TIPS FOR TEACHERS OF ESL
STUDENTS IN THE MAINSTREAM
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is ESL? 1
Second Language Learning Facts and Myths 2
Cultural Awareness 2
How is Language Acquired? and the Four Basic Stages of Language Acquisition 3
BICS and CALP 3 - 4
Challenges in the Mainstream Classroom 4
Wai Lung 4
The Honeymoon Stage 5
Hostility 5
Alexa 5
Humor 5
Home 5
Cultural Differences in Student Behavior 6 - 7
Sensitivity Toward ESL Students 8
Modifying Content Area Instruction for ESL Students 8 - 9 More Modification Tips and Techniques for ESL Students 10 - 11 Teaching Techniques for ESL Students in the Mainstream Classroom 12
WHAT IS ESL?
English as a Second Language is a program created to meet increasing demands for foreigners to learn the English language both abroad and in Canada. The purpose for this program is to develop proficiency in English.
Each year we welcome more and more students into our classroom who speak a language other than English and whose home and community are diverse in history, tradition, world views, educational experience, and economical differences. They may enter our schools with formal education or they may have little to no education. These students also arrive with varying levels of English proficiency. Some students may speak English well, some students may need assistance in reading and writing, while others may not speak English at all. In order to assist these students, we offer ESL. It is designed to teach English language learners social and academic skills as well as the cultural aspect of the English language necessary to succeed in an academic environment.
SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING FACTS AND MYTHS
Myth: ESL Students learn English easily and quickly when exposed to and surrounded by native English speakers.
Fact: Learning a second language takes hard work on the part of the learner. It is not just a matter of picking up the language through immersion.
Myth: Many second language learners have learning disabilities, not language problems. They speak English well, but they are still failing academically.
Fact: There are many levels of language proficiency. It takes much less time, one to three years, to develop the ability to communicate on the playground then to develop the language skills to perform academically.
Myth: Second language learners will acquire academic English faster if their parents speak English at home.
Fact: Research shows that it is better for parents to speak to their children in their native language. A strong foundation in their native language will eventually transfer to English. Myth: The students' culture does not affect how long it takes them to acquire English. Fact: Everything about the student affects how they learn. Do they have a different writing system in their country? Do they come from a rural society? These are only a few of the important questions to keep in mind.
Myth: You should strongly encourage your student to speak English from the first day in your classroom.
Fact: All students go through a "silent period". The length of which depends upon the student. During this time, they will watch, listen, and learn. They may do little or no speaking. This is all a part of adjusting to their new environment until they feel comfortable enough to try to communicate.
CULTURAL AWARNESS
Culture's various traditions, values, ideas, expressions and behaviors are all expressed through language. In as much as language is determined by culture, one cannot separate between the two.
There are various ways in which people from different cultures express feelings, such as joy, sorrow, or anger. Seemingly innocent actions or gestures can be "read" the wrong way. For example, a teacher affectionately patting the head of an Oriental student innocently transmits a mistaken message. In many Oriental cultures, the touching of another's head is a high form of insult. Cross-cultural communication within the classroom is an important goal. This communication is possible only when students respect each other's cultural differences.
HOW IS LANGUAGE ACQUIRED? AND THE FOUR BASIC STAGES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISISTION
First you must have a basic understanding of the language acquisition process. It is necessary for any teacher dealing with an ESL student to be aware of this process. You should know that language acquisition patterns follow a similar sequence in both first and second language learning. Therefore, your students will most likely progress from single word utterances to simple phrases and finally to complete sentences.
"Language acquisition, first or second, occurs when comprehension of real messages occurs and when the acquirer is not 'on the defensive”. Language acquisition does not require extensive use of conscious grammatical rules, and does not require tedious drills. It does not occur over night. However, real language acquisition occurs slowly and speaking skills emerge significantly later than listening skills even when conditions are perfect. The best methods are, therefore, those that supply comprehensible input in low anxiety situations. These methods do not force early production in a second language, but allow students to produce when they are already recognizing that improvement comes from supplying communicative and comprehensible input, and from not forcing and correcting production. (Steve Krashen, Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition, 1981)
BICS AND CALP
Experts such as Jim Cummins differentiate between social and academic language acquisition. Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) are language skills needed in social situations. It is the day-to-day language needed to interact socially with other people. English Language Learners (ELLs) employ BIC skills when they are on the playground, in the lunch room, on the school bus, at parties, playing sports and talking on the phone. Social interactions are usually context embedded. They occur in a meaningful social context. They are not very demanding cognitively. The language required is not specialized. These language skills usually develop within six months to two years after arrival in the U.S.
Problems arise when teachers and administrators think that a child is proficient in a language when they demonstrate good social English.
Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) refers to the form academic learning. This includes listening, speaking, reading, and writing about subject area content material. This level of language learning is essential for students to succeed in school. Students need time and support to become proficient in academic areas. This usually takes from five to seven years. Recent research (Thomas & Collier, 1995) has shown that if a child has no prior schooling or has no support in native language development, it may take seven to ten years for ELLs to catch up to their peers.
Academic language acquisition isn't just the understanding of content area vocabulary. It includes skills such as comparing, classifying, synthesizing, evaluating, and inferring. Academic language tasks are context reduced. Information is read in a textbook or presented by the teacher. As a student gets older the context of academic tasks becomes more and more reduced.
The language also becomes more cognitively demanding. New ideas, concepts and language are presented to the students at the same time. Jim Cummins also advances the theory that there is a common underlying proficiency (CUP) between two languages. Skills, ideas and concepts students learn in their first language will be transferred to the second language. (Haynes, 2004)
CHALLENGES IN THE MAINSTREAM CLASSROOM
Students who have a limited command of standard English and who are new to Alberta's culture and school system require a period of adjustment. A sense of dislocation, or the trauma that new arrivals sometimes experience upon leaving their homeland, can cause some ESL students to appear withdrawn, fatigued, or uninterested.
Teachers need to be alert to this possibility, if they are to make accurate assessments of students. Research indicates that the more highly developed a student's first language, the more success that student will have acquiring a second.
While individual circumstances and personal responses will vary enormously, students who have newly arrived in Canada typically experience some form of culture shock. It is in fact common for new arrivals to go through four stages of adjustment:
WAI LUNG
Wai Lung is a ten-year-old student who has arrived from Hong Kong with his parents and older sister. He has gone to school regularly and has received English instruction since preschool. Even with this extensive introduction to English, his reading comprehension is low and he still requires considerable assistance with the language. This is frustrating for both him and his parents. His father intends to spend the next two years flying between Vancouver and Hong Kong on business; his mother may join her husband in Hong Kong on occasion.
1. The Honeymoon Stage: This stage takes place when people first arrive. It is
characterized by extreme happiness, even euphoria. This is especially prevalent with refugees who have finally arrived safely in North America. For them, this is truly the "land of milk and honey."
2. Hostility: After about four to six months, reality sets in. Newcomers know a bit about getting around and have begun learning the ropes, but this new place is not like their home: they can't get the food they are accustomed to; things don't look the same; they miss the life of their home country, the familiar places and faces and ways of doing things. Gradually they begin to feel that they hate North America and want to go back to their home country, no matter how bad things were there. This stage is often
characterized by:
• complaining
• wanting to be only with others who speak their language • rejecting anything associated with the new culture (the food, the people, even the new language)
• feeling depressed and irritable or even angry • having headaches or feeling tired all the time. ALEXA
Alexa is a fourteen-year-old student who recently arrived in Canada from Bosnia-Herzegovina. Although her schooling was interrupted by the strife in her home country, she has been able to acquire a solid elementary education. Her parents have also helped her to continue with informal studies outside of school. Although she has not yet studied English formally, she has acquired some conversational skills that will help her in her schooling here. The loss of family members and friends, however, is an ongoing source of distress for her, causing her to feel despondent and unhappy.
1. Humor: Gradually, the newcomers work toward resolution of their feelings, and their sense of being torn between the new and the old. They begin to accept their new home. They begin to find friends, discover that there are good things about where they are living, and adjust to their lives by coming to terms with both the old and the new ways of living. This is a long process, fraught with feelings of great anxiety in some, because to many, accepting the new means rejecting the old.
2. Home: Finally, the newcomers become "native" in the sense that where they live is their home and they accept that they are here to stay. This last stage may be years in coming and for some will never take place.
Adapted from Law, Barbara and Mary Eckes, The More Than Just Surviving Handbook: ESL for Every Classroom Teacher (Winnipeg: Peguis, 1990), p. 58.
Teachers working with newly arrived ESL students should also be aware that they may sometimes respond in unexpected ways to particular classroom situations or events, due to cultural conditioning or to the fact that their cultural values and beliefs differ from those of students with whom the teacher has previously worked. The following chart identifies possible cultural explanations for behaviors that ESL students sometimes exhibit.
CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN STUDENT BEHAVIOUR
Perceived Behaviour Possible Cultural Explanation
The student avoids eye contact. Keeping eyes downcast may be a way of showing respect. In some cultures, direct eye contact with a teacher is considered disrespectful and a challenge to the teacher's authority.
The student tends to smile when disagreeing with what is being said or when being reprimanded.
A smile may be a gesture of respect that children are taught to employ to avoid giving offense in difficult situations.
The student shrinks from or responds poorly to apparently inoffensive forms of physical contact or proximity.
There may be taboos on certain types of physical contact. Buddhists, for instance, regard the head and shoulders as sacred and would consider it impolite to ruffle a child's hair or give a reassuring pat on the shoulder. There are also significant differences among cultures with respect to people's sense of what is considered an appropriate amount of personal space.
The student refuses to eat with peers. Some students may be unaccustomed to eating with anyone but members of their own family.
The student does not participate actively in group work or collaborate readily with peers on cooperative assignments.
Teachers in some cultures never use cooperative group work. Students may thus view sharing as "giving away knowledge" and may see no distinction between legitimate collaboration and cheating.
The student displays uneasiness, expresses disapproval, or even misbehaves in informal learning situations or situations involving open-ended learning processes (e.g., exploration).
Schooling in some cultures involves a strict formality. For students who are used to this, an informal classroom atmosphere may seem chaotic and undemanding, while teachers with an informal approach may seem unprofessional. Such students may also be uncomfortable with process-oriented learning activities and prefer activities that yield more tangible and evident results.
The student refuses to participate in extra-curricular or in various physical education activities (e.g., swimming,
Extra-curricular activities may not be considered a part of learning or may even, along with some physical education activities, be contrary to a student's religious or
skating, track & field). cultural outlook. Some students may also be required to use after-school hours to generate income.
The student seems inattentive and does not display active listening behaviors.
In some cultures, the learning process involves observing and doing or imitating rather than listening and absorbing (e.g., through note-taking).
Performance following instruction reveals that the student is not understanding the instruction, even though she or he exhibited active listening behaviors that suggested understanding and refrained from asking for help or further explanation.
In some cultures, expressing a lack of understanding or asking for help from the teacher is interpreted as a suggestion that the teacher has not been doing a good enough job of teaching and is considered impolite.
The student is unresponsive, uncooperative, or even disrespectful in dealing with teachers of the other gender.
Separate schooling for boys and girls is the norm in some cultures. Likewise, in some cultures the expectations for males and females are quite different. The idea that females and males should have the same opportunities for schooling and play comparable roles as educators will therefore run contrary to some students' cultural conditioning.
The student appears reluctant to engage in debate, speculation, argument, or other processes that involve directly challenging the views and ideas of others.
In some cultures, it is considered inappropriate to openly challenge another's point of view, especially the teacher's. In other cases, there may be a high value attached to being prepared, knowledgeable, and correct when one opens one's mouth.
The student exhibits discomfort or embarrassment at being singled out for special attention or praise.
To put oneself in the limelight for individual praise is not considered appropriate in some cultures, where the group is considered more important than the individual.
The student fails to observe the conventions of silent reading.
Some students may be culturally predisposed to see reading as essentially an oral activity and will therefore read aloud automatically. For others reading aloud is associated with memorization.
The situations described in the chart indicate the need for teachers to revisit their assumptions about the meaning of students' behavior and adjust their responses accordingly. Often the most effective response is to be clear and explicit about their own expectations or those prevalent in Canadian society.
ESL services should be provided in a manner that respects students' language and culture of origin and builds on students' existing abilities.
The chart situations also indicate that as ESL students become part of a mainstream class, everyone in the class must be prepared to adapt and broaden their understanding. There are times when the adjustments made to address the needs of ESL students will affect and make
SENSITIVITY TOWARD ESL STUDENTS
Teachers often say that map skills are easy for second language learners and expect students to follow geography lessons in a very short time. Give a short geography lesson in another language. This will show how place names do not sound the same in other languages. If you do not speak a second language, ask a world language teacher in your school or a parent volunteer to give this lesson. Do not choose a language that is spoken by a large number of teachers in your school.
Photocopy a map of Europe from a dictionary printed in another language (dictionaries for different languages can usually be found in public libraries). Give each person in the group copy of the map. Ask questions and raise your voice when someone is not following. Let participants get a feel for what it is like to be surrounded by an incomprehensible language. At the end of the oral lesson, give participants a short written quiz. Ask participants the following questions at the demonstration: How did you feel during that lesson? You all knew the concepts being taught and geography is a very visual subject, so why couldn't you do the work? What did you learn? How would you have felt if you had been the only one in the class not to follow the lesson?
MODIFYING CONTENT AREA INSTRUCTION FOR ESL STUDENTS Listening: Make your lectures more accessible:
• Tape record them.
• Make copies of your outline. • Build word banks.
• Write key words and phrases on board/overhead. • Write out as much as you can what you are saying.
• Avoid whole-class lectures. ESL students cannot follow a lecture without a lot of structure and intervention.
Speaking: Simplify your input to ESL students: • Slow down.
• Speak clearly.
• Avoid slang and idioms. • Control sentence length. • Use smaller words. Add contextual clues:
• Use gestures; speak with your hands - to make things easier. • Use concrete referents, like props and visuals.
Negotiate meanings:
• Use confirmation checks - “What am I saying?” - not “Do you understand?” • Use expansions - synonyms and antonyms.
• Use repetition and review.
Keep cooperative groups small - no more than 3 per group. Reading: Tape record the readings (or have a student record them).
Summarize the readings:
• Let ESL students preread in the first language (if you have access to material). • Preteach vocabulary.
• Modify or shorten reading assignments. • Give ESL students a highlighted text. • Give ESL students review outlines.
• Let them use bilingual dictionaries - this doesn’t give away answers. Writing • Use manuscript or typed instructions and tests (many don’t read cursive).
• Let ESL students make a glossary. • Have them make flash cards.
• Write every assignment on the board. • Use partially complete notes or outlines. • Ask fewer questions.
• Number the paragraphs with the questions citing the paragraph number. • Make a Xerox copy from a student who takes good notes.
• Label diagrams.
• Use consistent sentence patterns.
Testing • Avoid true/false questions.
• Use matching questions, but in smaller groups. • ESL students need more time to take tests. • Assign good students as peer tutors.
Environment • Be very careful of your body language. Don’t shut them out. • Language is acquired much more rapidly in a “safe” environment.
• You should have an atmosphere where students realize it is okay to make mistakes.
MORE MODIFICATION TIPS AND TECHNIQUES FOR ESL STUDENTS Instruction
Tip: ESL students need modified instruction to learn both English and content. Modifying instruction is critical to ESL students’ success. However, modifying instruction doesn’t mean creating a second lesson plan or curriculum; it just means changing some of the ways you do things. Most of your native English-speaking students can benefit from modifications as well. Technique: Use various teaching styles and tricks of the trade.
• Teach to varied learning styles.
• Encourage students to participate in class. • Have high expectations of your students.
• Give students more wait time: at least 15-20 seconds.
• Assign students a bilingual or English-speaking study buddy.
• Use cooperative learning and put students in groups with English-speaking students. • Use lots of visuals, like graphic organizers and pictures.
• Use physical activity: model, role-play, act out. • Repeat and rephrase often.
• Emphasize the 5-8 most important vocabulary words of a lesson. • Focus on the 2-3 key concepts of a lesson.
• Give students an outline of the lesson that highlights the key concepts. • Let ESL students copy your or someone else’s notes.
• Write in print unless specifically teaching the manuscript alphabet. • Give simple instructions.
• Use concrete language and questions. • Simplify complex questions.
• Use children’s literature/lower grade level materials to teach content.
• Incorporate the 4 skills of language acquisition: reading/writing/listening/speaking. • Check understanding using “show me” techniques.
Class/Homework
Tip: ESL students experience greater success when class-work and homework is modified to fit their capabilities. Modifying class-work or homework tasks to fit ESL students’ capabilities doesn’t mean expecting less from them. It means giving them realistic tasks to complete that increase their chances for success. Technique: Allow for flexibility in the tasks you assign.
• Reduce assignments. • Simplify complex tasks.
• Give ESL students extra time to do work or complete projects. • Adapt the task to the students’ skill levels.
• Ignore spelling or grammar errors except for when explicitly taught. • Allow students to take breaks when working: their brains tire quickly!
Assessment Modifications
Tip: Assess ESL students according to what they can do rather than what they cannot do. Standardized tests or even teacher-created tests can’t always measure ESL students’ progress accurately or authentically. Instead, measure ESL students by what they can do at any point in time, keeping in mind what they could not do earlier. Have they shown progress? Have they sincerely made an effort to learn? Have they demonstrated their learning?
Technique: Modify the tests you give. • Test key concepts or main ideas.
• Avoid test questions asking for discrete information. • Make a simplified language version of the test. • Simplify instructions.
• Provide word banks.
• Give students extra time to complete tests.
• Give students objective tests: matching, multiple choice, etc. • Make all or part of the exam oral.
Technique: Use alternate assessment strategies for ESL students. 1. Non-Verbal:
• Physical demonstration (point, gesture, act out, thumbs up/down, nod yes/no). • Pictorial products (manipulate or create drawings, diagrams, dioramas, models, graphs, charts; label pictures; keep a picture journal.
• KWL Charts using pictures or native language. 2. Oral and Written Strategies:
• Interviews, oral reports, role plays using visuals cues, gestures or physical activity. • Describing, explaining, summarizing, retelling, paraphrasing.
• Thinking and learning logs. • Reading response logs. • Writing assignments. • Dialogue journals.
TEACHING TECHNIQUES FOR ESL STUDENTS IN THE MAINSTREAM CLASSROOM
Provide Clues to Meaning
• Use drawings, dramatic gestures, actions, emotions, mime, chalkboard sketches, photographs and visual materials to provide clues to meaning.
• Simplify your message as much as possible breaking them into smaller, manageable parts to give newcomers a chance at comprehending.
• Make sure the student’s attention is focused.
• Don’t insist on making eye contact with them-it is considered rude in many cultures.
Modify your speech
• Talk at a slow-to-normal pace, in short sentences. • Use a pleasant tone.
• Use simple sentence structure (subject, verb, and object) and high frequency words. • Use names of people, rather than pronouns.
• If you have something important to convey, speak one-on-one to the newcomer, rather than in the front of the class.
• Ask simple yes/no questions so newcomers have an opportunity to respond. • Accept one-word answers or gestures.
Be An Active Listener
• Give full attention to your newcomer and make every effort to understand his/her attempts to communicate.
• Smile.
• Talk in a calm, quiet manner-raising your voice does not help comprehension. • Give the ESL student extra time to respond.
• Encourage new learners of English to act out or draw pictures to get their meaning across. • Don’t jump in immediately to supply the words for the students.
• Resist the urge to overcorrect-newcomers will be less willing to speak. • Check comprehension frequently.
Check Comprehension Frequently
• Don’t ask, “Do you understand?” unless you have taught it. This is not reliable since most students will nod “yes” when they don’t really understand.
• Teach the phrases “I don’t understand,” “Slowly please,” and “Please repeat.” • Write down messages so students have a visual as well as auditory input.
HELPFUL TEACHING TIPS/LINKS
Activities for Newcomers
When brand new English language learners first enter your school, it can be overwhelming for the teachers responsible for their instruction. It's hard to know what to do first. Here are some activity-based tips to get you started. Includes classroom resource picks.
http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/september.php
Communicating with Gestures
Very few gestures are universally understood and interpreted. What is perfectly acceptable in Canada may be rude, or even obscene, in other cultures.
http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/body_language.php
Creating an Atmosphere of Acceptance
Discover how you can alleviate many newcomers' fears by creating an atmosphere of acceptance and welcome in all of your classes. Includes classroom resource picks. http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/nurturing.php
How Does Your School Rate?
Participate in a district goal to make your school a wonderful place for newcomers. Here are some practices you could adopt
http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/districtcheckup.php
How to Develop Questioning Strategies
Involving English language learners in the discussions in their content area classes can be frustrating if teachers do not develop strategies for asking questions
