Teaching English Language Learners
A guide for teachers
By: Ali Shears
On the first day of classes, your Kindergarteners come in, and you know nothing about them. This is the beginning of a new year, a clean slate. You notice right off the bat that one of the little girls is not talking to anyone, not even you. To address this issue in an orderly manner, you walk over to her and begin asking her questions, such as her name. She stares at you blankly. What do you do now? You try to include her in the lesson, guiding her along as you would the other students. Still no response. You end up concluding that she cannot speak English at all, and end up later finding out that she just moved to America last week. Huge curve ball. This is an example of an English Language Learner, or ELL Student.
But what is an ELL?
“These “pure type” ELL students are, in fact, easily distinguishable: recent newcomers to the country and to the international school community, for a while they may remain silent in class as they adjust to a new school, environment and culture, unless there is a native language comrade to interact with” (U.S. Department of State, 2010, pg. 1).
Most English Language Learners just came to America and do not know much English, if any at all. A way for them to feel comfortable in their classroom is for them to just remain silent, which is seen quite often in schools from teachers. This is something that is happening to many teachers all over America. The main question is, what can be done?
“Every year, thousands of students come to the United States to enroll in an educational program at the school, college or graduate level” (U.S. Department of State, 2010, pg. 1).
The quote above explains why there are so many students trying to learn English in America today and even explains that teachers need to be better equipped to teach English Language Learners because of this reason. The term ELL is a word that is becoming more and more popular everyday. In Angela R. Beckman Anthony’s journal, she states, “language and literacy education for ELLs is a current ‘hot topic’ among researchers and practitioners” (472). Like much research shows, the numbers of ELL students are continuing to grow. All of the quotes taken from research show that there are more and more ELL students coming to America, and like Anthony states, it is becoming a “hot topic”. Teachers need to get a handle on this because it is not fair to future teachers, as well as especially not fair to the ELL students to have a teacher who does not know how to help them.
According to a journal written by Candace Harper and Ester de Jong, “…the total U.S. school population grew by 6% between 1979 and 1999, the English-language learner (ELL) population increased by 138% (National Center for Education Statistics,2003)”. Since the data taken from this information is a bit outdated, it is terrifying to think of what the numbers would be now. From just 1999 to 2003, which is only 4 years, the ELL population increased well over 100%, which is a major change in our population, as well as our schools. The overall population increased just 6%, in comparison with the ELL population increase. This is a very large increase, and just goes to show again that this is becoming a problem in America today.
A few myths have been discussed about English Language Learners, according to the U.S Department of State.
1. “Students can learn English quickly by being exposed to and surrounded by native language speakers.”
Fact: To much surprise, exposing students to English very quickly can actually overwhelm the ELL student. Many people think that a good way to get a student accumulated with the language is by surrounding them with many native English language speakers. This is the opposite of what should occur.
2. “The ability to converse comfortably in English signals proficient and means the child should be achieved academically.”
Fact: Many people think that if a conversation and academic proficiency are the same thing, meanwhile, they are vastly different. For example, a student may be very strong in math because numbers are universal, but they may not know English very well at all. This would go against the myth because the student would not be proficient in conversation in English at all.
3. “Students should learn English before attempting to study an academic subject in that language.”
Fact: This myth goes right along with myth #2. Social interaction is very important for students who are learning English, even if they do not know much English at all. It is a comfort for them, but this is not everything. The language and the academics need to be learned together because they are linked together quite closely.
4. “ELL students should stop speaking their native language and concentrate on speaking English.”
Fact: Students who are bilingual or speak their native language before learning English are actually much more apt to learn their second language better. If one were to stop speaking their native language at all before learning English, the opposite effect would actually happen. They would be limited by only a few English words, and would not be getting the social interaction needed from their native language, therefore, how could they then learn English? By telling a student that they cannot speak their native language is basically like taking away everything from their past from them, and that is not what should be done to an ELL student, especially if they are trying to learn a new language.
What is interesting about all of these “myths” is that they are all things that many people think are true, which is scary. If ordinary people believe these myths, then it is very possible that teachers are even believers of these myths as well. Where are teachers getting their training for ELL students? This is also another question that stems from these myths and research, and is an underlying problem being seen all over America. Many people may not think that these are the case, but according to the U.S. Department of state, they all are.
But what can be done?
Literacy in English Language Learners
How can you go about teaching literacy to students who do not even speak English as their first language? Mary Curran suggests that you can simply start off by creating routines (Curran, 336). Once a child can learn the routine of the classroom, they are more apt to understand what is going on. You can do this by creating many different types of routines, such as a Daily-5 routine for your class so that you can begin to incorporate reading into the classroom. Daily-5 is a great literacy routine that is happening more and more in schools each day. It incorporates reading throughout the daily curriculum. Also, Curran suggests using lots of visuals. Visuals are something that are universal. A child who does not speak English can easily recognize pictures that they have seen before, which creates familiarity. For example, if you want to explain what different animals are to your student, you could show them a picture of them so that they could make that connection with what you are talking about. Setting the tone the very first day for all of your students, not only your ELL students, can be very beneficial. These are just a few tips that can be used in your classroom, but there are so many more that teachers overlook.
In an article written by Kristina Robertson, she states many different tips on how to work with ELL students. She displays nine different tips that she thinks are great assets to a classroom with an ELL student in it.
1. “Create a language-rich environment.”
2. “Be aware of the relationship between a student’s native language and English.”
3. “Simplify your language without ‘dumbing it down’.”
4. “Support academic language development.”
5. “Discuss word families and how different forms of words are used.”
6. “Help students understand when to use different kinds of language.”
7. “Provide students with frequent opportunities to work together, both in pairs and in small groups.”
8. “Implement an effective correction/feedback policy”
9. “Reach out to your ELL/bilingual colleagues, reading specialists, special education teachers, and parents.”
All of these are great tools that can be used in the classroom for teachers who have ELL students. One that really stands out is tip number three, which is, “Simplify your language without ‘dumbing’ it down” (Harper, 1). Many people try to teach students in another language, or even just their English speaking students, in words that may seem ‘easier’ to understand. This actually does the opposite effect, and makes the students actually feel dumb, perhaps. Still use words that students will understand, but don’t make it seem like you are talking down to them, or that will not benefit ELL students. Also, tip number nine seems very beneficial because it discusses reaching out to colleges (Harper, 1). Some teachers in the building may have great experience with working with ELL students, and it would be great to reach out to them for help. I think that the tips that Harper states would be very beneficial in a classroom of students who do not all speak English.
Also, a big thing that can be done to solve this issue is creating trust with your student. Even if they cannot understand you at first, you can find a time to meet with them one-on-one. This will allow you to get to know the student better and maybe assess ways in which you can help them learn. Create flashcards to help your student. Make pictures that they can identify. The littlest things can help to instill trust with your student and helps you to get to know them better over the course of the year.
“It’s not all that different”: The process of second-language learning (Harper and de Jong, 2004)
The quote above, which is taken from Candace Harper and Ester de Jong’s journal speaks volumes. Second-language learning is not as hard to teach as it may seem, or even learn. Many people have the wrong idea of how to teach a second-language to students, and this is a major misconception that many people have. By using the tips above, one can start to understand how to go about teaching English to a non-English speaker. Teachers need to realize that while learning a second-language is easier than learning a first, your students will still be having a bit of trouble with this because it is a brand new environment and maybe even country for them. If teachers go into the classroom expecting to have an ELL student in their classroom and already know all of these tips, then teachers will be much more equipped to assist with ELL students and give them the best education possible.
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References
Anthony, A. (2008). Output strategies for English-Language Learners: Theory into practice. The Reading Teacher, 16 (6), 472.
Curran, M. (2013). Linguistic diversity and classroom management. Theory into Practice, 42 (4), 336.
Harper, C., & de Jong, E. (2004). Misconceptions about teaching English-Language Learners. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 48 (2), 152.162.
U.S. Department of State. (2010). Who are ELL students? Education.com. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/who-ell-english-language-learner/
Robertson, K. (2009) Supporting ELLs in the Mainstream Classroom: Language Tips. Colorín Colorado. http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/33047/
