BEST PRACTICES FOR TEACHING LEP STUDENTS Title III Professional Development

Q & A minus A (Activity) Brainstorm questions/issues that need to be addressed Overview of Legal Requirements Effective Strategies to boost language learning (Sheltered Instruction) Other

OVERVIEW Legal Requirements Instructional Strategies Content ESL Sheltered Instruction Writing Strategies for ELLs Other

LEGAL STANDARDS Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Lau v. Nichols Castañeda Standards OCR Policy No Child Left Behind WV Policy

WV Policy 2417 Adopted in May 2003 Outlines Standards for English Language Proficiency Framework for Professional Development http://wvconnections.k12.wv.us

IDENTIFICATION AND ASSESSMENT District has procedures in place for identifying and assessing all language-minority students who are in need of an alternative language services in order to participate meaningfully in the recipient's educational program. Possible elements: Timeframes Person(s) responsible & qualifications Criteria for eligibility

PLACEMENT & PARTICIPATION Educational Model includes goals to provide English Language Development/Acquisition Services Opportunity to learn English in a timely manner Provides for meaningful access to the district’s academic curriculum Opportunity to gain academic knowledge and skills

(Effective Implementation) STAFFING District ensures that the staff serving ELL students are appropriately trained and available in sufficient numbers to effectively implement the district’s educational approach. Method and criteria the district will use to ensure staff are qualified Method and criteria used to ensure a sufficient number of qualified teachers

(Effective Implementation) RESOURCES District ensures timely availability of adequate resources, such as equipment and instructional materials, to effectively implement its instructional approach. What materials and resources, such as specialized books and equipment, are needed? If the district does not currently have all the resources necessary to implement its program of services for ELL students, what is the schedule or plan for obtaining such resources?

SPECIAL EDUCATION Gifted and Talented Services District ensures that ELL students are not inappropriately placed in special education services because of their inability to speak and understand English. District considers ELL student's proficiency in the primary or home language and in English to determine the proper evaluation. ELL students are provided with opportunities to access other district programs: Gifted and Talented Services Honors and Advanced Placement ELL students shall not be misidentified as students with disabilities because of their inability to speak and understand English. ELL students with disabilities should receive special education or related services in accordance with their individual needs.

Parent Involvement Supporting the Home Language Communicating with parents Cultural Awareness

EXITING ELL STUDENTS District provides ELL Students services until they are proficient enough in English to participate meaningfully in the regular education program. Exit criteria is defined in Policy 2417: 2 years of Level 5 on WESTELL 1 year of Mastery or above on RLA WESTEST Students should continue to receive services until they can read, write, speak and comprehend English well enough to participate meaningfully in the district’s program. District should continue to continue to monitor exited ELL students. District may need to remedy academic deficits incurred while learning English.

Content ESL and Sheltered Instruction Typical remedial instruction attempts to revisit skills or concepts the student has failed to master over time. The cumulative affect of this practice is that the student progresses through below grade level material without ever moving forward in the grade level curriculum. In other words, the student falls further and further behind. Acceleration refers to an instructional model that provides low achieving students opportunities to attain academic goals at a pace that allows them to progress while focusing on individual learning needs and supporting the student within grade-level curriculum.

How will LEP Students catch up How will LEP Students catch up? Research indicates the “average LEP student” will require: 6 months to 2 years to acquire social language and 3-5 years to learn academic language Average 3-year “learning curve” Some teachers think “I should keep this LEP student in my 2nd grade class room until he/she is ready for 3rd grade English.” When in fact, LEP students are “acquiring” information and language at a rate that is much faster than the “average” student because they are learning new Language and Content daily. Research shows that LEP students typically need 5-7 years to “catch up” with their peers. During this time they need to be in classes that are age-appropriate and ACCELERATING them in language and content that is challenging for them. Beginning skills gap LEP 3-year “learning curve” Year 1 Year 2 Year 3

Key Strategies for Accelerating Learning Content ESL Goal: Language through Content Vocabulary Instruction Activating Prior Knowledge Sheltered Instruction Goal: Content with Language Supports Scaffolded Instruction Advance Organizers Research indicates that the consistent use of specific teaching strategies optimize the learning for all students. The use of these four strategies in particular (used in combination with other effective schools research-based strategies) makes the classroom environment more conducive to meeting the unique needs of students who struggle. Use of these strategies can increase the speed with which students learn new information and, therefore, assist students in learning grade level content. The rationale for and examples of each of the strategies are highlighted in this presentation.

Content ESL The third instructional tool used to accelerate student learning addresses vocabulary instruction.

Role of ESL teachers/programs Stage 1- “Survival” Stage 2- Pre Teaching Vocabulary, Modifying Instruction/Assessment Stage 3- Scaffolding Content Stage 4 – Reducing support Reading aloud could supplement but should not supplant silent reading. Several studies have shown that children can learn words as efficiently by being read to as they can from reading stories themselves. Scaffolding Content/Study Skills Chunking Content Content Themes

Activity Read the following sentence. I went to the toshokan yesterday to pay my fines. What is a toshokan? Have you determined the meaning of the word? Why or why not? If this is regular occurrence in the classroom, what is the cumulative effect on student learning? LEP students need both types of Vocabulary Instruction: Teaching the concept/meaning of English words that the student already understands in his/her native language Teaching the concept/meaning of English words that the student does not understand in his/her native language Toshokan (pronounced /toh show kahn/) means ”library” in Japanese. Have participants generate and discuss the possible meanings of the word Toshokan. Point out that students in some classes may have to deal with hundreds of words that are not common to their vocabulary.

Cloze when words are omitted according to a category (e.g. all nouns, or words with the long a sound, or all uses of the present participle), it exercises higher level thinking skills as students work to identify the commonalities between the omitted words. Cognates Cognates are words in different languages related to the same root, e.g., education (English) and educación (Spanish). Using cognates whenever possible in speech and writing with ELLs has several benefits: activates prior language knowledge along with other visual information, may help students understand the meaning of a passage Word Maps word map is a graphic organizer that is helps students think about new words and concepts in a variety of ways. Some word maps expand on definitions, while others focus on uses of the word or other forms and parts of speech

ACTIVATING PRIOR KNOWLEDGE Think-Pair-Share Activity Describe three things you would expect to see or experience in a communist country. Why was this task difficult or easy? How did your prior knowledge of the concept assist your ability to articulate your responses? ACTIVATING PRIOR Knowledge Help students remember information they already have about a particular topic. Help students discover and frame what they already know about a particular topic. Assist the teacher in determining instructional starting points based on students’ existing knowledge. Have the participants form pairs. Ask them to process the questions first silently and then share their ideas with a partner. Provide opportunities for reporting out as appropriate to the group size.

Sheltered Instruction The third instructional tool used to accelerate student learning addresses vocabulary instruction.

Types of Sheltering Strategies Pacing Presentation of Material Materials Assignments Environment Reinforcement Classroom Assessment Grading

Alternatives to Classroom tests · Portfolios · Projects Learning skills and knowledge cannot occur in isolation. Learning is dependant on the context in which it is learned, and what is learned in one context may not always transfer to another. Good assessments appropriately reflect the learning context. Also, the more authentic or “real life” the purpose, materials, content, and assessment, the more meaning it will have to the student. Alternatives to Classroom tests ·      Portfolios ·      Projects ·      Performance-based testing Working in small groups, LEP students can demonstrate their knowledge of the content by: ·      applying skills to real world problems ·      critiquing small group presentations ·      presenting a chronology of written and taped work Modifications for Classroom assessment   ·      allowing extra time to complete or respond to the test ·      simplifying directions in English ·      limiting the number of items assessed ·      also providing additional clarification during or after the test ·      allowing the students to use dictionaries or word lists ·      allowing the students to respond orally to the test questions Tips to consider for Classroom assessment ·      using primary sources from classroom materials such as charts, graphics, cartoons, and works of art ·      including questions from small group discussions in class ·      including teacher observations, student self-reflections, and parent judgments of their own child’s progress ·      designing assessment task that require different ways of demonstrating knowledge or skill like, exhibits, dramatic renditions, interviews, observations, self-reflections, and a variety of writing samples.

Thanks for your support of students with limited English proficiency in West Virginia! Amelia Davis Courts W.V. Dept.of Education Bldg. 6 Room 318, 1900 Kanawha Blvd. Charleston, WV 25305 (304) 558-2691 aadavis@access.k12.wv.us