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Educating English Language Learners SL Smiley

Educating English Language Learners SL Smiley. Imagine…. 5 years old Beginning school Primary language is Spanish Limited exposure to literature Low level of parental education Instructed and assessed in English. My Observations. Influx of native Spanish speakers

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Educating English Language Learners SL Smiley

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  1. Educating English Language LearnersSL Smiley

  2. Imagine… • 5 years old • Beginning school • Primary language is Spanish • Limited exposure to literature • Low level of parental education • Instructed and assessed in English

  3. My Observations • Influx of native Spanish speakers • Teachers and students become frustrated and develop poor attitudes • High referral and retention rate • Lack of teacher knowledge = “passing the buck” to reading specialists, ESL, and special ed teachers

  4. Understanding = Better Teaching • Value home experiences – translators • Activate prior language knowledge to build vocabulary and concepts • Cultural influences: La maestra Parental involvement, education, SES • Language structure and pronunciation

  5. Facts • 3 million English-learning Spanish speakers in classrooms throughout the U.S. today (Bear et al.,2008) • Fastest growing population and by 2025, will increase to 1 out of 4 students (Mathes et al.,2007) • Can take 7 years to “bridge the achievement gap” (Malloy et al., 2007)

  6. Facts continued… • Low achievement levels • Erroneously referred and identified for special education services (Malloy et al., 2007 and Goldenberg, 1987) • More likely to be retained in 1 or more grades • High drop-out rates • Cyclical process within families

  7. Research • Uccelli and Paez (2007) analyzed associations between narrative and vocabulary development of bilingual children in kindergarten and first grade. They assessed in both English and Spanish in hopes of minimizing “code-switching.” When code-switching did occur, it was more prevalent from Spanish to English. Significant gains made, but overall scores still lower on all elements than native English speakers. • Methods of instruction may be more important than the language of instruction for ELLs. Success for All, Reading Recovery, one-to-one and small group tutoring models have all yielded positive effects. (Slavin and Cheung, 2004)

  8. The BIG Question • What effects will supplemental small group instruction have on the overall literacy development of English language learners in kindergarten?

  9. Additional Questions • How many letters, sounds, and words will they be able to correctly identify? • Will they be able to successfully read texts that are taught to them? • How will they negotiate between native language of Spanish and instructional language of English?

  10. Participants • 4 Hispanic kindergarten girls • Ages 5.1 - 5.6 years • All attended Bright Beginnings Pre-K • Parents from Mexico and Colombia • Spanish is primary language spoken • Wide range of performance levels • Daily ESL classes (3 yes, 1 no)

  11. Instruction • English v. Spanish • 6 week period, 18 sessions (15 lessons, 3 assessments), 30-45 minutes • Picture/sound sorts of consonants • Reading of instructional texts (discussion) • Games to build/reinforce English vocabulary and sounds • Writing

  12. Instruction continued… • Cultural shared reading experiences (bilingual books)

  13. Data Collection • Daily anecdotal notes • Running records • Initial and Final Evaluation 1. Letter Identification (An Observation Survey, M. Clay 1993) 2. Abecedarian Reading Assessment: Phonological Awareness (Phoneme Identity Perception and Rhyming Perception) Phoneme Awareness (First and Last Sounds) 3. Word Recognition (Includes Sight Words) 4. English Vocabulary Knowledge

  14. Letter & Sound Identification Laura: 50, 25 Yamilet: 48, 22 Bianey: 49, 23 Jacqueline: 26, 4 Letter Confusions: b-d, p-q,n-u, v-y, l-1, g-6 Missed Sounds: Vowels a, e, i, u Sight Words Laura: 18 Yamilet: 5 Bianey: 4 Jacqueline: 0 and the Data Analysis – Initial Assessment

  15. Data Analysis – Initial Assessment

  16. Data Analysis – Sort Success • Picture/Sound Sort (Consonants, followed order in Words Their Way) All girls were able to perform this task successfully. Told unknown objects – Jacqueline didn’t know ‘watch.’ • Word Production (Generate) Laura, Yamilet, and Bianey seemed to do this with ease. Jacqueline struggled. *Note: c/k were combined, omitted v, x, y, z

  17. Data Analysis – Oral Reading

  18. Data Analysis – Final Results

  19. Data Analysis – Final Results

  20. Data Analysis – Final Results

  21. Data Analysis – Final Results • Laura and Bianey both had 100% accuracay • Yamilet had 1 incorrect response – said “ladder” for stairs • Jac had 7 incorrect responses, 6 were in English, 1 in Spanish

  22. Discussion • Growth exceeded my expectations in some cases • Learning patterns can be difficult to analyze and predict with ELLs • Laura, Yamilet, and Bianey are on their way! Ready for: vowel sounds, word families, final sounds, & segmenting • Concerns about Jacqueline • If they only had support at home…

  23. Tip of the Ice Berg • Stay current on research • Continue professional development • Start dialogue with staff -Share information -TEAM effort (attitude, responsibility) • Hold parent workshops -Demonstrate how to help at home -Provide take home materials -Find tutors when needed • Take conversational Spanish course in January 2008

  24. They say a picture is worth…

  25. Resources: • Bear, D.R., Helman, L., Templeton, S., Invernizzi, M., & Johnston, F. (2007). Words their way with English language learners: Word study for phonics, vocabulary, and spelling instruction. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. • Bear, D.R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S., & Johnson, F. (2008). Words their way: Word study for phonics, vocabulary, and spelling instruction, 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education Inc. • Clay, M. (1993). An observation survey of early literacy development. Portsmouth, NH:Heinemann Inc. • The Abecedarian Reading Assessment (Sebastian Wren, Ph.D. & Jennifer Watts, Ph.D.) www.balancedreading.com

  26. References: • Bear, D.R., Invernizzi, M., Templeton, S., & Johnston, F. (2008). Words their way: Word study for phonics, vocabulary, and spelling instruction, 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. • Goldenberg, C.N. (1987, September). Low-income Hispanic parents’ contributions to their first-grade children’s word recognition skills. JSTOR: Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 18, 3, (149-179). Retrieved on July 26, 2007 from http://www.jstor.org/jstor/gifcvtdir/sp000667/01617761/sp050066/05x11301_S.1.gif?confi • Malloy, K.J., Gilbertson, D., & Maxfield, J. (2007). Use of brief experimental analysis for selecting reading interventions for English language learners. School Psychology Review, 36, 2, 291-310.

  27. References continued… • Mathes, P.G., Pollard-Durodola, S.D., Caredenas-Hagan, E., Linan-Thompson, S., & Vaughn, S. (2007). Teaching struggling readers who are native Spanish speakers: What do we know? Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 38, 260-271. • Slavin R. & Cheung, A. (2004). How do English language learners learn to read? What Research Says About Reading, 61, 6, 52-57. • Uccelli, P. & Paez, M. M. (2007). Narrative and vocabulary development of bilingual children from kindergarten to first grade: Developmental changes and associations among English and Spanish skills. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 38, 225-236.

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