Running head: Literacy Needs of English Learners 1

A Description of Literacy Needs of English Learners

Elizabeth Antobam

La Sierra University















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California has many immigrants who come to work and stay to get a better education for
themselves and their children. I am a perfect example of this. I speak three different local dialects
as well as English as a second language. Even though English is the language of instruction in
classrooms in my country of origin, it is taught differently and there are not enough resources to
help students become proficient in the language. As an English learner, I find it difficult to
believe that knowing and speaking a native language very well helps in learning English
language. I believe that students taking English as a second language can become proficient in
English when they are equipped with all the necessary resources they need to progress in English
language. For students learning English, making reading, writing, listening and speaking of the
language fun will make it easier and less stressful for them to learn. In California, students
learning English as a second language are required take the California English Language
Development Test (CELDT) every year to determine their placement in the English Language
Development program. There are many factors affecting the performance of these students in the
CELDT, therefore, knowing their difficulties and finding strategies and resources to help them
progress and to become proficient in English is key to every school in California.
Learning a second language can be very challenging. When a student whose first
language is not English is identified, the student is tested using the CELDT to determine the
students proficiency level and find strategies to help the student. CELDT is used to assess the
students writing, reading, speaking and listening skills for appropriate placement. According to
the California Department of Education website, students are tested for English language
proficiency as early as kindergarten. Students from private schools, from out of state and from
out of the country are also tested for placement. Students are placed in ELD programs depending
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on their proficiency. The stages of the test are beginning, early intermediate, intermediate, early
advanced and advanced.
According to the California department of Education, there are 1,346,333 English
learners in California public schools. Below is a data from www.cde.ca.gov with some of the top
ten languages spoken by these students.
1. Spanish: 84.67 percent
2. Vietnamese: 2 .3 percent
3. Pilipino (Filipino or Tagalog): 1.4 percent
4. Cantonese: 1.3 percent
5. Mandarin: 1.1 percent
6. Arabic: 1.0 percent
7. Hmong: .09 percent
8. Korean: 0.8 percent
9. Punjabi: 0.6 percent
10. Russian: 0.5 percent

Parents of these students may not speak or understand English, and it may be very
difficult for students who do not get parental involvement with their education to perform well
on the test. For this reason, I think when this problem is identified, parents could be given the
opportunity to learn the language in order to help their children regardless of whether the school
is a Title I or not. Also, English learners who get family support while learning English have a
chance of doing better and moving to the advanced level faster than students who do not get any
family support, and this is true with education in general.
Even though there could be a student who genuinely has a special need as well as an
English learner, a number of English learners may be incorrectly placed in the special education
program. Some major problems in the English language development program are
misidentification of English learners and over identification of English language learners for
special education.
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Also, teachers need extra help, more aides and resources to give the students the support
they need. About three months ago, I visited a school that has students who need help in reading.
Majority of these students were English learners. In this class, there was one particular student
who needed extra help, probably a one-on-one instruction. This student was listening to the
reading on audio because he could only read about two percent of his work. I realized that this
student needed so much help to identify words, to recognize words, in reading fluency and help
needed to understand the text. This student was left alone to do his own thing and the teacher
checked on him every once in a while because the teacher was alone. I would be surprised to see
this student get to the advanced level of the CELDT soon, because he needs more help than is
being given. This student needs to be engaged in many English language development activities
to help him climb the CELDT ladder and to boost his confidence level.
Areas of need for English learners are vocabulary, fluency, academic language,
background knowledge and comprehension. Students need direct instruction to use new
vocabulary to form Standard English sentences. As English learners acquire more vocabulary
they will be able to better comprehend what they are reading and better express what they want
to write. Asking them to write new vocabulary with their meanings in a log and use them in their
writing could enrich students vocabulary. Herrell & Jordan (2012) indicate that using realia,
visuals and hands-on activities will enhance a students vocabulary. Students can act out new
words, see it in a picture, or use real life products to learn vocabulary. Field trips also help
students get a better understanding and experience new concepts as well as new words. The more
vocabulary students have, the more fluent they will become.
Fluency is another need for English learners. Students need to read with accuracy and
speed to enable comprehension. In order to assess a students fluency, she can be timed to read a
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selection and check for errors. Encouraging reading with expression and change in tone enhances
the reader and listener to understand what is being read. English learners could also record
themselves reading aloud and listen to recording later for self-assessment.
Academic language is another need for English learners. This is the language used for
instruction in the classroom. Students need to be familiar with certain language structures in
order to understand academic language. Teachers can model the functions of the language for
students and give them something to practice on independently so they can use it in subsequent
lessons. Because of cultural differences, checking a students background knowledge before
introducing a new topic is very crucial. Taking a book walk with students, asking questions from
the text and using KWL will be a good tool to activate background knowledge (Herrell & Jordan
p.74).
Modeling or demonstrating what is being learned for students to see will enhance
comprehension. Another strategy to enhance comprehension is to ask students to retell verbally
and/or write a summary of a selection they have read to improve comprehension. They can learn
to use context and picture clues to understand a text. Predicting what will happen in text and
drawing conclusions about a selection can help students understand what they read. Students can
also talk to a peer or have a group discussion to agree on meaning. Among these strategies, I
have observed teachers use modeling, visualizing, asking questions, and summarizing, I have
never seen KWL in the classrooms that I have observed.
More importantly, teachers need enough resources to identify English learners in their
classrooms. One of the resources to assess and plan an effective program for the English learner
is an informal multiple intelligences survey. This is used to determine the students area of
intelligence, which could either be linguistic, logical - mathematical, spatial, bodily - kinesthetic,
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musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal and naturalist. If the teacher knows the students and how
they learn, the teacher could use this to help the student master a skill. Another resource is the
Informal Reading Inventory (IRI). This inventory has three levels - the independent reading
level, instructional reading level, frustration reading level. Teachers can use an IRI to assess
students reading and then use that information to provide students with appropriate reading
materials that are at their reading levels.
Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) is a researched based strategy that
helps student to learn academic language as they become proficient in English. According to
Sheltered Instruction Observation website, the SIOP Model has eight components:
Lesson Preparation
Building Background
Comprehensible Input
Strategies
Interaction
Practice/Application
Lesson Delivery
Review & Assessment
This strategy when used will help improve English learners understanding of academic
language.
Above all, to be a highly qualified teacher requires passing many tests of competency. A
teacher in California must prove competence in the subject area taught, (Multiple Subjects Test
for Elementary schools and Single Subject Test for Secondary Schools) and pass a Reading
Instruction Competency Assessment (RICA) in addition to fieldwork or internship.
In brief, parents or families of English Learners need to be educated about CELDT. I
didnt know what CELDT was and why the test was administered until my daughter started
public school. I remember filling out a form about the languages spoken at home. Next, I
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received CELDT results from her school indicating her placement level and that she had been
classified as English learner. I wasnt very happy because she could read very well all by herself
in kindergarten and answer questions from her reading. Even though we spoke a different
language at home, we read to her every day, and she also read to herself as part of her homework
every evening while in kindergarten. The following year she was tested out of the program.
Before taking language and literacy K-8, I had a different view about CELDT, and I believe
other parents may also have questions about it.
The reason for the CELDT is very important, but parents need to be informed about it
and learn some strategies in order to help their kids at home. Parents also need to be educated
about how important it is for English Learners to get family support to become competent in the
language.












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References

Facts about English Learners in California CalEdFacts. (2014). Retrieved from
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sd/cb/cefelfacts.asp
Herrell A. L., Jordan, Michael. (2012). 50 Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners.
Fourth Edition, Boston, MA. Pearson Education Inc.
Online Writing Lab General Format. (2014). Retrieved from Owl.english.purdue.edu
Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol. (2014). Retrieved from
http://www.cal.org/siop/about/index.html
State of California Commission on Teacher Credentialing Basic Skill Requirement. (2014).
Retrieved from http://www.ctc.ca.gov/credentials/leaflets/cl667.pdf
Strategies and Resources for Mainstream Teachers of English Language Learners. (2014)
Retrieved from http://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/ell.pdf