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Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners

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Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners

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This book provides research to challenge the deficit thinking of Multilingual learners. It outlines the benefits of Culturally Responsive Teaching for all students, particularly ELLs and provides tools educators can use to implement CRT in the classroom.

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Our nation's moment of reckoning with the deficit view of multilingual learners has arrived. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exposed and exacerbated long-standing inequities that stand in the way of MLs' access to effective instruction. Recent events have also caused us to reflect on our place as educators within the intersection of race and language. In this innovative book, Sydney Snyder and Diane Staehr Fenner share practical, replicable ways you can draw from students' strengths and promote multilingual learners' success within and beyond your own classroom walls.

In this book you'll find

*Practical and printable, research-based tools that guide you on how to implement culturally responsive teaching in your context
*Case studies and reflection exercises to help identify implicit bias in your work and mitigate deficit-based thinking
*Authentic classroom video clips in each chapter to show you what culturally responsive teaching actually looks like in practice
*Hand-drawn sketch note graphics that spotlight key concepts, reinforce central themes, and engage you with eye-catching and memorable illustrations

There is no time like the present for you to reflect on your role in culturally responsive teaching and use new tools to build an even stronger school community that is inclusive of MLs. No matter your role or where you are in your journey, you can confront injustice by taking action steps to develop a climate in which all students' backgrounds, experiences, and cultures are honored and educators, families, and communities work collaboratively to help MLs thrive. We owe it to our students.
On-demand book study-Available now!
Authors, Snyder and Staehr Fenner have created an on-demand LMS book study for readers of Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners: Tools for Equity available now from their company SupportEd. The self-paced book study works around your schedule and when you're done, you'll earn a certificate for 20 hours of PD. SupportEd can also customize the book study for specific district timelines, cohorts and/or needs upon request. Learn more.

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Culturally Responsive Teaching for Multilingual Learners

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What will you do to promote multilingual learners’ equity? Our nation’s moment of reckoning with the deficit view of multilingual learner...

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain

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This book provides information on how one's culture programs the brain to process data and affects learning relationships. It draws on cutting-edge neuroscience research to offer an innovative approach for designing and implementing brain-compatible culturally responsive instruction.

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students

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Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students: Hammond, Zaretta: 9781483308012: Books - Amazon.ca

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Culturally Relevant Pedagogy with English Language Learners: Incorporating Identity in the Classroom 

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Culturally Relevant Pedagogy with English Language Learners: Incorporating Identity in the Classroom 

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This scholarly article analyzes qualitative interviews with elementary school teachers to determine a practical definition for culturally relevant pedagogy. It asks the question, "How does a small sample of general elementary teachers design their classroom experience to support English language learners in ways that validate their first language identity and what outcomes do they observe?" It outlines ways that teachers can support ELL students in inclusive and meaningful ways.

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Assessing English Language Learners: Bridges to Educational Equity

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Assessing English Language Learners: Bridges to Educational Equity

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This is a comprehensive guide for creating and implementing culturally responsive assessment practices for ELLs. The book includes a focus on academic language use in every discipline from mathematics to social studies and is a good resource for teachers and pre-service teachers.

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Assessing English Language Learners: Bridges to Educational Equity: Connecting Academic Language Proficiency to Student Achievement

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Assessing English Language Learners: Bridges to Educational Equity: Connecting Academic Language Proficiency to Student Achievement : Gottlieb, Margo: Amazon.ca: Office Products

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Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom

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Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom

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This book emphasizes that teachers need to inspire students to challenge racial, social and sexual boundaries so that they can achieve freedom. The book describes critical pedagogy and the importance of creating inclusive learning environments that honor diverse cultural experiences.

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Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom

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After reading Teaching to Transgress I am once again struck by bell hookss never-ending, unquiet intellectual energy, an energy that makes her radical and loving. -- Paulo Freire In Teaching to Transgress,bell hooks--writer, teacher, and insurgent black intellectual--writes about a new kind of education, education as the practice of freedom.  Teaching students to transgress against racial, sexual, and class boundaries in order to achieve the gift of freedom is, for hooks, the teachers most important goal. bell hooks speaks to the heart of education today: how can we rethink teaching practices in the age of multiculturalism? What do we do about teachers who do not want to teach, and students who do not want to learn? How should we deal with racism and sexism in the classroom? Full of passion and politics, Teaching to Transgress combines a practical knowledge of the classroom with a deeply felt connection to the world of emotions and feelings.  This is the

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Supporting the Success of English Language Learners in Every Classroom

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Supporting the Success of English Language Learners in Every Classroom

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This article is written by Zaiba Beg, an instructional coordinator for ESL/ELD programs in Mississauga. It provides reflections on her years of teaching ELL students and suggests best practices for supporting their success.

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Supporting the Success of English Language Learners in Every Classroom | ETFO Voice

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Zaiba Beg offers frameworks for supporting English Language Learners in the classroom.

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11 Essential Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners [For Any Teacher]

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11 Essential Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners [For Any Teacher]

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This resources is produced by the University of San Diego School of Professional and Continuing Education. It outlines some best practices and recommendations for effectively teaching ELL students based on current research.

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University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education

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Imagine trying to learn a classroom lesson when you don't understand the language in which it is being presented. Teaching English language learners requires specialized strategies; and at the most basic level, one of those strategies is to "put yourself in their shoes."

More than 5 million children in U.S. schools are classified as English language learners (ELLs), according to the Department of Education. These students face the dual challenge of learning the material while also learning the language, as their teachers face the added challenge of using the right educational strategies to help them succeed.

Some of the most effective English language learner strategies start with common sense and respect for cultural differences. Simply getting to know the students is considered to be an essential part of the process.

For educators who teach English language learners, developing a deeper understanding of their unique needs and the best practices for teaching them has many benefits. These include:

Better and easier lesson planning

Improved ability to monitor student goals and achievements

The satisfaction of making a difference in the lives of young people learning to communicate in what can be a pretty confusing language

Here, we will review a range of time-tested English language teaching strategies that benefit students and educators alike.

How Can ELL Strategies Help Me as an Educator?

In addition to achieving better learning outcomes for students, embracing best practices and strategies for working with English language learners offers some fundamental, organizational benefits for educators as well.

For example, when you have a well-thought-out plan for engaging and teaching your ELLs, you are able to more effectively manage your lesson planning and monitor the progress of your students. You will also waste less time on strategies that don't work for your students.

Ultimately, an organized and focused approach to teaching non-native speakers is also the most effective way to create a solid foundation for them to become autonomous learners in English.

What About Using 'Scaffolding' for English Language Learners?

Scaffolding can mean a number of things when it comes to language development. First, it can refer to allowing students to continue limited use of their first language while learning English. Though the point is to train students to become independently proficient readers, writers and speakers of English, allowing native speech can help students figure things out, rather than go silent if they don't understand or know an answer.

According to CollaborativeClassroom.org, "A scaffold is a temporary framework that is put up for support and access to meaning and is taken away when the student feels success and masters tasks, concepts, and, in this case, language acquisition."

The use of sentence frames - partial sentences that include blank spaces where students fill in missing words or information - is another example of scaffolding-type techniques that can help students learn language. In a broader context, scaffolding refers to giving students the support, context and tools they need to learn new materials, ideas or skills.

11 Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners
1. Cultivate relationships
This one is a "no-brainer" no matter what language you speak. As a teacher, getting to know each student helps you understand who they are, where they come from and, perhaps, gain some insight into what teaching and learning styles are most effective for them.

For the students, knowing that your teacher cares enough to make the effort to get to know you as a person can have a motivating effect. It contributes to an atmosphere in which each student feels known and appreciated, and is therefore more likely to fully open themselves to the learning process rather than succumb to feelings of reticence or shyness that can often accompany a lack of language skills.
2. Be culturally aware
Since many English language learners come from outside the U.S., part of creating the ideal learning atmosphere may include cultivating an appreciation of diversity. Developing an awareness of each student's background, religious and cultural practices may also provide insights that affect how you interact with a particular student (for example, if they come from a cultural tradition where eye contact with adults is viewed as disrespectful).

At a very basic level, engaging in discussions about the different cultural backgrounds of students helps everyone get to know each other and reinforces the idea that different cultures include many similarities and differences - an important concept when some students are in the process of acquiring a new culture and language. Some educational advocates also suggest home visits as an effective "extracurricular" way for educators to invest in building rapport.
3. Teach language skills across all curriculum topics
In many cases, your English language learners may also be receiving specific English as a Second Language instruction from an ESL specialist. However, it is helpful for teachers of all curriculum topics in mainstream classrooms to understand and embrace the role of language teacher as well.
4. Speak slowly and be patient
You have a lot of material to cover, but there is no need to rush. In fact, teachers of ELLs are encouraged to consciously slow things down. This can mean:

Speaking in a slower, measured cadence

Being a bit more aware of your enunciation

Allowing extra time (an additional 3 to 5+ seconds) for students to respond

The extra seconds give all students a little extra time to think and formulate a response. "Researchers have found that typically most teachers give 1 to 2 seconds between asking a question and expecting a student response," Larry Ferlazzo, a teacher, education blogger and co-author of "The ESL/ELL Teacher's Survival Guide," told Edutopia. "The same researchers have shown that if you wait 3 to 5 seconds, the quality of responses is astronomically greater."
5. Prioritize "productive language"
Speaking and writing are sometimes characterized as "productive language" because they both literally require students to "produce" language output, in contrast with reading and listening, which are described as "receptive" skills.

Teachers who are not language specialists may not be aware that English language learners are likely to develop those receptive skills first. It is important to emphasize the fact that evidence that students are reading, listening or understanding does not necessarily equate to progress in expressing themselves through fluency in speaking or writing.
6. Use a variety of methods to engage learning
The idea here is to provide students with multiple options for taking in information, processing and making sense of ideas, and sharing what they are learning. This is often referred to as "differentiated instruction" - an educational practice that involves recognizing that "students each have their own unique gifts and challenges; interests, aptitudes and learning styles" and tailoring instruction to meet students' individual needs.

According to Edutopia, "All kids learn better when they engage with material in multiple ways: Lessons that involve writing, speaking, drawing and listening, for example, give students four opportunities to deepen their understanding of the work. For ELLs, those additional engagements also provide a little breathing room so they can work through the language barrier."
7. Utilize visual aids
The strategy of using visual aids also connects to the idea of differentiated instruction, which is considered central to teaching English language learners. In this case, it is understood that some students are "visual learners" whose ability to digest and process new concepts and material is enhanced by the use of pictures, diagrams, charts and other visual tools.

The belief is that combining "nonlinguistic representation" along with the linguistic component of each lesson benefits all students and not just English language learners - the operative strategy here is to "show" as well as "tell." In addition to pictures, diagrams, etc., teachers are encouraged to write everything on the board so students can see as well as hear the information.
8. Coordinate with the ESL teacher
Since ELLs are often receiving specific English as a Second Language instruction from an ESL specialist, it can be very helpful to check in with their ESL instructors. Doing so can help the educators involved develop a fuller understanding of how regular classroom work can support ESL instruction, and vice versa.

Such discussions can yield insights into individual students and their learning styles or challenges; they can also be helpful for sharing information about curriculum topics, potentially providing ESL teachers with ideas for highly relevant vocabulary words that can reinforce academic lessons.
9. Pre-teach new vocabulary words
When you have a challenging reading assignment coming up, some experts encourage you to preview or "pre-teach" new vocabulary words that may be unfamiliar to ELLs, or even to give them a copy of the article or link to the material ahead of time.
10. Build in some group work
Instructor-led, whole-class activities may make up most of your class period but it can also be very helpful to build in time for group work as well. This is because it affords additional opportunities for ELLs to practice their language skills with peers in a less formal, lower-risk setting.
11. Respect moments of silence
Many new language learners tend to be a little reticent and quiet, opting for silence over speaking up and saying something "wrong" in a language that is still unfamiliar. Therefore, teachers are encouraged to be mindful of this and not be too aggressive in forcing students to open up at the outset. Ongoing support and patience is preferable to pressure, since such initial silence is considered to be a normal stage in learning a second language.

Academic Support for Teaching English Language Learners

Teachers whose work involves supporting the language development of non-native speakers also have the opportunity to take courses that are focused on skills, techniques and best practices for teaching English language learners.

For example, the University of San Diego offers an online course titled "Teaching Strategies for ELLs" that is ideal for K-12 teachers. Participants earn 2 graduate-level extension credit units while focusing on:

Ways to integrate language acquisition and academic content learning

Assessment approaches that measure student achievement within a linguistically diverse classroom

Research-based strategies for differentiating instruction to promote student learning

To learn more about the curriculum, expected learner outcomes and cost, contact us today or review the "Teaching Strategies for ELLs" course page.

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University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education

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11 Essential Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners [For Any Teacher] - University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education

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11 Essential Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners [For Any Teacher]. Advance your career with professional and continuing education from the University of San Diego.

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TESOL English Language Professional's Resource Guide

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TESOL English Language Professional's Resource Guide

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This is a curated guide by TESOL International Association. It provides links to professional resources that can support educators in effectively teaching ELL students.

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TOEFL - English Language Professional's Resource Guide

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Foundations of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching

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Foundations of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching

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This article is written by teacher Karen Blaha that reflects on best practices and strategies for culturally responsive teaching. It provides good tools for teachers as how to implement curriculum in a way that scaffolds instruction for ELL students and provides meaningful feedback to help them build skills.

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Culturally Responsive Teaching

Teachers can provide multiple ways for English learners to engage with lessons and demonstrate their understanding.

What is culturally and linguistically responsive teaching? It involves leveraging students' cultural and linguistic experiences, utilizing their background knowledge, and providing multiple ways for students to learn and demonstrate new learning. When we use culturally and linguistically responsive practices, we employ interactive and collaborative learning activities that draw from students' references and previous experiences to help them make connections to new learning.

As a teacher, I found that these practices helped my students engage in the learning process and built up their confidence-even when the learning became challenging. These practices helped my students say, "I think I can," rather than "I can't." Later, as a researcher, I found that teachers who received professional development and coaching on how to use culturally and linguistically responsive practices saw an increase in reading scores among their English language learners (ELLs) and racially diverse students within a school year.

So let's take a look at some activities that support foundational pieces of culturally and linguistically responsive teaching. You may find that you already do some of these activities, or you may find new activities that you will be excited to try.

Acquire Cultural Knowledge

A cornerstone of culturally and linguistically responsive teaching is having cultural knowledge of the students in your classroom. It is the understanding that culture impacts how we process and learn information. I often started the process of getting to know my students with a questionnaire that I called "Getting to Know You." In this questionnaire, I asked students to let me know what name they would like me to use, their interests, any activities they enjoyed, and what they would like to learn in this class. Before and during lessons, I'd ask students to discuss their own experiences and try to make connections to the topic we studied. This not only helped make the learning relevant for the students but gave me insight regarding how to conduct a lesson.

Many of my students came to my classroom with collectivistic experiences, which emphasize the needs of the group over the needs of each individual. To leverage this asset, I would often build opportunities into lessons for students to work together in small groups or with a partner.

For example, during writing time I would have students work with a partner or small group to discuss their ideas before writing them on paper. During a math lesson, I would have students work together to solve a problem and then discuss how they solved that problem. Such activities gave my students the opportunity to use their collectivistic skills in the learning process, thus building their confidence, communication, and problem-solving skills.

Using Language Acquisition Principles

Connect content to real life by inviting community members to the classroom to talk about their experiences, relate content to students' lives, or provide students with real problems to solve.

Nonverbal methods such as drawing or pointing to a picture/answer can be used by ELLs to demonstrate comprehension, even when they do not yet have the production language to verbally answer.

Provide opportunities for ELLs to work with a partner or in small groups. This will support their use and input of language.

Allow ELLs to use their first language when learning new concepts. This allows them to understand the concept, then learn the concept language, rather than learning both at the same time.

A culturally and linguistically responsive environment also involves providing language supports for our ELLs. Researcher Stephen Krashen has noted language acquisition principles that help teachers create a supportive, nurturing place where language is learned through meaningful tasks and authentic interactions. Krashen reminds us that comprehension of language typically develops before the production of language and that conversational, or everyday, language develops more quickly than academic, or more formal, language. These principles can help us tailor supported opportunities for students to practice language within their Zone of Proximal Development.

So how does this play out in the classroom? To support the development of language, I used the following practices to support my students' language growth, while still being able to share their knowledge and new learning.

Employ Instructional Scaffolds

Various levels of questions to build students' thinking, from the recall of information to answers that required synthesis or evaluation of ideas/information

Incorporating visual tools such as pictures and illustrations for science and social studies lessons and graphic organizers for reading to help students connect language to content

Supplementing texts with study guides, definitions of key vocabulary, and an outline of key events

Reading instruction that uses language modified texts and focuses on an interactive reading skills approach

I often referred to instructional scaffolds as training wheels for learning-they are used as you are learning a new skill but are intended to be temporary until a skill is mastered. Instructional scaffolding involves understanding the specific, temporary instructional supports that a student needs and providing these supports. Once the student has mastered the skill or task, the scaffolding is gradually removed.

I often used the following scaffolds to help support student learning:

Provide Effective Feedback

Provide feedback in written and verbal form to ensure that the student understands what needs improvement and why. This can be done by annotating an assignment or meeting with students one-on-one to review a task with a rubric.

Give students specific information about their performance on a particular task. This can be done with the use of a rubric, which breaks down a learning task into individual elements.

Give feedback almost immediately after a student has demonstrated new learning. This will help the student make connections between the feedback and the task.

Instruction isn't complete without effective feedback, because it provides students with information to improve upon a task, and why. I found that when I involved students in the process of assessing their work with rubrics, I was able to provide specific actions that focused on working toward not only the learning target at hand but also future assignments. This would later impact student assessments because students understood what actions were needed to successfully reach learning outcomes.

How can we ensure that our feedback will help our students grow? The following practices helped me provide feedback that was actionable and concrete for my students.

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Foundations of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching

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Culturally Responsive Teaching Teachers can provide multiple ways for English learners to engage with lessons and demonstrate their understanding. What is culturally and linguistically responsive teaching? It involves leveraging students' cultural and linguistic experiences, utilizing their background knowledge, and providing multiple ways for students to learn and demonstrate new learning.

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From making this Curated list of resources, I learned that there are tons of excellent resources created by teachers for teachers to support implementing CRP for ELL students. Each resource really emphasized the importance of getting to know our students and including student voice & experience in curriculum.

It made it very clear that putting students at the center of learning and teaching is crucial for making students feel included in our classroom communities and for ensuring that instruction and assignments are meaningful.

This researched reinforced what we have learned throughout this course so far: ELL students come to our classes with a wealth of cultural knowledge and we can support their success by tapping into this knowledge in the English language classroom.

These readings also taught me to approach CRP with humility-- we may not find effective strategies right away but by adopting a caring attitude and putting students first, we will find strategies that meet the needs of our students.

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For me, the most important lesson I have learned from making this curated list is really taking time to get to know the community and culture of students in my classes. This does not mean I need to be an expert of all of the diverse cultural backgrounds represented in my class. Rather, I can draw on resources available to me-- research, community members, parents, staff, students themselves, to provide space for learning and sharing about the diverse cultural backgrounds.

For next steps, I want to learn more about the community that I teach in even more by connecting more with parents/guardians and providing more opportunities for students to share information about their cultural backgrounds and families.

I have also been learning Spanish-- and I want to continue to learn Spanish as well as eventually start learning another language. I find this humbles me and reminds me of the challenges that ELL students face in my classes.