Teaching Reading to Young English Language Learners Through Folk Literature

2020 ◽  
pp. 65-80
Author(s):  
Nabat Erdogan
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Reading Ability ◽  
English Language ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Reading Tests ◽  
Folk Literature ◽  
Age Appropriate ◽  
Different Characteristics

The lack of sufficient reading ability and, consequently, inadequate reading achievement continue to affect large student populations in U.S. schools. English language learners (ELLs), who represent the fastest growing segment of student population in the U.S., constitute one of the largest groups of students who perform poorly on state reading tests. There are many factors contributing to English learners' low reading skills. One of these factors is the lack of appropriate and interesting reading materials or insufficient attention to effective text selection. What kind of texts are considered appropriate for language learners? Effective texts for ELLs should be age-appropriate, language-appropriate, culturally relevant, entertaining, and interesting. This chapter suggests that folktales possess many characteristics of effective texts and can serve as a valuable resource for improving young English learners' literacy skills in English. The chapter exemplifies different characteristics of folktales and provides recommendations for the use of folk literature in the language classroom.

The Language Policy of Placement Tests for Newcomer English Learners

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (7) ◽  
pp. 936-968 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kendall King ◽  
Martha Bigelow
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Public Schools ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Formal Schooling ◽  
High Stakes

U.S. public schools are required to establish policies ensuring that English language learners have equal access to “meaningful education.” This demands that districts put into place mechanisms to determine student eligibility for specialized English language services. For the most states, this federal requirement is fulfilled through the local administration of the WIDA–Access Placement Test (W-APT), arguably the most widely used, yet under-studied, English language assessment in the country. Through intensive participant observation at one, urban new student intake center, and detailed qualitative, discursive analysis of test administration and interaction, we demonstrate how the W-APT works as a high-stakes assessment, screener, and sorter, and how test takers and test administrators locally negotiate this test and enact this federal and state policy. Our analysis indicates that the W-APT is problematic in several respects, most importantly because the test does not differentiate adequately across students with widely different literacy skills and formal schooling experiences.

scholarly journals Crossing Borders toward Young Transnational Lives

2014 ◽  
pp. 200-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Sue Kasun ◽  
Cinthya M. Saavedra
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Immigrant Students ◽  
Border Crossing ◽  
Cultural Identification ◽  
Return Visits ◽  
The U.S

Young immigrant youth often live their lives across borders, either by physically crossing them for return visits and/or by metaphorically crossing them through social media and cultural identification. The authors argue these students are better understood as transnational, shifting the focus for educators away from imagining their immigrant students on a straight, one-way path to assimilation in the U.S. to understanding these youths’ abilities to cross borders. Specifically, they call for a redesignation of English Language Learners (ELLs) as Transnational English Learners (TELs). Highlighting examples of educators’ successful border-crossing work, the authors call for educators to cross borders as well in their curriculum and relationships with transnational youth.

Introspections on In-Service Teachers' Intercultural Responsiveness Skills for English Language Learners

2017 ◽  
pp. 181-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alina Slapac ◽  
Kim H. Song ◽  
Cynthia C. Chasteen
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Dual Language ◽  
English Language ◽  
Linguistic Competence ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Field Notes ◽  
Group Interviews

This chapter discusses the successes, concerns and challenges faced by in-service teachers in the instruction of English Learners (ELs). The constructs of intercultural responsiveness (IR), cultural competence (CC), linguistic competence (LC) and professional development (PD) are used as conceptual frameworks. The researchers are drawing on data gathered at a statewide conference focused on dual language (DL) education from five focus group interviews and informal conversations with twenty-seven in-service teachers and administrators at all levels of education, and the researchers' field notes .Vignettes of the participants' voices highlight their perspectives and experiences working with ELs. The authors hope that these stories of celebrations and struggles will engage other teachers and administrators to take a deeper look into their personal practices and pedagogies of working with ELs.

The statistics of English in China

English Today ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 10-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rining Wei ◽  
Jinzhi Su
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Turn Of The Century ◽  
National Language ◽  
Chinese People ◽  
The World ◽  
Populous Country

In the mid-1980s, Crystal (1985) lamented that there were no reliable figures available for the number of learners to whom English is taught as a foreign language in many regions of the world, and that ‘China has always been excluded from the statistical reviews, because of the shortage of information from inside the country’ (Crystal, 1985: 9). More recently, Bolton (2008: 6) similarly notes that because of ‘the absence of accurate language surveys’ academics have to make educated guesses regarding the total number of those learning/knowing English. The figure of the total English learners/users in China has been estimated to be somewhere between 200 and 350 million (cf. Bolton, 2003: 48; Kachru, 1997; McArthur, 2003; Zhao & Campbell, 1995; Graddol, 2006: 95). Fortunately, a national language survey in China conducted at the turn of the century does provide some hard statistics on the number of English language learners/users in the world's most populous country, and also sheds some light on the realities of use of English and English proficiency among the Chinese people.

scholarly journals LISTENING COMPREHENSION STRATEGIES APPLIED BY ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS

ELT-Lectura ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-47
Author(s):  
Sitti Hadijah ◽  
Shalawati Shalawati
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Listening Comprehension ◽  
English Language ◽  
Cognitive Strategies ◽  
Monitoring And Evaluation ◽  
Comprehension Strategies ◽  
Mixed Method Research ◽  
English Students

This paper depicts a part of a research project, focused on exploring three listening comprehension strategies applied by the English learners in interpretative listening subject; (a) meta-cognitive strategies consist of directed attention, selective attention, planning, monitoring, and evaluation; (b) cognitive strategies include listening for gist and detail, inference, prediction, visualization, summarizing, and note-taking; (c) Social/affective strategies, such as cooperation. Hence, mixed-method research was employed to describe what listening comprehension strategies used more often by English Students at Universitas Islam Riau. Thirty-seven fresh year learners taking interpretative listening subject were encouraged to participate in this research by filling out questionnaire adopted form Cross (2009). The data collected will both qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed. Thirty-two statements included in the questionnaire were categorized intro three groups; cognitive (15), meta-cognitive (15), and socio-affective (2). The finding reveals that the learners had been familiar will the strategies and frequently apply them based on their needs in listening processes, such as before, while, and after listening.

scholarly journals “MY GRADES ARE ALWAYS EQUAL TO STANDARDIZED CRITERIA”: DISCOVERING EFL LEARNERS’ MOTIVATION OUTSIDE FORMAL CLASSROOM

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 347-369
Author(s):  
Siti Jannatussholihah ◽  
Ashadi Ashadi ◽  
Erna Andriyanti
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Speech Community ◽  
Integrative Motivation ◽  
Instrumental Motivation ◽  
Depth Interviews

Motivation in language mastery is a crucial aspect that supports learner success especially in non-formal education. This study explores the motivation of English language learners in non-formal education as well as their perceived difficulties. Employing a qualitative approach with in-depth-interviews in the data collection, the study involved eight learners from a language course institution in Yogyakarta. The transcribed data were analyzed, interpreted, and categorised based on types of motivation and difficulties. The results show that most of the English learners possess instrumental motivation in learning foreign languages, but some tend to have integrative motivation. The instrumental motivation is mainly linked to efforts to pass the exam or tests with good grades. Their integrative motivation is related to recognizing the culture of the target language speech community and desire to communicate with the target community. Despite their motivation, they faced some difficulties related to language skills, especially reading and listening. In addition, they perceived vocabulary as hindrance in all the four skills. Further research to overcome the difficulties is recommended to maximize the learning achievement.

Supporting English Learners: Lessons from Research

2014 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-37
Author(s):  
Johannah Nikula ◽  
Courtney L. Nelson
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Common Core ◽  
English Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Careful Attention ◽  
Opportunities To Learn ◽  
Lesson Design ◽  
Design And Implementation ◽  
The Common

Careful attention to lesson design and implementation can make the opportunities to learn, which are described in the Common Core, viable for all students—including English language learners.

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