is imperative that we focus on assessing these students on only the most important content concepts not the details. 1.The process in which carbon dioxide and water are used to produce carbohydrates and evolve oxygen in the presence of light and chlorophyll. 2.When there is light and chlorophyll, a plant uses carbon dioxide and water to make sugar (food) and give oxygen. Before & After: Photosynthesis Modeling: Scaffolding for your ELs Scaffolding & Modifying Making Content Accessible 1. Guided Notes: - Cover main concepts - Are made directly from the assessment - Supports language functions - Less focus on student writing - Allows EL to focus on academic language EL Buster: Truth or Myth The 2015 Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing indicates that there are teacher shortages in English as a Second Language (ESL)/bilingual education in 32 states plus the District of Columbia. Absolutely true! Making Content Accessible 2. Sentence/Paragraph Frames - Reinforces syntax - Applicable across content areas - Gets them started on writing task - Allows student to focus more on content Math: Paragraph Frame In this math problem, we were asked to figure out _______________________. Some information was already given including ____________________________and ________________________. When creating a plan to solve this problem, I decided to follow a number of steps. First, I __________________________________________________. Next, I ______________________________________________. Then, I _____________________________________________. Finally, I _____________________________________________. After following these steps, I determined that the answer to this problem was ____________________________________________. To check this answer, I _______________________________________ __________________________________________________________. Making the Content Accessible Compare and contrast amphibians and reptiles. _________ and __________ both__________. However, _______is different than ________ because ____________. What is the main idea of the article? The article is about __________. An important detail is _________. Essay Paragraph Frame Frame for Writing Analytical Summaries Introduction In the __________________ _________________, _______________________ (article, essay) (title) (the authors complete name) _____________________________ ________________________. (verb: discusses, explains.) (the main idea, thesis) Body paragraphs ______________, ________________ _______ _________. ___________________ (transition) (authors last name) (verb) (evidence) (Your reflection) Introducing Textual Evidence: First reference According to authors name, In his article, Title of the article, authors name, says that EL Buster: Truth or Myth Most ELs in the United States are immigrants. Myth: According to the article, The Limited English Proficient Population in the United States by Jie Zong and Jeanne Batalova, most LEP individuals are immigrants; however, nearly 19 percent (4.7 million) were born in the United States, most to immigrant parents. Simplified vs Complex Language Language that causes difficulty in understanding for ELs: Complex definitions Figurative language/multi-meaning words Conditional statements Subordinate clauses and complex sentences Advanced verb tenses Nonessential Information How to Simplify Text: Complex Definitions Grade Level Definition Supergiant Late stage in the life cycle of a massive star in which the core heats up, heavy elements form by fusion, and the star expands; can eventually explode to form a supernova. Simplified Definition Supergiant A stars core heats up while heavier elements form by fusion, and the star expands. How to Simplify: Figurative Language *Avoid using idioms with beginners ELs need explicit, direct instruction on learning this form of figurative language because it is language-specific and cultural. Examples: And Then There Were None Dr. Lombard suddenly washed up on the rocks drowned. Dr. Armstrongs dead body floated onto the rocks. The Outsiders (required middle school reading) You've always got your nose in a book. Youre always reading or You read books all the time. How to Simplify: Social Studies Examples: Complex Forced Congress to do the bidding of former Confederate politicians Simplified Forced Congress to do what the former Confederate politicians wanted Complex Were able to accumulate vast amounts of wealth Simplified language Were able to get large amounts of money Simplify Discussion Questions Explain clearly using at least three different reasons or drawing three diagrams why McClelland lost the battle. Explain clearly why McClelland lost the battle. Give at least three reasons or draw three diagrams. How to Simplify: Language Arts Examples: Protection of the highly placed, locked drug cabinet is given to Lombard and Blore because they are.. Lombard and Blore are told to protect the highly placed, locked drug cabinet because they are From To Kill a Mockingbird (required high school reading) After fetching his pants from the Radley place, Jem is uneasy because Why is Jem nervous after he gets his pants from the Radleys yard? Teach the Language: Math Math Examples: Multi-Meaning Words 1.Table furniture vs.an arrangement of numbers, symbols or words to exhibit facts or relations 2.Mean - to offend vs. an average or be unkind 3. Pound to hit vs. a unit of measurement Assessments Match content complexity with language ability (WIDA/Proficiency Levels). Just because an EL child doesnt speak much English do NOT assume that he/she is not thinking critically or in complex ways. They simply cannot express their thoughts as their native-speaking peers, YET! Plan your assessments to meet the needs of the EL Resource:Rasmussen_2010%20Aug%20NCELA%20pres%20Classroom%20as sessment.pdfRasmussen_2010%20Aug%20NCELA%20pres%20Classroom%20as sessment.pdf Its not a crime to: Give clues/Prompt Change questions to yes/no answers for oral responses Divide word banks into chunks Tailor the test to your students language level Give alternate assessments Assessing Your EL with Complex Content Focusing Your Assessment on Content 1.Highlighting Key Words Helps direct the EL to key academic terms Makes the test more manageable Helps EL focus on content over language Correlate study guide to your assessments by highlighting key academic vocabulary/concepts Modifying Your Assessment 2. Color-Coding & Chunking Information Before & After: Example of Focused Assessment EL Buster: Truth or Myth The top five foreign languages spoken in the state of TN are Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese, Somalia, and Kurdish. Truth: Surprised? According to MigrationPolicy.org, these are the top 5 in the state of TN! Open Discussion Questions? Comments? Aha-moments? Contact Information Michelle Sluder Arlington Community Schools Shelly Misenheimer Collierville Schools Schilling Farms Middle School Website:s.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=464019&type=uhttp://schillingfarmsms.colliervilleschool s.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=464019&type=u