Abstract
Demographic changes that are observed in U.S. exert extensive influence within the economic, social and political structures of the country. The education system of United States has significantly for a long time been affected by some trends of demographic that are connected with substantial increase in number of ELL students who are studying in the American educational establishments. With the rapid demographics shift and increased accountability because of NCLB Initiative, administrators and educators face a surfeit of new challenges. According to a research that was conducted in the United States, limited English proficient students rose from 77% from the years 1999 to 2000. Even if the number of English Language Learner who enters the American schools increases, many administrators and teachers aren’t taught how they should give instructions to students in a manner that can address their needs proficiently. This paper explores and outlines the Instructional Strategies for ELL Classrooms. It also reveals how the ELL students will improve their language proficiently and how it will enable them to score higher grades in other subjects.
Introduction
The ELL students score lower grades than the whole population on state assessments. The NCELA statistics indicates that out of nearly 3,000,000 public school teachers that were surveyed by the NCES, forty one percent reports that they teach limited English Proficient students while only twelve point five percent have received either 8 or more training hours. Many administrators have realized this lower gap in ELL and also lack of training for effective implementation of ELL strategies. ELLs constitutes the fastest growing segment of overall United States school-age population as students quantity doubled from early 1980s to the year 2006. The total proportion of the United States population of students who were classified as ELL raised from 6.8% in the year 1995 to 1996 to 10.5 percent in 2005 to 2006.
According to the Docstoc.com (2010), the English Language Learner students don’t immerse up language but they learn through understanding messages that are conveyed by their instructor. This is completed by understanding and hearing messages that are much higher than their current English level. Educators can easily implement this new strategy for successful learning by increasing language comprehension through new information and also by linking brand new materials to the background knowledge of ELL students. Many ELL and ESL students see math and reading as a foreign language that are made of concepts and words that don’t fit everyday life experiences. Those teachers who are effective find ways in making concepts to be effective, familiar and understandable by finding a language that all students can be acquainted easily (Docstoc.com. 2010)
The following issues will be considered in order for ELL students to improve their language proficiently and also to enable them score higher grades in other subjects.
On-going, immediate and specific feedback
Grouping techniques and structures
Building Vocabulary and background development
Students’ engagement.
Comprehensive input
The comprehensive input is a component that helps teachers through instructional practices to make contents more comprehensible and accessible for ELLs. This comprehensible input was introduced first in 1981 by Stephen Kranshenin. This input is considered to be comprehensible if English Language Learners’ understand and perceive the required materials and this triggers further understanding. For students to achieve better communications, administrators and teachers should provide better techniques for ensuring it. Comprehensible instructions is among the techniques which whereby teachers should apply and use consistent language by themselves. They should also not overload their vocabularies with narrowly-specialized and complicated terms when dealing with lexical items that are difficult to pronounce or understand. Teachers should strictly limit the length of presentations when lecturing to students (Patsalides, 2009)
On-going, immediate and specific feedback
Students should be involved maximally in communication process and should be given opportunities to express their opinions. English Language Learners must be exposed to various cognitively challenging tasks that assume the cooperative peer and learning tutoring strategies. They should ask questions if they do not understand a particular area and also constantly participate in dialogue. In ELL classrooms, oral communications must prevail. Lastly the best motive is to ensure comprehensible input of giving ELL students, freedom of expressing their point of view and also correct their mistakes in a good and precise manner.
Teachers should be aware of an essential strategy of providing students with the ongoing specific feedback and assessment. ELL students should not think that good job is what they are studying to achieve in future. Specific feedback enables students to work extremely hard in those concepts that they think are hard and difficult. Feedback should only on meaning and not focus on grammatical errors in order to ensure that learning is taking place. Through frequent understanding checking, teachers can easily adjust instructions and ensure that aims are being achieved. Ways one can check for proper understanding is by studying oral and body language and the written responses to instruction or questions.
Frequent interaction between ELL students and the teachers and peers should be focused and meaningful on content. Peer partner check understanding not only enhances students knowledge, but also confidence. Teachers should provide students with lessons of interactive that one can assess in multiple ways. On-going feedback is relevant for those older students who can evaluate their level of proficiency. Students on advanced and intermediate fluency levels need similar feedback that is the same as that of English speakers. Those students can be exposed to the sophisticated English language and they should all be encouraged to deal with those concepts that are difficult.
Grouping techniques and structures
Teachers should pay greater attention to techniques of encouraging interaction through implementing grouping structures. One of the methods of motivating ELL students to collaborate is by grouping them with their English native speakers. In such English Language Learner students observe that the level of proficiency English should have good opportunities to develop their language skills. The second group is by dividing class of ELL into numerous groups that comprises of 3-5 students. This division enhances learning through communication encouragement in a safe, relaxed environment where students aren’t afraid of taking risks.
Teachers should pay greater attentions to differences the learners when they are being grouped. Streaming techniques in other words is of great relevance in the ELL classrooms. Teachers should all arrange group taking in abilities of students, their levels of knowledge and also personal knowledge. If the students fails to successfully corporate, then the whole group should be rearranged in a well and precise manner.
Building Vocabulary and background development
This development is essential in success of an ELL student. The strategies that may help the instructors to be successful at building background and vocabulary are writing key concepts on board, emphasizing main ideas and vocabulary through shortening sentences, pronouncing words clearly, intonation and increasing time for students to process and answer information. English Language Learners who experiences vocabulary development slowly are far likely caught off guard behind grade level in the comprehension than others. Teachers can use strategies which will help students to build their vocabulary and comprehension like utilizing ELL’s first language (Scrib.com. 2011)
Teachers should promote vocabulary development through selecting words that can represent the new concepts and also those that are important in content areas as well as provision of direct instructions in word meaning. Teachers should model these strategies and processes for development of words to ensure that students have plenty of exposure and opportunities in practicing new words. In other way, students should also be encouraged to say or write their own definition of words and have visual aid that will help them to deepen the understanding of new word.
Engagement of Student
Engagement of students is significant instructional strategies that are used for the teaching of ELL students. The key to successful performance is the maximum degree of engagement and involvement of those participating in this activity. Some recent researchers show that there’s a big and direct link between engagement of students and their score. The more actively ELL show greater interests in classroom activities, the better learning achievements will be. Students should have the opportunities of sharing learning experiences with teachers and peers. Lessons like manipulative will increase students understanding of concepts that are being explored. Utilizing stimulations, multimedia and modeling sources will help ELL students have better understanding of concepts being taught (Scrib.com. 2011)
Conclusion
The administrators and educators must take into consideration the characteristics of the English learners and provide new strategies in order to meet students’ needs and also enhance learning skills. The strategies that involve important concepts and also those that enhance ELLs learning like ensuring messages are well understood and the background knowledge that is linked with learning must be researched constantly by the school personnel all over American and the world in general. United States is changing quickly; schools should not only adapt to the above changes, but also find the ways of promoting successful integration of various populations into the society through education.
Lists of References
Scrib.com (2011). Instructional Strategies for ELL Classrooms. Scribd Inc. Press.
Docstoc.com (2010). Instructional Strategies for ELL Classrooms.
Patsalides Laurie (2009). ELL Instructional Strategies in the Middle School Classroom.
