Considerations When Planning Your Year Long Course

To address the cultural dissonance or discontinuity, adopt a mutually adaptive learning model in which the teacher 1) accepts the conditions of learning from which students come from (one in which collectivism is embraced and interpersonal connections are nurtured), 2) merges learning processes (uses elements from oral traditions and cultures of interdependence and also uses processes that move students closer to printed texts and growing independence), and 3) aims to expose students to new academic tasks, using their existing funds of knowledge as a starting point.

1. The first component can be achieved by intentionally building relationships with students (see item #2). The second component can be achieved by beginning learning episodes with a heavy dose of oral transmission of ideas using TPR (total physical response), using call and response when giving directions, using redundancy, repetition, backlooping (returning to previous utterance using same vocabulary). Interdependence can be exercised using team teaching techniques where student groups or pairs share ideas shared in the teacher's explanation and recreate an explanation using each other as resources. Gradual movement towards independence can be achieved by, first, creating an opportunity for students to understand independence as the ultimate goal of American schooling and giving students an opportunity to examine that goal and name the challenges that might present for them. This type of discourse can help navigate challenge points when students are asked to complete tasks independently through a gradual release of responsibility scaffolding model. To achieve the third component, it is necessary for the teacher to understand their students’ prior experience with the target task, skill, idea and, as much as possible, use their existing schema to present the new material. Usually this means starting with a pragmatic task and moving towards more abstract, academic tasks.

2. Create opportunities for students to examine the interconnectedness between language, culture, and community. Create opportunities for students to become aware of American culture (in and outside of school) and the English Language through comparative analysis of their native language and the new language. In the beginning levels of language development, this can take the form of juxtaposition of alphabets from languages represented in the classroom and having students examine and name as many features as possible. This can begin their journey to phonemic awareness, but also an opportunity to name similarities and differences that might impact their language learning journey. In the more advanced levels, the examination of culture can be facilitated by the study of pictures in which different aspects of visible and invisible culture are captured or alluded to. It can also take the form of a study of culturally situated folk tales, nursery rhymes, or cuentos that might reveal values and beliefs of different cultures and communities represented in the room. Given the importance of understanding this element of language, these practices can be recurring throughout the year, and do not necessarily need to be contained in one unit.

2. As much as possible, engage students in project based learning, as this strategy merges the need for pragmatic application of skills (which are so necessary for students new to the American school system), and also provides opportunities for academic tasks and skills to be modeled, practiced, and applied.

3. Think: How will students keep their learning organized throughout the year? ELD instructors have collectively adopted a portfolio model of assessment in which students archive their learning artifacts and use these as reflection points throughout the year. These are presented to an authentic audience of community members at the end of the year.