Throughout
this course I have found that my perspective of teaching English Language
Learners (ELLs) has changed. At the start of this semester, I was under the
impression that working with ELLs and having them in my classroom would not be
a challenge. Now, I realize that teaching students that are learning an
additional language can be an overwhelming obstacle of its own. I’ve learned
that every student is different, and as a result, have their own individual needs
in order to be successful. Now, I feel that I am more knowledgeable and aware
of how to adequately accommodate to the needs of my ELL students in order to
help them learn and reach their fullest potential.
I
believe that this course will impact my practice as a teacher in the sense that
I will be more aware of the needs of my students. I realize the importance of
understanding that all of my students are unique, and that it is essential to
meets their specific needs in order for them to have the most quality learning
experience possible. I will be more considerate of my students in inclusive
classrooms, as they may feel they are struggling and want to be at the level of
the other students. Last, it is extremely important to give emotional support
and encouragement as I facilitate in the classroom. In addition, I believe the
course will help me pay attention to small details in the future. For example, it
may be helpful to my students if I include visuals, or allow them to work in
partners. These small details can make all the difference to an ELL. Overall, I
feel that I have become more aware of the various ways I can help my students
learn.
Throughout this course, some topics received more
attention and emphasis than others. Personally, I felt as though there could
have been less emphasis on the blog entries. It was helpful to receive feedback
from peers, but often the requirements (such as the amount of comments/responses
per entry) made the blog entries feel very overwhelming. To the point that I
was no longer focused on learning the material, but instead, trying to stretch
out my thoughts to fulfill the requirements. On the other hand, I would have appreciated
more attention being put towards preparing for tests. As the tests cover
multiple chapters, with a great amount of information, I would have found some
sort of study guide to be helpful.
Overall, I believe this course has impacted my teaching
philosophy in a positive way. I have always found myself to see a great deal of
importance on ensuring my students build character and strive to become an
overall better human being. As I’ve taken away so much information from this
course, I believe I can use it to help my students improve and become the best
individual they allow themselves to be. I understand that learning a second
language, as well as teaching students that are learning a second language, can
come with its own set of obstacles and challenges. However, I strongly believe
that with enough patience, effort, and persistence, my students will find
success and a love for learning.
I appreciate the fact you mentioned you want to be able to provide emotional support and encouragement for your students. In regards to English language learners, I can only imagine how stressful it is to be expected to not only learn different subject matters, but to also learn or acquire a second language simultaneously. One of the big takeaways for me is the fact that content-area teachers are language teachers. The text states that "As a language teacher, you share responsibility for helping your ELLs develop their proficiency in English and their ability to use oral and written English for academic purposes across content areas" (Wright, 2015, p. 60). This truly overwhelms me because as a future math teacher, I know it is not all about numbers and solving equations. Language is embedded in every mathematical concept a math teacher needs to teach, so I definitely have my work cut out for me. Although, I am glad this course has added onto my funds of knowledge on ways to make math instruction comprehensible and accessible for ELLs.
ReplyDeleteReference:
Wright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for teaching English language learners: Research, theory, policy, and practice. Philadelphia: Caslon Publishing.
Maggie,
DeleteYou bring up a great point of content-area teachers being language teachers as well. I think this could be an element of stress for any teacher, as we are not only responsible for teaching our students our content, but also an additional language. Taking this into consideration, I am glad to have taken this course and to have learned various strategies to help my future students to the best of my ability.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog!
Hi Melissa. I enjoyed reading your blog. I agree with many of your points and actually wrote some of the same ideas. A few things stood out to me which are being aware of individual student needs and having an inclusive classroom. I too have this issue. My classroom is inclusive and I have to remind myself that all students are different and they deserve individualized support tailored to their learning needs. One thing I have discovered that helps with inclusive classrooms is cooperatively learning. Wright states "cooperative learning is about student collaboration and working small groups to solve a problem and it is effective for learning language and academic content" (Wright, 2010, p. 157). This strategy really helps because students can explain in words that make sense to them. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas they have reminded me of what I need to be mindful of.
ReplyDeleteAnna,
DeleteCooperative learning is definitely a strategy I plan to implement in my future classroom. Most people think the only way for students to learn is through the teacher. What is often overlooked is students learning from their peers. Things like peer tutoring and peer feedback can be extremely beneficial to certain students.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog!
Hey ANNA,
ReplyDeleteI think that what you write to Melissa was interesting. As teachers we need to know where our students stand, especially if they need modifications. As teachers we need to know those different strategies that will allow us to help all our students succeed including ELLs. This includes modifying how you interact with the students in all aspects of teaching. "...learners need opportunities to interact with other speakers and reach mutual comprehension"(Wright 2015 pg. 53). Students need to be able to speak with teachers and students in order to comprehend the new language better.
reference
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hi Isabel. Thanks for replying to my post and making that great point about modifications. When we first started student teaching I did not know so many students need modifications and/or accommodations. I actually thought the paraprofessionals were making the work too easy on the students. Now I know this is not the case. There could be a million reason why an ELL student is struggling. What is important is how we help them. By listening to the blogs, reading replies, and reading the text I have a better foundation of how to do this. Thanks for sharing.
DeleteIsabel,
DeleteI could not agree with you more. It is so important for teachers to know what adjustments and accommodations need to be made for their students. This is an essential element when working with English Language Learners, especially in a diverse classroom. I feel that these considerations are necessary when trying to give students a quality education.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog!
Hi Melissa,
ReplyDeleteMy perspective of ELLs in my classroom has dramatically changed as well, but in a slightly different perspective. This class showed my the huge impact that teachers have on their ELL students. Combined with this class and student teaching in a predominantly ELL school, I have grown to love the process. I’ve realized that I want to be able to teach these students, and it’s also made me want to take up learning spanish. This way I can communicate with more of my children besides just the English speaking ones. Wright even states that as an educator we are responsible for “helping [our] ELLs develop their proficiency in English and their ability to use oral and written English for academic purposes across content areas" (Wright, 2015, p. 60). I believe that by knowing both languages that I may be more successful with teaching my students and communicating with their families.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Taylor,
DeleteYou bring up such a great point! When working with English Language Learners teachers are more likely to get across certain concepts to their students when they are proficient in both languages. Like you mentioned, this is also a plus as you are able to communicate with a larger scale of parents. This is something that can really make a great difference to the students.
Thank you for reading my blog!
Great reflection Melissa! I agree that we must learn how to emotionally support our students. I believe that we can do this through understanding how to handle situation in a way that best support the child. Creating a welcoming environment to learn and grow is important for all students. We can accomplish this by allowing students to work in smaller groups with their peers. According to Wright (2015), “cooperative learning focuses on the use of small groups within which students collaborate to solve problems or complete academic tasks (pg. 63).” Allowing students to work in groups can relieve some pressure and help them feel more comfortable when practicing speaking.
ReplyDeleteGenesis,
DeleteI couldn’t agree more! Affect and the opportunities presented to the students for peer interaction matter more than most people realize. I would definitely like to incorporate cooperative learning in my classroom to help my students with comprehension and to help build a classroom community.
Thank you for reading my blog!
Hello Melissa, thank you for your entry. I would have to say that yes, after a point the entries did seem more like a requirement to fill instead of part of a learning experience. I feel that perhaps there could have been a class blog or designated discussion boards, to make full use of the videos that we would watch throughout the week. Your note about wanting to make a point of students in inclusive classrooms did bring to mind that not only them but also those students within the class that are pulled out for reading recovery or extended math practice should also be placed in this. I know that this class alone is focused on second language but these students don’t ELL/ESL but these students also have to deal with being taken from the classroom for things like those and could add to their stress or self-consciousness.
ReplyDeleteC. Menjivar
Hello Melissa,
ReplyDeleteGreat reflection, I agree with you in that our ELLs go through a lot of challenges and using accomodations will make it an easier transition for them. I am happy you became aware of this with this course, I was an ELL myself and did face a lot of difficulty in those classes that did not accomodate me, example giving me a little bit more time to finish my assignment. Therefore, now that you know you can hell ELLs raise up to the next level. I look forward in becoming a great educator with you, let's change some lifes!