Teaching ESL Students in Teaching ESL Students in Mainstream ClassroomsMainstream Classrooms

Leaders’ Mini-courseLeaders’ Mini-courseNinna Marni (Hello, how are you?)Ninna Marni (Hello, how are you?)

““We would like to acknowledge this land We would like to acknowledge this land that we meet on today is the spiritual lands that we meet on today is the spiritual lands for the Kaurna people and that we respect for the Kaurna people and that we respect

their spiritual relationship with their their spiritual relationship with their country. We also acknowledge the Kaurna country. We also acknowledge the Kaurna people as the custodians of the Adelaide people as the custodians of the Adelaide

region and that their cultural and heritage region and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living beliefs are still as important to the living

Kaurna people today”Kaurna people today”

TESMC Leaders’ Mini-courseTESMC Leaders’ Mini-courseIntended OutcomesIntended Outcomes

• Increased awareness of what underpins the Increased awareness of what underpins the course, what it includes and how the course course, what it includes and how the course can build teacher capacity in improving can build teacher capacity in improving educational outcomes for ESL studentseducational outcomes for ESL students

• Increased awareness of how the course can Increased awareness of how the course can build school capacitybuild school capacity

• Increased awareness of support available to Increased awareness of support available to schools from the ESL Program & ESL DSPsschools from the ESL Program & ESL DSPs

• Potential TESMC tutors are targeted for trainingPotential TESMC tutors are targeted for training

Teaching ESL students in Teaching ESL students in Mainstream ClassroomsMainstream Classrooms

Course OverviewCourse Overview

Presentation OverviewPresentation Overview

• Who are ESL students in our Who are ESL students in our mainstream classrooms?mainstream classrooms?

• Course rationale, aims and strategiesCourse rationale, aims and strategies

• Module overviewModule overview

• Reflection and responseReflection and response

Who are the ESL students in Who are the ESL students in mainstream schools?mainstream schools?

• Students who have come to South Students who have come to South Australia as part of the Migration Program Australia as part of the Migration Program – ~1600 new arrivals per year~1600 new arrivals per year

• Students born in Australia who have Students born in Australia who have English as a second languageEnglish as a second language– ~ 16,000 or 10% of school population~ 16,000 or 10% of school population

• International studentsInternational students– ~ 880 secondary, 160 primary~ 880 secondary, 160 primary

Top 10 languages spoken by ESL Top 10 languages spoken by ESL learnerslearners

in South Australia in South AustraliaLanguageLanguage Number of ESL studentsNumber of ESL students

VietnameseVietnamese 10181018

Aboriginal EnglishAboriginal English 984984

ChineseChinese 863863

GreekGreek 628628

DariDari 478478

KhmerKhmer 411411

ArabicArabic 402402

ItalianItalian 373373

SerbianSerbian 371371

DinkaDinka 350350

TotalTotal 5878 (out of 16,000)5878 (out of 16,000)

Top 6 countries: International Top 6 countries: International studentsstudentsCountry of birthCountry of birth Total (primary and Total (primary and

secondary)secondary)

ChinaChina 358358

KoreaKorea 276276

JapanJapan 155155

GermanyGermany 7171

Hong KongHong Kong 6464

VietnamVietnam 6363

TESMC Course RationaleTESMC Course Rationale

•ESL teachers in schools cannot ESL teachers in schools cannot be expected to meet all the needs be expected to meet all the needs of the often large numbers of ESL of the often large numbers of ESL students. The course promotes the students. The course promotes the belief that this responsibility belief that this responsibility should be shared by all teachers.should be shared by all teachers.

RationaleRationale

• This shared responsibility is based on an This shared responsibility is based on an understanding of what each teacher is understanding of what each teacher is able to achieve in their classrooms. The able to achieve in their classrooms. The course presents ways for this sharing to be course presents ways for this sharing to be done successfully.done successfully.

• ESL and non-ESL teachers participating in ESL and non-ESL teachers participating in sustained professional development will sustained professional development will support collaboration across subjects and support collaboration across subjects and within the school.within the school.

AimsAims

• Develop collaboration Develop collaboration

between English between English

language teachers language teachers

and their mainstream and their mainstream

colleaguescolleagues

AimsAims

• Develop teachers’ Develop teachers’

understanding of the understanding of the

central role of central role of

language and the vital language and the vital

role of the teacherrole of the teacher

AimsAims

• Develop teachers’ Develop teachers’

understanding of the understanding of the

interrelatedness of culture, interrelatedness of culture,

language and identity and language and identity and

how this shapes students’ how this shapes students’

understanding of themselves understanding of themselves

and their learningand their learning

AimsAims

• Develop teachers’ Develop teachers’

awareness that the awareness that the

cultural capital ESL cultural capital ESL

students bring is a students bring is a

resource to be drawn resource to be drawn

onon

AimsAims

• Develop teachers’ Develop teachers’

awareness that having awareness that having

high expectations and high expectations and

providing explicit providing explicit

support allows for support allows for

participation in participation in

challenging taskschallenging tasks

AimsAims

• Promote whole-school approaches to Promote whole-school approaches to addressing the learning needs of ESL addressing the learning needs of ESL learnerslearners

AimsAims

• Provide teachers with a positive Provide teachers with a positive context to critically reflect upon their context to critically reflect upon their teaching and to trial suggested teaching and to trial suggested strategiesstrategies

StrategiesStrategies

• Relevant to the greatest range of Relevant to the greatest range of

classroom contextsclassroom contexts

• Informed by language in learning Informed by language in learning

theoriestheories

• For all students but with a specific For all students but with a specific

focus on ESL learners’ needsfocus on ESL learners’ needs

• Achievable by all teachersAchievable by all teachers

Module overviewsModule overviews

ESL learner

Learning context

““Learning language, Learning language,

learning through learning through

language, learning language, learning

about language”about language”

MAK HallidayMAK Halliday

Teaching and Learning Teaching and Learning CycleCycle

A Functional Model of A Functional Model of LanguageLanguage

ESL learner

Learning context

Oral language

ESL learner

Learning context

Oral language

Written and visual language

“Writing deprives language of the power to intuit, to make indefinitely

many meanings in different directions at once, to explore (by tolerating them) contradictions, to represent experience

as fluid and indeterminate. It is therefore destructive of one

fundamental human potential; to think on your toes, as we put it.

But, secondly, in destroying this potential it creates another one: that of structuring, categorising, disciplinizing.

It creates a new kind of knowledge: scientific knowledge and a new way of

learning, called education”

MAK Halliday

ESL learner

Learning context

Oral language

Written and visual language

School and Community

“Without reducing the importance of what happens in each and every classroom, it is crucial that ESL concerns and

issues are addressed across the whole school and the wider

community”

TESMC Module 9

Reflection and responseReflection and response• Which of these modules do you think Which of these modules do you think

will best address your school/site’s will best address your school/site’s questions and needs?questions and needs?

• Which modules do you think may Which modules do you think may present your school/site with the present your school/site with the greatest challenges? greatest challenges?

• Was there anything new or surprising Was there anything new or surprising to you in the overview?to you in the overview?