Bilingual Tesol Classrooms - Essay Example

BILINGUAL TESOL CLASSROOMS Introduction There are many perspectives in extant literature regarding how best to accommodate course design for ESL (English as a Second Language) students, or ELL (English Language Learners). General education and TESOL teachers need to learn how to accommodate these students while still keeping general goals of academic and social learning in mind. Expert teachers have a wide-ranging base of experience with which to instruct ESL inclusive classrooms and create classroom environments that show a great degree of cross-pollination with the world outside of the classroom. They are able to teach students concepts that will help them generally as well as having mastered the specific subject materials. Expert TESOL teachers are also better able to relate to students on a level that fosters mutual respect and understanding in creating a learning environment. In their everyday teaching duties, expert teachers show how the subject they are teaching is interrelated to the lives of their students. The existing literature generally supports the notion that there are strategies that the TESOL teacher can use to facilitate the development of ELL in classroom situations, but there are disagreements about how exactly to go about achieving this goal through effective course design in the ELL classroom. Secondary analysis Short’s study looks at how general and TESOL teachers who have students with ESL needs can meet social as well as academic goals. This source shows how the TESOL teacher must be willing to get these issues out into the open in terms of advocacy, as well as implementing programs that help not just a select group of students, but all students. Only then will the TESOL teacher be reflecting a public relations system that truly stands for the values of the U.S. “ELLs must use English for social purposes. They need to chat with peers and teachers and use English for their own enjoyments—to read a magazine or watch a movie. For the second goal, ELLs need to use English to achieve academically” (Short, 2000). These goals are seen in the study to be complimentary, in that using English as a social medium can then lead to better acumen and a better chance for the ELL to be able to integrate this into their academic base of knowledge. This source also acknowledges how specifically, the TESOL teacher is going to face issues of diversity in several areas which reflects on course design for this aspect. The diversity that the general education TESOL teacher faces in a situation of accommodating ELL includes their ability to get materials out in other languages so that parents can understand, but it also involves focusing on English in the classroom situation. Many also point towards bilingual education programs as a reflection of multicultural education and a positive step forward. On the other side of the argument, there are those such as Short who suggest that English as a Second Language programs are more appropriate and make more sense than bilingual classrooms. This is a debate on which it is difficult not to fall on one side of the argument or another, since the sides are so different. “The intent of the ESL Standards was to have individual states or districts develop curricula based on the standards and describe their own proficiency levels and benchmarks for performance. Standards implementation activities are very important because of widespread high stakes assessment” (Short, 2000). These high stakes standardized tests, a relatively new part of NCLB initiatives, are often heavily weighted, and conducted in English. In terms of what the issue of accommodating ELL represents in terms of the researcher’s preconceptions, the source of Fregeau and Leier supports English as a Second Language programs as a primary way of reaching students who come into the system speaking another language. The authors advocate that ESL tutoring should also be made available for students facing the problems of learning a new language, with a focus on English being the target language rather than an advocacy of bilingual programs. In other words, this source does not appear to support bilingual classrooms. This is because, based on the authors’ classroom experiences and secondary references, they have seen that teaching can only be truly effective if everyone is in agreement about what language is being spoken in class. “ELL students benefit most from having assessment accommodations in English rather than assessment translations in their language. Standardized tests and high school graduation exams are usually given in English. Unless your state makes test available in the ELL’s language, it is important for them to be practiced and prepared to take these tests in English” (Fregeau and Leier, 2008). From another perspective, however, those who advocate bilingual education would disagree with this source. However, of all of the sources collected in the current review, Fregeau and Leier’s is the most well supported in terms of having accessible bibliographical and reference information. The basic assumption that Fregeau and Leier follow is that it is best for general education teachers to accommodate ESL students while still keeping in mind that they want to learn English, rather than operate bilingually in the classroom situation or environment. This works for ESL programs especially: students who are asked to speak only English in the instructional setting learn much faster and show much greater ability in the language, in the experience of these authors and their supporting material, than students who are allowed to switch back and forth from English to another language. This latter setting only complicates the learning process and puts up roadblocks to a complete understanding of the language and an ability to speak in it over a sustained amount of time. These authors are an advocate of the sort of program that stresses one language only being spoken in class because it reflects on standardized tests in English as well. This allows students to focus more exactly on the lesson, and also makes for accelerated learning. Fregeau and Leier also deal with the issue of assessment for the general education TESOL teacher of the ESL student. This is a potential problem for school management and teachers because devising an evaluation measure that works across the board naturally, according to some, denies the individuality of teachers who all have a different teaching and learning style, making it difficult to judge them by broad and ill-defined standards. Also, what works for one TESOL teacher may not work for another. The situation is one in which many dedicated individuals go about the act of teaching in different ways, which makes it hard to impose an outside standard on their activities in terms of a “one-size-fits-all” approach. This is why communication and learning are so vital to the management process, as effective communication between TESOL teachers is one way of overcoming this obstacle. “Incorporate dialog journals, especially in English language arts and social studies and for the incorporation of reading and writing language objectives. Dialog journals are a low stress high interest tool for assessment” (Fregeau and Leier, 2008). However, one may also argue that journal assessments are more complicated and difficult to grade and align to standards. The ESL Teachers resource from British Columbia focuses on how TESOL teacher communication can better facilitate knowledge for ELL. According to this source, if TESOL teachers feel secure in coming to administration meetings regarding ESL teaching with legitimate questions about the ways in which they and their colleagues are teaching, this increases the level of communication among professionals and makes solving problems such as mass standardization of evaluation more approachable. Although there are those who would simplify the evaluation process by simplifying the role of the teacher, this is not advocated by the resource. “Simple lunchroom conversations can lead to discussions of possible ways to work together to assist specific learners. Everyone feels more comfortable if they feel they know colleagues as individuals, perhaps share common interests, etc.” (ESL, 2008). This leads to an optimal situation of positive communication between professionals. Course design implications Procedurally methods of accommodating ESL students in general classrooms tend to focus on the procedure not just of grouping students, but also understanding where they are coming from and how frustrating the ESL experience can be to them, so that the teacher does not take it for granted and reprimand them too much for simple mistake. The students are expected to play the role of the agile learner in this depiction. “Beginning ESL students understand more than they are able to produce orally. Look for other ways for students to demonstrate comprehension. If you are teaching the science concept of the water cycle, have the student put visuals in the correct sequence of the water cycle to demonstrate comprehension” (Heining, 2000). This article focuses more on assessment from the perspective of understanding natural responses, using teaching strategies that help ESL students to learn, and still understanding that the classroom is going to be a diverse place. The students in the HHS Student Center resource are diverse, so groupings are important for their social development as well as their mastery of ESL basics and communication. “Use concrete, direct language; shorten or modify assignments; give ESL students extra time to respond to oral questions; hand out weekly assignment sheet (sic); allow ESL students to use a bilingual dictionary at all times” (Working, 2008) This source advocates that it is also important for the TESOL teacher to keep the lesson fun and engaging as the students express answers as well as creative expressions in English. In activities described in the article the students will also be working through repetition to build their basic English skills. The nameless author advocates that assessment for this activity should be ongoing so that the TESOL teacher can see where progress is made. The students may have trouble expressing their ideas outside of the language structures. These are points to consider. “Another problem for non native speakers of English is the very large vocabulary needed. English has the world’s largest vocabulary, a result of English being an inclusive language that has borrowed words form many other language and also because it has its origin in two language sources” (If English….). Vocabulary memorization can be beneficial. The problem being investigated in this question is the efficiency and quality of bilingual education programs vs. ESL programs in the light of theoretical processes involving bias, acculturation, and multiculturalism, for the general education TESOL teacher. For one thing, questions revolve around the presences and effects which bias, discrimination, acculturation, expectations as regards to status, and multiculturalism, have on the bilingual educational process. Questions also focus on the interrelationships and comparisons made between countries in terms of the bilingual education services offered. The efficiency of different types of bilingual programs, such as immersion programs, is also a factor that can be argued. Since this is mainly a theory-based type of question that collates data with theoretical perspectives and seeks to ground the theory, this is not a mixed type question that employs both quantitative and qualitative elements. Most of the existing literature in supply seems to stress the notion that ESL teaching needs to stay within the target language rather than being bilingual, and that thus general education teachers can still facilitate English language learning even without being able to speak the student’s native language. Case examples Especially in California, bilingual education programs became more and more popular after the decision, in which the courts found, “When children arrive in school with little or no English-speaking ability, "sink or swim" instruction is a violation of their civil rights, according to the U.S. Supreme Court in this 1974 decision. Lau remains the major precedent regarding the educational rights of language minorities, although it is grounded in statute (Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964), rather than in the U.S. Constitution” (Lau, 2000). Procedurally methods of accommodating ESL students in general classrooms tend to focus on the procedure not just of grouping students, but also understanding where they are coming from and how frustrating the ESL experience can be to them, so that the TESOL teacher does not take it for granted and reprimand them too much for simple mistake. The students are expected to play the role of the agile learner in this depiction. As an aftermath, bilingual education programs became much more popular. On one side of the argument there was support of ESL programs in which English was the only language spoken in the classroom. Many also point towards bilingual education programs as a reflection of multicultural education and a positive step forward. On the other side of the argument, there are those such as Short who suggest that English as a Second Language programs are more appropriate and make more sense than bilingual classrooms. This is a debate on which it is difficult not to fall on one side of the argument or another, since the sides are so different. “This class suit brought by non-English-speaking Chinese students against officials responsible for the operation of the San Francisco Unified School District seeks relief against the unequal educational opportunities which are alleged to violate, inter alia, the Fourteenth Amendment” (Lau, 2000). The students claimed that they needed bilingual classrooms and that to not provide them would be unequal. “Respondent school district contractually agreed to "comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ... and all requirements imposed by or pursuant to the Regulation" of H.E.W. which are "issued pursuant to that title ..." and also immediately to "take any measures necessary to effectuate this agreement” (Lau, 2000). On the other side, those in the school wanted the status quo, which was that English was the main language. These goals are seen in the study to be complimentary, in that using English as a social medium can then lead to better acumen and a better chance for the ELL to be able to integrate this into their academic base of knowledge. The Brooklyn case also acknowledges how specifically, the general TESOL teacher is going to face issues of diversity in several areas. The diversity that the general teacher faces in a situation of accommodating ELL includes their ability to get materials out in other languages so that parents can understand, but it also involves focusing on English in the classroom situation. “Entry and exit procedures for bilingual programs have been severely criticized over the years. Children have been inappropriately assigned to native language classrooms due to the use of unreliable tests or on the basis of ethnic group identification. Once enrolled, students have been wrongfully kept in bilingual programs, years beyond the time they needed it” (Rothstein, 2000). This is a potential problem for school management and TESOL teachers because devising an evaluation measure that works across the board naturally, according to some, denies the individuality of teachers who all have a different teaching and learning style, making it difficult to judge them by broad and ill-defined standards. Also, what works for one TESOL teacher may not work for another. The situation is one in which many dedicated individuals go about the act of teaching in different ways, which makes it hard to impose an outside standard on their activities in terms of a “one-size-fits-all” approach. This is why communication and learning are so vital to the management process, as effective communication between teachers and teachers is one way of overcoming this obstacle. The TESOL teacher needs to be especially up to date on these cases as well because other kinds of research really don’t show the way clearly. “Modern research findings on bilingual education are mixed. As with all educational research, it is so difficult to control for complex background factors that affect academic outcomes that no single study is ultimately satisfying… the conflicting evidence from these studies does not suggest that abolishing bilingual programs would change results much” (Rothstein, 2000). If there is no empirical evidence one way or the other, it falls to look towards the courts and legislators. Conclusion Overall the typical student shows the most room for improvement in product, which could improve with better access to reading materials both in the classroom and at the home. Often writing exercises can be great for ELL because it allows them to expand on their ideas and organize them before speaking. Some ELL are nervous about accent and want to focus on pronunciation, and reading and oration can help them with this. Writing exercises can be silent or not but they are a vital part of the lesson for the English Language Learner. “Students write in a journal, and the teacher writes back regularly, responding to questions, asking questions, making comments, or introducing new topics. Here the teacher does not evaluate what is written, but models correct language and provides a nonthreatening opportunity for ELL students to communicate” (General, 2007). ELL students may have trouble expressing their ideas outside of the high frequency and word wall structures, and this may be a challenge. “Through a shared learning activity, students benefit from observing learning strategies used by their peers. ELL students can benefit from face-to-face verbal interactions, which promote communication that is natural and meaningful (Johnson, Johnson & Holubec, 1994; Kagan, 1994). Calderon suggests that "cooperative learning is effective when students have an interesting well-structured task” (General, 2007). Getting students together and getting them to communicate with each other is a vital part of teaching lessons in any ELL environment. Students should explore ideas together in a controlled environment with access to materials. REFERENCE Fregeau, L and R Leier (2008). Assessing ELLs in ESL or mainstream classrooms. University of South Alabama. Heining, A (2000). Keys to success for English Language Learners. Learn North Carolina. Rothstein, R (2000). Bilingual education. PDK International. Short, D (2000). The ESL standards. CAL Digest. If English is not your first language. www.athabascau.ca Working with ESL students (2008). HHS International Student Center. General principles (2004). http://www.nwrel.org/request/2003may/general.html ESL—Teachers (2008). British Columbia. Lau v. Nichols (2000). http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Jwcrawford/lau.htm Read More