Collaborating to Meet the Needs of English Language Learners

1. Collaborating to Meet the Needs of English Language Learners Robert Kohl WIDA Consortium © 2007 Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System, on behalf of the WIDA Consortium www.wida.us

2. Today’s Topics • Welcome and Introductions • Conceptions and misconceptions in language acquisition • Levels of Language Proficiency • Language proficiency vs Academic Proficiency • Student Profiles • Building Background • Self-assessment on best practices for ELLs • Introduction to the WIDA ELP Standards WIDA Consortium

3. Pop Quiz • You must do this quiz with at least one other person, but no more that two other people • Read carefully each statement and decide as a team if the statement is true or not • For each statement, you must justify your answer; i.e. “why do you think it is true/false?” WIDA Consortium

4. Conceptions & Misconceptions • Younger children learn 2nd language quickly and easily • Children have acquired a second language once they can speak it • The more time students spend in the mainstream, the quicker they learn the language • Older generations of immigrants learned without all the special language programs that immigrant children receive today and they did just fine • ELLs will acquire academic English faster if their parents speak English at home WIDA Consortium

5. More Myths & Misconceptions • Grammar is acquired naturally; it need not be taught • The culture of students does not affect how long it takes them to acquire English. All students learn language the same way • According to research, students in ESL-only programs with no schooling in their native language take 7-10 years to reach grade level norms • The parents of ELLs are generally not as involved in their children’s education • Good teaching is good teaching WIDA Consortium

6. Circle of Learning #1 Something I want to think more about… WIDA Consortium

7. You learn by experience. However, it is not the experience itself you learn from; it is processing and reflecting on the experience that promotes growth. WIDA Consortium

8. 6 5 REACHING BRIDGING 4 EXPANDING 3 DEVELOPING 2 BEGINNING 1 ENTERING The WIDA ELP Scale WIDA Consortium

9. 6 REACHING Criteria for Performance Definitions • Linguistic Complexity: Extent of functional language (text or discourse) • Vocabulary Usage: Comprehension and use of the technical vocabulary of the content areas • Language Control: Comprehension and use of phonological, syntactic, and semantic structure & rules 1 2 3 4 5 ENTERING BEGINNING DEVELOPING EXPANDING BRIDGING WIDA Consortium

10. Performance Definitions WIDA Consortium

11. Circle of Learning #2 I think, _____, a student in my class is level _____ because… WIDA Consortium

12. What do you see? WIDA Consortium

13. Language across the curriculum • What constitutes Academic Language? • What constitutes Academic Achievement? • What is the relationship between Academic Language and Academic Achievement? WIDA Consortium

14. Techniques and Strategies for Integrating Language and Content Instruction • Activities for Multiple proficiency Levels • Activities for Presenting New Information • “Pre ” Activities • Thinking and Study Skill Activities • Activities for Checking content comprehension • Activities for Language Practice WIDA Consortium

15. Why did the chicken cross the road? Are you telling me the chicken crossed that road? Is that what you're telling me? I envision a world where all chickens, be they black or white or brown or red or speckled, will be free to cross roads without having their motives called into question. In my day, we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Someone told us that the chicken crossed and that was good enough for us. To boldly go where no chicken has gone before. WIDA Consortium

16. More on language proficiency vs academic proficiency How many different ways can you read the following mathematical expression? 3+2= WIDA Consortium

17. Let’s “discuss” this a little more… • Get into groups of four • Assign one number to each member of your group (1-4) • Follow directions carefully WIDA Consortium

18. Language versus Content • Language proficiency involves the language associated with the content areas. • Academic achievement reflects the knowledge and skills associated with the content. • WIDA ELP standards focus on academic language; academic standards focus on academic content. WIDA Consortium

19. Strategies Discussion • What strategies did we use during our first part of the morning? • For each activity, discuss • Why we used that specific strategy • Who would benefit from that specific strategy • How would you use /adapt /change it for use in your classroom WIDA Consortium

20. Student profiles • Think back about the student you chose for the first circle of learning • Add information to the student profile to describe the student as a learner • Write the name of the student at the center • Use the bubbles surrounding the center to describe the student • Discuss the student with your process partner WIDA Consortium

21. Student Profile WIDA Consortium

22. Multiple Intelligences WIDA Consortium

23. My learning profile • Think about your own learning • Fill out your own learner profile • Discuss your profile with your process partner • What does my profile say about you as a teacher? What are your strengths? What are some of your weaknesses? WIDA Consortium

24. Questions to Ponder • What kind of knowledge about this student can you use in my planning? • What information in my profile guides instruction? • What information in my profile can be rewritten to tell more • What information is not necessary? WIDA Consortium

25. Circle of Learning #3 What implications does my MI profile as a teacher have on my learners? WIDA Consortium

26. Turning lead into Gold Now go back to your student profile and revise it if needed: • What are the student’s strengths and successful methods of expressing knowledge? (Consider Gardner’s MI Theory) • What are the expectations of this student in general education activities? • What issues or concerns need to be addressed to achieve successful participation? • What about linguistic needs and expectations? WIDA Consortium

27. Now with your partner… • Describe your focus student in terms of his/her multiple intelligences • Identify one or more learning targets appropriate for the focus student • Brainstorm some ideas for instruction and assessment • Identify the types of adaptations that might be needed to engage the student in learning • Identify language issues you may want to help your student with WIDA Consortium

28. If Children Don’t Learn the Way We Teach, We Have to Change the Way We Teach Ignacio “Nacho” Estrada WIDA Consortium

29. Circle of Learning #4 Something I want to remember… WIDA Consortium

30. Case Study • Read the Case Study: How do I teach grade-level content to English beginners? • With another pair of Process Partners discuss: • Strategies the teacher used • Other strategies you have used • One strategy you would like to use WIDA Consortium

31. Grounding Activity At your table, discuss one strategy that you talked about that you “just have to” share WIDA Consortium

32. Values are the link between emotion and behavior, the connection between what we feel and what we do… With everything changing around us we need something unchanging…to hang on to…Values are our moral navigational devices. -James Champy (1995, p.78) WIDA Consortium

33. Self- Assessment • Answer the self-assessment individually • Put an X on three (3) items you consider high on your priority list • With your table, discuss what priorities from the self-assessment are common to most members of the team (NOTE:) You do not have to discuss the self-assessment, just the priorities) • At your table, there are three dots. Post a dot next to each of your table’s three (3) priority areas WIDA Consortium

34. Big picture • What patterns do you see? • As a district, what are the priorities that come up more often? • How are these priorities related? WIDA Consortium

35. A few words on change… “Letting go” of previously learned ideas and routines or incorporating new information into their practice- choosing what to abandon and what to keep or modify- is a big part of what it means to be a lifelong learner and an adaptive expert. For an adaptive expert, discovering the need to change is perceived not as a failure, but instead, as a success and an inevitable, continuous aspect of effective teaching. -Darling-Hammond, L. & Bransford, J. (2005) p. 363 WIDA Consortium

36. Circle of Learning #5 What are some changes I would like to make to continue my path as an effective teacher for ELLs? WIDA Consortium

37. Reviewing Language Proficiency and Academic Achievement Language proficiency revolves around the language associated with the content areas Academic achievement reflects the knowledge and skills associated with the content. WIDA ELP standards focus on academic language; Academic standards focus on academic content. WIDA Consortium

38. WIDA English Language Proficiency Standards 1: English language learners communicate in English for SOCIAL AND INSTRUCTIONAL purposes within the school setting. 2: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of LANGUAGE ARTS. 3: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of MATHEMATICS. 4: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts for academic success in the content area of SCIENCE. 5: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of SOCIAL STUDIES. WIDA Consortium

39. There are 4 Language Domains Listening- process, understand, interpret, and evaluate spoken language in a variety of situations Speaking- engage in oral communication in a variety of situations for a variety of purposes and audiences Reading-process, interpret, and evaluate written language, symbols, and text with understanding and fluency Writing- engage in written communication in a variety of forms for a variety of purposes and audiences WIDA Consortium

40. There are 5 Grade-Level Clusters Kindergarten 1-2 3-5 6-8 9-12 WIDA Consortium

41. The levels of ELP 6 5 • Linguistic Complexity: Extent of functional language (text or discourse) • Vocabulary Usage: Comprehension and use of the technical vocabulary of the content areas • Language Control: Comprehension and use of phonological, syntactic, and semantic structure & rules 4 BRIDGING 3 REACHING EXPANDING 2 DEVELOPING BEGINNING 1 ENTERING WIDA Consortium

42. WIDA Consortium

43. English Language Proficiency Standard 4: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of SCIENCE. Grade Level Cluster: 1-2 WIDA Consortium

44. An Example from Grade 3 Life ScienceEnglish Language Proficiency Standard 4: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of SCIENCE.Domain: Speaking WIDA Consortium

45. The Elements of the MPI • The Language Function • The Content Stem • The Support or Strategy* WIDA Consortium

46. English Language Proficiency Standard 4: English language learners communicate information, ideas, and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of SCIENCE. Domain: Speaking WIDA Consortium

47. The Model Performance Indicator/MPI describe the step-by-step process of making and organizing collections of natural phenomena (e.g., “First, I went to the park.”) WIDA Consortium

48. The Model Performance IndicatorLanguage Function describe the step-by-step process of making and organizing collections of natural phenomena (e.g., “First, I went to the park.”) WIDA Consortium

49. The Model Performance IndicatorLanguage Function describe the step-by-step process of making and organizing collections of natural phenomena (e.g., “First, I went to the park.”) WIDA Consortium

50. The Model Performance IndicatorContent Stem describe the step-by-step process of making and organizing collections of natural phenomena (e.g., “First, I went to the park.”) WIDA Consortium