Entry 3: ELL Teacher Interview
Mrs. Brown is a Kindergarten teacher in Katy
ISD. Over the years in her teaching experience, she states that for some
students, Kindergarten is the first time they have been in a school
environment. Her primary focus, especially in the beginning of the school
year, is to have students understand school routines. She does this by
labeling most things in her classroom using pictures and words. According to Wright (2015), “Labels not only
help students learn the names of classroom objects in English but also send
students the message that their home language is valued as a resource for
learning in the classroom. They can also
help monolingual English-speaking students in the class learn vocabulary in the
home language of the ELLs (p. 301).”
Mrs. Brown also stated that
sometimes ELL students have a hard time communicating to the class what they
want to say. When they are able to have
an idea in their head, but are unable to say it in words, it can get frustrating
for students so she tries to give students extra processing time, also known as
wait time. According to Wright (2015), “When
ELLs feel ready to speak, they may need time to process their thoughts in
English before speaking. If a teacher
asks them a question, they may need first to mentally translate the question,
figure out the answer, and then translate than answer before they can respond
to the teacher (p. 156).”
Overall, I think Mrs. Brown’s
foundations on making sure that her students feel comfortable in the first
classroom that they enter sets them up for success in their new language.
Hello Emerald!
ReplyDeleteI love how Mrs. Brown stated in the beginning of the interview how it is important for her students to be able to be comfortable in the classroom. I 100% agree to her statement! Who wouldn't want to be comfortable and safe in school, especially as a Kindergartener.
I was a previous ELL learner and I moved to the United States when I was in Kindergarten, and if it weren't for my teacher Mrs. Katchmar I probably would have not enjoyed school and my transition from the Philippines to the U.S. in its entirety. Just like Mrs. Brown, Mrs. Katchmar went above and beyond for me to have a good first experience in an American school. She took her time to really get to know me, teach me, and used a lot of resources to get me proficient in English. As Wright (2015) stated, "Experience leads to expertise. Thus, the more the teacher knows about a students' experiences, the more he or she can assume about the expertise that student is likely to have" (p.17).
As future educators we need to realize that we need to make a good foundation for our students by establishing a well-nurtured, comfortable and safe environment in our classroom.
Wright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for teaching English language learners: research, theory, policy, and practice (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon.
Kohleen, you make a very important point! I think that no learning occurs until the student truly feels comfortable in their environment. Mrs. Brown really goes out of her way to ensure that her students want to be at school. Especially in Kindergarten when students are going to school for the first time, some things are unusual for even English speakers. I think her visual icons not only help her ELL students, but all in the classroom.
DeleteHello Emerald,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed watching your video with Mrs. Brown. I found it meaningful Mrs. Brown is passionate about making her ELL students feel comfortable and making them feel apart of the class. I feel it helps them with their struggles in learning a new language. I also found it interesting Mrs. Brown points out how she can see many frustrations her ELL students have just by their facial expressions. Many of them want to be spoken but are afraid of doing so she exclaims. “Students who are just beginning to learn a new language may not be ready to start speaking when they first enter the classroom” (Wright, 2015, pg. 155). Thanks for a lovely video!
Angelita, I also think it is very important for teachers to pay attention to not only what students have to say, but also their expressions. Some students may not be able to express their frustration or understanding in words and rely on visual cues to communicate with others. Being able to catch these signals are an important factor when determining what techniques and strategies will help students learn better in the classroom.
DeleteHi Emerald, I enjoyed your video. Most of my interview and learning experiences have been with upper elementary students. Therefor, it was interesting to listen to the kindergarten perspective. It must require a great deal of patience to establish routines and start to transition young students into a new language. I think it is wonderful that the teacher gives students wait time to process the knowledge being taught and give them plenty of time to respond. Hopefully, this takes the pressure off the students. I noticed an important aspect of teaching our book suggests. According to Wright, “ELLs at the beginning levels of English proficiency, teachers should slow down their rate of speech, enunciate clearly, and use simple sentence structures, and avoid long sentences with complicated syntax” (Wright, 201, p. 148). Do you know if Mrs. Brown modifies her sentences and rate of speech to her students currently or does it apply to the beginning of the school year and then she builds on sentence complexity?
ReplyDeleteAnna, I did get a chance to ask Mrs. Brown this week about the pace of which she speaks to her students and she explained that at her student's age, they are not able to follow complex and long instructions. Therefore, she gives instructions step-by-step and repeats the instructions a few times to allow students time for process. She stated that this helps not only her ELL students, but all students in the classroom.
DeleteHi Emerald. I enjoyed your video with you and Mrs. Brown. I can tell she loves her students and works really hard to help them out, especially the ELL students. Students learn differently, and teachers have different methods to help them out. I do agree that there are some ELL students who have difficulty to speak during discussion, but with some methods like wait time and adjusting teacher talk, they are more likely to have courage and have time to process themselves to answer the question. One approach teacher can use is to use "open-ended and higher-order question and short probes that require students to elaborate" their answers more efficiently (Wright, 2010, pg. 148).
ReplyDeleteWright, W. E. (2010). Foundations for teaching English language learners: research, theory, policy, and practice (1st ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon.
Michelle, I do find that open ended questions allow students to share more on their thinking. In my opinion, I think the hardest part for ELL students is to get them to open up sometimes. In my Kindergarten class, I have an ELL student who loves sharing and talking to her teachers personally, but in class discussions, she does not like to volunteer herself to answer. For these kids, I think it is important for teachers to give them the time to practice independently to help boost their confidence first.
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