Language Learners
Language Learners
A practical guide for Ontario educators
A practical guide for Ontario educators
Grades 1 to 8
Grades 1 to 8
Iroducio
Iroducio 22
Secio
Secio 1 1 Udersadig Udersadig Eglish Eglish laguage laguage learers learers 55
English language learners (ELLs) in Ontario schools
English language learners (ELLs) in Ontario schools 55 Canadian-born English language learners
Canadian-born English language learners 55
Newcomers rom other countries
Newcomers rom other countries 66
Understanding what English language learners bring to
Understanding what English language learners bring to Ontario classroomsOntario classrooms 77 Understanding the bilingual advantage
Understanding the bilingual advantage 88
Successul outcomes or English language learners
Successul outcomes or English language learners 1010 Learning the language o school
Learning the language o school 1111
Everyday English prociency and academic English prociency
Everyday English prociency and academic English prociency 1212 Understanding successul language acquisition
Understanding successul language acquisition 1414
Secio
Secio 2 2 Workig Workig ogeher ogeher o o suppor suppor Eglish Eglish laguage laguage learers learers 1717
Building a whole-school approach
Building a whole-school approach 1818
Roles and responsibilities in supporting
Roles and responsibilities in supporting English languageEnglish language 1818 Equity and inclusion in programs or English language learners
Equity and inclusion in programs or English language learners 2222 Character development
Character development 2323
Student success
Student success 2424
Planning the registration process
Planning the registration process 2525
Reception and orientation
Reception and orientation 2525
Initial assessment
Initial assessment 3232
The initial interview
The initial interview 3333
Placement and programming
Placement and programming 3737
ESL and ELD programs and delivery models
ESL and ELD programs and delivery models 3737
Monitoring and reporting to parents
Monitoring and reporting to parents 4040
Participation o ELLs in
Participation o ELLs in large-scale assessmentslarge-scale assessments 4141 Classroom assessment and English language learners
Classroom assessment and English language learners 4242 Discontinuation o ESL or ELD support
Discontinuation o ESL or ELD support 4242
ELLs with Special Education needs
ELLs with Special Education needs 4343
T
Transition rom the elementarransition rom the elementary to the secondary to the secondary school programy school program 4646
Secio
Secio 3 3 Adapig Adapig he he Oario Oario curriculum curriculum oror Eglish
Eglish laguage laguage learers learers 4949 Dierentiating instruction or English language learners
Dierentiating instruction or English language learners 4949 Program adaptations: Modications and accommodations
Program adaptations: Modications and accommodations 5050 Describing language behaviours – What students can do
Describing language behaviours – What students can do and are learning to doand are learning to do 5151 Making language and content accessible or English
Making language and content accessible or English language learnerslanguage learners 5555 Strategies to support beginning English language learners
Strategies to support beginning English language learners 5757 On-going strategies or supporting English language learners
On-going strategies or supporting English language learners 5959 Assessment
Assessment 6161
Sample adapted unit rameworks
Sample adapted unit rameworks 6464
Unit planning
Unit planning TTemplateemplate 6565
Sample adapted unit ramework or Grade 2: Movement – Simple machines
Sample adapted unit ramework or Grade 2: Movement – Simple machines 6666 Sample adapted unit ramework or Grade 5: Early Civilizations
Sample adapted unit ramework or Grade 5: Early Civilizations – A museum o innovations
– A museum o innovations 7474
Sample adapted unit ramework or Grade
Sample adapted unit ramework or Grade 7: Interactions in the environment7: Interactions in the environment – Responding to an environmental issue
– Responding to an environmental issue 8383
Glossary
Glossary 9292
Resources
Resources 9494
Oario Miisry o Educaio resources
Oario Miisry o Educaio resources 9696
Appedix:
Appedix:Descriptions o Skills at the Four Descriptions o Skills at the Four Stages o Second-LanguageStages o Second-Language Acquisition and Literacy Development
Iroducio
Iroducio
This document replaces
This document replaces
The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1 – 8: English As a
The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1 – 8: English As a
Second Language and English Literacy Development– A Resource Guide, 2001.
Second Language and English Literacy Development– A Resource Guide, 2001.
Each school day, two million students attend Ontario’s publicly unded schools. They gather
Each school day, two million students attend Ontario’s publicly unded schools. They gather
together to learn, with one another and rom one another; to acquire the
together to learn, with one another and rom one another; to acquire the
skills needed to
skills needed to
succeed in school and in lie; and to become condent, well-rounded,
succeed in school and in lie; and to become condent, well-rounded,
critical thinkers.
critical thinkers.
Reach Every Student –
Reach Every Student – Energizing Ontario EducationEnergizing Ontario Education, Ontario Ministry o , Ontario Ministry o Education,Education,2008, p. 22008, p. 2
Ontario schools serve a
Ontario schools serve a
student population rom a rich array o cultural and
student population rom a rich array o cultural and
linguistic backgrounds. Throughout the province, many students in
linguistic backgrounds. Throughout the province, many students in
English-
English-language schools are English English-language learners (ELLs) – students who are
language schools are English language learners (ELLs) – students who are
learning the language o instruction at the same time as they are learning the
learning the language o instruction at the same time as they are learning the
curriculum and developing a ull range
curriculum and developing a ull range
o literacy skills.
o literacy skills.
More teachers than ever beore are responding to the specic kinds o
More teachers than ever beore are responding to the specic kinds o
challenges that these students bring with
challenges that these students bring with
them to the classroom.
them to the classroom.
T
T
eachers
eachers
are also learning that the
are also learning that the
results can be inspiring, exciting, and rewarding or
results can be inspiring, exciting, and rewarding or
everyone.
everyone.
All students, including English language learners, are expected to meet the
All students, including English language learners, are expected to meet the
rigorous challenges o the Ontario cur
rigorous challenges o the Ontario cur
riculum. Eective language and literacy
riculum. Eective language and literacy
instruction begins with the needs o the learner clearly in
instruction begins with the needs o the learner clearly in
mind, and all teachers
mind, and all teachers
– across all content
– across all content
areas – are teachers
areas – are teachers
o both language and literacy. Their
o both language and literacy. Their
success is
success is
a shared
a shared
responsibility
responsibility
. Teache
. Teache
rs and
rs and
administrators are working
administrators are working
together with parents to ensure that
to communicate thoughts and ideas eectively. Literacy includes critical thinking and
reasoning to solve problems and make decisions related to issues o airness, equity, and
social justice. Literacy connects individuals and communities, and is an essential tool or
personal growth and active participation in a cohesive, democratic society.”
Reach Every Student – Energizing Ontario Education. Ontario Ministry o Education,2008, p. 2
This resource is one in a series written to assist classroom teachers in
supporting a growing demographic within Ontario schools – English language
learners. The goal is to help teachers understand the kinds o supports that
English language learners require to learn the English and content o the
classroom. The ocus is on making learning visible and accessible or English
language learners who ace their own unique challenges but, more importantly,
who present a rich resource in classrooms throughout the province.
In preparing this resource, the Ministry o Education acknowledges the valuable
work being done in schools and classrooms across Ontario, and the dedication
o teachers throughout the province in creating an inclusive learning environment
that supports the success o every student.
The termparent is used throughout this document to reer to the legal guardian o any student under 18 years o age.
1
Eglish laguage learers
1
Eglish laguage learers i Oario schools
English language learners are students in provincially unded English language
schools whose rst language is a language other than English, or is a variety
o English that is signicantly dierent rom the variety used or instruction in
Ontario’s schools, and who may require ocussed educational suppor ts to assist
them in attaining prociency in English.
These students may be Canadian born or recently arrived rom other countries.
They come rom diverse backgrounds and school experiences, and have a wide
variety o strengths and needs.
English is an international language, and many varieties o English – sometimes reerred
to as dialects – are spoken around the world. Standard English is the variety o English that
is used as the language o education, law, and government in English-speaking countries.
Some varieties o English are very dierent – not only in pronunciation or accent but also
in vocabulary and sentence structure – rom the English required or success in Ontario
schools. Some varieties are so dierent rom standard English that many linguists consider
them to be languages in their own right.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Services: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12, 2007, 1.2.
Caadia-bor Eglish laguage learers
Many English language learners were born in Canada and raised in amilies
or communities in which languages other than English are spoken. They may
include, or example:
•
Aboriginal students whose rst language is a language other than English;
•children who were born in communities that have maintained a distinct
cultural and linguistic tradition, who have a rst language that is not English,
and who attend English language schools; and
•
children who were born in immigrant communities in which languages other
than English are primarily spoken.
L1 is the term that may be used in place o frst language or home language. The term English language learner (ELL) has come into increasing use internationally among educators and researchers because it distinguishes the students themselves rom the programs that support their language learning needs.
The Ministry o Education is dedicated to excellence in public education or all students,
including First Nation, Métis, and Inuit students. The document Ontario First Nation, Métis,
and Inuit Education Policy Framework, 2007
provides the strategic policy context within
which the Ministry o Education, school boards, and schools will work together to improve
the academic achievement o First Nation, Métis, and Inuit students. The ramework has two
components: targeted strategies and supports or First Nation, Métis, and Inuit students;
and strategies to increase knowledge and awareness o Aboriginal histories, cultures, and
perspectives among all students, teachers, and school board sta. In order to achieve these
goals, a holistic approach integrating the ramework strategies throughout all programs,
services, and initiatives is necessary.
Section 23 o the Canadian Charter o Rights and Freedoms denes the right o Canadian
citizens o the English-speaking or French-speaking minority o a province to educate their
children in that minority language, wherever numbers warrant. In Ontario, rancophone
children who come within the dened classes, and who are otherwise qualied to be
resident pupils, have the right to be educated in French language schools at both the
elementary and secondary levels.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Services: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12, 2007, 1.2.
newcomers rom oher couries
Newcomers arrive rom countries around the world at various stages in their
educational careers. They may arrive in their pre-school years or at any point
between Kindergarten and Grade 12. They may arrive at the beginning o the
school year or at any time during the school year. Depending on their age and
country o origin, they may have had varying educational experiences prior to
their arrival in Canada, and consequently will require dierent levels o support
in order to succeed in the classroom.
Newcomers rom other countries may include:
•
children who have arrived in Canada with their amilies as part o a voluntary,
planned immigration process. I they are o school age, they have most oten
received ormal education in their home countries, and some may have
studied English as a oreign language. However, some o these students may
have had limited or inconsistent access to schooling.
•
children who have arrived in Canada as a result o a war or other crisis
in their home countr y, and who may have let their homeland under
conditions o extreme urgency. These children have oten suered traumatic
experiences, and may also be separated rom amily members. They may
have been in transit or a number o years, or may not have had access to
•
international, or visa, students who have paid ees to attend school in
Ontario and oten plan to attend a Canadian university. Most visa students
are o secondary school age. These students typically arrive in Canada
without their amilies, and may live with extended amily, a host amily, or
alone. Because they oten represent the aspirations o their amilies, and
because o the expense involved in sending them to study in Canada, these
students are oten under great pressure to do well and progress through
school as quickly as possible. Some have had instruction in English but may
still have considerable diculty learning English in Ontario classrooms.
Children o parents who do not meet Section 23 criteria can be admitted to Ontario’s
French language schools by an admissions committee. Though they may be rom any
background, they are oten the children o parents who have settled in Canada as
immigrants or reugees, and or whom French is their rst, second, or even third language,
yet who eel a certain attachment to French. They oten come rom countries where the
language o public administration or schooling is French.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Services: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12,2007, 1.2.
Udersadig wha Eglish laguage learers
brig o Oario classrooms
English language learners are a richly heterogeneous group. The paths they take
to acquire a new language and to adjust to their new environment are also varied
and in keeping with their unique needs and experiences.
English language learners bring to Ontario schools a wide variety o lie
situations and understandings and a range o educational experiences. Within
the sae and welcoming classroom environment, teachers are given a unique
opportunity to tap the rich resource o knowledge and understandings that ELLs
bring to school, and which, in turn, enrich the learning o all students in the
classroom. The role o the school and the teacher is critical in s upporting their
identities and development as bilingual learners, and in helping ELLs shape a
vision o the uture in which they will take their place as Canadian citizens in a
global economy.
This country is your country. It’s up to you to give it your imagination, your talent, your view
o the world. And you know what? I believe that nothing is impossible or children like you…
who have courage, heart and a head brimming with ideas.
Udersadig he biligual advaage
Students who see their previously developed language skills acknowledged by
their teachers and parents are more likely to eel condent and take the risks
involved in learning a new language. They are able to view English as an
addition
to their rst language, rather than as a substitution or it.
There are numerous positive outcomes that result rom continuing to promote
the ongoing use and development o ELLs’ rst languages. Respect and use o
the rst language contribute both to the building o a condent learner and to the
ecient learning o additional languages and academic achievement, including:
•
developing mental fexibility;
•developing problem-solving skills;
•communicating with amily members;
•
experiencing a sense o cultural stability and continuity;
•understanding cultural and amily values;
•
developing awareness o global issues;
•expanding career opportunities.
Students who are able to communicate and are literate in more than one
language are better prepared to par ticipate in a global society. Though this has
benets or the individual, Canadian society also stands to gain rom having a
multilingual workorce. The children now entering Ontario sc hools are a valuable
resource or Canada.
Experts tell us
… does the school language policy view students as bilingual, with talents in both their
home language and English, or just as learners o English whose home language is
irrelevant to academic success?
Jim Cummins,Promoting Literacy in Multilingual Contexts, Research Monograph #5,
The Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat, Ontario Ministry o Education, 2007. p. 3
Students with
well-developed skills in their rst language have been shown to acquire
an additional language more easily and ully and that, in turn, has a positive impact on
academic achievement.
Fred Genesee, Kathryn Lindholm-Leary, William Saunders, and Donna Christian. Educating English Language Learners: A Synthesis o Research Evidence. Cambridge University Press, 2006.
ELLs use what they know in one language to help develop other languages. This positive transer eect has been ound to be particularly strong in reading.
Claude Goldenberg. “Teaching English Language Learners: What the Research Does – and Does Not – Say,”American Educator,Summer 2008: 8-23.
English language learners are extremely resourceul learners with a unique bilingual
reservoir o skills and experiences.
Fred Genesee, rom a speech at TESOL 2008, “Learning to read a second language: What does the research say and what do we do about it?”
The development o two languages in childhood turns out to be a proound event that
ripples through the lie o that individual.
Ellen Bialystok,Bilingualism in Development.Cambridge University Press, 2001, 247-248.
Students who use their bilingual skills have been shown to develop both cognitive fexibility
and divergent thinking.
Jim Cummins, “The Infuence o Bilingualism on Cognitive Growth: A Synthesis o Research Findings and Explanatory Hypotheses” in Colin Baker and Nancy H. Hornberger, eds.,
Successul oucomes or Eglish laguage learers
Experts tell us
Although the acquisition o second-language skills is important or young learners … second language acquisition is not the most important task they ace. Their academic achievement and social integration are ar more important. Second-language learning, thereore, needs to be recast as a means to greater ends.
Jean Handscombe, “Putting It All Together”In Fred Genesee, ed., Educating Second Language Children: The Whole Child, the Whole Curriculum, the Whole Community. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
ELLs in Grades 1 - 8 receive ESL or ELD programs and ser vices to help them
achieve success as they learn the language and content o their grade’s
curriculum.
A vision or the successul English language learner, developed by educators
rom across the province is included in
The Ontario Curriculum Grades 9 - 12
English as a Second Language and English Literacy Development, 2007.
Successul English language learners can:
•
use English to communicate eectively in a variety o social settings;
•use English to achieve academically in all content areas;
•
take charge o their own learning, independently and in groups;
•use eective learning strategies;
•
integrate condently into classrooms or courses;
•use English eectively to advocate or themselves;
•
be successul in their chosen post-secondary destination;
•
unction eectively in an inormation and technology-based society;
•
use critical-literacy and critical-thinking skills to interpret the world around
them;
•
participate in the social, economic, political, and cultural lie o their own
communities and o Canada.
ELLs may be unable to demonstrate their tr ue competence in subject content
areas due to their current English language skills. The role o the school is to
assist these students in acquiring both the English skills and content knowledge
they need to participate in learning activities equally with their peers and to
meet the expectations o the Ontario curriculum.
Learig he laguage o school
All English language learners] … need to learn the language o instruction in English
language schools at the same time as they are working towards meeting the curriculum
expectations.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Ser vices: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12,2007,1.1: Introduction.
Young children learn the sound system o a new language more eectively than
older learners. They may acquire a local accent quickly, whereas their older
siblings may always have an accent infuenced by the sound system o their
home language. But young children may well take ve or more years to catch up
to their age peers in vocabulary acquisition and the accurate use o grammar
in both spoken and written English. This is because they also need to develop
undamental concepts and literacy skills that they may not have developed in
their home language.
Katharine Davies Samway and Denise McKeon,Myths and Realities: Best Practices or English Language Learners,2nd edition Por tsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2007, p. 28-30.
Older students have more English to learn and less time let in school. However,
they have an advantage because most are already literate in their rst language,
have had more school experience, and have a wider range o prior knowledge.
They may acquire vocabulary and grammatical structures in English more
eciently because their rst language is more developed.
Some students come with little or no schooling and lack basic literacy skills in
any language. Those students are at particular risk o ailing to thrive in their
new educational environment and will require ocussed instruction to develop
both concepts and language skills.
D. Watt and H. Roessingh, “The Dynamics o ESL Drop-outs: Plus ça change…”.
Canadian Modern Language Review, 58, 2001: 203-222.
Teachers can sometimes be misled by the high degree o oral prociency
demonstrated by many English language learners in their use o everyday
English, and may mistakenly conclude that these ELLs are equally procient
in their Academic English use. ELLs who have developed oral prociency in
everyday English will still require instructional sca olding to meet curriculum
expectations.
ELLs are required to understand and negotiate increasingly complex texts, especially in the junior grades and beyond. Colin Baker and Nancy H. Hornberger, eds., An Introductory Reader to the Writings o Jim Cummins, Clevedon, UK:
Multilingual Matters, 2001.
An implication … is that second-language students will typically require additional support to gain access to the language o the curriculum and to harvest the language o academic texts.
Jim Cummins, “The Challenge o Learning Academic Language,” A Guide to Eective Literacy
Instruction: Grades 4 to 6, Volume One, Foundations o Literacy Instruction or the Junior Learner, p. 24
Everyday Eglish profciecy ad academic Eglish
profciecy
In order to participate in the curriculum learning taking place in their classrooms,
English language learners must master two distinct orms o English language:
Everyday English prociency and Academic English prociency.
Experts tell us
Research in second-language acquisition (Wayne & Collier; 2003, Cummins, 2006)
indicates that most English language learners can unction well in social situations and in
visually contextualized classroom activities within a year or two. Most take much longer –
ve years or more – to catch up to their age peers in using the language to communicate
complex academic concepts.
Everyday English
prociency, oten reerred to as basic interpersonal
communication skills, is relatively easy or most ELLs to master, usually within
a year or two, because the vocabulary and language skills directly relate to
their immediate surroundings, daily lives, and needs. Strong Everyday English
prociency enables ELLs to communicate more eectively with their teachers
and peers, to integrate into their new school environments, and to interact
comortably with English speakers outside o school.
Academic English
prociency, oten reerred to
as cognitive academic language
prociency, is more dicult to acquire and takes much longer, oten ve or more
years. The development o increasingly complex uses o language to express
and explore concepts is at the core o education. ELLs are wor king hard to
catch up to a moving target – they are learning the language o instruction at the
same time as they are learning the grade curriculum. ELLs must learn to talk,
read, and write about abstract concepts. In addition to learning vocabulary and
language structures, Academic English prociency oten involves learning new
ways o thinking, such as describing properties or processes, comparing and
contrasting, hypothesizing, and generalizing. The demands o Academic English
prociency increase as ELLs progress through Grades 1 - 8 and encounter
more abstract material across the range o subject areas within the Ontario
curriculum.
Although beginners start by developing oral fuency and Everyday English
language prociency, they need opportunities to develop Academic English
language prociency in the content areas immediately, such as subject-specic
terminology and grammatical constructions that are almost never used in daily
conversation.
Key differences between everyday language and academic language
Everyday language profciency includes: Academic language profciency includes:
the ability to maintain a ace-to-ace
conversation with peers and with a variety o school personnel in various settings, inside and outside the classroom
the ability to understand when there is less opportunity or interaction (e.g., when listening to a presentation or reading a textbook)
the ability to talk, read, or write about amiliar content or about what is happening here and now
the ability to talk, read, and write about content that has ewer connections to prior learning or personal experience, is more abstract, and is more distant in space or time (e.g., learning about the water cycle, studying the earth’s crust, or learning about Canada’s provinces)
knowledge about basic vocabulary/high requency words such as old , ood , tired , cars, or trucks
knowledge o more sophisticated, low requency vocabulary such as ancient , nutrition, atigued , or vehicles
the ability to use simple sentences and the active voice such as: We heated the water until it boiled. We used a thermometer to measure the temperature.
the ability to use more complex sentences and grammatical structures such as: When the water was heated to the boiling point, a thermometer was used to measure the temperature.
Experts tell us
Students who see their previously developed language skills acknowledged by their
teachers and parents are also more likely to eel condent and to take the risks involved
in learning in their new school environment. They are able to view English as an addition to
their rst language, rather than a replacement or it.
Elizabeth Coelho,Adding English: A Guide to Teaching in Multilingual Classrooms. Pippin,2004, Introduction.
Udersadig successul laguage acquisiio
The rate at which an English language learner develops prociency in English,
adapts to the new environment, and integrates into the academic program is
infuenced by a variety o actors.
Geeral acors
In addition to a well-developed rst language, there are a number o other actors
that may make children more or less willing and able to engage in the task o
learning a new language. Initial assessment o, and ongoing enquiry about,
children’s background experiences and accomplishments will provide helpul
inormation on items such as:
•
The adjustment process
All newcomer amilies experience a period o cultural adjustment. Individuals adjust
to this phase in dierent ways and at dierent rates. The adjustment process can be
particularly complex or ELLs who have experienced trauma.
•
Prior experience with English
Both newcomer and Canadian-born ELLs may have developed English skills beore their
arrival in Ontario schools. However, some students may be reluctant to display those
skills in the school setting.
•
Previous schooling
ELLs will vary widely in their initial comort with the curriculum and culture o the new
school environment, based on previous personal experiences in school.
Some students arrive having had no interruption in their education, while, or a variety o
reasons, others have had limited prior schooling. The latter will require ELD support.
•
The presence o learning exceptionalities
English language learners are likely to have the same range o learning exceptionalities
as other Ontario students, and some o these exceptionalities will infuence the ease
with which they develop English language skills.
•
Personality actors
Some students will seek opportunities in which to use the new language and to take the
risks involved in experimenting with English. Others may preer to wait until they know
that they can “get it right.”
•
Motivational actors
Students will learn a language more easily i they identiy with others who regularly use
the new language, and i their identity is not threatened by negative social relations or
eelings o intimidation within the new setting.
Kelleen Toohey,Learning English at School: Identity, Social Relations and Classroom Practice. Clevedon, UK:Multilingual Matters, 2000.
School ad classroom acors
A number o school and classroom actors have a positive infuence on English
language acquisition. These include:
•
The classroom environment
ELLs thrive in a welcoming environment in which teachers and peers:
— value them as a positive presence in the classroom and the school;
— encourage their eorts at learning English and sharing their knowledge o the
world;
— encourage their use o their L1;
— provide books, visual representations, and concrete objects that refect their
backgrounds and interests.
•
The amount and quality o language learning support
ELLs benet when teachers select approaches and strategies that are specically
dierentiated in response to the individual student’s language learning needs.
•
Opportunities or interaction in English
ELLs need requent opportunities or extended conversation in English with their peers
and other members o the larger community. They benet rom regular opportunities to
hear English used in situations where they are able to understand at least the basics
o what is being said and opportunities to try out their developing skills in low-stakes
situations.
Merrill Swain,“The Output Hypothesis: Theory and Research,” in Eli Hinkel, ed., Handbook on Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning. Lawrence Erlbaum, 2005, 471-484.
•
Supportive language eedback
“Errors” are a normal part o second-language learning; some errors are the result o
ELLs working out the grammatical rules o English in the same way as all speakers do
when learning their rst language, while others are a result o the infuence o the ELL’s
rst language.
ELLs benet rom opportunities to receive eedback in a respectul and encouraging way.
It is helpul when teachers respond rst to the content o what the student is saying or
writing, beore rephrasing, in order to provide a model or the student. Teachers should
ocus on one or two errors at a time, rather than trying to “x” everything.
Patsy M. Lightbown and Nina Spada. How Languages Are Learned , 3rd ed., Oxord University Press, 2006.
•
Involving and Supporting the Parent Community
Everyone in the school needs to make parents eel welcomed. Students are more
successul when their parents are involved in their education. (Deorges, 2003)
When schools reach out to the parent community, it is important to recognize that some
parents will have had educational experiences that are signicantly dierent rom those
o Ontario-born parents, or may have limited English prociency. It is the role o the
school to ensure that all parents can access and engage with the school community.
Eglish laguage learers
2
School boards will design programs and services or English language learners so that
they are fexible in response to changing needs and refective o the needs o the students.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Ser vices: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12, 2007, 2.5.3.
Every day, more than one million English language learners attend Ontario’s
publicly unded schools. They come rom every countr y and every circumstance.
They bring with them a valuable world perspective needed by all students to
operate successully in a global community. Their parents come with the hopes
that their children will achieve what they could not have achieved elsewhere.
Through shared responsibility, our schools need to optimize the synergies within
themselves, the parent community, and supporting community par tners in order
to ensure that all English language learners achieve their ullest potential.
The goal o reaching every student, inclusive o personal circumstances,
through a commitment to higher achievement and reduced gaps in perormance,
recognizes that everyone in a school community has an impor tant role to play in
supporting English language learners. All teachers wor k collaboratively to plan
student learning and to evaluate and improve their own instructional strategies.
Principals ensure teachers and support sta (including oce sta) have what
they need to be successul. In addition, parents and community partners are
welcome in schools and are given opportunities to be active in s chool lie.
Experts tell us
Shared responsibility incorporates a set o principles and techniques that give members o
the school community the authority and responsibility to create what is needed, based on
the data and culture o their par ticular school …
Collaboration … is about creating an environment – through structures, systems, processes,
and policies – where everyone contributes skills, knowledge, and experience to continuously
improve student learning. Collaboration also extends beyond the school’s walls …
Anne Conzemius and Jan O’Neill,Building Shared Responsibility or Student Learning, Association or Supervision and Curriculum Development,2001, p. 2
Buildig a whole-school approach
Creating a welcoming and inclusive school environment or English language
learners is a whole-school responsibility requiring the commitment o
administrators, teachers, support sta, and other leaders within the school
community. The outcome o this committed eort is a dynamic and vibrant
school environment that celebrates linguistic and cultural diversity as an asset,
and enriches the learning experience o all students.
Roles ad resposibiliies i supporig Eglish
laguage learers
The school administrative team
School boards will designate appropriately qualied personnel to coordinate programs
and provide leadership at the system level.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Ser vices: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12, 2007, 2.5.2.
The school administrative team works in partnership with all sta, parents,
and appropriate community partners to ensure that ever y student has access
to the best possible educational experience. To build the capacity o the whole
school in helping English language learners reach their ull potential, the school
administrative team should:
•
ensure that the school has procedures and practices in place or welcoming
newly arrived English language learners and their amilies;
•
build an inclusive and welcoming environment or all students and their
amilies through the use o materials in community languages, the provision
o interpreters whenever possible, and the recognition o diversity in school
events and messages;
•
encourage involvement o newcomer parents in school events and the parent
council;
•
acquire and make available a range o resources in classrooms and in the
school library that refect the linguistic and cultural makeup o the school
community;
•
ensure that the planning o programs to support ELLs is coordinated by a
person with expertise in ESL/ELD;
•
support all teachers in incorporating appropriate curriculum adaptations and
teaching strategies into their instruction and assessment to meet the needs
o English language learners;
•
provide access to quality proessional development or all school sta;
•
review and discuss with sta the most recent demographic inormation on
the school community;
•
create and nurture links with community par tners such as school settlement
workers and community ethno-cultural organizations where available.
Teachers
Teachers bring knowledge, enthusiasm, and varied teaching and assessment
approaches to the classroom, addressing individual student needs and ensuring
sound and challenging learning opportunities or every student.
In supporting English language learners, teachers:
•
learn about their students’ backgrounds, experiences, and languages;
•provide engaging and challenging opportunities or English language
development or all learners with appropriate modications/
accommodations, as needed;
•
use a variety o instructional, assessment, and evaluation strategies that are
designed to acilitate the success o English language learners;
•
collaborate with the person responsible or ELLs to plan or the needs o the
English language learners in their classrooms;
•
create a classroom environment which refects and celebrates the linguistic
and cultural diversity o all students;
•
support English language learners in their integration into the academic and
social lie o the school;
•
communicate eectively with parents, taking into account the varied
background experiences o diverse amilies;
•
work together to increase the capacity o the whole school in meeting the
needs o English language learners.
Students
Students have many responsibilities with regard to their learning, and these
increase as they advance through elementary school. Students benet when they:
•
make a sincere commitment to learning and to the development o
co-operative skills in the classroom;
•
pursue various opportunities outside the classroom to enrich their learning;
•seek out recreational reading materials and multimedia works in English and
their home language to extend their knowledge o the world around them;
•
engage in conversation with parents, peers, and teachers about what they
are reading, writing, and learning;
Parents
Parents will be made aware o the goal o ESL and ELD programs in Ontario Schools and
how they are o benet to students who are developing prociency in English.
English Language Learners/ESL and ELD Programs and Ser vices: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12, 2007, 2.2.1a
It is the school’s responsibility to provide opportunities or parents o diverse
ethno-cultural backgrounds to become engaged, to recognize parents as
partners, and to appreciate that their involvement may take dierent orms.
In serving culturally diverse communities, schools need to keep in mind that
parents may have dierent ideas about how, where, and when they should be
involved in their children’s schooling.
Parents play a very important role in suppor ting student learning. Studies
consistently show that students perorm better in school i their parents are
involved in their education. (Deorges, 2003) They need not be procient in
English themselves in order to help and support their children in school. They
may ace barriers to ull involvement in the school partnership model, such as
limited time or limited prociency in English.
To support English language learners, parents are strongly encouraged to:
•
read to their children, in the home language and/or English, on a regular basis;
•become amiliar with the curriculum and what their children are expected to
learn at school;
•
involve their children in talking about their school experiences;
•attend parent-teacher interviews;
•
speak with their child’s teacher or appropriate school personnel whenever
they have questions or concerns about the program or their child’s progress;
•
participate in parent workshops and other community events which help
them to learn more about the Ontario school system;
•
encourage their children to develop and maintain active use o the home
language;
•
partner eectively with school sta to help their children achieve their goals.
Communication with the home needs to be handled in an honest, sensitive, and
respectul manner. This communication can take many orms, both inormal and
ormal: a phone call, a note, a newsletter, a meeting, an interview, a student’s
agenda/planner, and the school website. When needed, that communication
should be available in the home language o the amily.
Parents and their ethno-cultural communities oten serve as resources that schools can access to assist English language learners and to enrich the cultural environment or everyone in the school. Many Roots, Many Voices, 2005
Resources or parents
Schools can order printed copies o the ollowing resources or parents can
download the resources in a variety o languages
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/abc123/
•
Make Reading Fun
•
10 Tips to Help Your Child with Reading
•10 Tips to Help Your Child with Writing
•10 Tips to Help Your Child with Math
•10 Tips to Help Your Child with Homework
•10 Tips to Help Boys with Reading
•
10 Tips to Get Your Child Ready or School
•
10 Tips to Help You Communicate with the Teacher
•
10 Tips that Use Arts and Crats to Develop Math and Literacy Skills
•Tips or Summer Learning Fun
•
Does Your Child Need Extra Help?
•
Helping Your Child Do Mathematics – A Guide or Parents Kindergarten to
Grade 6
•
Helping Your Child With Reading and Writing – A Guide or Parents
Kindergarten to Grade 6
Community partners
Community partners can be an important resource in students’ English language
development and success at school. They can provide support or students’
literacy and learning needs, both in the classroom and as living models o how
the curriculum relates to lie beyond school.
To support English language learners, community partners can be invited to:
•
connect new amilies immediately with a contact person o the same
cultural/language background, a settlement worker, or a community service
provider;
•
share inormation on community-based homework clubs, or start a
school-based homework club;
•
collaborate with school boards to oer:
— community-based literacy programs or youth in schools, public
libraries, and community centres
— a variety o other school-based supports, such as breakast clubs and
recreation programs
— workshops based on amilies’ needs and interests (e.g., completing
income tax returns, job searches, and interview skills)
•
oer inormation and organize workshops and events or amilies to provide
additional inormation on all aspects o the Ontario school system, as well
as on post-secondary pathways;
•
provide links to Citizenship and Immigration Canada and other government
and community programs which provide support or newcomers;
•
oer a school volunteer training program to build parent condence and
involvement (e.g., sessions providing coaching on being a reading buddy or a
library assistant);
•
oster mentoring services (e.g., parent mentors or other parents, community
mentors or parents, parent mentors or students, or community mentors or
students).
Equiy ad iclusio i programs or
Eglish laguage learers
Insight
Equity and excellence go hand-in-hand … a quality education or all in publicly unded
schools is a key eature o ostering social cohesion – an inclusive society where diversity is
the hallmark, and where all cultures are embraced within a common set o values.
Reach Every Student – Energizing Ontario Education. Ontario Ministry o Education, 2008, p. 8
The implementation o equity and inclusionary practices in education infuences
all aspects o school lie. It promotes a school climate that encourages all
students to work to high standards, arms the wor th o all students, and helps
them strengthen their sense o identity and develop a positive sel-image. It
encourages sta and students to value and show respect or diversity in the
school and society at large. It requires schools to adopt measures to provide
a sae environment or learning, ree rom harassment, bullying, violence, and
expressions o hate. It encourages students to think critically about themselves
and others in the world around them in order to promote airness, healthy
relationships, and active, responsible citizenship.
Opportunities to support the principles o equity and inclusion specic to ELLs include:
•
enabling ELLs to develop a sense o personal identity and belonging by sharing
inormation about their own languages and cultures, as well as their experiences in their
countries o origin and as newcomers to Canada;
•
developing ELLs’ understanding o themselves as ully participating citizens in a
dynamically changing and evolving Canadian identity o which they are integral parts;
•
teaching them directly about their rights and responsibilities as students and citizens;
•reinorcing students’ sel-identity by providing inclusive learning resources and materials
representative o diverse cultures, backgrounds, and experiences;
•
including dual language and multilingual resources in the school librar y and in classroom
resources;
•
choosing resources on the basis o their appeal or both gir ls and boys and suited to
dierent levels o English language prociency;
•
respecting aspects o intercultural communication (e.g., awareness that reraining rom
making eye contact is a sign o respect or persons in positions o authority);
•
using global events as opportunities or instruction and being aware o how they may
aect students;
•
teaching inclusive, non-discriminatory language (e.g., letter carrier instead o mailman).
Characer developme
Insight
Academic achievement within a culture o high expectations or learning or all students,
rom all backgrounds and circumstances, remains the primary responsibility o schools.
A number o research ndings indicate that character development and the creation o
caring and engaging school cultures have the potential to improve student achievement.
Excellence in education includes character development.
Finding Common Ground: Character Development in Ontario Schools,K-12. Ontario Ministry o Education, June 2008, p. 18-19
Character development is the deliberate eort to nur ture the character attributes
upon which schools and communities nd consensus. The principles and
attributes o character development are universal. They transcend physical
and intellectual ability; gender, racial, ethno-cultural, linguistic, and religious
dierences; and other demographic actors.
At its best, character development supports the whole student – the cognitive,
aective, and behavioural domains – acilitating the individual’s development
both as a learner and as an engaged citizen. Character development contributes
to respectul, caring, sae, and inclusive school environments that are
which teachers spend less time disciplining and more time doing what they do
best – teaching.
Character development must be a whole-school eor t, with the expectation
that all members o the sta will be committed to its eective implementation
and will model, teach, and expect demonstrations o the universal character
attributes in all school, classroom, and extracurricular activities.
When newcomer ELLs rst enter Ontario schools, principles o character
development – as demonstrated in the welcoming learning environment o the
receiving school — shape the initial impression that these students orm o their
new school community. The sae and nurturing school, as exemplied by these
principles, serves to provide a setting in which newcomer students learn, grow,
and thrive.
Sude success
Every school with Grades 7 and 8 has a Student Success Team that includes, at
a minimum, a Student Success Teacher, the principal or designate, a Guidance
counsellor (when available), and Special Education teachers. This team should
include a member with expertise in teaching ELLs who collaborates with
classroom teachers when an English language learner is being supported by the
Student Success Team. It meets regularly to ensure the eective deliver y o all
student success initiatives and to track, coordinate, and assume responsibility
or at-risk students including ELLs who are at risk.
The Grades 7-12 Student Success Strategy has ve key goals:
•
a good outcome or every student
•
connecting with students by providing new and relevant learning opportunities
•building on students’ interests and strengths
•
eective transitions rom elementary to secondary school and rom secondar y to
postsecondary
•
increasing graduation and reducing drop-out rates
There is a wealth o inormation, support, and resources about the Student Success
initiative available at
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/studentsuccessDuring the transition rom Grade 8 to Grade 9, it may be determined that an
English language learner is at risk o disengaging rom secondary school.
We want our students to learn to think critically ,eel
deeply ,and act wisely .
Finding Common Ground: Character Development in Ontario Schools, K-12. Ontario Ministry o Education, June 2008, p. 17
The Student Success Teacher and Student Success Team can
•
provide opportunities or ELLs to visit the secondary school and meet teachers and
students beore the rst day;
•
acilitate communication between the elementary and secondary teachers to share
known helpul strategies that assist with the learning;
•
provide incoming ELLs with a rst semester timetable that matches strengths and
interests;
•
designate a caring adult to the ELL;
•
develop early monitoring and intervention strategies that support courses and
classroom experiences;
•
ensure ELLs are aware o the range o learning and programming opportunities available
to them both within the school and across the system.
Plaig he regisraio process
School boards will develop protocols to dene procedures and practices or welcoming
English language learners and their amilies and providing them with appropriate
orientation to the Ontario school system, in the rst language o the students and their
amilies whenever possible. The protocol will include procedures or the admission o
students in all grades, including Kindergarten – regardless o level o English prociency
or prior schooling – who arrive and need to begin school in Ontario at any time during the
school year.
English Language Learners ESL /ELD Programs and Services: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, Kindergarten to Grade 12,2007, 2.2.1.
The registration process includes our major components:
•
Reception and orientation
•Initial assessment
•
Placement and program
•Monitoring and reporting
Recepio ad orieaio
Supportive reception and orientation o new students and their amilies is a
critical rst step in the successul integration o English language learners into
elementary schools. First impressions are important, and everyone in the school
needs to make all parents eel welcome.
A welcoming school is an inviting place or students, sta, parents, and visitors.
Sta members make concerted eorts to help other members o the school
community eel connected and included.
Since these protocols will reect the specifc demographics o each area, they may look quite dierent across and within boards.
For a complete list o documents needed or school registration available in 18 languages, see Getting Ready or School at
What a welcoming school looks like
•
All sta is aware o and understands the process or receiving English
language learners and their amilies.
•
There is a school reception team (e.g., administrator, oce administrative
assistant, ESL/ELD teacher, interpreter, and settlement worker, where
available).
•
Families are inormed about the necessary documentation or school
registration.
•
There is a designated, comortable place or the amily and reception team
to meet and share inormation.
•
Ample time is dedicated or the intake interview and or orientation
inormation about school and basic routines.
•
There is access to competent adult interpreters who can ass ist parents and
help them ll out orms.
•
There is a program or specially trained student helpers, such as student
ambassadors, to orient the new students to the school. They can assist in a
variety o important ways:
— conducting a guided tour o the school;
— explaining the ways that parents can contact the school in the event o
absence, late arrival, or early leaving;
— outlining saety procedures (e.g., what to do in a re drill);
— showing the procedures or borrowing books or using school equipment
and technology;
— providing details to acilitate and encourage entry into sports programs,
clubs, and other extracurricular activities;
— making introductions to students with similar interests;
— explaining lunchtime procedures.
•
Multilingual signs, in the languages o the community, are visible in the school.
•There are eorts to build cross-cultural understandings.
•
Inormation is available in a variety o languages about community resources
(e.g., libraries, community centres, adult ESL classes, places o worship,
cultural organizations).
•
Parents are regularly invited into the classrooms and the school to celebrate
student work.
•
Space is provided or amilies to gather i possible (e.g., a room to sit, drink
coee or tea, and read announcements in home languages or meet ellow
parents).
Guides explaining the Ontario education system are available or newcomer amilies to
download in various languages. Videos are also available on topics that are important to
newcomer parents and students. For more inormation, visit
www.settlement.orgAlso available on this site:
•
The Newcomers’ Guide to Elementary Schools
•Parent Teacher Interviews
•
Your Library
Insight
Schools can be surprisingly intimidating places or many parents. Newcomers to Canada,
in particular, may have experienced a very dierent school setting, and may thereore be
unamiliar with the school environment. The Ministry o Education oers tips or creating a
school climate that makes parents eel comortable and welcome:
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/involvement/welcomemat.html
What diversity in a school looks like
•
Bulletin-board displays refect the cultural backgrounds o the students in the
school, and photographic displays depict students o various ethno-cultural
backgrounds engaged in a variety o school activities.
•
Educational displays represent individuals rom many cultures (e.g.,
well-known personalities, amous inventors, or historical gures).
•
Sta members greet parents as they drop o or pick up their children, using
a ew greetings rom dierent languages.
•
Announcements o school meetings and events are made in the home
languages o the community.
•
Meetings are held with groups o parents to ocus on their concerns or on
topics o specic interest.
•
Special evenings are held to showcase school programs and activities, to
provide parent education, or to oer the oppor tunity to meet other parents
(e.g., eature a school activity or project such as the school choir or band, a
drama group, science experiments, or technology displays; provide a speaker
to present inormation on a topic o interest to parents such as homework
strategies, discipline, or health-related topics; provide a brie inormation
session by the School Council on a topic or issue o cur rent interest to the
school community).
•
Arrangements are made to have interpreters available or a variety o
•
Classroom and library materials include groups o people o various genders,
abilities, socio-economic levels, aith, and ethnocultural backgrounds
engaged in a range o positive roles and situations.
•
School libraries and classrooms have books in students’ languages, as well
as dual-language books.
•
The arts program exposes students to the works o artists, musicians,
and playwrights rom a variety o cultures, and provides opportunities or
students to express themselves in a variety o ar tistic orms rom other
cultures.
•
School clubs promote goals o inclusion, humanitarianism, and global
citizenship.
For ideas on how to involve the parents o ELLs in School Councils, see “Involving Parents in the School: Tips or School Councils.”
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/involvement/welcomemat.html
What a sae, respectul, and caring school looks like
•
School sta practises and uses the correct pronunciation o students’
names.
•
School sta respects cultural customs and creates oppor tunities to bridge
cross-cultural communication gaps (e.g., acknowledge that in some cultures
it may be considered inappropriate or a child to ask or help, express
opinions openly, or make direct eye contact with an adult and point out when
or why it is appropriate in Canadian society).
•
Sta consult their board’s multicultural calendar to ensure that major school
activities are scheduled on days that do not confict with religious holidays.
See also
www.multiculturalcalendar.com•
Newcomer students and their amilies are inormed o school saety rules
and drill procedures (e.g., re alarm, stranger aler t, lockdown).
•
School sta ensures that new ELLs know how to get home saely at the end
o the day.
•
School sta shows younger ELLs where to meet amily members or locate
school buses.
•
Rules or the use o the playground and playground structures are explained.
•Anti-discrimination, anti-violence, and anti-bullying policies are explained and
strategies and resources are shared with newcomer amilies and students.
•
Character education initiatives, anti-litter campaigns, and opportunities to
develop social leadership skills are discussed with newcomer amilies and
students.
Cultures have dierent naming conventions (e.g., order o amily name and given name, double amily names, dierent surnames or children and parents due to cultural and aith traditions).
