Entry 2: Interview
It’s sad to look back and see how our education system used to fail ELLs. I can’t believe that the schools we used to attend didn’t have an ESL program in place back in 1992 for ELLs. Now ESL classes are required to be in place at schools for ELLs, which shows we’ve come a long way from how it used to be in 1992. Each ESL classroom is mandated by Title III of the No Child Left Behind Act to help keep standards where they need to be (Wright, W. E.).
When my niece was placed into an ESL classroom based off the score she got on her ELP my sister was upset. The only reason my niece was required to take the ELP was because they checked that she also spoke Spanish at home. Based off of the score she got on the test she had to take ESL classes, which ended up slowing her down. Like it states in the book, there are limitations to the testing and educators, with the best interests of the students in mind, try to provide them with all the help possible (Wright, W. E.). However, since this happened to my niece there have been changes to the ELP tests. Hopefully it is giving a more accurate score for the students.
Wright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for teaching English language learners: Research, theory, policy, and practice (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon Publishing.
Yes, I am thankful for the No Child Left Behind Act. I know some teachers may not be very fond of it because it required for them to work harder with ELL students but it was a great help. My mom was in a similar situation where she did not have any support when she began school here. She mentions how her teachers expected her to be at the same level as the other students. They did not differentiate instruction for her. She struggled a lot with school because she did not feel comfortable enough to ask her teachers. I hope these programs continue to get funded by the government.
ReplyDeleteIt's insane to try to compare an ESL/LEP student to a native English speaker, but some teachers still do it. It's frustrating because even if an ELL student has moved out of ESL classes to regular English classes they still might not be at the level as the other students. In the text book it states that it could take between 4-7 years to get to a fluent level (Wright, W. E. 134). Not differentiating instruction or even assignments can set ELLs back a lot, if it's too hard it will discourage them from even attempting to do work again. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done so that we can better serve our ELL students and we might need more laws to help with that.
DeleteHi Karen, I totally agree with you when you say that comparing an ELL student to a student who is a native English speaker is ridiculous. Those students are not on the same level even if the students have been tested out of the ESL program. Even though the ELL students have been tested out of the program, Wright explains that "students should be able to achieve high-quality education and be able to obtain proficiency on challenging state academic achievement standards" (Wright, 2015). These students should be getting the support and accommodations they need to be successful in the general education classroom.
DeleteWright, W. E. (2019). Foundations for teaching English language learners: Research, theory, policy, and practice. Philadelphia: Caslon.
In regards to the NCLB Act, I feel that it benefited ELL students most. They were able to get personal help and not be forced to "Sink or Swim" or simply submersed into certain classrooms without any help. Along with that, something that these classrooms provide, is Sheltered Instruction. According to Wright (2015), this helps students gain more confidence while they are learning a new language. This could really benefit them because not only are they in a safe environment getting all the help that they need but they are also being taught and eased into a new culture as well. According to Wright (2015), “another problem with the assimilationist melting pot ideology is the assumption that immigrants give up their home language and culture to become Americans,” (19). Something that a lot of ELL students struggle with is blending their culture into another. In many cases, these ELL classes help these students begin to blend their cultures together without having to completely erase their identities.
ReplyDeleteHow the textbook just says that the melting pot ideology shouldn't be immigrants conforming to everything English/American based is something that I loved. It's really hard to just hold on to who we are when we're trying to fit in in a new place and learn a new language. I really wish that there were classes provided to ELLs that helped them learn more about their native language's culture, while still giving them the ESL classes.
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