NEW - GLOSSARY - interactive Glossary of terms now available

ESOL

Terms used to refer to learners who come with another language background -other than English.

In New Zealand, the Ministry of Education uses the term ESOL; English for Speakers of Other Languages. It refers to the programmes and funding for any student who has another home language, other than English - and indeed may use three or more languages.

In the literature, a variety of other terms are used for students themselves:

ELL - English Language Learners
ESL - English as a Second Language (learner)
Bilingual - fluent in two languages
Multilingual - fluent in more than two languages
MLs (Multilingual Learners) This includes those with English language varieties (dialects or English that has variations of language usage that is specific to their background ) or dyslexia or language processing difficulties as well as those with another or other first (or Heritage/native) language(s). (ref) Breanna Guzman in Enhancing Literacy Teaching and Learning for Linguistically Diverse Students .

In this Google site I have used the term ESOL learners irrespective of whether they receive ESOL funding from the Ministry of Education or not.

I have also opted to use a broader term “diverse language learners” as this covers the range of learners with other language backgrounds, whether they are fluent in this language or not and also includes those with underlying language difficulties as described above as MLs (Multilingual Learners). I have used diverse language learners in preference to MLs as this latter term is not well used in New Zealand and can be confused with the term "multilingual", which is more readily understood as a user of more than two languages. It should also be noted that the term "diverse" refers to the languages used, not the learner themselves; as diversity is present in all learners.

What about literacy support for ESOL learners?

What is best practice?

Like any learner, there will be variability across this group of learners and so Principle 1 - "Know your learner" counts here.

The possible main differences for this group depends on the strength and experiences the learner has had in their first language (L1). The videos that guide practice related to other typical learner needs (LINK HERE) also apply to ESOL learners.

Understand the science of learning and reading background,
then Assess,
use a scope and sequence for teaching
and uses explicit teaching practices

The links below take you to a website created by Keryn King which supports culturally sustaining practices when teaching English to diverse language learners.

Key information for schools about bilingual | ESOL learners.

Benefits for the second language (ESOL) learner :

What teachers might notice:

Explicit teaching is crucial for diverse language learners

What Diverse language learners need #1

What Diverse language learners need #2

What Diverse language learners need #3

What Diverse language learners need #4

Effective strategies for teaching English language learners.

1. Focus on academic language, literacy and vocabulary

2. Link background knowledge and culture to learning

3. Increase comprehensible input and language output

4. Promote classroom interaction

5. Stimulate higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) and use of learning strategies.

ESOL Principles and Aligned Teaching Strategies Table

Information and resources for teachers to respond to the needs of multicultural learners including those from migrant backgrounds, former refugees, and English language learners.

This page also includes the SELLIPS resources

Supporting English Language Learning in Primary Schools