Training for content teachers of English Language Learners: using experiential learning to improve instruction*

Abstract

Experiential learning theory places experience at the center of learning. Kolb’s four-stage cycle of experiential learning suggests that effective learners must engage fully in each stage of the cycle – feeling, reflection, thinking, and action. This research assesses the alignment of Kolb’s experiential learning cycle with the week-long Summer Institute of Assisting, Collaborating, and Training ESL Secondary Content Teachers (ACT-ESL), the first stage of a professional development model designed to train content teachers of English Language Learners (ELLs). Qualitative and quantitative data analysis from pre- and post-surveys determined positive changes in participants’ understanding of key ELL concepts, knowledge, and understanding of instructional strategies and practices. Analysis indicated that the Summer Institute had a large effect (d > 2.00 for each scale), regardless of previous training in ELL instructional strategies. Findings show that the Summer Institute incorporated the cycle of learning and tenets of Kolb’s experiential learning theory and evidenced teacher learning.     

少儿英语教学与语言习得

语言学习和语言习得在学习效果上存在一定的差异.在少儿英语教学中发展儿童语言运用能力的关键在于教师应结合儿童认知能力的发展,从语言信息输入定位、输入输出定位、教学顺序定位、情感因素过滤方面来创设语言习得环境.     

Using iPads in Vocabulary Instruction for English Language Learners

The purpose of this study was to examine whether English language learners (ELLs) would increase their vocabulary scores in the areas of word recognition, word meaning, and word application when iPads were used during vocabulary instruction. Five third-grade ELLs, at risk of being diagnosed as having learning disabilities, participated in the study. All students demonstrated low test scores in learning vocabulary words during the baseline. During the intervention, 36 vocabulary words selected from the third-grade’s Dolch word list were taught and practiced using the iPad application Learning Touch, First Sight Words Pro. All students were assessed and their vocabulary scores increased in the areas of word recognition, word meaning, and word application. Using the iPad and iPad app appears to provide a potential avenue for ELLs in learning English vocabulary words.     

Validating English Language Proficiency Assessment Uses for English Learners: Academic Language Proficiency and Content Assessment Performance

States use standards‐based English language proficiency (ELP) assessments to inform relatively high‐stakes decisions for English learner (EL) students. Results from these assessments are one of the primary criteria used to determine EL students’ level of ELP and readiness for reclassification. The results are also used to evaluate the effectiveness of and funding allocation to district or school programs that serve EL students. In an effort to provide empirical validity evidence for such important uses of ELP assessments, this study focused on examining the constructs of ELP assessments as a fundamental validity issue. Particularly, the study examined the types of language proficiency measured in three sample states’ ELP assessments and the relationship between each type of language proficiency and content assessment performance. The results revealed notable variation in the presence of academic and social language in the three ELP assessments. A series of hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) analyses also revealed varied relationships among social language proficiency, academic language proficiency, and content assessment performance. The findings highlight the importance of examining the constructs of ELP assessments for making appropriate interpretations and decisions based on the assessment scores for EL students. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.     

“思维导图”在艺术类高职英语课堂中的应用

在艺术类高职院校中,学生们普遍厌学英语,部分原因是我们在教学中没有充分考虑视动觉学生的学习风格。本文尝试在英语教学中,借鉴思维导图的方法,帮助学生以图来解读课文,更深层次地理解课文,以期提高英语教学的质量和强化语言习得。     

中国初中英语学习者音位习得过程中的困难及问题

本文从对比分析出发,在使用国际音标符号准确、详尽的描述英汉音位的相同、近似及不同的基础上,通过两次针对初中一年级学生的实验,分别得出中国初中英语学习者的发音困难及其模式,并把学习者的困难及问题用公式展现出来。在解释这些困难及问题的同时找到解决方法,对指导外语语音的教与学提供了有力的实证支撑和理论依据。     

Using Interactive Writing Instruction with Kindergarten and First-Grade English Language Learners

In this article, written primarily for early childhood educators of young children who are learning English as another language, the authors discuss the use and educational benefits of Interactive Writing, an approach to beginning writing instruction appropriate for kindergarten and first grade children.     

英语学习者的"高原心理"

文章通过对英语学习中的高原效应与语言焦虑情绪的分析，对英语学习者的“高原心理”进行研究。结果表明导致焦虑的因素既可能是学习者的个人经历，也可能是教师的行为。因此，为了帮助学生克服高原效应，教师要充分考虑语言学习中的情感因素。     

原版英文电影对大学英语学习者的影响

众所周知,学英语,语言环境是关键。语言要在相应的语言环境中学习才能收到好的效果。而英文原版电影通过声音与图像共同组成了完整的信息,将视觉和听觉有效地结合在一起,可创造生动逼真的英语学习环境,同时还可以调动学习英语的兴趣,从而提高学习效率。本文就原版英语电影对大学英语学习者在英语学习的积极意义上和提高文学修养上进行简单的探析。     

The role of access to Head Start and quality ratings for Spanish-Speaking Dual Language Learners’ (DLLs) participation in early childhood education

Data from the Head Start Impact Study (N = 4442) were used to test for differences between Spanish-speaking Dual Language Learners (DLLs) and monolingual English-speaking children in: (1) Head Start attendance rates when randomly assigned admission; and (2) quality ratings of other early childhood education (ECE) programs attended when not randomly assigned admission to Head Start. Logistic regressions showed that Spanish-speaking DLL children randomly assigned a spot in Head Start were more likely than monolingual-English learners to attend. Further, Spanish-speaking DLLs not randomly assigned a spot in Head Start were more likely to attend higher-quality ECE centers than non-DLL children. Policy implications are discussed, suggesting that, if given access, Spanish-speaking DLL families will take advantage of quality ECE programs.     

English Language Attrition Among EFL Learners in Terms of Writing Skills

This study aims to identify if participants experience attrition in writing skills after two years’ nonuse of English.70 participants took the tests of writing.A questionnaire was administered to the 70 participants and it included numerous variables that relate to language attrition such as motivation and social activities.The data collected from the tests and questionnaire were analyzed via SPSS.Cronbach’s alpha and Many Facets Rasch Model were used to validate the construct and external reliability.The findings showed that participants experienced an overall statistically significant level of attrition in writing skills.Additionally,the specific skills of pertinence,coherence,clarity but excluding grammar,were seen to experience significant attrition over the two years’ period.Participants showed a lower level of positive motivation and less social activities for learning English language during the two years’ nonuse than before the two years’ nonuse of English and this could have contributed to the writing attrition.     

语言学习策略训练与英语阅读教学

语言学习策略在英语教学中越来越重要。为了提高学生的阅读能力,在阅读教学中教师要尽量强化学生对学习策略的意识,利用课堂活动进行学习策略的教学和训练,使学生真正了解和掌握一些学习策略,并成为他们学习技能的一部分。     

英语学习口语错误研究

从指导英语教师进行有效的口语教学和学生进行更好的口语学习的角度出发, 对外语学习者的口语转换错误进行识别和归类。调查对象是一年级非英语专业大学生。调查所用的资料库为基于调查对象对彩色照片的描述进行的录音分析。研究结果表明, 母语的影响, 以及逐字逐句的翻译导致转换错误。     

Effects of an Online Mathematics Curriculum for English Language Learners

This study measured the effects of an online supplementary mathematics curriculum designed for middle school English language learners who speak Spanish as a first language. A randomized experiment measured the achievement differences between middle school English language learners who used the Web-based HELP Math (Help with English Language Proficiency) curriculum and students who used other technology-based programs. Three hundred and ninety-six students participated. Both groups made statistically significant gains from pretest to posttest within their respective curricula, but no main effect was found between the two groups. Post hoc analyses revealed that students with higher levels of English proficiency, who participated in the comparison condition, performed significantly better than students in the HELP Math condition, while students with lower levels of English proficiency performed better in the HELP Math program (although these differences were not statistically significant). Findings are interpreted with caution due to the truncated length of the intervention.     

Investigating Parent and Professional Perspectives Concerning Special Education Services for Preschool Latino Children

Population changes in the US have created new challenges for service providers responsible for screening, determining eligibility, and providing appropriate educational services to young English Language Learners (ELLs). Six focus groups (two each) with administrators, teachers, and parents were conducted in two different locations to investigate the referral, diagnostic evaluation, and placement of prekindergarten Latino children who are ELLs and their families. The purpose of this study was to: (a) identify effective practices that differentiate between cultural/linguistic differences and learning differences; (b) identify the gaps in the current special education services; and (c) make recommendations to reduce the disproportionate representation of young ELL children based on these data. The results revealed a number of factors contributing to the disproportionality of young ELL children in special services such as: inconsistent screening and evaluation methods; insufficient numbers of bilingual professionals and trained interpreters; communication barriers and contradictory procedures that undermine meaningful partnerships with parents of ELLs; the need for professional development on the purposes and administration procedures of screening and evaluation tools; and a need for policy and regulation changes pertaining to ELL children such as the timing of screenings and evaluations.     

Using Music to Support the Literacy Development of Young English Language Learners

Integrating experiences with music in the early childhood classroom supports English language learners’ literacy development (Peregoy and Boyle, Reading, writing, and learning in ESL. Pearson, Boston, 2008; Saricoban and Metin, Songs, verse and games for teaching grammar. Internet TESL J, 2000). This article describes the benefits of incorporating musical experiences into daily instruction and provides practical activities for classroom implementation, e.g., reading, writing, and singing songs for language skill development, reading fluency, and writing progress. Despite a teacher’s level of aesthetic appreciation and musical training, the value of fostering creativity and enhancing literacy instruction through music is vital in today’s diverse early childhood classrooms. Music can transform classrooms into positive learning environments where children thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. Providing children with structured and open-ended musical activities, creating an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect, and sharing the joy of creativity with each other all are foundational to bases for the growth and development of the early childhood learner.     

Differential Performance by English Language Learners on an Inquiry-Based Science Assessment

The performance of English language learners (ELLs) has been a concern given the rapidly changing demographics in US K-12 education. This study aimed to examine whether students' English language status has an impact on their inquiry science performance. Differential item functioning (DIF) analysis was conducted with regard to ELL status on an inquiry-based science assessment, using a multifaceted Rasch DIF model. A total of 1,396 seventh- and eighth-grade students took the science test, including 313 ELL students. The results showed that, overall, non-ELLs significantly outperformed ELLs. Of the four items that showed DIF, three favored non-ELLs while one favored ELLs. The item that favored ELLs provided a graphic representation of a science concept within a family context. There is some evidence that constructed-response items may help ELLs articulate scientific reasoning using their own words. Assessment developers and teachers should pay attention to the possible interaction between linguistic challenges and science content when designing assessment for and providing instruction to ELLs.     

Emergent Target Language Identities Among Latino English Language Learners

During 2nd language acquisition, a learner’s identity is consigned, juxtaposed, coconstructed, and reified through various affective positions and mitigating linguistic behaviors. Our study of adult Latino ESL students in Dallas, Texas, shows how language socialization experiences are shaped by the learners’ affective stances toward the project of learning and using the English language. Students reflected on how their specific social barriers created conditions that impeded interaction with interlocutors who could potentially aid their socialization process in English.     

A Reconsideration of Communicative Language Teaching in Vocational College English Instruction for Non-English Majors

This thesis investigates vocational college English teachers’perceptions and attitudes toward CLT,revealed the obstacles and difficulties teachers encountered in the application of CLT in vocational English classroom.Meanwhile,this research attempts to explore how the apply CLT effectively in China.