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What different kinds of ESL programs are available?

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English as a Second Language (ESL) programs are designed for specific skill levels, groups of learners, and specific purposes.

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Programs that help ELLs read and write. This could also help with their reading comprehension and grammar.

Programs that help develop themselves socially also known as a club for just ELLs or a mixture of ELLs and other students.

Programs/Services to help ELLs find jobs, write their resumes, write cover letters, prepare for interviews and more!

Programs that helps students and families interact and get familiar with the new culture as well as the language.

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6. What kinds of different programs and/or services are available to the ELLs? 

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6. What kinds of different programs and/or services are available to the ELLs? 

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This video talks mentions how there are digital resources that help students translate but also be a voice in the classroom! Students are able to communicate and learn the language as well.

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Supporting English Language Learners With Digital Storytelling

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During my practicum, students were using google translators to translate what was on the slides/lessons.

There are voice recorders that can translate what the other person is saying into your own language now.

Mobile apps are also available for easy use.

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5. How can technology play a role in breaking the language barrier? 

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5. How can technology play a role in breaking the language barrier? 

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These are the top ten strategies and practices that can help all students overcome language barriers.

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Educators today are faced with the daunting task of teaching students that face personal and social emotional challenges on a broad scale unlike any other generation. We now have in our schools what we refer to as the recession babies, a generation of children whose parents experienced hardships, loss of jobs, addiction and other tragedies during very trying economic times. Many of whom have yet to recover. Caught in the middle of this social, moral and ethical dilemma is the teacher who is faced with ensuring the delivery of content and skills necessary to "close the gap" and ensure proficiency on standardized assessments.

In order to do this there have been a number of "practices" or genre's if you will, of instructional themes and curriculums developed to address the individual issues. Culturally Responsive Teaching, Teaching with Poverty in Mind, Trauma Informed Practice, the list goes on. Just the plethora of different acronyms alone can be overwhelming to the practitioner but trying to understand the complexities of each and utilize relevant classroom strategies for each can seem overwhelming.

So let's keep it simple. Here are our top ten strategies and practices that can help all students overcome barriers.

Relationships and the importance of them in the classroom never goes away. As the education pendulum flies back and forth, one thing that you can always count on still being at the forefront of making a difference in the classroom is the idea of relationships. If you don't have a relationship with your students the work you do on a daily basis will be flat and not nearly as effective as what it could be. Take the time to build connections with each and every one of your students. What makes the tick? What are their interests? What are their hopes and desires? These are all things that you continue to build and cultivate as the year progresses, community and relationship building does not just stop after the first two weeks. Regardless of class size or other circumstances that have an impact on the classroom, this is number one for a reason!

Be intentional with your lesson planning

As you sit down and plan out the upcoming week, really give some thought to how you are going to reach all your students. What are the various entry points students are going to need to access the curriculum and reach your lesson target? Or perhaps, how you can help engage students at the start so they are ready to learn? Would a morning meeting or quick team building activity in table groups help get the kids primed for learning? Have a warm up to settle and set a tone. Review the learning targets for the lesson to inform the students and tune them in.

Using data to drive your instruction and decisions is vital. However, it needs to be done in a balanced approach to where you are taking into consideration your students and the direct knowledge you have about them. As educators we are lucky that we know things about students more than what can be represented on a test. Use this information to help drive your instruction and decisions. How can you leverage these to help improve outcomes for kids? Are there additional ways that you can help support your students? Apply formative practices that not only will inform you of the "Are they getting it?" factor but also use them to inform your students about their own progress.

Have high and consistent expectations

Most of us would consider we have high expectations for kids, which is good. However, don't let your high expectations limit your students with what they can accomplish. Your students will reach and often surpass your high expectations and when they do, don't hold them back. Often our perception of what they can accomplish limits them, even when they are set at high levels. Push the students and they will surprise you...and you might surprise yourself. Also, those expectations need to be held consistent throughout the building. Expectations are the Constitution of the school and need to be known and upheld in all areas at all times. Students from trauma or adverse backgrounds have significant difficulties adapting to differing systems or environments.

Scaffold instruction to grade level standards

Kids need access to grade level curriculum and grade level expectations. Yes, some students are not ready for it but if we keep playing catch up by working on math facts when they are in the middle school, they are never going to get exposed to higher level thinking. Educators need to find ways to expose all students to grade level curriculum and standards while scaffolding their learning or finding ways to provide intervention to them outside of the core instruction.

Vocabulary, vocabulary, and more vocabulary. You've read the research, students coming from a poverty background have been exposed to an incredible shortage of words compared to their peers brought up in a middle class home. What does this mean to you as an educator? You have to go double time to expose kids to vocabulary that is varied, challenging, and new to them. Students need a rich vocabulary environment to catch up and this doesn't mean that you teach the same themed words that come with the various seasons. You have to be intentional about this and constantly on the lookout for opportunities to build this. Focus not only on the Tier 3 words which are content specific but provide ample exposure to the Tier 2 words that provide meaning and comprehension.

Get your students engaged and excited

If you aren't engaged and excited, your students won't be engaged or excited, it is as simple as that. You have to look for ways to connect the learning and content standards back to the students. How can you capture their attention? Show your excitement and get passionate! Use relevant practices and put the students in charge of their own learning. Groups, pairs, share outs, questions and reflections encourage deeper thinking and provide meaning.

Teaching and learning can be a rushed, fast paced experience only it doesn't have to be. As an educator and learner, time needs to be built into the day or class period where students reflect on what they've learning and make meaning of it. This helps with processing information as they reconcile it with their prior knowledge and work to make the information stick. This is a great opportunity for thinking to be clarified, questions to be sought, or learning to be extended. Simple journal responses are a great way to incorporate this into the classroom.

Provide multiple opportunities. Strive to embed learning.

We all have bad days and so do students. Just because you taught something or gave a test doesn't mean that you are done with the concept and move on. Students come to school with a lot of baggage that we aren't always aware of. By allowing students to retake tests, learn from their mistakes, or circling back through the curriculum will allow more students to access your instruction and for you to have a better understanding of where they are at with their learning. Let's face it, learning can be messy and if you try to put it into a simple box or say a single class period and then move on, it isn't always effective.

If you have a struggling student and you aren't sure how you can help, just ask. By showing that you are human too and not just an authoritarian figure, it can go a long way.
John George currently serves as the principal of Dexter McCarty Middle School in the Gresham Barlow School District. He was the Oregon Middle School Principal of the Year in 2014. Prior to serving as a middle school principal, he was a turnaround principal and a district office administrator. George specializes in instructional improvement and turning around struggling schools and districts. Connect with George on Twitter Rachael George is a member of the ASCD Emerging Leaders Class of 2015 and currently serves as the principal of Sandy Grade School in the Oregon Trail School District. Prior to serving as an elementary principal, George was a middle school principal of an "outstanding" and two-time "Level 5: Model School" as recognized by the State of Oregon. George specializes in curriculum development and instructional improvement as well as working with at-risk students and closing the achievement gap. Connect with George on Twitter. .

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10 Strategies and Practices That Can Help All Students Overcome Barriers - ASCD Inservice

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Educators today are faced with the daunting task of teaching students that face personal and social emotional challenges on a broad scale unlike any other generation. We now have in our schools what we refer to as the recession babies, a generation of children whose parents experienced hardships, loss of jobs, addiction and other tragedies during ...

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Prepare your lessons ahead of time and make sure at the beginning to translate the lessons/slides in their language as well. Slowly, the students will learn vocabulary and learn English so that they do not need it anymore.

Pair the student with a student that is of the same language so they could help each other out.

A tip could be to not wait for the student to ask for help but rather go ahead and ask yourself.

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4.  What are some strategies and resources that can be used to help us understand methods to tackle language barriers in the classroom?

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4.  What are some strategies and resources that can be used to help us understand methods to tackle language barriers in the classroom?

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3. What steps can be taken to create a supportive learning community for all students?

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3. What steps can be taken to create a supportive learning community for all students?

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Access Google Sites with a personal Google account or Google Workspace account (for business use).

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This can be done through constantly motivating and encouraging the students to strive for better.

Allows students to work together in different groups (allows students to pick groups but assign them into groups as well to attain diversity).

Use positive reinforcement and create classroom rules!

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1. What resources will help students feel welcomed and allow them to fuse into the community?

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1. What resources will help students feel welcomed and allow them to fuse into the community?

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It is important to have people help students and their families in a way that they could understand such as using translators.

If the families are to meet at a school, have posters, signs, symbols that are in their home language so they understand what to do/where to go.

I think schools should communicate with the families regularly and not just on “parent-teacher night.”

Ensure that the classroom is welcoming and friendly.

It will be very difficult for students to adapt to the new environment, therefore, frequent checkups on the student is important and necessary to make sure they are not confused.

Teachers could spend extra time outside of the classroom to make the students feel welcome and/or keep them on track.

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This resource really shows different ways to make ELLs and their families welcomed into the new environment!

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2. How can we make sure that ELLs in the mainstream program feel included in the classroom and within the activities?

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2. How can we make sure that ELLs in the mainstream program feel included in the classroom and within the activities?

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We can make ELLs in the mainstream program feel included by having posters and papers with words written in their own language around the classroom.

Teachers can try to use more technology or have activities that use more visuals.

Make sure of pictures, symbols, diagrams and more to help the ELLs out.

Include the students’ culture in a way that every appreciates and realizes the importance of different cultures/ethnicities.

Create lessons that have modifications or adaptations for the ELL.

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This resource shows different ways that teachers could include ELLs in their mainstream teaching/classrooms. I found it very useful as it gives tips on what teachers, parents, and others could do to help ELLs.

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If you are a mainstream teaching trying to figure out how to offer language support to ELLs, you are not alone! Many teachers around the country are working with ELLs for the first time, and they have a lot of questions.

Fortunately, there are a number of ways to support ELLs' language acquisition by adapting strategies already in use. These small things may make a big difference to ELLs. Here are some ideas to get you started. Don't miss the recommended links at the end of the article.

Create a language-rich environment.

English language learners will benefit from increased exposure to print and language. A print-rich environment will include access to books and reference materials, labels and posters, and student work on bulletin boards. Word walls are also a great support for ELLs, and may be organized around a number of concepts, including the alphabet and phonetic sounds, new vocabulary words, sight words, grammar rules, conversational phrases, and writing structures.

Related Resources

For more great ideas, see the following topics:

Be aware of the relationship between a student's native language and English.

A student's native language will most likely have a strong influence on the way that student learns English. Understanding how this language is similar to or different from English will help you focus on troublesome areas. This influence can provide extra support, such as the case of English and Spanish cognates (education and educación). The influence also may lead to some ongoing errors in English, which will become evident with time and repeated use by students who have the same native language.

Languages may differ in a number of aspects, such as phonetic sounds, pronunciation, grammar, word order, or sentence structure. For example, in Spanish, the adjective often follows the noun, so a student may write, "We are a family happy." In Somali, there is one sound for b and p - it is mixed. Somali students need to be taught this sound explicitly as two distinct sounds. Otherwise, they may ask for a can of pop and it sounds like "bob."

Native language may also influence students' vocabulary as they translate words or phrases from one language to another. Perhaps a vocabulary word has multiple meanings, a different meaning in each language, or the concept doesn't exist in one of the languages.

Even if you don't know a student's native language, being aware of native language influence will allow you to target your instruction. Help students by providing a model of how to use sounds, structures, and vocabulary correctly in English. In the case of a pronunciation difficulty such as the Somali example above, teachers can demonstrate how the mouth forms the sounds. Have students put their hand in front of their mouths to feel the air in "p" and their hands on their neck to feel the vibration of "b." This is also important as students work to sound out words while writing.

Simplify your language without "dumbing it down."

It may seem difficult to balance this at first, but here are some tips for communicating effectively with your students:

Avoid slang and idiomatic expressions.

Speak clearly and naturally, without going too quickly or slowly.

Encourage students to raise their hand if they don't understand a word.

Remember that ELLs may not understand instructions and key vocabulary words, and that reading something aloud doesn't always help comprehension. You can aid student comprehension by scaffolding language (providing extra supports such as realia, graphic organizers, visuals, etc.).

ELLs may not have the same background knowledge as their English-speaking peers, especially when it comes to references to American culture and geography, such as the Grand Canyon or Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech. Identify key concepts, vocabulary words, and references before the lesson, and give students as much time and practice with the new material as possible before starting the lesson.

If students are having trouble with an activity, try to identify whether a new concept, set of directions, vocabulary word, or other element is causing the difficulty. Identify some different ways that you can help students move beyond those obstacles. These might include providing a book about the topic in the student's native language or reviewing new vocabulary words together.

Support academic language development.

Academic language is the language that students need to succeed in school. It is different than social language, which many students acquire first. Often students are available to communicate effectively with teachers or peers in social settings, but struggle when it comes to textbooks, tests, assignments, or class presentations. There are a number of ways to support academic language development, such as previewing the text, teaching grammatical structures relevant to a particular content area ("greater than" and "less than" in math class), and showing how the targeted academic language is used in reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

Learn more in the following resources from Colorín Colorado:

Discuss word families and how different forms of words are used.

ELLs may have a difficult time knowing which form of a word to use. Help students look for spelling and usage patterns, such as past tense verbs ending in "-ed." Since English has so many exceptions, this isn't always a foolproof strategy, but a basic knowledge of these patterns, rules, and spellings will help. Cognates can also help Spanish-speakers learn English and derive meaning from content. Teachers can explicitly point out cognates for Spanish-speaking students so they begin to realize that this is a useful way for them to increase their English vocabulary.

Help students understand when to use different kinds of language.

ELLs may speak different dialects or use "Spanglish," a combination of English and Spanish, in their classroom and with their friends and family. It's important to respect the language students use and realize that it is effective for them in certain settings. Rather than looking at certain dialects or slang as "good" or "bad," help students understand when different kinds of language are appropriate - and what the benefits of learning Standard Academic English will be for them in the long run.

Discuss the uses of Standard Academic English in college and career settings, as well as the importance of effective communication on applications and in interviews. One teacher I know calls this English the "green language" because it represents money the students can earn in the future with good English communication skills. Make it clear what kind of language you expect students to use in the classroom, and provide language models or structures when students have difficulty expressing themselves appropriately.

Provide students with frequent opportunities to work together, both in pairs and in small groups.

Cooperative learning activities promote peer interaction, which helps the development of language and the learning of concepts and content. Effective activities may include working on a worksheet together as problem-solver and coach (then switching roles), think-pair-share, and book groups. It is important to assign ELLs to different groups so that they can benefit from English language role models. ELLs learn to express themselves with greater confidence when working in small teams.

In addition to 'picking up' vocabulary, ELLs benefit from observing how their peers learn and solve problems. If you decide to assign each student in a team a role (such as reporter, recorder, time keeper, and materials manager), you might want to rotate roles each week or by activity. This prevents what typically happens if students select their own roles - the same students wind up performing the same tasks. By rotating, students develop the skills they most need to practice.

Implement an effective correction/feedback policy.

While it is difficult to know when to correct students, constructive and effective feedback is essential to student progress. It is possible for incorrect language production to become "fossilized" so that students continue to use the same incorrect structures into adulthood. This reduces their chances of being a clear communicator and ultimately limits them in professional settings. Nevertheless, it is important to balance between encouragement and error correction. One way to do this is to focus on one or two concepts at a time when listening to or reading student work. Let students know what you will be focusing on so that they in turn can focus on those particular concepts in the assignment.

Another strategy is to circle errors in writing assignments, and have students try to figure out what the mistakes were. As I always tell my students, "If I correct your English, I improve my English. If you correct your English, you improve yours." Most of the time students are able to correct their own writing errors once they focus on the circled area. If they are still stuck, I give them the answer and ask them to explain why it is correct. If they don't know the answer, I ask them to consult with a classmate. If no one else knows the answer, we review the structure as a group.

Reach out to your ELL/bilingual colleagues, reading specialists, special education teachers, and parents.

Educators and staff who work regularly with ELLs, as well as bilingual parents, may be a valuable source of information about language patterns or difficulties. While it may be difficult to find time to meet on a regular basis, increased collaboration among language teachers, content teachers, mainstream teachers, and support staff will most likely improve student support.

While teaching ELLs may be daunting, there are a number of ways you can support their language acquisition - and in the process get them on the road to academic success!

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Supporting ELLs in the Mainstream Classroom: Language Tips

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If you are a mainstream teaching trying to figure out how to offer language support to ELLs, you are not alone! Many teachers around the country are working with ELLs for the first time, and they have a lot of questions. Fortunately, there are a number of ways to support ELLs' language acquisition by adapting strategies already in use.