ESL Web Resources for Teacher Education and Staff Development R. L. Erion South Dakota State University

Overview Intended Audience: Those who teach preservice teachers and those who are involved in staff development in helping people work with students with limited English proficiency. Areas to be discussed –Resources for Staff Development/Teacher Education –Online Journals –Resources for Working with Students with Limited English Proficiency

Resources for Staff Development/Teacher Education As will be true for other sections, this is not comprehensive. Will look at some particularly rich sites. All links and many others are found on the links page for this presentation.

Content Area and ESL Strategies and Resources for Mainstreamed Teachers of English Language Learners –An excellent resource from NWREL that includes information on NCLB, methodology, and second language acquistion theory as well as examples of the ways some specific school systems in the northwestern US have undergone meeting the needs of English language learners.

ESL and Culture Center for Multilingual Multicultural Research (USC) See resources at Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services provides a number of resources that are specifically for early childhood educators. Table of Contents for Online Readings in Psychology and Culture Extensive collection maintained by the Center for Cross- Cultural Research at Western Washington University appropriate for readings for advanced undergraduates and graduate students. As the title says, it is more concerned with psychology and culture, but many of the papers are on topics of interest.

Linguistics Language & Linguistics This resource from the National Science Foundation that provides an overview of linguistics and some of the science of language development. Center for Applied Linguistics Many useful links for both graduate and undergraduate courses as well as staff development. See in particular the digests which include What Teachers need to know about Teaching Language by Snow and Filmore ( What is Linguistics ( Grammar and Its Teaching by Larson-Freeman (

Application Videos These two sites have videos of teachers using strategies. Reading Rockets: has a wealth of resources on reading. Some videos are available on Google Video from which they can be downloaded. They have streaming video resources particularly aimed at ESL and staff development Drama Stategies: Includes brief videos of the strategies being used.

Broader Perspectives The New Zealand Ministry of Education provides a number resources of interest for English for Speakers of Other Languages including: * Ellis, R. (2005). Instructed Second Language AcquisitionInstructed Second Language Acquisition * The Refuge Handbook for SchoolsThe Refuge Handbook for Schools * Improving English Language Outcomes for Students Receiving ESOL Services in New Zealand Schools, with a Particular Focus on New ImmigrantsImproving English Language Outcomes for Students Receiving ESOL Services in New Zealand Schools, with a Particular Focus on New Immigrants

Students At Risk Center for Research on the Education of Students Placed at Risk (CRESPAR) Not specifically for ESL, but has a number of useful papers. See Effective Reading Programs for English Language Learners by Slavin and Cheung ( and Trends in Two-Way Immersion Education (

Online Journals These journals and magazines provide academic papers, reports of teacher experiences, and materials for teaching. They are not the only journals that look at ESL, but they are all accessible to everyone. As such, they are resources that can be used by teachers of teachers as well as resources for teachers of ESL.

Sample Journals Teaching English as a Second Language Reading in a Foreign Language Language Learners and Technology

More Sample Journals The Internet TESL Journal ESL Magazine Working Papers in TESOL and Applied Linguistics

Resources for Working with Students with Limited English Proficiency This is a very small subset of what is available. I have tried to include sites that provide a number of resources for a broad spectrum of levels and content areas. I have also provided resources that could lead to more innovative instructional approaches.

Lesson Plans and Instructional Materials Everything ESL Judie Haynes. This site contains tips for teachers as well as a number of lessons (see and resources ( for ESL teachers. Dave's ESL Cafe ( See the Idea Cookbook for ideas for teachers.

Lots of Things for Teachers The Internet TESL Journal (again) ( Regularly includes lesson plans and teaching materials. See links for teachers ( and links for students ( The latter includes lots of links to Podcasts at and links to video at The section on using humor in ESL is also worth noting:

Music and Photography ESL through Music: Links to many online resources EFL/ESIL/ESL Songs and Activities from Songs for Teaching Literacy through Photography:

Journaling Creating a Learning Community through Electronic Journaling by Anne Bollati: See also An interview with Kristan Taylor from Tolerance.org on the use of journaling in the ESL classroom:

Online Language Resources Dictionaries, Grammars, and Other Online Language Resources See "I don't understand" in over 255 languages at

Videos & Podcasts Many sources such as Google Video that provide videos of lots of people doing things and talking. Must select with care. If there are issues with streaming video, see for information on embedding or downloading video. What follows are a few of the almost limitless sources of video that are of possible interest to ESL teachers.

Sources of Useful Video and Audio Online American Rhetoric: Video and audio speeches at Includes many very well known speeches. NPR Podcasts Internet Archive Movies: Need to look, but lots of video ( YouTube Math Tutor Group (