Who+is+my+student?

Who are my students?
Bilingual students differ in various ways, including level of oral English proficiency, literacy ability in both the heritage language and English, and cultural backgrounds. English language learners born in the United States often develop conversational language abilities in English but lack academic language proficiency. Newcomers, on the other hand, need to develop both conversational and academic English. Education previous to entering U.S. schools helps determine students’ literacy levels in their native language. Some learners may have age-/grade-level skills, while others have limited or no literacy because of the quality of previous schooling, interrupted schooling due to wars or migration, and other circumstances (Suárez-Orozco & Suárez-Orozco, 2001). Given the wide range of English language learners and their backgrounds, it is important that all teachers take the time to learn about their students, particularly in terms of their literacy histories. Immigrant students and the children of immigrants in the United States come from many cultural backgrounds. The background knowledge English learners bring to school greatly affects their performance. For this reason, teachers of English language learners should be sure to build background for content lessons rather than assuming that bilingual students come with the same background knowledge as mainstream students.

Teaching Bilingual Learners in Mainstream Classrooms
This section specifically addresses teaching language, reading, and writing, as well as the specific kinds of academic literacy that are often a part of most English and language arts curricula. Although English language arts teachers have literacy as the focus of their teaching, many of these suggestions are useful for teachers working in the content areas as well. To acquire academic content through English, English language learners need to learn English. The academic language that students need in the different content areas differs, and students need scaffolding to help them to learn both the English language and the necessary content. For English language learners, teachers need to consider content objectives as well as English language development objectives. Bilinguals need three types of knowledge to become literate in a second language. They need to know the second language; they need to know literacy; and they need world knowledge (Bernhardt, 1991). The sections below list key ideas for helping English language learners develop academic English proficiency. More detailed information on the topics covered in this section can be obtained from the topical bibliography compiled as part of this project. To teach bilingual learners, teachers must get to know their learners.

Knowledge of the Students
Knowledge of the students is key to good teaching. Because teachers relate to students both as learners and as children or adolescents, teachers must establish how they will address these two types of relationships, what they need to know about their students, and how they will acquire this knowledge. The teacher-learner relationship implies involvement between teachers and students around subject matter and language and literacy proficiency in both languages. Adult-child relationships are more personal and should include the family. Focusing on both types of relationships bridges the gap between school and the world outside it, a gap that is especially important for many bilingual students whose world differs greatly from school.

Teaching Language
Second language learners need to develop academic proficiency in English to master content-area subjects. Teachers can provide effective instruction for these students by:
 * Recognizing that second language acquisition is a gradual developmental process and is built on students’ knowledge and skill in their native language;
 * Providing authentic opportunities to use language in a nonthreatening environment;
 * Teaching key vocabulary connected with the topic of the lesson;
 * Teaching academic oral language in the context of various content areas;
 * Teaching text- and sentence-level grammar in context to help students understand the structure and style of the English language;
 * Teaching the specific features of language students need to communicate in social as well as academic contexts.

Teaching Literacy: Reading
Bilingual students also need to learn to read and write effectively in order to succeed in school. Teachers can support English language learners’ literacy development by: Support reading comprehension by:
 * Introducing classroom reading materials that are culturally relevant;
 * Connecting the readings with the students' background knowledge and experiences;
 * Encouraging students to discuss the readings, including the cultural dimensions of the text;
 * Having students read a more accessible text on the topic before reading the assigned text;
 * Asking families to read with students a version in the heritage language;
 * Replacing discrete skill exercises and drills with many opportunities to read;
 * Providing opportunities for silent reading in either the students’ first language or in English;
 * Reading aloud frequently to allow students to become familiar with and appreciate the sounds and structures of written language;
 * Reading aloud while students have access to the text to facilitate connecting oral and written modalities;
 * Stimulating students’ content knowledge of the text before introducing the text;
 * Teaching language features, such as text structure, vocabulary, and text- and sentence-level grammar to facilitate comprehension of the text;
 * Recognizing that first and second language growth increases with abundant reading and writing.
 * Relating the topic to the cultural experiences of the students;
 * “Front loading” comprehension via a walk through the text or a preview of the main ideas, and other strategies that prepare students for the topic of the text;
 * Having students read a more accessible text on the topic before reading the assigned text;
 * Asking families to read with students a version in the heritage language;
 * Doing pre-reading activities that elicit discussion of the topic;
 * Teaching key vocabulary essential for the topic;
 * Recognizing that experiences in writing can be used to clarify understanding of reading.

Teaching Literacy: Writing
Writing well in English is often the most difficult skill for English language learners to master. Many English language learners are still acquiring vocabulary and syntactic competence in their writing. Students may show varying degrees of acquisition, and not all second language writers will have the same difficulties or challenges. Teachers should be aware that English language learners may not be familiar with terminology and routines often associated with writing instruction in the United States, including writing process, drafting, revision, editing, workshop, conference, audience, purpose, or genre. Furthermore, certain elements of discourse, particularly in terms of audience and persuasion, may differ across cultural contexts. The same is true for textual borrowing and plagiarism. The [|CCCC Statement on Second Language Writing and Writers]is a useful resource for all teachers of writing to examine. Teachers can provide instructional support for English language learners in their writing by:
 * Providing a nurturing environment for writing;
 * Introducing cooperative, collaborative writing activities which promote discussion;
 * Encouraging contributions from all students, and promoting peer interaction to support learning;
 * Replacing drills and single-response exercises with time for writing practice;
 * Providing frequent meaningful opportunities for students to generate their own texts;
 * Designing writing assignments for a variety of audiences, purposes, and genres, and scaffolding the writing instruction;
 * Providing models of well-organized papers for the class. Teachers should consider glossing sample papers with comments that point to the specific aspects of the paper that make it well written;
 * Offering comments on the strength of the paper, in order to indicate areas where the student is meeting expectations;
 * Making comments explicit and clear (both in written response and in oral responses). Teachers should consider beginning feedback with global comments (content and ideas, organization, thesis) and then move on to more local concerns (or mechanical errors) when student writers are more confident with the content of their draft;
 * Giving more than one suggestion for change -- so that students still maintain control of their writing;
 * Not assuming that every learner understands how to cite sources or what plagiarism is. Teachers should consider talking openly about citation and plagiarism in class, exploring the cultural values that are implicit in the rules of plagiarism and textual borrowing, and noting that not all cultures ascribe to the same rules and guidelines. Students should be provided with strategies for avoiding plagiarism.

Teaching Language and Content
The best way to help students learn both English and the knowledge of school subjects is to teach language through content. This should not replace reading and writing instruction in English, nor study of literature and grammar. There are three key reasons to do this: > > Research has shown that students can learn English and subject matter content material at the same time. Students don’t need to delay the study of science or literature until they reach high levels of English. Instead, they can learn both simultaneously. Given the time limitations older students face, it is crucial that classes provide them with both academic content-area knowledge and academic English. > > When teachers teach science in English, students learn science terms as they study biology or chemistry. The vocabulary occurs naturally as students read and discuss science texts. > > The primary purpose of school is to help students develop the knowledge of different academic disciplines. When academic content is presented in English, students focus on the main purpose of schooling: learning science, math, social studies, or literature. In the process, they also learn English.
 * 1) **Students get both language and content.**
 * 1) **Language is kept in its natural context.**
 * 1) **Students have reasons to use language for real purposes.**

Selecting Materials

 * Choose a variety of texts around a theme.
 * Choose texts at different levels of difficulty.
 * Choose reading and writing materials that represent the cultures of the students in the class.
 * When possible, include texts in the native languages of the ELLs in the class. The following considerations should be used as a guide for choosing texts that support bilingual learners:
 * Materials should include both literature and informational texts.
 * Materials should include culturally relevant texts.
 * Authentic materials should be written to inform or entertain, not to teach a grammar point or a letter-sound correspondence.
 * The language of the text should be natural.
 * If translated, the translation should be good language.
 * Materials should include predictable text for emergent readers.
 * Materials should include texts with nonlinguistic cues that support comprehension (For a more comprehensive checklist, see Freeman, Y., & Freeman, D., 2002, 2004).

Low-Level Literacy Immigrant Students
Late-arrival immigrant and refugee students with low literacy skills have been found to benefit from Newcomer programs or Welcome Centers designed for 1-3 semesters of high school (Boyson & Short, 2003; Schnur, 1999; Short, 2002). The focus is to help students acquire beginning English skills and guide students' acculturation to the U.S. school system before enrollment in regular ESL language support programs or content-area classrooms. The integration of such programs in high school English departments should be encouraged.

Conclusion
As the number of bilingual learners in mainstream classes increases, it becomes even more important for mainstream teachers to use effective practices to engage these students so that they can acquire the academic English and the content-area knowledge they need for school success. The guidelines offered here are designed as initial suggestions for teachers to follow. However, we recognize that all teachers need much more. Teachers need continued support and professional development to enable all their students, including their bilingual students, to succeed.