Intructional Strategies for Ell Classrooms
Instructional Strategies for ELL Classrooms
Grand Canyon University
SPE-523N English Language Teaching Foundations and Methods
November 17, 2010
There are many different strategies that an instructor can use in ELL classrooms or in classrooms in which ELL students have been mainstreamed. As always, instructors are called upon to constantly modify their curriculum and instruction in order to meet the needs of each individual learner. This is made more possible if the instructor has more knowledge of different teaching methods and strategies. There are many possible research sources that offer ideas, methods and strategies for everyday use in an ELL classroom. Several of the more common or functional strategies will be discussed here.
Comprehensible Input There are six prominent areas to consider when creating lesson plans that will help to present the subject material in an organized, understandable manner. These are “modelling (sic), bridging, contextualisation (sic), building schema, re-presenting text and developing metacognition” (Walqui, 2003). Modeling is simply showing, demonstrating, or asking the student to perform an action or do a project. This hands-on approach is useful for all students but it is particularly helpful with those students who have a language barrier. Bridging, a common constructivist method, involves building on a learner’s previous experience (Gabler, 2003). When dealing with ELL learners, the teacher may have to delve deeper than with average students, into the student’s previous experiences because their country of origin may not have offered the experiences that the educator is accustomed to building on. If they are able to find an experience that the student can relate the new information to, then the student will much better be able to understand the instruction (Gabler, 2003). Contextualization is useful because it presents the same information that one would find in a textbook in a completely different format that can
Grand Canyon University
SPE-523N English Language Teaching Foundations and Methods
November 17, 2010
There are many different strategies that an instructor can use in ELL classrooms or in classrooms in which ELL students have been mainstreamed. As always, instructors are called upon to constantly modify their curriculum and instruction in order to meet the needs of each individual learner. This is made more possible if the instructor has more knowledge of different teaching methods and strategies. There are many possible research sources that offer ideas, methods and strategies for everyday use in an ELL classroom. Several of the more common or functional strategies will be discussed here.
Comprehensible Input There are six prominent areas to consider when creating lesson plans that will help to present the subject material in an organized, understandable manner. These are “modelling (sic), bridging, contextualisation (sic), building schema, re-presenting text and developing metacognition” (Walqui, 2003). Modeling is simply showing, demonstrating, or asking the student to perform an action or do a project. This hands-on approach is useful for all students but it is particularly helpful with those students who have a language barrier. Bridging, a common constructivist method, involves building on a learner’s previous experience (Gabler, 2003). When dealing with ELL learners, the teacher may have to delve deeper than with average students, into the student’s previous experiences because their country of origin may not have offered the experiences that the educator is accustomed to building on. If they are able to find an experience that the student can relate the new information to, then the student will much better be able to understand the instruction (Gabler, 2003). Contextualization is useful because it presents the same information that one would find in a textbook in a completely different format that can
References: Fisher, D. Rothenberg, C. (2007). Teaching English language learners: A differentiated approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. Gabler, I. Schroeder, M. (2003). Constructivist methods for the secondary classroom. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc. p.222-236. Hallahan, J. Kauffman, J. (1997). Exceptional learners: Introduction to special education. (7th ed.) Needham Heights, Mass. A Viacom Company. p. 181. Malley, M. Moya, S. (1994, Spring). A portfolio assessment model for ESL. The Journal of Educational Issues of Language Minority Students. V13. p.24. Newman, F. (1992). Student engagement and achievement in American secondary schools. New York: Teacher’s College, Columbia University. Retrieved November 16, 2010 from http://eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED371047.pdf. p.19 Walqui, A. (2003). Conceptual framework: Scaffolding instruction for English learners. San Francisco: WestEd. p.171-177. Wisconsin Department of Public Introduction. (n.d.) AYP handbook: Instructional strategies that support the success of English language learners. Retrieved November 16, 2010 from http://dpi.state.wi.us/ssos/pdf/ayp_ell.pdf