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Credits: Dr. Linda Parrish; Dr. Tracy Teaff; Dr. Jewel Lockridge; Dr. Lakshmi Mahadevan; Mr. Greg Shipp; Dr. Cheryl Grenwelge; Dr. Maria Kaylor and Dr. Miranda Walichowski.

Note: Our experts are not attorneys and therefore our responses do not carry legal authority. We strongly recommend that educators check with their district’s attorneys for guidance on legal issues.

Topics

Definitions ARD/IEP Issues Accommodations/Modifications/Standards Instructional Strategies/Methodologies Placement Decisions Additional Concerns Resources Accommodations and Modifications in CTE Classroom Instruction Career Guidance - Tools for Practical Applications Building Successful Partnerships Best Practices: CTE Teachers Role in ARD Meetings Accommodations and Modifications III Working with English Language Learners Universal Design for Learning in CTE Instruction Effective Classroom and Behavior Management

 

Working with English Language Learners

• Why don't students take a year from regular schooling and take English immersion classes, so that they can perform better in my class, and other classes?
• How long does it take for someone to acquire a new language?
• How much additional planning and time does it take to prepare lessons and teach them to English language learners?
• I find that most ELLs are not that interested in learning English.
• If I have students read much and often in English, will that help them learn vocabulary?
• I am interested in providing our CTE teachers with a language resource that would assist their ELL learners as they encounter specific CTE terminology. This brought to mind the “petrol pump” versus “gas station” example you shared during your presentation. Are you aware of any existing publication that could help ELL learners understand such special nuances with CTE terms?

Why don't students take a year from regular schooling and take English immersion classes, so that they can perform better in my class, and other classes?

First, it takes at least 7 years to develop academic proficiency. So we would not want students missing 7 years of content education in order to receive immersed English instruction. Research shows that the best language instruction and acquisition takes place when language is made relevant and not when language is taught in isolation.

How long does it take for someone to acquire a new language?

Research indicates that it takes at least 1 year to acquire conversational skills in a new language. It takes at least 7 years to 10 years to develop academic proficiency in the second language.

How much additional planning and time does it take to prepare lessons and teach them to English language learners?

If you have English language learners in your classes, you do need additional preparation time to ensure that you are using best practices in your lesson development and delivery. However, you should find that many of the strategies that you use to teach ELLs are just good teaching strategies. These strategies can help any struggling learners and even help most learners in general.

I find that most ELLs are not that interested in learning English.

Basic motivation theory reveals that people are motivated by things they have an aptitude for, have some success in, find relevant, and in which they perceive an ability for future growth. Many times a teacher is not witnessing reticence or lack of interest by a student , she or he is witnessing a sense of futility. If a student feels that the task of learning English is insurmountable, that will manifest itself as indifference. Therefore, it becomes important to show that learning English is something that they can do, that it is practical and will enhance their quality of life, and to set them for initial success in the language acquisition process.

If I have students read much and often in English, will that help them learn vocabulary?

Research indicates that the learning process is not a passive activity but an active activity. This is the same for vocabulary. Merely reading a book will add to one's vocabulary and language proficiency, but not to a significant degree. It is important to teach readers to be active in the reading process. A teacher would do well to model how to read, how to summarize, how to use context clues to discover meaning, how to use tools such as dictionaries to look up new words, and etc. The process of active learning is not innate. It needs to be taught and modeled.

 

I am interested in providing our CTE teachers with a language resource that would assist their ELL learners as they encounter specific CTE terminology. This brought to mind the “petrol pump” versus “gas station” example you shared during your presentation. Are you aware of any existing publication that could help ELL learners understand such special nuances with CTE terms?

Unfortunately I don’t think there is one main source of CTE terminology for ELLS. One idea I had was to look for online glossaries that apply to the 16 programs of study (for e.g. I googled “agriculture glossary” etc.). I have listed my results below and tried to make sure they are from .edu, .org or .gov sites that are hopefully more reliable. Also I have included a multilingual glossary site that maybe useful. I hope this is a start anyway for CTE instructors looking to help their ELL students.

 

Agriculture and Natural Resources: http://aces.nmsu.edu/news/aggloss.html

Architecture - http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/html/glossary/glossary.shtml

Construction - http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/construction/glossary.html

A/V Technology: http://www.cgap.org/gm/document-1.9.5065/IS_Technology_Dictionary%5B1%5D.pdf

Education: http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/misc/glossary.htm

Finance: http://www.nysscpa.org/glossary

Government: http://www.civiced.org/index.php?page=stds_glossary

Health Science: http://www.uthct.edu/fitnessoverforty/glossary.asp

Hospitality and Tourism: http://www.gdrc.org/uem/eco-tour/t-glossary.html

Human Services: http://www.governor.wa.gov/oeo/publications/dictionary.pdf

Information Technology: http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/glossary3.shtml

Law: http://www.uscourts.gov/Common/Glossary.aspx

Manufacturing: http://www.eia.gov/emeu/efficiency/mecs_glossary.htm

Marketing: http://archive.ifla.org/VII/s34/pubs/glossary.htm

STEM: Engineering - http://www.tulane.edu/~bmitche/book/glossary.html

Math – Multilingual Glossary - http://my.hrw.com/math06_07/nsmedia/tools/glossary/aga/glossary.html

Science – Multilingual Glossary - http://glencoe.com/sec/science/mlg/mlg.php?site=20

Transportation: http://cscmp.org/digital/glossary/document.pdf

Various Bilingual Glossaries: http://www.p12.nysed.gov/biling/bilinged/bilingual_glossaries.htm