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IES Practice Guide: Teaching Academic Content & Literacy to English Learners

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IES Practice Guide: Teaching Academic Content & Literacy to English Learners

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This practice guide was prepared for the WWC by Instructional Research Group under contract ED-IES-12-C-0016.

The following research staff contributed to the guide: Joseph Dimino, Kelly Haymond, Russell Gersten, Madhavi Jayanthi, and Rebecca Newman-Gonchar.

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WWC | Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School

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This practice guide provides four recommendations that address what works for English learners during reading and content area instruction. Each recommendation includes extensive examples of activities that can be used to support students as they build the language and literacy skills needed to be successful in school.

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Teaching language-minority students to read and write well in English is an urgent challenge in the nation's K-12 schools. Literacy in English is essential to achievement in every academic subject-and to educational and economic opportunities beyond schooling. Compounding this challenge are increasing numbers and diversity of language-minority students. Language-minority students who cannot read and write proficiently in English cannot participate fully in American schools, workplaces, or society. They face limited job opportunities and earning power. Nor are the consequences of low literacy attainment in English limited to individual impoverishment. U.S. economic competitiveness depends on workforce quality. Inadequate reading and writing proficiency in English relegates rapidly increasing language-minority populations to the sidelines, limiting the nation's potential for economic competitiveness, innovation, productivity growth, and quality of life. The importance of this challenge led the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences to create the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth. The formal charge to the panel was to identify, assess, and synthesize research on the education of language-minority children and youth with regard to literacy attainment and to produce a comprehensive report on this literature. "Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners" is the culmination of a 4-year process that began in the spring of 2002, when the Institute of Education Sciences staff selected a panel of 13 experts in second-language development, cognitive development, curriculum and instruction, assessment, and methodology to review the quantitative and qualitative research on the development of literacy in language-minority students. This national panel identified five research topics to investigate: (1) Development of literacy; (2) Cross-linguistic relationships; (3) Sociocultural contexts and literacy development; (4) Instruction and professional development; and (5) Student assessment. The National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth systematically and rigorously examined the research on acquiring literacy in a second language. Through this process, the panel learned what is known--and what is not yet known--about the complex process of learning to read and write in a second language. Policymakers and educators can use the panel's findings to benchmark their own practices and infuse research-based instruction into literacy programs for language-minority students. Researchers can enrich this knowledge base by focusing on the specific gaps in our knowledge, which in the future will enable U.S. schools to better educate English-language learners in English literacy. The contents of the entire volume, "Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth," from which this Executive Summary is adapted, are provided.

Descriptors: English Language Learners, Language Minorities, Elementary Secondary Education, At Risk Students, Reading Skills, Writing Skills, Literature Reviews, Second Language Learning, Qualitative Research, Statistical Analysis, Literacy Education, Language Skills, Social Influences, Cultural Influences, Faculty Development, Teaching Methods, Student Evaluation, Evaluation Methods, Sociolinguistics, Language Proficiency, Short Term Memory, Phonology, Oral Language, Native Language, Language of Instruction, Educational Practices, Special Education, Teacher Attitudes, Immigrants

Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 10 Industrial Avenue, Mahwah, NJ 07430. Tel: 800-926-6579; Fax: 201-760-3735; e-mail: orders@erlbaum.com; Web site: http://www.erlbaum.com

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ERIC - ED553370 - Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth. Executive Summary, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2006

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Teaching language-minority students to read and write well in English is an urgent challenge in the nation's K-12 schools. Literacy in English is essential to achievement in every academic subject-and to educational and economic opportunities beyond schooling. Compounding this challenge are increasing numbers and diversity of language-minority students.

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Distinguishing Language Acquisition from Potential Disability

Steve started his career as a school psychologist in a district with a large ELL population. There he realized how little he had learned about language learners prior to this experience.

Over the years, he completed graduate work in ELL studies, eventually creating the ELL Critical Data Process. As of writing this, Steve has trained over 20,000 educators on the process across the country and guests from multiple other countries.

Ushani is a writer, artist and trainer who has worked for major corporations as a training manager. Ushani has been instrumental in the writing of our books, working diligently to ensure that the writing speaks to a wider audience.

"When you sit through one of Steve's Data Matrix trainings, it becomes extremely clear how much school districts have lacked the expertise and methods for carrying out referrals and evaluations on students who are English Language Learners. I personally learned more in the 2-hour session about English Language Learners than I ever did in graduate school or my own practice. His work is thorough, eye-opening, and most importantly, practical." AG, School Psychologist

Evaluating ELL Students For the Possibility of Special Education Qualification - 2nd Edition
The evaluation of language learners for possible special education services is a difficult process at best, with a long history of errors represented in disproportionate qualification. The goal of this book is to help practitioners correctly identify language learners who truly have disabilities, whose disabilities are impacting their ability to access their education and who need specially designed instruction.

Lessons Learned while Evaluating ELL Students for Potential Special Education Qualification
The process of evaluating a language learner for the possibility of special education eligibility provides many challenges. This book is the culmination of 30 years of working on increasing the likelihood of finding the students who truly have disabilities, versus the students whose struggles are primarily related to language acquisition. This book provides practical steps to achieve this. It also provides practical advice on how to help others, strangers to the situation, understand how the decision was made and what evidence was used. In the end, is the determinant factor language acquisition or language acquisition with a disability?

Please carefully read the content on the trainings page, because things have and are changing.

Please carefully read the content on the training page, because things have and are changing. Also, please carefully check your email address. I reply to all messages, but several "bounce back" per month due to incorrect email addresses.

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Steve Gill ELL critical data process. ELL data matrix. Steve Gill ELL trainings

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National Committee for Effective Literacy

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National Committee for Effective Literacy

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Blog Post: 3 Ways to Ensure ELL Benefit from the Science of Reading 

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Blog Post: 3 Ways to Ensure ELL Benefit from the Science of Reading 

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3 Ways to Ensure English Learners Benefit From the Science of Reading

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Experts share how moving beyond phonics, utilizing oral language, and collaboration between EL and early literacy specialists is key.

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The Reading League Summit 2023: Leveraging the Science of Reading to Support ELs/EBs

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The Reading League Summit 2023: Leveraging the Science of Reading to Support ELs/EBs

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History and Finding Alignment

Historically, there have been divergent viewpoints between experts in the science of reading field and some experts who support English Learner/Emergent Bilingual(EL/EB) students. However, it is important to recognize that the shared objective among all stakeholders is to facilitate positive literacy outcomes for all students, ultimately aiming for proficient reading and writing skills.

Despite a broad consensus on numerous topics, such as the importance of building language and knowledge, having high expectations for students, and the important role of foundational reading skills, there have been instances when presentations and papers have perpetuated a narrative of disconnection between these groups. For instance, in 2022, the National Committee for Effective Literacy (NCEL) published a White Paper that extensively discredited practices associated with the "science of reading" approach. Interestingly, the frustrations expressed by the EL/EB community, which led to the development of this paper, often stemmed from practices that deviated from the scientifically supported evidence on how students acquire reading skills. These practices were implemented in schools where administrators mistakenly believed they were aligned with the science of reading. One notable example is the excessive emphasis on phonemic awareness or phonics instruction, with daily instruction lasting 90 minutes, at the expense of other critical literacy areas such as oral language development, vocabulary, and language comprehension. It is crucial to note that such practices are not congruent with the principles of the science of reading.

Overall, it will be important to draw upon our understanding of what the science of reading is, and what it is not, and proceed with a united message that evidence-aligned instruction must address all components of language comprehension, writing, word recognition and, for EL/EB students, English language development.

A response to the NCEL White Paper was drafted by Goldenberg et al. (2022) in an effort to find common ground. Following this response, The Reading League assembled a group of stakeholders to discuss some of the most critical points of contention in a series of meetings. The intent was to listen, learn, and build trust. This group knew that in order to truly unpack this disconnect, collaborative conversations had to occur that began from a place of mutual respect and understanding.

In March 2022 at the first virtual convening, the group of stakeholders agreed that proponents of the science of reading do not always place enough intentional emphasis on supporting the language needs of ELs/EBs. They also worked to dispel myths often perpetuated by many referring to the science of reading as a one-size fits all approach, a program of instruction, phonics-only, or any number of misinformed beliefs that describe anything other than what the science of reading is-a body of knowledge derived from decades of scientifically-based reading research.

The group convened multiple times from the spring to fall of 2022 with the objective of addressing significant topics, fostering clarity, and establishing trust. Through these discussions, several essential areas of agreement emerged, while other important questions surfaced that required further exploration. These shared alignments and questions served as the foundation for more in-depth discussions during the in-person gathering held in March, The Reading League Summit.

During these discussions, another group of EL/EB and science of reading experts had been meeting and discussing concrete alignments in California. This group developed an excellent resource that can serve as a foundation for conversations based on collaboration.
Pivot Learning published its final conclusions in this report:
The Reading League Summit, Joint Statement, and Report

In 2022-2023, efforts to bridge the disconnect between proponents of the science of reading and experts supporting the needs of EL/EBs led to the belief that the various stakeholder groups can move forward together. Continued conversations between The Reading League and friends and NCEL and friends led to an historic one-day Summit in Las Vegas on March 25, 2023.

The Summit featured four moderated panel discussions on a variety of topics. A video archive of the 2023 Summit is available here:

Register for the second annual The Reading League Summit 2024 on April 27, 2024, in San Diego, CA.
Joint Statement:
Following the Summit, panelists and moderators reconvened to address growing misconceptions about the science of reading. The following statement was drafted in order to continue the work of advancing literacy outcomes for all students, together.
Report:
Dr. Tanji Reed Marshall, director of P-12 Practice at The Education Trust, recounts the day's events in the following report.

Research
Is there scientifically-based research that helps us understand how to meet the literacy needs of ELs/EBs?
There is a claim made by certain individuals suggesting that all research conducted within the realm of the science of reading solely pertains to monolingual contexts. However, it is important to emphasize that all scientifically grounded research aimed at comprehending the process of reading acquisition-including studies explicitly addressing questions related to EL/EB students-falls within the scope of the science of reading. Although further research is warranted to gain a comprehensive understanding of effective support for EL/EB students, it is categorically incorrect to assert that no research exists regarding optimal strategies for assisting this particular student population.
There are multiple, reliable resources that have summarized research and lifted up best practices for EL/EB students including the following:

The Reading League has purchased the digital rights with a limited number of permitted downloads of the Developing Literacy in Second Language Learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth (Executive Summary). We welcome you to download the PDF of this resource for future use while it is available.

Additionally, because our nation's classrooms have a growing number of EL/EB students, they have been participants in much of the research that is part of the body of knowledge known as the science of reading. For example, the initial 1990 study validating the Simple View of Reading was conducted on students along the Texas/Mexico border who spoke multiple languages.

There are also many scientifically-based research studies that help us understand how to meet the needs of ELs/EBs specifically. Unfortunately, many of them remain behind a paywall, but interested readers can contact the authors directly to request access. A sampling of just a handful of the studies that specifically address EL/EB students includes:

Curriculum and Instruction

Learning to read in a language you are learning is similar, but not identical, to learning to read in a language that is new to you. - Dr. Claude Goldenberg

One of the areas of continued discussion revolves around foundational skills. These are skills such as phoneme awareness, letter knowledge, phonics, phonic decoding, and encoding, that must be developed to automaticity in order to support accurate and automatic word recognition and spelling.

An element of instruction that is a frequent point of contention is the use of context cues when teaching reading. Emily Hanford's Sold a Story podcast explains the faulty logic and lack of research for relying on cues to decode words. An important distinction to understand is that cueing as a strategy to develop word recognition is not supported by research, but using cues to confirm the meaning of words once they have been read accurately can be beneficial for students, including ELs/EBs.
This article by Dr. Louise Spear-Swerling clarifies this distinction: Dr. Linnea Ehri and Dr. Susan Brady discuss the role of meaning:
For readers, our brains have three separate kinds of representations for words in different areas of the brain that make up words' lexical representations: 1) a phonological representation of how the word is pronounced; 2) a semantic representation that encompasses the word's meaning attributes, including how the word is used in different contexts and connects to the meanings of other words that have related meanings; 3) and an orthographic map that specifies the spelling of the word. The orthographic map results from code-based grapheme-phoneme mapping when a reader encounters a word in print and decodes it, or when the reader spells the word. Once an orthographic map is well-established for a word, the reader no longer needs to decode that word but automatically accesses the map when reading or spelling, and even just when hearing the word. The different kinds of representations become more strongly neurologically connected as the learner has experience with the word in language and in print. Thus when reading a known word, the semantic and phonological representations are activated as well as the orthographic map. For words to fully exist in our 'sight word' memory, they must have these other forms of representation well connected with the orthographic map. Research also indicates that connections with the motor region of the brain that controls handwriting are also activated when a word is used. Educational practices that integrate all aspects of word knowledge strengthen the connections, supporting automaticity of word recognition and comprehension.

Research on both monolingual and bilingual students has documented that explicit and systematic instruction in phoneme awareness and decoding are essential for orthographic mapping, however these skills are not sufficient to develop skilled reading if the other forms of representation are not established as well. If students are taught to decode the words, but do not know the meanings of the words they are reading, comprehension will not occur. Thus, ensuring that students know the meanings of words they are decoding is necessary, too. In short, EL/EB students need rich instruction in English oral language to build their second language expertise, supporting both their oral language use and providing necessary phonological and semantic representations for English words they are seeing in print.
According to Dr. Linnea Ehri in an interview for The Reading League Compass:
To be fully mapped and exist as a sight word in memory, the meaning must be connected to the spelling and pronunciation. Also the syntactic identity of the word needs to become connected to the other identities, that is, its function in sentences-especially if its meaning is only activated in sentences (e.g., function words like was, from, if, and with, and irregular past tense verbs that sound like nonsense words when produced in isolation like held, took, gave, and wrote). This would be especially important for EL students. These words need to be read in meaningful contexts in order for the connection forming processes to become complete and to establish high quality lexical representations of sight words in memory. A word isn't a word without meaning.

Thus, it is essential to undergird lessons whenever possible with meaningful vocabulary, language, and English language support is essential for EL/EB students.
Resources to further understanding
The Reading League's Curriculum Evaluation Guidelines (CEGs) include "red flags" (instructional practices that do not align with the science of reading) as well as aligned practices that support both word recognition and language comprehension. The CEGs also include specific, evidence-aligned components to support EL/EB students. Many of the evidence-aligned language comprehension components of the CEGs align directly with the WIDA English Language Development Standards (2020). Developing understanding of grammar, cohesive devices, syntax, and text structure is supported by the science of reading and advocated by those supporting EL/EBs. Understanding these connections and emphasizing these similarities will help us all move forward together to support all learners. Additionally, New Mexico's Structured Literacy and English Learners page provides helpful information on instruction and resources such as walkthrough tools and lesson templates.

The following excerpts from California's ELD Standards Publication are also helpful in thinking through the evidence-aligned needs of ELs/EBs.
English learners benefit from Reading Foundational Skills instruction.
Research Findings: Instruction in the components of reading foundational skills-such as phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and text comprehension (NICHD 2000)-benefits ELs.
Implications: Instruction in foundational literacy skills is essential for ELs. However, the instruction should be adjusted based on students' spoken English proficiency (they may or may not be familiar with the English sound system) and native language or English literacy proficiency (they may or may not be familiar with any type of writing system or with the Latin alphabet writing system in particular). Note that some ELs at any age may not be literate in any language when they arrive in the U.S. school system; their native language may not have a written form, or they may not have had opportunities to develop literacy in their native language or in a local language of wider communication.
Oral English language proficiency is crucial for English literacy learning.
Research Findings: Oral proficiency in English (including oral vocabulary, grammar, and listening comprehension) is critical for ELs to develop proficiency in text-level English reading comprehension. Word-identification skills are necessary, but not sufficient. Students who have learning disabilities (as diagnosed separately from their EL designation)-or whose literacy skills in either their native language or English remain below grade level after intensive and extensive instruction-may need specialized literacy intervention services.
Implications: Instruction for ELs in oral language knowledge, skills, and abilities must be explicit, intensive, and extensive. In order to be successful in reading English, ELs must develop proficiency in listening and speaking skills in English-depth and breadth of vocabulary, as well as grammatical structures-at the same time that they are developing foundational skills in reading and writing English.
Native language literacy skills facilitate English literacy learning.
Research Findings: ELs' native language literacy skills can help them learn English foundational literacy skills.
Implications: Instruction for ELs will need to vary based on variations among ELs' native language writing systems, as well as ELs' experiences with literacy in their native language. For example, students who are literate in a language that uses the Latin alphabet (such as Spanish) will be able to transfer decoding and writing skills more easily than a student who is literate in a language with a non-Latin alphabet (such as Arabic, Korean, or Russian) or a language with a symbol-based writing system (such as Chinese). Similarly, students who are literate in a language related to English (such as Spanish) will be able to use knowledge of cognates (words with similar meaning and spelling in both languages), whereas students who are literate in unrelated languages (such as Arabic, Chinese, or Korean) will not.

Multilingualism as an Asset

In our increasingly multilingual and multicultural society, it is important to consider the impact of bilingualism on the development of language, and how exposure to more than one language from a young age might shape an individual's brain both structurally and functionally. In the recent past, bilingualism was thought to impede cognitive and linguistic development, effectively 'confusing' the child's brain with multiple languages. We now know that this is NOT the case. (Arredondo et al, 2018)

A point that was universally agreed-upon at The Reading League Summit is that from a cultural, cognitive, and an academic perspective, multilingualism is an asset. For students, learning vocabulary and background knowledge in their home language can lead to positive transfer of this knowledge when learning the language of instruction, which supports comprehension. Dual language instruction is an optimal setting for this.

The reality, however, is that most EL/EB students are not afforded the opportunity to learn in a dual language setting that instructs, at least part time, in their home language. Thus, students must learn to read in a language they are learning to understand. Even in English-only settings, educators can still capitalize on the asset of a student's home language by leveraging cognates, or words in different languages that have a similar phonological, orthographic, and semantic form. Educators can also use a student's home language to highlight similar elements of phonology, orthography, morphology, syntax, and grammar and lessen the cognitive load of new learning by engaging in contrastive analysis, or the comparing of two languages to determine the similarities and differences of specific elements of the language. Teachers can also support better comprehension skills when they are able to choose texts that relate to children's previous experiences and world knowledge. In this way teachers can provide culturally relevant content that is more likely to be familiar to children and therefore more likely to be understood.

In this EdSource article (2023), Tim Shanahan states:
There are things that, depending on the language, might overlap with English and that the children might already know, in which case, those don't necessarily need to be retaught or certainly not to the same extent as with a first language student. For example, a lot of the sound letter matches are identical across Spanish and English, so if the child already knows how to read in Spanish, the classroom instructor wouldn't need to put a lot of time into teaching those things. On the other hand, there definitely are sounds that we have in English that don't exist in Spanish. And studies have found that it's useful to teach those quite explicitly and thoroughly. These resources are useful in helping educators understand elements of language that may be similar or different across languages:
Assessment

Dr. Lilian Duran of the University of Oregon offers the following advice for The Reading League Compass on assessment for ELs/EBs:

When planning assessment to learn more about the reading abilities of English Learners, it is important to understand their word recognition abilities, but one must also understand the role of language proficiency in both the child's home language(s) and English. Assessing literacy development in multilingual children requires attention to the child's level of proficiency in all of the languages that they have been regularly exposed to and how they will interact with the child's performance on the assessments administered.

In the context of the United States, most reading assessments are conducted only in English. Many children enter US schools speaking languages other than English at home and in their communities and are in the process of acquiring English. It is mandated that all children whose parents identify that a language other than English is spoken in the home are administered an English proficiency test with the goal of more effectively providing appropriate support for learning in predominantly English instructional environments.

Language is the foundation of literacy, and for EL students, measuring language development is critical to understanding the foundation they are bringing to the task of learning to read in English. Assessment in a child's home language is also important to provide a window into their ability to learn in general. Most children in the U.S. will be exposed to English-only instruction, but prior to school entry all of their learning, their concept knowledge, and their communication abilities are simply stored in a different language. Measuring vocabulary, semantic, and morphosyntactic development provides the teacher with more awareness of the student's strengths, abilities, and learning potential.

In addition to attending to the level of language development of students, it is also important to consider the language or languages of instruction. If children are only taught how to read in English, you cannot assume that the child will have reading skills in Spanish. However, if a child is in a dual language program that systematically teaches reading in both English and Spanish, then reading assessment in both languages is important and a better reflection of their overall ability level.

The main take-away for assessing reading skills for ELs is as follows: teachers must take a nuanced approach that strategically considers the quantity and quality of a child's exposure to their home language(s) and English and how this interacts with the language of their reading instruction. There is not a one-size-fits-all approach, but rather a decision-making process that should be undertaken to choose the appropriate assessments in the appropriate language that are most likely to capture the child's overall language and reading ability.
For more information on this topic:
Students Who Use Black English Should Be Included in Conversations

Dr. Altheria Caldera, TRL's DEIB consultant, offers the following advice for The Reading League Compass regarding speakers of Black English:

According to a 2021 infographic published by the Office of English Language Acquisition, only 2.9% of Black students are English Learners (ELs). Most of these non-native English speakers are foreign-born, with 8 of the top 10 countries being located in Africa. These Black English Learners are often "overlooked" in conversations around the needs of multilingual learners. This exclusion has significant implications for the reading education, with its recent focus on the importance of teaching foundational reading skills to beginning readers.

Black English, sometimes referred to as African American Vernacular English, is a dialect of English with syntactic and grammatical distinctions from Standard (also Dominant) American English. Important, too, is the differences in vocabulary, oral language, phonics, and phonemic awareness, all of which are integral components of structured literacy. As an example, a student who speaks Black English might read the word "flow" and understand it to be a surface on which one walks and may fail to recognize the word "floor" as the standard way the term is pronounced. The impact of dialectical differences such as this are examined in this 2012 article.

Questions surrounding implications for reading instruction for speakers of Black English have been pursued since at least the 1970s. Recent scholars like Ramona Pittman and Julie A. Washington, whose research and writing center students who speak Black English are urging the broader multilingual education community to include speakers of Black English, and other bi-dialectical students, in their efforts to advance the needs of multilingual learners.

Students who speak dialects other than English have needs similar to, though not identical to, needs as speakers of other languages. The former, sometimes referred to as Standard English Learners, deserve this nuanced classification along with corresponding support. California is one of the states leading the way in this language equity work. While it is arguable that speakers of Black English should be identified as ELs; unequivocally, students who speak Black English and other bi-dialectical students should be included in the literacy conversation, and their needs should be uplifted.

Resources

These additional resources are helpful to understand research as it relates to supporting English Learners and Emergent Bilinguals.

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English Learners / Emergent Bilinguals and the Science of Reading

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Explore the science of reading for English learners and emergent bilinguals. Join us in advancing literacy education.

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English Learners and Dyslexia.pdf | Powered by Box

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Literacy Research on English Learners: Past, Present, and Future

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Literacy Research on English Learners: Past, Present, and Future

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A Framework for Foundational Literacy Skills Instruction

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A Framework for Foundational Literacy Skills Instruction

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The Meadow Center: 10 Key Policies & Practices for ELL

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The Meadow Center: 10 Key Policies & Practices for ELL

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Keys to Literacy

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Phonics Instruction for English Learners - Keys to Literacy

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This post focuses on instruction of phonics for English learners. English learners benefit from the same explicit instruction of literacy skills, including phonics, as native English speakers, keeping in mind the special considerations of English learners regarding oral language proficiency, vocabulary and background knowledge, and attention to addressing new sounds (phonemes) of English. A structured literacy approach to teach phonics should be used: explicit, systematic, cumulative, and diagnostic.

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Video: English Language Learners & Learning Disabilities

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Video: English Language Learners & Learning Disabilities

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Studio

Delia Pompa: How do we recognize learning disabilities in English language learners? How can we help them become strong readers? I'm Delia Pompa. Please join me for our next Colorín Colorado webcast, "English Language Learners with LD."

Voice Over: Funding for this webcast is provided by the United States Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Additional support comes from the National Council of La Raza.

Delia: Hello. I'm Delia Pompa. Welcome to the Colorín Colorado and Reading Rockets webcast series. You know, teaching reading to a child who's just learning to speak English can be a challenging task. When that student also has learning disabilities, the challenge is magnified. Dr. Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan is here to help. Dr. Hagan is a bilingual speech-language pathologist and director of the Valley Speech Language and Learning Institute in Brownsville, Texas. She also works with the Texas Institute for Measurement, Evaluation and Statistics at the University of Houston. Thanks for being here, Doctor.

Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan: Thank you for inviting me.

Delia: Let's start with something very basic.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: All right.

Delia: What are learning disabilities? I know that there are legal definitions and other controversies about it, but in practice, what do we mean by learning disabilities?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, a learning disability would mean, a child or a student who came to school and the teacher would notice that they're having difficulty and not progressing in the areas, possibly, of: reading, writing, spelling. It may be that they're having trouble understanding, or difficulty in math or reasoning, problem solving. Those kinds of difficulties.

Delia: To what degree are learning disabilities a phenomena of the English language?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, what we know at this point in time and, what's very difficult to tease out, are what are the differences between a child typically developing English and whether that child is having great difficulty in learning. Often, it's very hard to tease out between language and language difficulties and a learning disability.

Delia: So we're talking about a bilingual child here. How does a learning disability manifest itself in the child's native language, say Spanish?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: All right. So what we see - no matter what the language, and within languages, and across languages - what we will find are similar patterns of difficulty. For example, if the student were dyslexic, they would show very clearly in their native language, say Spanish, the same kinds of difficulties - having trouble with processing of sounds and playing with sounds, having trouble reading single words. That trouble then leads to difficulty in reading fluency and comprehension, etc.

Delia: So how would a teacher tell the difference between a learning disability and just difficulty in learning the English language? I know that's a pretty basic question, and that's a big question. So give us the basics on that.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Actually, it's quite a complex question that you have asked and one that researchers have - we've been trying to really tease out what this means. But, indeed, what we will see is, and what we need to be careful [of], are all the variables. Students who come to school, one of the first things you must do is really evaluate. Provide some type of screening and use that as your anchor. And then the teacher must try and incorporate all the effective strategies that we know work for monolingual speakers, [they] can also work for English language learners. But here has to be adjustments and adaptations. And as you adjust and provide those adaptations, what you're looking for is some progress. And you have to monitor that progress very carefully. And only then, when the student doesn't appear to be responding, then should you go further and make a step into having them evaluated by experts.

Delia: That is a lot. And so let's take-let's go through the first steps here. What does a teacher do when an ELL student who she suspects has an LD problem arrives?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: What the teacher must do is first gather information. That teacher needs to be the detective. Find out from the families, from previous teachers what has been - what have been the opportunities for this student. What was the language of instruction, because was this child exposed to English before, or is this first time the student's being instructed in English? Or is this instruction in Spanish? How many years of opportunity have they had? Have they been responding to that opportunity? And if not, then decide, you know, what do I need to do. Or maybe the teacher needs to continue to collect information.

Delia: Well, should a school assess in both languages?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: You asked me just the perfect question that I would love to answer. A gold standard, a gold standard would be to test in the two languages. And the reason you would test in those two languages is to give yourself a complete picture of what the student really understands and knows. So giving, for example, a test only in one language gives you an incomplete picture. You must understand their skills in their native language and the second language. Make sure that it's not an issue of acquiring that second language but, indeed, an issue of having difficulties in learning despite the language.

Delia: What if the school doesn't, as is usually the case, have a bilingual staff member to perform the assessments?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: What you can do, and often what teachers and school districts do, is look out in the community. Look for regional centers that have experts, or actually try and find these persons to help in the assessment process. You can also actually train people that, maybe these are people who understand the language. But maybe they can be trained along side a diagnostician, the diagnostician can be there for the testing. But just making sure that native language was clearly evaluated and used in determining whether, indeed, the student, in fact, exhibited a learning disability.

Delia: Well, what does a comprehensive dual language assessment include?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: If you were looking for a dual language assessment, you must include all the areas. I'm a speech language pathologist so I would want to make sure that there would be a very nice look at language: how well children understand concepts; how well they understand words; how well they're able to use words in their first language and also in the second language. But aside from that, you must very clearly look at those reading skills, the basic reading skills which include looking at their ability to process sounds, their ability to read words and then their ability to comprehend what they've read. Of course, you have to look at the highest level of language, and that would be written language, and an area that's not my expertise, math, which very clearly we can also see it manifests itself in the area of math.

Delia: That is thorough and that's a lot. We have tests for kids who are native English speakers who do everything you describe. The tests do. What is the availability for second language learners? Can you use the same tests?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, that's another question and one that really, you know, researchers might not agree upon at this time. But what we do know is that it is important that these tests are culturally sensitive, that they're not culturally biased, that they really are assessing what they are assessing, that when they get tested for reliability and validity to make sure that those tests included English as a second language learners in their studies.

Delia: Well, say a school now to this point's done everything right - they've had valid and bilingual assessments, they have a skilled bilingual professional assessing the student and they evaluate the results. I'm guessing even with everything in place this is still a very complicated situation. So let's tap into what you just described yourself as, which is a bilingual speech pathologist. What issues are going to pop up still that could be confused with LD? What language issues? I mean, you've still got the child who's learning a second language. What are some issues a teacher might see that would cause some confusion for her?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Right. Some of the areas of inclusion do, indeed, exactly what you said. You're looking at two languages often developing either simultaneously or sequentially. And what often gets confused, and what muddles the water, there is what we see is that the students are often assessed in the second language and they may just be acquiring that second language. So second language acquisition, children go through a period of time where it's a non-verbal period where they're taking in all the information. We call it the "silent period". And sometimes that might be confused for a language disability or a learning disability when, in fact, they don't present with that difficulty in their native language and it's just a part of that second language acquisition process.

Delia: So those testing them in two languages becomes even more important there. There are a lot of challenges in this situation. What's your recommendation to well-meaning professionals who are doing the best they can with the resources they have?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, what we want to make sure that they do is actually - and I've been a proponent of Colorín Colorado and really LD On-Line - there are resources on-line. We want to make sure that they are incorporating effective practices for English language learners making sure that they really are understanding the information, scaffolding that information, being very descriptive and explicit in the instruction.

Delia: Thanks. Now we've covered the first step. Now we know they're identified as ELL with an LD. What's the next step?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, once you've really teased out, you need to make a plan. And based on the information that plan needs to be what will be the language of instruction. What often happens in schools is there's a plan possibly developed, but we don't stick to the plan. And students get moved from one model possibly trying to learn English, maybe back into Spanish. So we have to be consistent with the language of instruction and give that program model an opportunity for the students to respond. And then make the decisions along the way of how they're responding to the intervention.

Delia: I assume you're talking about an IEP, and the next question I have actually relates to that, I'm guessing most schools don't have a person who's an expert both in ELL and in developing an IEP. What do you do in that case? how do you do this without somebody that has that expertise?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: What you need to make sure of when you develop that Individualized Education Plan, you need to make sure that that plan - you know that there are certain goals and objectives that you need to meet. For an English language learner what that means is that you are looking at what other adaptations can we make. How can we make the information more comprehensible? Maybe we need to take smaller steps in getting to the goal. Maybe we need the native language as a support to reaching those goals. And so you want to keep the goals in mind. You have the same goal objectives, and the goals are in mind and in place, but you need to take into consideration that language and provide that native language support for the students so that they will understand the information that they are trying to learn.

Delia: So then what would the IEP look like? Let's take an example. Let's take a third grader newcomer who's dyslexic. What would his IEP look like?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, the IEP would certainly include the same types of effective practices for a dyslexic child in English. Those effective practices can be conducted, for example, in the native language. And what we often must keep in mind is, say the intervention. One point I do want to make is that intervention should match the language of instruction in the regular and general education classroom. So whatever you're trying to improve should match the language of instruction in that classroom. And so even in the IEP of a dyslexic student you're still going to want to work on the areas of phonological awareness and the phonics and the reading, but where you might find some differences are in the new sounds. The sounds that are not prevalent in the native language. You want to explicitly teach those in the second language. Words and word meanings that they may not have in that second language, possibly they have it in the first language. You have to look carefully at that also. They also need to learn there's much cross-linguistic relationships. And so, for example, much of the Spanish language can be adapted to English. And so learning what's similar and what's unsimilar is very important. And that needs to be pointed out to the student and included in an Individualized Education Plan.

Delia: Well, it sounds like there's a lot of overlap. What is the main difference between an IEP for a native English speaker and a student who's bilingual or just learning English?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: So the main differences, again, are teaching the similarities and the differences within the language and across languages, and making sure that that student clearly understood those new concepts and there was clearly some native language support in that instruction.

Delia: There are a lot of factors to consider here. Can a regular classroom teacher handle an ELL LD student in her classroom? Can she handle the teaching?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, what we see across America is the likelihood of our teachers being placed in a classroom where they have English language learners is increasing. And definitely they can help these students. What they know as effective practices in the classroom can work with our English language learners. But what we need to make sure of, again, is that these English language learners have that native language support, that teachers are able to help them make the connections from that first language to the second language and that they are explicitly taught the similarities and differences. In our research studies we are starting to get some nice results in actually explicitly teaching these students who struggle those similarities and those differences.

Delia: Well, as you know, most teachers in this country are monolingual in English. So even if a teacher doesn't speak the native language, are you saying that that teacher can use the native language to help the child learn English?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: What I'm saying, and I'm so glad that you brought up the point, what I'm saying is that you don't have to know the language to know the cross-linguistic relationships.

Delia: I see.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: And so looking at what's similar you can analyze languages without having to speak it. And you can do this in the English language teaching them about the structure of English and how it's similar or different to their native language.

Delia: Give us an example of that. Here's a teacher who speaks no Spanish and she's got a Spanish-speaking student in her classroom. How is she going to use that to help them learn English?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, Spanish is the easiest language actually.

Delia: Okay, let's do Russian.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Actually, Russian also. These languages are alphabetic languages. And so when the languages are alphabetic, that makes it easier for the teacher to see those shared and unshared components. For example, if you're teaching sounds and letters - and sounds, for example, in the Spanish language - many of the consonants from Spanish directly transfer to English. What would be problematic are the vowel sounds of English. Those short vowel sounds are very difficult for our English language learners, and how vowel sounds change in the context of words. And so having them understand how they change, the patterns of why they change and actually having them being able to pronounce those sounds and work with those sounds is very important, not only for reading, but also for spelling and writing.

Delia: What about day to day, more functional interactions? A lot of classroom instruction is given orally. How can you make sure a struggling ELL student is getting all the information they need from what's going on in the classroom orally?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: And you're right, there's lots of language occurring in the classroom. And what a teacher can make sure that he or she keeps in mind is making sure that: for every new concept that there's been some way to check that student's background knowledge. Often the students that are English language learners need even basic vocabulary words that they might not understand, or even the academic vocabulary words. Having visuals, and actually having them engage and do hands-on activities, total physical response, all of that helps our students. Plus, having lots of repetition, rehearsal and practice. That helps our English language learners very much.

Delia: Is instruction for these kids different or is it just plain old good teaching? Are there specific effective methods that a teacher should be using that are different than she would use for other students?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Actually, there are effective practices for monolingual English speakers and our English language learners. So, indeed, you want to explicitly go through each of the steps of what they are learning. You need to recheck to make sure that it was understandable, that they comprehended.

And then you want to have them have lots of practice. But our English language learners need much modeling and our teachers need to be expert models for these students and help them along the way. They must also make sure that the students feel comfortable in trying and in attempting this new language. What happens to our English language learners is, they are working on learning the new language while also trying to learn new content. So it's twice the cognitive work - learning the language and learning the content and the language of that content area.

Delia: So it's good teaching, plus. How can technology help in that?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, technology... For example, you can get books on tape. It's very important also for our students to be able to pronounce the words and the sounds correctly. So you can have books on tape exist for these students. And those kinds of materials can be resources. Again, you have resources in Colorín Colorado, which, I use those resources. For example, the cognates. And, you know, 60% of the English language comes from Spanish. And, you know, having the children be aware that can help their vocabulary and for them to increase that vocabulary in their second language.

Delia: In our staffing patterns today we often have specialists for ELL students and specialists who provide support for the LD student, and then you've got the regular classroom teacher. How can you coordinate the functions of those three? What's the best thing, or how can a classroom teacher today coordinate with both the LD specialist and the ELL specialist to make sure that struggling reader with LD is getting all the good instruction they need in the classroom?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: It is extremely important for these key specialists to work together, to make that plan together. It doesn't make sense for our teacher that's in the regular education classroom to be doing something totally different than the specialist (maybe the reading specialist or the, you know, resource teacher, what have you). What we need to make sure is that plan is working very nicely and when the students are getting these extra services, that those services compliment the instruction that's happening in that general education classroom. So getting together, having those meetings, keeping in constant communication regarding this process - for the student to achieve language, to achieve literacy, to achieve that academic language - is crucial and a must for our teachers and specialists in schools.

Delia: Well, as you know, our classrooms are fairly large. We have 25 to 30 kids in classrooms all across this country, and teachers have to respond to all 30 of those kids. How does that teacher make sure that the ELL LD student in her classroom is getting all the support he or she needs, at the same time she's not slighting the other students or she's giving everybody their full instruction? How does that happen for one teacher?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: And it can happen. And what needs to happen is: we know that even young children, as early even as kindergarten, are very good at what we call the "peer-assisted learning." And what can be done is differentiating that instruction. What that means for the teacher - and how this looks in the classroom - is the teacher could have small groups or the students could be paired together. And what that does is it, when you pair someone that has more English language skills than someone who has less, when they're interacting they're serving as models for each other. And it helps not only the monolingual English speaker but certainly our English language learner as they hear excellent models. And so here when you pair students together ,or get these small groups working together, you have more children on-task, using the language, addressing the content of what they're supposed to be learning. And the teacher can move around the room from small group to small group, or from small partner to small partner, checking and making sure that each understands their roles and that everyone is getting an opportunity to engage and to learn.

Delia: Well, does this happen spontaneously as you go through your day or do teachers have to do a lot of up-front work to get to the point that you describe?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, actually, in classrooms that we've been working in, what you see is: early on those routines are established and the roles are established. And even these little children are able to take those roles very seriously. What you see is they start to help one another. And what's very nice is, yes, the teacher has to up front give them clear directions. But then this becomes very routine, so as part of the lesson the children expect it. And when the teacher doesn't put them into partners or small groups, they're like, "Hey, it's partner time." "What happened today, teacher?" And you actually see the students saying, "We want our partner time. We want our opportunity to work in a small group".

Delia: So the teacher's built that into her lesson plan. She's thought about this ahead of time.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Yes. And what we know about that small group work is it is extremely effective. Students are more apt to respond and engage in language and conversation when it's a small group rather than doing it in a large group, say of a classroom of 22 students. That can be quite intimidating. So this gives all the children those opportunities. And those students, those ELL students, are more apt to respond in that small group instruction.

Delia: You know, Dr. Hagan, when you were describing assessment earlier, you talked about taking into account the cultural and social and educational background of a student when you were doing this assessment. How do you take that information and use it on a day-to-day basis?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, very important in the classroom. We continually need to check to make sure that the students really understand even basic words. We've been quite amazed that there are some common words that students don't understand while also challenging them with the higher level vocabulary.

So it's making sure-giving them the opportunity to practice these new words. We know children need many practices, like maybe 12 exposures to a word before they actually know that word. So we want them to use that word. What's also important is for them to check for the understanding.

Go back and check. Give em that rehearsal, that repetition and make sure that the student clearly understood. And if they didn't, then you scaffold and you go back and put it into smaller steps.

Delia: I think our teachers probably have more experience taking into account language differences but when it comes to culture and social background, can you give us an example of how those differences might play out in the classroom?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: I can remember a few examples. I can even remember in a classroom where the teacher was talking about a dishwasher and the students... You know, that would have been something you thought that they understood but they had not had that experience of a dishwasher.

And so the teacher very quickly related it. She knew that across the street from the school there was a washateria (ph.) and she said, "That dishwasher is just like that washing machine except it washes dishes automatically". I'm an English language learner myself and I remember, for example, an egg, you know, simple uses of an egg.

You know, you can make scrambled eggs. But for me that egg has a different meaning. As a young girl, I knew my grandmother would get an egg and make sure that that egg - it was kind of folklore - she would rub it against us and say that that would cure us of all evils and ailments, what have you.

Delia: Las curitas.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Exactamente. And so, you know, egg, to me, has a different connotation than it would to a typical probably monolingual English speaker. And so we need to become aware of the different cultures, the different routines and bring in that culture and those routines into the classrooms.

And then students will get so engaged and be willing to share their culture and some of the ways that they celebrate their special days or special celebrations.

Delia: Well, say a teacher is doing all of this. She's using the native language, following the IEP, providing intensive instruction, incorporating culture. How can she be sure that the student is improving?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: It's a must to ensure that. And what we want teachers to do very clearly is to have progress monitoring tools that are related to the content of what they're teaching, and do this very often (every week or every two weeks) to make sure that the students are understanding.

We want our teachers to be diagnostic and prescriptive in their teaching. So everyday whatever a child gives you, that informs the teacher how can I adjust that instruction to ensure that the student has learned. So those progress monitoring tools are important not because they're required by school districts but because they help you and inform your instruction.

Delia: What are some resources or are resources available that would help a teacher who has an ELL LD student in their classroom?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: We've been doing lots of research in this area and there are websites in which you can look at some of these new tools. The Department of Education, the Institute of Education Sciences and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development actually sponsored much research, especially for our English language learners.

And you can get some of that information from the Center for Applied Linguistics right here in Washington, D.C. And that website is www.cal.org.

Delia: Good memory. I'm sorry.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: That is a good memory because I often go back to make sure, okay, here are some tools that teachers can use and it tells you what's available to this point in time. So we're lucky that these tools are now being developed. We need more of these tools, but there are some that exist at this point in time that they can use quite effectively with English language learners.

Delia: Thank you, Dr. Hagan. And I stepped on that last piece that Dr. Hagan gave us, which is the website. It's www.cal.org. Thank you. One resource we haven't discussed is parents. We've got a video clip from a school in Chicago, Rachel Carson Elementary. What they're doing is some innovative things to get parents involved with the kids.

Now the kids you'll see here don't have learning disabilities but we think the strategies you'll see can apply very broadly. Let's take a look.

Video

Narrator: Principal Kathy Maher learned early on that one key to teaching young readers successfully is getting parents involved.

Kathy Mayer: To get parents into a school one of the first things you have to think about is what would appeal to the family. What would you want to see for your own child?

Dr. Claude Goldenberg: Parents who come from other countries obviously aren't quite sure what the rules of the road are with respect to U.S. schools. So they might be reluctant to be assertive or aggressive as far as finding out information. But they care very much about their children's education.

Narrator: Angelica Torres is the parent of three kids at Rachel Carson Elementary School in Chicago. At first she was skeptical about getting involved.

Angelica Torres: I said, "Well, I wanna get into it to see what happens. If I don't like it, I just get out and that's it".

Narrator: She liked it. Now she's a dedicated parent volunteer and she's part of a concerted effort to make parents partners in their child's education.

Dr. Claude Goldenberg: Not only are the parents very motivated but they're also, in most cases, competent, at least at the beginning levels, to help their children acquire beginning literacy skills.

Narrator: Rachel Carson Elementary has partnered with a family literacy project at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The program trains Latino parents with limited English to become literacy models for their children at home.

Dr. Emma Violand-Sánchez: Unfortunately, many immigrant parents who do not speak English feel that they cannot help their children because they don't speak English. When I talk to parents, I always say, "The language that your child speak and the language that you speak is a resource". I think that talking to the child continuing to develop their oral language in their native language, it is important.

Narrator: Today's session is about vowels. The group learns fun, engaging ways to teach their kids letters and sounds.

Angelica Torres: The literacy classes are real good. You know, they teach you how to teach your kids the alphabet, how to read to them. Once you go one time and you learn things to help out your kids, you know that you're doing something good.

Narrator: Now Angelica gets to put into action what she learned.

Narrator: At first Angelica's son didn't like reading but she found out how to change that.

Angelica Torres: Instead of telling him, "You have to read. You have to read", they told me, you know, "You read to him so he get, you know, excited about it". You read one page, he reads one page. And I used to tell him, "Don't read those Clifford books because they're for kindergarten kids." And those are the ones he likes to read. So they told me, "It's a good idea if you let him read those. It doesn't matter what he's reading. He's reading something."

Studio

Delia: That was an interesting clip. In the clip Dr. Violand-Sánchez talked about language as a barrier for some parents. How can parents who don't speak English themselves help their children become strong readers?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, it's absolutely necessary. We know so much about reading depends on language and language is cheap and doesn't cost money. So what we want to make sure is that parents are telling the stories of their lives, they're working with words.

Some parents will say, "I'm not literate so how can I help my own child?" But, indeed, you can even get a book and look at the pictures and tell the student the story, having them retell the story to you. Some schools are actually having adult literacy classes for our parents which has been very, very helpful.

But just incorporating language. Going to the library. There are lots of community libraries. Some of the school libraries are staying open. Getting that book, taking that book home, going through the book, having the student try - their own child try to read the book and then to talk about what they think it's about would be excellent.

And a lot of families and different cultures are known for their storytelling abilities. Those storytelling abilities are very rich in language and you must have language and rich words and rich vocabulary to end up having high levels of reading comprehension. So I always tell families, "Talk to your children".

If you can, read to them. Have them read to you. Go to library. There's lots of story times there. Lots of schools also provide after-school classes, not only for families but also for the students themselves.

Delia: Well, you described so many resources a parent has and many parents have. But in the clip (Unint.) seemed reluctant at first to go to the school. You know, what are some of the reasons that a parent of an ELL student might be hesitant or reluctant to come to the school?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: It's very intimidating to go to a school if you do not speak the language of the school. In many cultures the teacher and the school personnel are held in the highest esteem and it's very intimidating when you don't know the language. So teachers and school leaders need to engage our families.

For our families it was always, okay, they're gonna have what we call "pondosa" (ph.), the little sweet bread, or they're gonna have a coffee, and maybe even doing it in some small session, small group sessions. What you also find is usually one of those brave parents that have come to the school and have them be the leader in getting their other parents from the neighborhood into the school.

Some schools have parent resource centers where they can feel free to come throughout the day and they can learn, as you saw in this video clip, about how to help their children. And those are less intimidating. The other thing is making sure that we're communicating in their language.

A lot of times families don't come to the school because they weren't aware that there was even a meeting because the information was not communicated to them via their own language that they can understand.

Delia: You've made a clear case for why it's so important for parents of an LD student to be involved in their child's schooling. But even English-speaking parents of LD kids face a lot of challenges when they talk about developing an IEP, making sure their kids are being supported appropriately.

What about the parent of an LD child who's also ELL? What can schools do to help them get more involved and help them get the services and to come to school?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Right. You can imagine how intimidating it is to come to a special education meeting whereby all these professionals are there to tell you about your own child and all the work that needs to be done and all the objectives that need to be met.

But actually including the family in that process, letting them know, "This is gonna be okay. We're gonna take it step by step and here are some of the things you can do in your home that will also help", and also leaving that open-door policy of them being able to come to ask questions and frequent meetings with these families on how they can better help their student in the home and also some additional community sources that may be available, especially during the summertime because we wanna make sure our English language learners are not having a dip in the summertime, because we often see that between May and the fall students also take a dip in their learning and so we want to keep them active.

And that would be a perfect time for the parents of our English language learners, especially those who have learning disabilities, to keep those students engaged and providing them with learning opportunities in their home and in their community, as well as possibly in the school.

Delia: Now we seem to be doing a better job in our schools of recognizing and honoring the cultural and linguistic differences of kids, but we sometimes forget that their parents also have these linguistic and cultural differences. How do we honor that for parents in working with them?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: We also need to learn more about the interactions with parents, what they feel comfortable doing, how verbal they feel and how you talk to them. For many parents sometimes as English speakers we're very direct in our communication styles, where in other cultures the communication style is not as direct.

And so learning about those communication styles, learning about how parents can best feel comfortable in engaging, and then providing the families also with some resources. There's many community resources on helping these families identify and learn also that second language.

These students have a better chance if their family member and if English is spoken in the home so that they have some models in the home. And if they don't, then you find other community members that can provide those models for the students.

Delia: How do you take into account the literacy levels of parents?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: What happens with our parents is quite interesting. In one of the studies we looked and saw, you know, for some of them, they did have literacy skills and for others they had limited literacy skills.

And so, again, what we were encouraging them was to engage in some adult literacy courses, to actually come to the schools as you saw in the clip working with families that even though you're not literate there's some activities that you can do that have minimal literacy requirements that you can engage your children that will help them in their literacy.

But I think it would be most helpful for the parents of our students to have those opportunities themselves to become literate so that they can, in turn, help their students and their children, their loved ones in their home.

Delia: And you mentioned this for kids, but what about for parents? Are we talking about native language literacy and native language activities for them?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Actually, we've been looking at that very closely and, yes, indeed. Actually, when you look at adult literacy models, we don't see that we've been as successful, and part of not being successful is probably because there hasn't been enough native language support in those adult literacy programs.

And, actually, we would like to start looking at that, making sure that the same kinds of effective strategies that we're learning about for our English language learners as students, that we should be applying and looking at how that applies to our adults, our parents.

And so looking at that native language support certainly seems a direction that we must take so we'll have more success in those adult literacy programs.

Delia: Okay, that's a lot. So let's step back so we can look at the big picture. What sort of academic success are we going to expect from ELL LD kids and how does that compare with the success of native English speakers with LD?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: You know, what we want is we want to look at every child as an individual. And what we expect from that child is that they are responding to the intervention. And so, as we mentioned before, that close monitoring is extremely important because that's gonna tell us how we need to adapt our instruction to give to these students.

And so for our English language learners we have to closely monitor it, and I would recommend that if that monitoring fits the intervention, the language that you're intervening in, but also looking at that native language and seeing how that's progressing and how we might be able to use that to continue that trajectory.

And what we are finding is we haven't done a very good job of following our English language learners who are referred to special education services. That we need to do a better job of looking at those that stayed within the general education model and those that received special education services, but also looking at what service delivery models were implemented and what was the language of instruction.

That, to me, seems like a future direction to really know what are we doing, what works best for what child and for how long to better inform our practitioners. So a lot of work still needs to be done in that area.

Delia: You know, you work in this field everyday and probably have lots of ideas about what the next steps might be. You talked about some future work. What about for the rest of us that don't work in the field everyday. What are some future steps in this field?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Some future steps surely include designing even better assessment tools to make sure that we've covered every aspect of language and literacy and learning that we possibly can. What also needs to be done is to look at the accommodations that we give our English language learners to see, well, how effective are those really, and especially the accommodations that we give not only for instruction but for assessment.

What we also need to look at and what we have been looking at is we know that our English language learners can respond to effective interventions. There have been studies that clearly demonstrate that our English language learners can make progress with interventions.

And looking at them, whether those interventions we've looked at in their native language and in their second language. But if we have good programs and good intervention models, the students respond. What we need more of and need to figure out how to do even more effectively is academic language skills - higher level critical thinking, having the language and the vocabulary and content area literacy.

Understanding and helping our teachers who teach in the content area such as science and social studies and math that there is language and literacy opportunities in every one of those subjects, and that we can help our English language learners develop an academic language, an academic vocabulary, and that we are all instructors of language and literacy.

Delia: You know, in light of the difficulties in assessing these kids and in light of the challenges that you just described in teaching these children, it seems to me that it's gonna be very easy to overlook their needs, their ELL and their LD. And it seems sometimes like a huge challenge so it's easier to overlook them.

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Uh huh.

Delia: Why is it so important that we not overlook them in our schools?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: What I tell folks is we know that our future is gonna depend on our English language learners when we look at what the demographics of the United States are looking like. It'll be very common for most teachers to be exposed to English language learners.

We wanna make sure that all our students are successful because they are our future. They are the future of, you know, the doctors and the lawyers and the ambulance drivers. They are our future teachers. And so we need to make sure that we have provided them with the best education so that they will achieve their academic goals and then turn around and contribute back to their communities and make a difference in their communities.

They are our future and the success of our United States.

Delia: That's a lofty goal and a good one. Any final thoughts on how we carry it out or what else we have to do to make sure we get there?

Dr. Cárdenas-Hagan: Well, again, I think it's very important to follow these children carefully, to look at the language of instruction, to make sure that when we're making decisions those decisions are based upon the data that you collected, the data-good, sound data to say, "This is how this student should be instructed. This is the language of instruction", and not switching the plan in the middle, maybe doing some adaptations to that plan.

But what happens to our English language learners, again, is that they are switched from one language to the next and there's not consistency across those languages. And making sure that we are providing them with the opportunities for learning, you know, not only the social language skills but those academic language skills, and learning those higher level comprehensive skills, higher level vocabulary.

That's where our future will be, in looking at comprehension, vocabulary, academic language.

Delia: Dr. Hagan, thank you so much for talking with us today and for giving us all that good information, and for the passion you seem to have for your work. It's a model for all of us, I believe. And thank you for watching. For more information about teaching English language learners to read and how to reach out to their families, please visit our website, colorincolorado.org

On the main page for this webcast you'll find recommended readings, discussion questions and more. I'm Delia Pompa. Thank you for joining us.

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English Language Learners with Learning Disabilities

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Delia Pompa: How do we recognize learning disabilities in English language learners? How can we help them become strong readers? I'm Delia Pompa. Please join me for our next Colorín Colorado webcast, "English Language Learners with LD."

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Techniques for Engaging English Language Learners

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Techniques for Engaging English Language Learners

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Valentina Gonzalez with ELL students.

A new school year is almost here, and a new group of students will soon arrive-including many English language learners (ELLs) at varying ages and levels of language acquisition. As educators well know, kids and teens who are learning English as a second or additional language and new content at the same time need extra support.

During my 20-plus years in teaching, I refined four powerful instructional strategies that help give ELL students the tools they need to succeed in school-and as lifelong learners. They are designed to be woven into daily instruction across content areas from pre-K to 12th grade.

Make input comprehensible

Let's say you went to China and sat in a classroom listening to a teacher speak Mandarin all day. You don't know Mandarin. Would you be able to follow along?

The way we deliver information is key to how students receive it. We could stand in front of students all day long and lecture, or use PowerPoint, and be completely ineffective. In order to make content comprehensible, we use techniques that allow listeners to access the language. There are many ways to do this with students.

Using gestures while lecturing or reading a book, repetition, and paraphrasing are a few examples. At the beginning level of proficiency, ELLs benefit from measured speech, which helps them make distinctions between words. Using clear, explicit language when speaking is also important, while adding extra fluff or figurative language can hinder comprehension.

Total physical response (TPR), developed by James Asher, professor emeritus of psychology at San José State University, teaches language by incorporating physical movement. This simple yet powerful instructional strategy effectively boosts vocabulary development. Adding movement to critical vocabulary also helps students internalize meaning.

For instance, if the word producer is important for students to grasp, the teacher might write the word, have students repeat it multiple times, provide a short definition, and ask them to work in groups to come up with a physical movement to represent the term. The use of multiple modalities (kinesthetic, visual, and verbal) lifts the level of comprehension and recall. The word tree might be accompanied by a gesture using arms and fingers to demonstrate what a tree looks like.

Model for your students

If we truly want our students to hit the target, we have to show them what the target is. Model what we expect. Often, when educators feel the pressure of too much curriculum to cover, modeling drops off the lesson plan. But it's essential to a successful outcome.

One way to model is to think aloud, a strategy that works across content areas and supports all learners. This is practiced most frequently in the English language arts setting when teachers model during a read-aloud. In math, we can demonstrate how to problem-solve or read a word problem. In science, we can model how to write a hypothesis or begin an experiment. We model how to select an appropriate book in the library or how to help a friend who has a problem.

Modeling is especially important for ELLs: learning language and content simultaneously, these students are bombarded with information all day. Helping them concentrate on what's important gives them a learning focus and helps them feel successful.

For instance, the teacher might say while holding a book, "I notice that this book has pictures, and each picture has writing beneath it. I also see that there is a time line in this book as well as a few graphs and charts. I'm beginning to think that this book is going to teach me something. The text structure tells me that it may be a nonfiction book."

When modeling, be clear and explicit with instructions. Breaking down activities or assignments into steps is essential. Here's an example for elementary students who are in the process of writing about a picture: "Step one: Look at the picture. Step two: Think. What else can I say that I haven't written about? Step three: Try to add more words."

Provide students with attainable steps. Using a gradual release model of teaching- show them, help them, let them do it themselves -allows all students to feel independent and successful.

During the "show them" phase, the teacher models while thinking aloud about the process taking place and records it on an anchor chart-a poster that highlights strategies students can refer to later if they need support. The "help them" phase, which should be repeated multiple times, is carried out with partners or in groups: students work together and lean on one another while learning. During the final phase, students work on their own but refer to the anchor charts and to the teacher if they need assistance. Throughout, the educator is there to facilitate, formatively assess, and offer feedback.

English language learners working
together in a small group.

Use visuals

Mountains of research have shown that visuals aid comprehension and promote recall. When we show vibrant pictures, sketches, and real items (realia) to students learning new vocabulary, they are more apt to comprehend, store, and recall it when they need it.

Have you ever walked into a classroom on the first day of school and the walls are filled with posters and charts? You might think, "Wow, this environment is perfect for learning to begin."

On the contrary, a classroom with empty walls on the first day may support some learners better, especially ELLs. Why? When we create anchor charts with students, involving them in the process, they are more likely to internalize the information.

When I was a first-year teacher, I prepared my entire room before school started. I soon learned that my pre-filled walls were often ineffective unless kids interacted with them meaningfully. Now, my walls grow with the children. That doesn't mean that everything has to be created in the presence of or by students. It means that if we have something on our walls, we need to tell our students why it's there and how it's relevant. Otherwise, why put it up? The way we use and display word walls can transform our students' vocabulary comprehension.

The first classroom word wall I created was also organized alphabetically. Now, I organize them thematically or according to a teaching unit, and they are structured like graphic organizers or concept maps. Students interact with them and help create the words.

For instance, if I were teaching a unit about energy, my word wall might be titled "Forms of Energy." Beneath that, I would create columns. As we learn, students are encouraged to draw and/or label types of energy-heat, sound, light, etc.-and place them in the correct column.

Hallmarks of ELL Education

If you walk into a classroom that is highly supportive of ELLs, you might see desks in groups or flexible arrangements, allowing students to work together, rather than studying in isolation at desks arranged in rows. Looking around, you will notice anchor charts that have been made by teachers and students, rather than bought in a store. This room is immersed in language that is supported by visual scaffolds.

Close your eyes...and listen. A place that nurtures ELL students encourages risk-taking and allows students to feel safe to ask, answer, and discuss questions with classmates. You won't hear the teacher praising a quiet class-rather, teachers praise discussion and collaboration. There's an understanding that the goal is teaching students to think creatively, rather than to recall and regurgitate answers.

Make output comprehensible

English language learners need to practice the new language in a low-stress environment. Speaking and writing in English in a safe space is critical for their progress.

Output can be categorized in two groups: speaking and writing. One way to maximize speaking is to create opportunities for students to work in cooperative groups. These offer smaller settings where students can problem-solve and think critically while interacting with a heterogeneous mix of peers.

Various cooperative grouping structures include "think-pair-share" and "inside/outside circle." In the think-pair-share method of student interaction, the teacher asks a question and allows students time to think about it, then students pair up and share their answers. In the inside/outside circle method, a discussion technique introduced by educational researcher and author Spencer Kagan, students position themselves in two concentric circles. The teacher poses a question, allowing for think time. In pairs, students from each circle share answers. Upon a signal, one circle rotates, and students share with new partners. Both of these cooperative grouping structures provide students with a low-stress opportunity to express themselves.

Some students also benefit from sentence stems, which are prompts to start a sentence that the student must complete, and word banks, lists of words, during cooperative groups. Word banks are especially helpful to students who are learning and writing with new, content-specific vocabulary. Paragraph frames, which are skeleton outlines supplying sentence stems and transition words, also support those at beginning and intermediate language levels.

It's vital that ELLs have opportunities to practice oral and written language in all content areas. Writing and speaking in math, science, and social studies differs from writing and speaking in language arts. The domain-specific vocabulary needed to write about a science experiment, for example, and the structure of that type of writing are unique.

These have proven to be my tried-and-true teaching strategies. What are yours? Let me know in the comments section online: slj.com/Teaching_ELLs.

Valentina Gonzalez (@ValentinaESL) is a professional development specialist for elementary ESL in Katy, TX. Visit her blog.

The ESL/ELL Teacher's Survival Guide: Ready-to-Use Strategies, Tool, and Activities for Teaching English Language Learners of all Levels by Larry Ferlazzo and Katie Hull-Sypenieski (Jossey-Bass, 2012)

Making Content Comprehensible for English Learners: the SIOP Model by Janna Echevaria, MaryEllen Vogt and Deborah Short (Christopher-Gordon, 2000)

Reading to Learn for ELs: Motivation Practices and Comprehension Strategies for Informational Texts by Ana M. Taboada Barber, ed. Nell K. Duke (Heinemann, 2016)

Research-based Strategies for English Language Learners: How to Reach Goals and Meet Standards, K-8 by Denise M. Rea, Sandra P. Mercuri (Heinemann, 2006)

Supporting English Learners in the Reading Workshop by Lindsey Moses (Heinemann, 2015)

7 Steps to a Language-Rich Interactive Classroom by John Seidlitz and Bill. Perryman (canter, 2010)

Colorin Colorado his website provides a wealth of resources including articles, activities, and advice for educators of ELLs.

The Teaching Channel is a great place to find videos of real teachers and students working in classrooms using various instructional techniques.

Common Lit offers free instructional materials. Teachers can create classes and assign adapted texts to their students.

CultofPedagogy.com Librarian and educator Jennifer Gonzalez offers research-based, easy-to-read information for teachers.

Newsela provides highly engaging, adapted reading materials in all content areas as well as a means to track student progress.

larryferlazzo.edublogs.org Author and high school teacher Larry Ferlazzo's blog is a wealth of ELL resources.

EmpoweringElls.com Tan Huynh, a high school ESL teacher working abroad, shared strategies.

Twitter ELL Eduheros to follow

@emilyfranESL ESL teacher Emily Francis

@Larryferlazzo Blogger, author, and educator Larry Ferlazzo

@MsSalvac ESL consultant and author Carol Salva

ELL educator Tan Huynh

@Toppel_ELD Elementary English language development specialist Katie Toppel

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Four Surefire Techniques for Engaging English Language Learners

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A veteran educator shares her most successful teaching methods and favorite resources.

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Phonemic Inventories & Cultural and Linguistic Information Across Languages

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Phonemic Inventories & Cultural and Linguistic Information Across Languages

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Languages across the world have unique phonemic systems. For individuals learning English as a second language, it is common for the phonemic system of their first language to influence the production of sounds in English.

Resources listed below are intended to contribute to foundational awareness of potential cultural and linguistic influences. There are variations within cultures, and regional and dialectal variances exist in all languages. Therefore, a single chart/page on cultural and/or linguistic features is not meant to provide a comprehensive overview. Clinical judgment, client/patient/student and caregiver input, and additional research are needed to ensure culturally responsive services.

How Can I Use This Information?

Speech-language pathologists can use this information to:

Identify sounds in a client's phonological system for languages other than English.

Determine phonemic influences of a client's native language on English.

Identify sounds from the client's first language that may not exist in English or identify sounds in English that do not exist in someone's native language.

Recognize that even if there are similar sounds across two languages, they may not be used the same way. For example, in some languages a sound may only be used at the ends of words and not as a word-initial sound.

Audiologists can use this information to:

Correlate the client's audiogram and the sounds of the client's language(s).

Recognize and respond to amplification needs.

Identify the effect of the individual's phonemic system on speech audiometry assessment.

Modify materials and procedures during speech audiometry assessment.

Phonemic Inventories and Cultural and Linguistic Information

ASHA has compiled resources on the phonemic systems for the following languages:

Amharic

Arabic

Bosnian

Burmese

Chinese

English

English Phonemic Inventory [PDF]
Dialect
Haitian Creole

Hindi/Urdu

Hmong

Japanese

Korean

Navajo

Pashto and Persian

Polish

Russian

Spanish

Somali

Somali (Portland State University)

Tagalog

Vietnamese

Refugee Profiles/Information
ASHA's policy documents state that SLPs and audiologists must consider the sound systems of all the languages used by a client in order to provide appropriate assessment and treatment services.
Websites with Phonemic Inventories

If you have any questions, please contact ASHA's Office of Multicultural Affairs at multicultural@asha.org.

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Phonemic Inventories and Cultural and Linguistic Information Across Languages

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A list of phonemic inventories across multiple languages

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What's Happening

Announcements on this page are generally from the Department of Education's Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA), or other relevant government agencies and offices, about concerns facing multilingual learner education.

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Home | NCELA - English Language Acquisition & Language Instruction Educational Programs

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Announcements on this page are generally from the Department of Education's Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA), or other relevant government agencies and offices, about concerns facing multilingual learner education.

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Free, online multilingual picture dictionary with interactive activities for English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and ESL learners.

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English language learners (ELLs) often have problems mastering science, math, or social studies concepts because they cannot comprehend the textbooks for these subjects. ELLs at all levels of English proficiency, and literacy, will benefit from explicit instruction of comprehension skills along with other skills.

Examples of comprehension skills that can be taught and applied to all reading situations include:

Summarizing

Sequencing

Inferencing

Comparing and contrasting

Drawing conclusions

Self-questioning

Problem-solving

Relating background knowledge

Distinguishing between fact and opinion

Finding the main idea, important facts, and supporting details

These skills are particularly important for comprehending what is generally known as information reading or expository reading.

For more information, see our related articles and classroom videos:

Why reading comprehension skills are particularly important for ELLs

ELL students will still need a lot of vocabulary development and teaching of comprehension strategies even if they:

have been mainstreamed after some bilingual instruction;

are being pulled out for English as a Second Language or Sheltered English instruction; and/or

have been assessed as English proficient but you know that they still need additional help with language, reading, and writing.

Here is a way of thinking about the support your ELLs will need:

Classroom strategies: Steps for explicitly teaching comprehension skills

The following steps are useful for all students. However, these need to be complemented with the additional steps below to ensure comprehension for ELLs.

Introduce the comprehension strategy or skill (see above list) through examples. Discuss how, when, where, and why the strategy or skills are used. For example: contrast main idea with details, fact with opinion, good summaries with poor summaries.

Have students volunteer additional examples to contrast and discuss.

Label, define, model, and explain the strategy or skill. For example, after listing four facts about a healthy diet and four opinions about what is good to eat, label one list as facts and the other list as opinions.

Give students opportunities to practice using the strategy with a peer as they apply it to a short, simple paragraph from a science text or any expository text.

Debrief with the whole class to ask students to share how they applied the strategy or skill.

Additional steps for ELLs

Identify vocabulary words that you think might be difficult for students to understand when they read the text. Write ELL-friendly definitions for each - that is, simple, brief definitions ELLs can easily understand.

Model think-alouds. For example: verbalize a confusing point or show how you use a strategy to comprehend something. "This sounds very confusing to me. I better read this sentence again."

Demonstrate fix-up strategies. For example: I need to think about this. Let me rethink what was happening. Maybe I'll reread this. I'll read ahead for a moment.

Partner ELLs with more dominant English speakers and ask each student to take a turn reading and thinking aloud with short passages.

After working with partners successfully, ask ELLs to practice independently by using a checklist such as the following. Be sure to explain all the terms and model each.
While I was reading, how did I do?

Celebrate each ELLs' progress with recognition notes, praise, and/or class applause.

For advanced ELLs

When students' English proficiency and basic reading skills have increased, you can teach the following steps not just to ELLs, but to all students - because everyone will benefit.

In pairs, have students survey the text and use an idea map to record the main idea and details.

Ask partners to read the text.

Have partners restate the main idea and supporting details. At this point, they can add to their idea map or make necessary corrections.

Then ask students to reread the text and either develop their own questions (pretending to prepare a test for their partner) or write a short summary of what they just read.

After that, have partners check each other's work.

Finally, partners can share their questions or summaries with other teams.

Other ideas

For building ELL comprehension

Teach students how to use these tools for informational or expository reading:

Ask students to use the following strategies to summarize (orally or in writing):

Retell what you read, but keep it short.

Include only important information.

Leave out less important details.

Use key words from the text.

Questioning ELLs after reading

After the ELLs and/or whole class have completed the reading comprehension activities above, you can anchor or test their comprehension with carefully crafted questions, taking care to use simple sentences and key vocabulary from the text they just read.

These questions can be at the:

Literal level (Why do the leaves turn red and yellow in the fall?)

Interpretive level (Why do you think it needs water?)

Applied level (How much water are you going to give it? Why?)

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Reading Comprehension Skills for English Language Learners

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English language learners (ELLs) often have problems mastering science, math, or social studies concepts because they cannot comprehend the textbooks for these subjects. ELLs at all levels of English proficiency, and literacy, will benefit from explicit instruction of comprehension skills along with other skills.

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The “bilingual brain” and reading research: Questions about teaching English Learners to read in English

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Controversies over how best to teach children to read go back many years. Most recently, two questions have emerged that leave teachers of English Learners puzzled:First, does research on reading, sometimes referred to as “the science of reading,” include English Learners, or is it based solely on E…

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Dr. Cardenas-Hagan: Video What Do We Need to Do to Support Our Multilingual Learners?

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Dr. Cardenas-Hagan: Video What Do We Need to Do to Support Our Multilingual Learners?

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Dr Elsa Cardenas-Hagan - What Do We Need to Do to Support Our Multilingual Learners?

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Tech giants Google, Microsoft and Facebook are all applying the lessons of machine learning to translation, but a small company called DeepL has outdone them all and raised the bar for the field.
Its translation tool is just as quick as the outsized competition, but more accurate and nuanced than any we've tried.

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DeepL Translate: The world's most accurate translator

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Translate texts & full document files instantly. Accurate translations for individuals and Teams. Millions translate with DeepL every day.

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Use our Book Finder tool to create your own customized list of fiction and nonfiction books. Search through more than 5,000 books on Reading Rockets - by author, illustrator, age, genre, format, and topic. Book Finder also makes it easy to discover diverse titles.

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Many young readers are drawn to graphic novels, with their vivid illustrations and turn-the-page pacing. Here are some of our favorite graphic novels that feature stories and characters from different cultures and countries around the world. You'll also find memoirs and other narrative nonfiction, told in new ways through the graphic format.

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More than 100 carefully selected lists of multicultural and social justice books for children, young adults, and educators. When you find a book at this site, please purchase it here. Our titles are linked to Bookshop. A portion of your book purchase helps sustain our work. New Releases Activism and Organizing Africa Afro-Latinx American Indians Arabs […]

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In a vibrant, multicultural society, representing the richness of students' lives in a class or school library takes a conscious effort. Including writers and fictional characters with a variety of backgrounds, beliefs, and life circumstances is a way to increase the chances that students will find, to use the metaphor that Rudine Sims Bishop popularized, both windows and mirrors in the library-books that reflect their lives, and ones that give them insight into the lives and experiences of people who aren't like them.

No book shelf is going to represent the fullness of this nation. From the descendants of people who arrived here more than 15,000 years ago to the newest immigrants, we're simply too much. But the inclusive set of books below-many of which were recommended by multiple teachers-span all grade and Lexile levels up to 1140L, and include award winners and best sellers, books that have stood the test of time and newer options. We hope they reflect human diversity in the broadest sense, addressing race and ethnicity, religion, sexual identity, socioeconomic status, and other special circumstances.

Grades pre-K to 2

Deena Misses Her Mom
Deena is a formerly well-behaved girl who has been lashing out in school ever since her mom was sent to jail. Deena's story-sensitively illustrated by Leslie Jindalay Pyo-was written by high school students Jonae Haynesworth, Jesse Holmes, Layonnie Jones, and Kahliya Ruffin to reflect the lives of the children they were tutoring in Washington, DC. Parental imprisonment is a shockingly common occurrence in America: More than 5 million children in the U.S. have had at least one parent in jail.

Grades 3 to 5

Grades 6 to 8

The Arrival
A sepia-toned marvel, The Arrival conveys in images-there is no dialogue-a man's journey from his troubled home country to a new one. Artist Shaun Tan places the reader in the immigrant's shoes by using an invented alphabet on the signs in the strange new world he enters-the language is as impenetrable to the reader as it is to the protagonist.

Ghost
A National Book Award finalist, Jason Reynolds's Ghost is the story of an African American middle school runner with the talent to qualify for the Junior Olympics-if he can learn to control his temper. Money is tight and his father is in jail, and Ghost has been having a lot of what he calls "altercations." This is the first in a series of books about the members of a track team.

George
George is a transgender fourth grader who wants to try out for the lead role in the school production of Charlotte's Web so that her mother will see her as a girl. Alex Gino presents George's struggles with both bullying and the painful reassurance that she will "turn into a fine young man." George won a Stonewall Book Award-and made the American Library Association's 10 Most Challenged Books list in 2016 and 2017.

Grades 9 to 12

Bless Me, Ultima
A classic of Latino literature, Rudolfo Anaya's coming-of-age tale is an exploration of faith-Antonio, the young protagonist, makes his First Communion in the Catholic Church but also finds a spiritual guide in Ultima, an elderly curandera, or healer, who helps him explore indigenous traditions of New Mexico.

The Hate U Give
Angie Thomas's debut novel was a sensation when it was published in 2017, remaining on The New York Times best-seller list for 50 weeks. It centers on the killing of an unarmed black teen by a white police officer, a shooting witnessed by 16-year-old Starr, whose days are split between her black neighborhood and mostly white suburban school. The killing of her friend Khalil drives those two worlds farther apart than ever.

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22 Diverse Book Choices for All Grade Levels

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Suggestions from teachers who are working to offer students at every grade level book choices that represent their lives.

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Colorín Colorado invites you to meet some of our favorite authors, illustrators, and storytellers! Learn how they got their start, what they love about their work, and where they find their inspiration - as well as stories behind some beloved books. These are also a wonderful resource for author studies, literature units, and parent engagement events.

For additional author interviews, see our sister sites:

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Colorín Colorado invites you to meet some of our favorite authors, illustrators, and storytellers! Learn how they got their start, what they love about their work, and where they find their inspiration - as well as stories behind some beloved books. These are also a wonderful resource for author studies, literature units, and parent engagement events.

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We need diverse books because we need books in which children can find themselves, see reflections of themselves. I wrote a piece maybe 1990 it was published which I called "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors." And I think that's really why we - children need to see themselves reflected.

But books can also be windows. And so you can look through and see other worlds and see how they match up or don't match up to your own. But the sliding glass door allows you to enter that world as well. And so that's the reason that the diversity needs to go both ways. I mean it's not just children who have been underrepresented and marginalized who need these books.

It's also the children who always find their mirrors in the books and, therefore, get an exaggerated sense of their own self-worth and a false sense of what the world is like because it's becoming more and more colorful and diverse as time goes on. So, I think that's why.

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Learn more about why diverse books matter for all kids and how to find high-quality fiction and nonfiction books that explore and celebrate our diverse and multicultural communities.

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We need diverse books because we need books in which children can find themselves, see reflections of themselves. I wrote a piece maybe 1990 it was published which I called "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors." And I think that's really why we - children need to see themselves reflected.

But books can also be windows. And so you can look through and see other worlds and see how they match up or don't match up to your own. But the sliding glass door allows you to enter that world as well. And so that's the reason that the diversity needs to go both ways. I mean it's not just children who have been underrepresented and marginalized who need these books.

It's also the children who always find their mirrors in the books and, therefore, get an exaggerated sense of their own self-worth and a false sense of what the world is like because it's becoming more and more colorful and diverse as time goes on. So, I think that's why.

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Diverse Classroom Libraries for K-6 Students

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Learn more about books across multiple genres that are representative of the diverse world in which we live, including diversity in race, class, disability, and religion. You'll also find innovative approaches for bringing children and books together, as well as content analyses and descriptions of titles that share common features.

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A 501(c)(3) nonprofit, WNDB aims to create a world where every reader can find themselves in the pages of a book. To reach this goal, we've created programs to mentor diverse writers and illustrators, support diverse publishing professionals, and provide books to classrooms nationwide.

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It's important for all kids to see themselves on the pages.

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Culturally Responsive Literacy Instruction - Keys to Literacy

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Culturally Responsive Teaching is a pedagogy that recognizes the importance of meeting students where they are culturally and linguistically. It puts students at the center of instruction that validates and affirms students' identities and gives students from historically marginalized communities an equitable education experience.

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The following pages contain links to statewide agencies, resources, and organizations focused on English language learners (ELLs).

Note: Regulations change with time. These guidelines were compiled in 2012, 2015, and 2017. If you see something that needs updating, please send an e-mail to Colorín Colorado.

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The following pages contain links to statewide agencies, resources, and organizations focused on English language learners (ELLs). Note: Regulations change with time. These guidelines were compiled in 2012, 2015, and 2017. If you see something that needs updating, please send an e-mail to Colorín Colorado.

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Schools & Families: An Important Partnership

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Schools & Families: An Important Partnership

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In the U.S., schools and families work together closely to help children succeed. For example, you can contact your child's teacher if you have questions, or you may be invited to events at the school. These resources describe how you can build a relationship with your child's school.

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Schools and Families: An Important Partnership

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In the U.S., schools and families work together closely to help children succeed. For example, you can contact your child's teacher if you have questions, or you may be invited to events at the school. These resources describe how you can build a relationship with your child's school.

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When you are with your child, there is a lot that you can learn together! This section has all kinds of ideas for activities that you can do around the house, outside, in your neighborhood, and during vacations at different times of year. It also has ideas related to math and science that are easy to try at home (like sorting socks). Try some of these out, and if you find an activity that your child enjoys, look for different ways and places to try it, or share it with your child's teacher - you may find something that other kids and families will enjoy too!

Recommended Resource from Understood.org

For more great ideas, take a look at the bilingual resources on Learning Together at Home from Understood.org, a free website focused on learning and attention issues.

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When you are with your child, there is a lot that you can learn together! This section has all kinds of ideas for activities that you can do around the house, outside, in your neighborhood, and during vacations at different times of year.

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Tips for Educators Teaching ELLs Vocab. in Gr 4-12

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Tips for Educators Teaching ELLs Vocab. in Gr 4-12

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Tips for Educators of ELLs: Teaching Vocabulary in Grades 4-12

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Research shows that vocabulary development is one of the most important skills students need to acquire to become English-proficient. Here are some strategies to help you get started! These strategies are geared towards grades 4-12 but can be adapted for younger students. These tips are available as a one-page handout to download and print.

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Supporting Vocabulary Acquisition for English Language Learners | Read Write Think

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August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C., & Snow, C. (2005). The critical role of vocabulary development for English language learners. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 20, 50-57.

Beck, I. L., Perfetti, C. A., & McKeown, M. G. (1982). Effects of long-term vocabulary instruction on lexical access and reading comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 74, 506-521.

Biemiller, A. (1999). Language and reading success. Newton Upper Falls, MA: Brookline Books.

Blachowicz, C. L. Z., Fisher, P. J. L., Ogle D., & Watts-Taffe, S. (2006). Vocabulary: Questions from the classroom. Reading Research Quarterly, 41, 524-539.

Carlo, M. S., August, D., McLaughlin, B., Snow, C. E., Dressler, C., Lippman, D., et al. (2004). Closing the gap: Addressing the vocabulary needs for English language learners in bilingual and mainstream classrooms. Reading Research Quarterly, 39, 188-215.

Gersten, R., Dimino, J., Jayanthi, M., Kim, J., & Santoro, L. (2007). Teacher study groups as a means to improve reading comprehension and vocabulary instruction for English learners: Results of randomized controlled trials. Signal Hill, CA: Instructional Research Group.

Gersten, R., Dimino, J., & Jayanthi, M. (in press). Development of a classroom observational system. In B. Taylor & J. Ysseldyke (Eds.), Reading instruction for English language learners: The Bond symposium. New York: Teachers College.

Hiebert, E. H. (2005). State reform policies and the task textbooks pose for first-grade readers. Elementary School Journal, 105, 245-266.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2000). Report of the National Reading Panel. Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction (NIH Publication No. 00-4769). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Perez, E. (1981). Oral language competence improves reading skills of Mexican American third graders. Reading Teacher, 35, 24-27.

Rousseau, M. K., Tam, B. K. Y., & Ramnarain, R. (1993). Increasing reading proficiency of language-minority students with speech and language impairments. Education and Treatment of Children, 16, 254-271.

Umbel, V. M., Pearson, B. Z., Fernandez, M. C., & Oller, D. K. (1992). Measuring bilingual children's receptive vocabularies. Child Development, 63, 1012-1020.

Verhallen, M., & Schoonen, R. (1993). Lexical knowledge of monolingual and bilingual children. Applied Linguistics, 14, 344-363.

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Best Practice for ELLs: Vocabulary Instruction

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One way to create effective literacy instruction for English learners in the elementary grades is to provide extensive and varied vocabulary instruction.

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This article offers guidance for selecting vocabulary words when teaching ELLs and explains the difference between Tier 1, 2, and 3 words.

A student's maximum level of reading comprehension is determined by his or her knowledge of words. This word knowledge allows students to comprehend text. As the teacher, you can explicitly teach word meanings to improve comprehension. However, to know a word means knowing it in all of the following dimensions:

The ability to define a word

The ability to recognize when to use that word

Knowledge of its multiple meanings

The ability to decode and spell that word

Therefore, it is vitally important to teach key words that children will need to comprehend texts, learn the content in those texts, and pass tests. Words are taught through direct instruction of word meanings as well as through discussions about words (including prefixes, suffixes, and roots) - all combined with a lot of reading.

For English language learners (ELLs), vocabulary development is especially critical for their ability to read and comprehend texts. The selection of vocabulary words to teach ELLs can be grouped into three tiers.

Tier 1 words

Tier 1 words are words that ELLs typically know the concept of in their primary language, but not the label in English. For example, a Tier 1 word might be butterfly. This is a word that English language learners may not know, but it can be easily taught by pointing to a picture of a butterfly during text discussion.

Another Tier 1 word might be march (move like a soldier). A word like march can be easily instructed during text discussion by marching in place. But because this word has multiple meanings, it also merits further instruction. This can be accomplished through oral language activities that follow the text discussion.

Teaching Tier 1 words

We take it for granted that native English-speakers know most Tier 1 words, but this is not the case for ELLs. Many Tier 1 words may be unknown to ELLs and key to the comprehension of a passage. Different types of Tier 1 words require different teaching strategies:

Some Tier 1 words cannot be demonstrated and do not have multiple meanings, but students will need to know them. An example of this is the word uncle. A simple explanation of the word's meaning during the story reading will suffice. Or, if the teacher and students are bilingual, a quick translation is sufficient.

Idioms and everyday expressions (like "make up your mind," "let's hit the books," and "once upon a time") are also in the Tier 1 category. Teachers will need to explain the meanings of these phrases to students.

Some Tier 1 words are simple cognates (like family/familia or preparation/preparación). The cognates in this category consist of words that are high-frequency words in Spanish and English. They may not require substantial instruction because students may know the word meanings in Spanish. The teacher can merely state the English cognate and have students provide the Spanish cognate. Or, the teacher can provide the English cognate and students can say both the English word and Spanish cognate.

It is also important to point out false cognates and give the correct translation. Examples of false cognates are: rope/ropa (clothing) and embarrassed/embarazada (pregnant). There are also some false cognates that have multiple meanings in one language, and one or some of those meanings do not coincide with the meaning of the other language.

Here is a list of helpful Spanish-English cognates.

Tier 2 words

Tier 2 words are more complex than Tier 1 words. They may also be more abstract. These include:

1. Words that are important and useful to understanding the text, such as: character, setting, plot, even numbers, and country.

2. Words that have connections to other words and concepts, such as: between, among, by, combine, and estimate.

3. Words for which students understand the general concept, but need greater precision and specificity in describing a concept or a person, such as: sets, tables (for math or science, or for a table of contents), shy, ashamed, and stubborn.

Teaching Tier 2 words

Tier 2 words appear in grade-level texts. They can be worked with in a variety of ways so that ELLs build rich representations of them and connect them to other words and concepts. Different types of Tier 2 words require different teaching strategies:

Some Tier 2 words will not require elaborate discussion, because they can be demonstrated. These include words with multiple meanings, such as trunk, which can be taught by using gestures to show that it is part of an elephant, part of a tree, part of our body, and the back of a car.

In addition, many Tier 2 words are cognates. In this tier, they are high frequency words in Spanish and low frequency words in English. This means that Spanish-speaking ELLs will have a head start with these words (such as coincidence/coincidencia, industrious/industrioso, and fortunate/afortunado) because they will know both the concept and an approximation of the label in English.

The Tier 2 words that should be targeted for pre-teaching include words that cannot be demonstrated and are not cognates.

ELLs should be expected to master Tier 2 words in order to do well on comprehension and on tests.

Tier 3 words

These are low-frequency words that are found mostly in content books in the upper grades. Examples include witticism, isotope, procrastinate, amoeba, or words that are not demonstrable or cognates. These words are rarely encountered in the early grades, but if they do appear, you can translate them or briefly explain them in either English or in the ELLs' first language.

Note: It is advisable at all grade levels to have bilingual dictionaries available in the classroom. If you do not know the translation for a vocabulary word into students' native language, it is an easy reference and clarification tool. Also, when reading texts on their own, students can look up unknown words and ensure their own comprehension.

References

Beck, I., McKeown, M. & Kucan, L (2002). Bringing words to life: Robust vocabulary instruction. New York: The Gilford Press.

Calderón, M., August, D., Durán, D., Madden, N., R. Slavin & M. Gil (2003 and in press). Spanish to English Transitional Reading: Teacher's Manual. Baltimore, MD: The Success for All Foundation.

Calderón, M. & L. Minaya-Rowe (2004). Expediting Comprehension to English Language Learners (ExC-ELL) Teachers Manual. Center for Data-Driven Reform in Education, Johns Hopkins University.

Calderón, M. & L. Minaya-Rowe (in press). Teaching Reading, Oral Language and Content to English Language Learners - How ELLs Keep Pace With Mainstream Students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Reprints

For any reprint requests, please contact the author or publisher listed.

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Selecting Vocabulary Words to Teach English Language Learners

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This article offers guidance for selecting vocabulary words when teaching ELLs and explains the difference between Tier 1, 2, and 3 words. A student's maximum level of reading comprehension is determined by his or her knowledge of words. This word knowledge allows students to comprehend text.

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Together with my colleagues at Keys to Literacy, I have recently updated the content in our Key Vocabulary Routine professional development course, including information related to vocabulary instruction for English language learners (ELLs). Vocabulary development plays a fundamental role in language learning and overall academic success. ELLs face unique challenges in acquiring English vocabulary due to limited exposure and differing linguistic backgrounds. This quote from Michael Graves sums up an important message for teachers of all grades and subjects:

"While most of the assistance we provide for ELLs will not be different in kind from that we provide for English only students, many ELLs will need to be taught more words, will need more powerful instruction, and will need to be given particular help in mastering word-learning strategies. This is also true of other students who enter school with small vocabularies." (2016, p. 41)

Claude Goldenberg, an expert in the field of bilingual education, makes this point:

" In an English immersion classroom, where most ELLs are, the main challenge is that English learners are supposed to learn academic content that everyone is supposed to learn, while they are also learning the language the content is taught in. It's a double-barreled challenge that English learners and their teachers face."

Effective vocabulary instruction for ELLs involves a combination of explicit teaching, context-rich learning experiences, and strategies that promote active engagement and meaningful practice. Graves makes these suggestions for effective ELLs vocabulary instruction:

The development of strong language skills in students' first language is a cornerstone for building English.

ELLs often need substantial repetition and reinforcement, and more frequent exposures during school.

ELLs benefit from differentiated instruction and scaffolding to allow them to carry out tasks beyond their independent abilities.

ELLs benefit from learning and guided practice for use of context and word parts to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words.

In Chapter 7 of Elsa Cardenas-Hagan's book Literacy Foundations for English Learners, Sharolyn Pollard-Durodola explains that overall, teachers should intentionally structure the classroom learning environment for frequent explicit and varied vocabulary building throughout the school day so that learning new words in a second language is not left to chance. These frequent opportunities encourage ELLs to be immersed in listening, speaking, reading, and writing new words during content-enriched instruction. Informal opportunities to use new words do not provide sufficient robust exposures to new vocabulary that can only take place through intentional planning that emphasizes deciding which words to teach and which word-building strategy is most appropriate. Click here to watch a video of Elsa Cardenas-Hagan reviewing Chapter 7 from her book for a book study sponsored by PaTTAN in 2021.
Teaching Vocabulary to ELLs in Context
Pollard-Durodola notes that decontextualized vocabulary instruction where students memorize word lists, terms, and their meanings in isolation are not as effective for ELLs as instruction that connects to students' background knowledge and exposure to words in context. ELLs require rich and deep word processing opportunities because they may lack English word depth even for words that are frequently encountered in the second language. Content-enriched vocabulary practices focus on explicit exposure to content-related words that are important for students to be able to independently read and comprehend academic texts. Content-based instruction, where vocabulary is integrated into the teaching of academic subjects, has been found effective (Graves, 2012). This approach ensures that ELLs not only acquire English vocabulary but also develop the necessary content knowledge to succeed academically.

The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk at the University of Texas at Austin (2018) recommends the following about vocabulary instruction in its guide 10 Key Policies and Practices for Teaching English Language Learners based on findings from high-quality research:

Teachers provide intentional, explicit, and extended vocabulary instruction that supports content learning: "The volume and complexity of vocabulary associated with academic instruction increases exponentially through the grades, making learning especially difficult for ELLs, who often find the vocabulary load to be overwhelming... But exposure to words alone is insufficient; students need to use words within and across subjects. Explicit instruction of key words anchored to text can accelerate students' acquisition of vocabulary, especially when students have extended opportunities to use words in meaningful contexts. For ELLs to understand words at more than a surface level, instruction must be extended over time with opportunities to hear, speak, and write words across varied contexts." (p. 7)

The guide goes on to suggest these explicit vocabulary instruction steps:

1. State the word and give a comprehensible definition that uses language your ELLs will understand.

2. Give two or more examples, briefly explaining why they are examples of the target word.

3. Give two or more non-examples, briefly explaining why they are not examples of the target word.

4. Discuss, pulling in students' background knowledge of the word.

5. Check for understanding with questions and prompts.

6. Have students use target words in speaking and writing.

7. Use systematic review to provide opportunities over time for students to read, write, hear, and say the target words.

8. Use "intentional noticing" to discuss target words and how they are used as you encounter the words across contexts.

Principles of Instructional Design to Teach Vocabulary to English Leaners
Circling back to the Cardenas-Hagan book, Chapter 7 offers these three recommendations:

1. Build vocabulary knowledge by combining new information with what the learner already knows to produce higher cognitive learning.

2. Integrate multiple opportunities for using new vocabulary to make connections to concepts and lived experiences.

3. Integrate intentional opportunities for adult-student language interaction around new vocabulary during content learning.

Additional Learning Suggestions
Technology-enhanced instruction also offers promising avenues for teaching vocabulary to ELLs. Digital tools and applications can provide interactive and engaging experiences that cater to individual learner needs. Computer-assisted programs, online resources, and mobile applications offer opportunities for independent practice, self-assessment, and personalized learning experiences.

Finally, educators should keep in mind cultural sensitivity and respect for ELLs' linguistic backgrounds. Incorporating students' native languages, encouraging cross-linguistic connections (such as pointing out English words that share cognates with ELLs' first language), and recognizing the value of bilingualism can enhance vocabulary instruction and promote a positive learning environment.
Additional Resources References

Goldenberg, C. ) Q&A: Claude Goldenberg on learning English in today's multiethnic classrooms. Stanford University Graduate School of Education. Retrieved from: https://ed.stanford.edu/spotlight/qa-stanford-researcher-learning-english-todays-multiethnic-classrooms

Graves, M.F. (2016). The vocabulary book: Learning and instruction, 2nd Edition. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Graves, M.F., August, D., & Mancilla-Martinez, J. (2012). Teaching vocabulary to English language learners. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk (2018). 10 key policies and practices for teaching English language learners. The University of Texas at Austin.

Pollard-Durodola, S.D. (2020). Vocabulary instruction among English learners. In E. Cardenas-Hagan (Ed.). Literacy foundations for English learners. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.

Joan Sedita

Joan Sedita is the founder of Keys to Literacy and author of the Keys to Literacy professional development programs. She is an experienced educator, nationally recognized speaker and teacher trainer. She has worked for over 35 years in the literacy education field and has presented to thousands of teachers and related professionals at schools, colleges, clinics, and professional conferences.

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Vocabulary Instruction for English Language Learners - Keys to Literacy

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Together with my colleagues at Keys to Literacy, I have recently updated the content in our Key Vocabulary Routine professional development course, including information related to vocabulary instruction for English language learners (ELLs).