Entry Three: Interview With ELL Teacher
For this entry, I have decided to interview my amazing mentor teacher - Kayla Shaw. Ms.Shaw is a third grade science and a ELAR teacher. She has been in the classroom for three years and has worked with all different kinds of students. This being said, she has worked with a handful of English Language Learners and has some great insight into what it is like teaching in an ELL classroom!
In her interview, Ms. Shaw mentions that she is currently teaching at a district that uses an early-exit program for their ELL students. According to Wright, the Transitional Bilingual Education program, also known as early-exit, is the most common type of bilingual program in the United States (Wright, 2015, p.97). The goal of this program is to "transition ELLs to an English-medium classroom as quickly as possible" (Wright, 2015, p.97). Ms. Shaw mentions that her district tries to get students out of the program by third grade or at the latest by fourth grade. She also mentions that it is necessary for ELL students to receive effective content-area instruction to ensure that the students grasp the language better and make academic connections. Again, this follows perfectly with the goal of TBE programs. "By providing content-area instruction in the students' home languages, schools can ensure that students do not fall behind academically while they are learning English." (Wright, 2015, p.97)
Throughout her interview, it is very clear that Ms. Shaw deeply cares about making sure her ELL students are getting the best education they can get. She mentions making sure that her classroom is a safe environment for her students to learn. Ms. Shaw also pointed out that a big factor that plays into a student learning English is parental involvement. Ms. Shaw talks about how parental involvement is important in allowing students to become proficient in this new language. Discussing with parents and making sure that they are encouraging their child to use English at home, and in the everyday world, is a great way for students to practice and master the language. The key thing that Ms.Shaw mentions here is that 'discussion' with parents about their child's education. "As primary stakeholders, parents of ELLs must be included in decision-making processes that affect students" (Wright, 2015, p. 309). These kind of decision-making processes can include encouraging the child to speak or practice more English at home or can simply be discussing accommodations that the child should receive in the classroom. Regardless of what it might be, Ms. Shaw believes that parents need to be involved in their child's learning, and it is this key factor that allows for the most effective learning.
Overall, Ms. Shaw is a strong believer that every child deserves a high-quality education. In order to ensure this, Ms. Shaw uses best-practices in her classroom. From advocating for her ELL students to accommodating them in the classroom, Ms. Shaw does whatever it takes to ensure this high-quality education for her ELL students.
References: Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.
Hello Alex, I enjoyed watching the interview with your mentor. She is very charismatic. Ms. Shaw mentioned a few great points. Accommodation for ELL students is definitely important for them to be successful in the classroom and I love that Ms. Shaw mentioned the importance of paring visuals with vocabulary words and lessons. This definitely takes students text complexity to a higher qualitative level, not only in the classroom but outside of the classroom as well (Wright pg. 190). I think back in my ELL years and this would have made a huge difference in my learning. Moreover, introducing vocabulary words before a lesson, using small group, and one-to-one instruction is key to growth with students overall, but mostly for our ELL/ESL students.
ReplyDeleteTruly enjoyed watching you interview with Ms. Shaw. Thanks!
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hi Lucy! Thanks for your comment! I too think that pairing visuals with vocabulary words and lesson is a great way to accommodate English language learners, and is necessary for some students to master literacy instruction. I like how you point out that this would have made a huge difference to you personally in your ELL years. Just like you, many students benefit from visuals and pictures while others don’t. As we chose the strategies and techniques we plan to implement in our classroom, we must be aware that “individual differences contribute significantly to English literacy development” (Wright, 2015, p.186). This being said, I definitely plan to include this type of accommodation in my classroom on top of others that may work different for some students.
DeleteReferences:
Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.
Hi Lucy! I strongly agree with you on accommodating the needs to ELL students is essential in order for them to be successful within a regular classroom. The ELL teacher I had interviewed with, Mrs. Wilson, provided accommodation to her pull-out ESL students by providing linguistic representation of words such as showing pictures on an Ipad. Mrs. Wilson uses visuals on the Ipad to her ELL students, so they can learn new and unfamiliar words. According to Wright (2015), the teacher can make the text more comprehensible and engaging for ELLs by using gestures, pointing to parts of the illustrations that provide hints for the meaning. Therefore, visuals are an important strategy to teach ELLs new concepts. Students will have a better understanding of the content without feeling frustrated. They would be excited to learn.
DeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hello Alexander, this was a great interview and blog reflection! I can tell that you and your mentor teacher have a great relationship and she is willing to share her experience with working with English Language Learners. I can also tell that she truly enjoys and cares about the academic success of these students, which is a great thing to see. I really liked how you mentioned in your post that a goal of hers is for the classroom to be a safe and inclusive environment for these students. According to Wright "Helping ELLs succeed academically requires helping them adjust to the culture of the classroom and the school" (Wright, 2015, p.19). No student wants to be in an environment in which they do not feel supported by their teacher and fellow classmates. To combat this problem, I think it is very important for teachers to establish norms and procedures at the beginning of the year that deals with treating all students with respect no matter their native language, culture, or background. From the interview I also liked how your mentor teacher stressed the importance of parental involvement. I ,too think it is very important that the parents of ELLs understand that their support and involvement with their child's academics will be very beneficial to their success.
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2025. Print. Second Edition.
Hello, Jada. Thank you so much for your comment! I totally agree with your statement about no student wanting to be in a classroom in which they do not feel supported by their teachers or fellow classmates. It is so important for us as teachers to make the classroom environment comfortable, and inviting; especially for our English language learners. To help ease students into a classroom Wright mentions that we should label our classroom with the students’ home language. “These labels not only help students learn the name of classroom objects in English but also send students the message that their home language is valued as a resource for learning in the classroom” (Wright, 2015, p.301). This message that Write it talking about is necessary for students to understand that we care for their home language and allow students to feel a great sense of ownership in their classroom.
DeleteReferences:
Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.
I really liked the piece of your interview when Ms. Shaw mentions that there is that 'discussion' with parents about their child's education and I do agree with our text that, "As primary stakeholders, parents of ELLs must be included in decision-making processes that affect students" (Wright, 2015, p. 309). That said, I am very curious how your teacher empowers/ familiarizes families of ELLs to become advocates capable and comfortable having these types of discussion with her? In many of the school I have been in, there has, unfortunately, been lower participation from families of ELLs in accountability testing meeting and progress meetings. I don’t believe, at all, that this is from lack of care, but rather that no one has ever properly communicated their rights to them. I also wonder if your school has translators made available to families for these meetings? Thanks so much for an excellent video, your mentor teacher seems awesome!
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2025. Print. Second Edition.
Hi there, Niki! Thanks so much for your feedback and questions! As you mentioned, it is often seen that the participation of ELL families is much lower than other families. After asking Ms.Shaw about this, she explained to me how the school encourages these families to speak out and get involved in their child’s education as soon as they enroll in kindergarten. Ms.Shaw explains how insistent administration is to parents to make sure there is that involvement throughout a child’s entire educational life. Many families “may be unfamiliar with the education system and may not fully understand how changes may affect their children” (Wright, 2015, p.301). In order to make sure that these families do become familiar with the education system, many of the administration team are bilingual and are always happy to sit in and translate in order for better parent-teacher communication. I believe that we as teachers can’t take no for an answer when it comes to parent involvement. We need to make sure that we are doing everything we can to give our students the best-quality education, and this definitely includes involving all parents.
DeleteReferences:
Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition
Hey, Niki! Your comment made me think about my own experiences with student teaching. As educators, it is our duty to make sure that we keep up to date with our students, and that includes keeping data of any kind. According to Wright (2015), “the results of [collecting data] paint a much more accurate and telling picture of the quality of teaching and learning…than high-stakes tests.” (pg. 311) This form of assessment allows us to go back and compare work, thus truly showing how much our students grow throughout the year.
DeleteWright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition
Alex,
ReplyDeleteIt was unfortunate to hear that students in your school must exit by the time they are in third or fourth grade. Wright (2015) notes that while an assumption is often made that English language learners can become English proficient within two to three years, very few students actually fluently learn a second language that quickly. However, it seems like Ms. Shaw tries to make up for this within her own classroom by implementing practices that highly benefit her students. For example, by promoting parental involvement she is ensuring that a sense of importance is given to her students’ education.
Wright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for teaching English language learners: Research, theory,
policy, and practice (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon Publishing.
Hey Cecilia. I also think that students should be given more time to learn the English language. I have heard stories from my classmates that are Student Teaching, in which they have had new students come in, in the middle of the year that are in fifth grade and do not understand the English language. This is unfortunate because it builds a barrier of communication between the child and the teacher. This is why sheltered instruction is very important for it is the breakdown of English vocabulary so that students are able to better understand the material (Wright, 2015, pg. 60). Not only is this beneficial, but it makes it comprehensible to ELLs while also promoting the English language development (Wright, 2015, pg. 92).
DeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hi there, Cecilia! Thanks for your comment! I too have my own opinions about expecting students to be proficient English speakers by third or fourth grade. It is unfortunate that this seems to be the case for a lot of districts around our area. Like you said, it is very important for teachers to implement practices that highly benefit our students. This can include using primary language support in the classroom. Wright explains to us that “the purpose of PLS is to make instruction in English as comprehensible as possible for ELLs so they can learn the content and acquire more English” (Wright, 2015, p.296). Although it is hard for me to understand how a district can expect so much from a child by third grade, it is necessary for us teachers to make up for these policies/short time and in layman’s terms, make the best of it.
DeleteReferences:
Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition
Hi, Yanely! I completely agree with your words about the lack of time that students get to be considered English proficient. I like how you mentioned the benefits of sheltered instruction. As I was mentioning to Cecilia, I believe that primary language support is essential for students that are part of this programs that require students to “early exit.” This being said, Wright actually mentions that “Primary Language Support is featured prominently in the Sheltered Immersion” instruction. (Wright, 2015, p.296). Research is clearly telling us the benefits of these strategies, and thus we should really take them into consideration when we enter our own classrooms.
DeleteReferences:
Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition
Alexander,
DeleteI agree that as teachers we must often make do with what we are given. When it comes to our English language learners we will face a variety of scenarios. However, as Wright (2015) states, experience leads to expertise and more we know about our students’ experiences the more we will know about our students’ expertise. At the end of the day, I think this comes down to what we often hear, teachers know their own students best. This is what makes it so important for teachers to take the time to properly get to know their students and their background.
Wright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for teaching English language learners: Research,
theory, policy, and practice (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon Publishing.