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Who Are English Language Learners with Disabilities?

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Who Are English Language Learners with Disabilities?

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This article will explore what is known about the prevalence of disabilities among ELLs and the characteristics of ELLs with disabilities. It will conclude with recommendations for schools and organizations serving these students.

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English language learners (ELLs) with disabilities represent an increasingly larger segment of the K-12 student population in the U.S. Because of the interaction of their disability and second-language learning processes these students may have unique learning needs that affect teaching and also affect the way students show what they have learned. This article will explore what is known about the prevalence of disabilities among ELLs and the characteristics of ELLs with disabilities. It will conclude with recommendations for schools and organizations serving these students.

Definition of an ELL with a Disability

Generally speaking, an ELL with a disability is a student who is eligible for both special education and English as a second language (ESL) or bilingual education services. There are different identification issues associated with each service, creating variability in the definition of an ELL with a disability across the country. Educators in different locales must be aware that they may not always be considering the same students when they refer to ELLs with disabilities.

Students who are identified for special education may receive services for any one of the 14 federally recognized disability categories. Some variation in the primary disability categories occurs across states. Federal legislation requires that ELLs with suspected disabilities be assessed in both their native language and English to ensure that any difficulties with learning are evident in both languages and are not solely the result of natural second-language learning processes. Educators and schools report that providing appropriate assessments in two languages and differentiating language learning from language-related disabilities is extremely challenging. For this reason, there is a national concern with the accuracy of special education identification rates for ELLs. This concerned is heightened for ELLs in some racial or ethnic groups.

Students who are ELLs are not proficient in English and are eligible for English language support services.1 Schools commonly provide ESL and/or bilingual education to identified ELLs. ESL prioritizes language instruction while bilingual programs include content instruction in the native language as well as instruction in English. The goal of both types of programs is to increase students' English proficiency so that they can succeed in English-only content classrooms. Typically, children are identified as ELLs through a multi-step process that includes a home language questionnaire parents complete when children are enrolled in school. If parents report that another language is used in the home, students are then given an English language proficiency screening test to determine whether or not they are eligible for ESL or bilingual education. Parent consent for language screening is not required, but parents have the right to refuse ELL services.

While the ELL identification process may appear straightforward, the accuracy of the information gathered may be compromised at several points (Bailey & Kelly, 2010). For example, parents may provide different answers to the home language questionnaire if a child moves to a new district or language use patterns in the home change. Individual states and school districts may ask different questions on the questionnaire, use a different screening assessment, and set different score ranges to be identified as an ELL. There may also be inconsistencies in administering the home language questionnaire to parents whose children have known disabilities.

Variations in the special education or ELL identification process may result in different groups of students being included in the group of ELLs with disabilities in different places. An educator in California and a disability advocacy organization in West Virginia may not be talking about exactly the same type of student when they refer to an ELL with a disability.

Numbers Nationwide

Determining the exact number of ELLs with disabilities nationwide is a challenge because there is a limited amount of publicly-available information on students who are both ELLs and have an identified disability. Estimates may differ depending on the purpose for which the information was collected, and the way in which the information was collected. For example, the Office of Special Education Programs reports on the number of students in special education for ages birth through 21 who were also limited English proficient (LEP).2 This information is included in federally mandated child count data provided annually by schools. However, it is reported by school special education staff and not by ESL or bilingual education departments, and thus may not reflect the total number of enrolled ELLs. In addition, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) data identify the number of students of various racial/ethnic groups in each disability category, but do not break out the data for ELLs. It is possible to find national data on the number of Hispanic students with Autism Spectrum Disorders, for example, but not on the number of Hispanic ELLs in this disability category.

We get the most comprehensive picture of the population by piecing together information from multiple sources and making some general inferences about ELLs with disabilities based on what we know about ELLs and about students with disabilities overall. However, this type of approach must be interpreted with some caution. Some estimates of the population size are provided below based on a combination of information from multiple U.S. Department of Education sources for the 2009-2010 school year:

About 9.3% of K-12 students in U.S. schools were identified as ELLs (roughly 4,647,016 out of 49,788,000).3

According to IDEA child count data for the 2009-10 school year, 518,088 students with disabilities were classified as limited English proficient (LEP). This represents approximately 8.5% of all students with disabilities (Data Accountability Center, 2013a).

Of the 518,088 LEP students reported as receiving special education services, 200,347 were in California, representing 39% of the national total. Only 2% of all ELLs in the state are identified as having disabilities, however, compared with 4.8% of English proficient students. Among all states, California identified the highest percentage of ELLs with disabilities. More than half of all states report that they provide special education services to less than 0.5% of the ELL population.

ELLs with disabilities have a number of characteristics that vary across students. By definition they are all limited in their English proficiency, but students may vary greatly in the amount of time they have spent in the country, their previous educational experiences, their actual levels of English proficiency, the other languages that they speak, and the type of primary disability that they have.

Nationwide, the majority of ELLs speak, or have exposure in the home, to some form of Spanish. However, there may be as many as 400 different language groups represented in the ELL population across the country (Boyle, Taylor, Hurlburt, & Soga, 2010). Common language groups for ELLs with disabilities most likely reflect the common languages spoken by ELLs overall. For the 2009-2010 school year, the largest language groups reported by states included speakers of Arabic (29 states), Chinese (32 states), Hmong (7 states), Russian (7 states), Somali (10 states), and Vietnamese (31 states).4 Different areas of the country had concentrations of different language groups represented in that year. For example, Somali was among the largest language groups in the ELL populations of 10 states. Schools and advocacy organizations in these states could expect to serve Somali ELLs with disabilities and could anticipate the need for Somali-speaking staff, as well as the need for materials in Somali. However, Somali was not one of the largest language groups in the other states, perhaps due to different patterns of Somali refugee resettlement and migration. Global events are also a factor in predicting what groups will require services as a result of trends in immigration and refugee resettlement.

National data on students in special education do provide data on primary disabilities for all students (Data Accountability Center, 2013b). From the data on all students with disabilities we can make some inferences about ELLs with disabilities. In 2009-2010 approximately two-thirds of all students with disabilities ages 3-21 were identified with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD), Speech/Language Impairments (SLI), Mental Retardation (MR), and Emotional Disturbance (ED). The largest group of students had specific learning disabilities, followed by those with speech or language impairments. It is likely, then, that the largest groups of ELLs with disabilities could have these same primary disabilities. Evidence provided in 2001-2002 by ESL departments in K-12 schools (Zehler et al., 2003) and by a 2006 Office for Civil Rights data collection (Office for Civil Rights, 2013) verified that these disability categories were, in fact, common among ELLs.

Services Received

In 2006, the Office for Civil Rights reported that, nationwide, only about 88% of students with disabilities who were in need of ESL or bilingual instruction actually received it (Office for Civil Rights, 2013). State level data can show variations among ELLs with disabilities who received language support services across racial and ethnic groups. For example, in one Midwestern state 60% of students with disabilities in the Hispanic ethnic group reported that their home language was Spanish. However, only 58% of these Spanish-speaking students were classified as ELLs and the remaining 42% were classified as English proficient. Of the students who were classified as being eligible for ELL services, 7% did not receive them. This information raises questions regarding the accuracy of the disability identification, the accuracy of procedures to determine English proficiency, and whether students were being denied services for which they were eligible.

Program and Service Considerations

The information presented in this article shows the diversity of ELLs with disabilities and some of the variation in this student population across states and across types of organizations serving the students and their families. It is important for educators and others who work with ELLs with disabilities to ensure they understand the characteristics of students in general and specifically of the population in the area they serve. Several recommendations are provided here to consider in developing programs and services for ELLs with disabilities and their families:

Understand that if you serve ELLs or students with disabilities, you most likely serve ELLs with disabilities. These students are a part of both groups, but may have needs that are different from either due to the interaction of students' disabilities and second-language learning processes.

Keep in mind that the labels applied to students are not sufficient to describe students' characteristics. Because there is a great deal of variability in the population of ELLs with disabilities, educators and service providers must look beyond the group name and develop appropriate ways to understand the complex characteristics of the students they serve. They should be sensitive to within-group variation and to changes in group characteristics due to acculturation that occurs over time.

Recognize that descriptions of populations of ELLs with disabilities vary across states and programs, depending on who is identifying the size of the group and for what purpose. No one source of information captures all of the relevant information on students. Each state is unique in the size and make-up of the population of ELLs with disabilities, the prevalence of particular home languages, and other factors relevant to providing appropriate supports and services for students and families. It may be necessary to piece together a knowledge base from multiple sources of information, but this must be done cautiously.

Plan for student and family supports and services that meet the needs of the particular population in your area. Having targeted services and supports that meet the needs of a particular language group, for example, will require staff who are knowledgeable about the characteristics and needs of students and families from that group. Developing this type of knowledge in staff will require specialized staff recruitment and training efforts within a school or organization serving individuals with disabilities. Outreach materials will be needed in both the languages and preferred media of the local population. For example, some groups may be more likely to access information via DVDs or local television while others prefer print information. Organizations should also be prepared for periodic shifts in the language and cultural groups requiring services, due to changes that occur at the local, national and international level.

Know that there will be ongoing issues and challenges in appropriately identifying and serving ELLs with disabilities in schools. The needs of ELL families will fluctuate over time, particularly with newly arriving groups. Research in the field of ELL special education is also evolving rapidly. Educators and policymakers must be flexible and willing to rethink decisions based upon changing circumstances and emerging information.

2 See https://www.ideadata.org/PartBData.asp , Part B Data and Notes, Child Count Data.

3 To calculate the percentage of ELLs we divided the total number of ELLs that states reported in 2009-2010 Consolidated State Performance Reports (available at http://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/consolidated/ sy09-10part1/index.html ) by their projected total enrollment using projected growth rates for Fall 2009 published in the Digest of Education Statistics (Table 34 available at http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d09/tables/dt09_034.asp ).

4 Based on data compiled from 2009-2010 Consolidated State Performance Reports (available at http://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/consolidated/sy09-10part1/index.html ).

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Impact | Volume 26, Number 1 | Who Are English Language Learners with Disabilities?

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English language learners (ELLs) with disabilities represent an increasingly larger segment of the K-12 student population in the U.S. Because of the interaction of their disability and second-language learning processes these students may have unique learning needs that affect teaching and also affect the way students show what they have learned.

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Supporting Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs in the Classroom

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Supporting Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs in the Classroom

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This website is full of advice on how to support emergent bilinguals with IEPs in the classroom.

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Making sure the emergent bilingual learners (EBLs) in your class receive the support they need can be challenging, particularly if they also require support for a specific learning need as indicated in an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). This resource is designed to help you in your work with and advocacy for students who need support in language development and have additional learning needs.

The ideas and examples we will share in this resource draw on the expertise and years of experience of the CUNY-NYSIEB support team, whose members have guided dozens of schools across New York State to develop best practices for emergent bilingual students, including those with IEPs. We draw on our core principles in all the work we do, which view bilingualism as a resource in education and support a multilingual ecology for the whole school.

Before we start, a quick note about language: If you are new to CUNY-NYSIEB's work, you may be wondering why we refer to students as we do. Labeling so often characterizes emergent bilinguals' learning experiences in school: they are called ELLs (English Language Learners), and in the case of those IEPs, SWDs (Students with Disabilities) or SPEDs (Special Education Students), all terms that emphasize what they can't do or the services they receive. We refer to these students as emergent bilinguals to emphasize their skills (bilingualism) and their growth potential (emergence).

I. Background information on Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs

How do we get to know Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs?

Emergent Bilinguals with Individualized Education Plans (EBL-IEPs) receive both mandated English as a New Language (ENL) support as well as services for a documented learning need under an IEP.

We want to emphasize that these students are an incredibly diverse group in terms of language and cognition. Also, because students' performances fluctuate over time, they can actually be "decertified" as they move through the school system (that is, they stop needing ENL or IEP services). Therefore, it is crucial to emphasize the talents, literacies, and intelligences of emergent bilinguals with IEPs, even as we acknowledge their particular needs.

For more information on identifying, monitoring, and providing appropriate services for EBL-IEPs, check out Chapter 6 of the US Department of Education's frequently-updated English Learner Toolkit.

What can schools do for Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs?

Typically, an emergent bilingual will be referred for evaluation for special education services if his or her ENL teacher realizes that the student needs additional help that is not a function of English Language acquisition. However, providing an accurate diagnosis for EBL-IEPs can be a challenge; it is widely documented that EBLs are both over- and under-identified for special education services (Brown & Campbell-Ault, 2015). Because evaluations for special education are normed on monolingual populations, they can give an inaccurate picture of an emergent bilingual student (Hart, 2009). In all contexts, evaluating students for special education services must be done with the family's input and in a way that is culturally appropriate and recognizes the student's bilingualism. For more identification and support, this resource page on addressing EBL-IEP's linguistic and educational needs can help.

II. Using CUNY-NYSIEB Principles to Support Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs

In CUNY-NYSIEB's experience working with schools, a few strategies have stood out as particularly promising for emergent bilinguals with IEPs. We highlight classroom examples from cohort schools where these strategies have been successfully implemented. We present them here divided into "school based" and "classroom based" practices, to differentiate between what we have seen successfully implemented on a schoolwide level and what individual teachers have accomplished with these students.

A. Supporting Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs on a Schoolwide Level

Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs receive two different types of support: they get help developing English for academic purposes, as well as assistance for physical, cognitive, or other reasons under a documented IEP. It is critical not to assume, however, that because these students are receiving so much support their needs are always being met. On the contrary, because these supports can mean separate classes or instructional periods, it is critical to ensure these students do not feel isolated from "mainstream" populations as a result. It is just as critical to ensure they are not stigmatized among their peers or held to lower expectations by their teachers. Having a whole school culture of high expectations and inclusivity is key to the success of these students, and the following strategies adhere to this philosophy.

1. Building Community

Families are key members of students' support team. You can also tap into resources within your school community: bilingual staff members and parent volunteers can help in communicating with families, designing relevant curricula and resources, and conducting assessments in the home language.

Once you have identified key community members as collaborators, an important next step is creating an understanding of what community is. Help community members understand the school-community relationship as reciprocal, that is, the ways we help each other and why we do so. This includes students and their family members in the broader community and ensures all members are on the same page when it comes to learning goals. Additionally, positive peer and adult relationships are supported, which helps establish behavioral norms for social situations and helps educators understand behaviors that may be culturally informed.

2. Collaborative Decision Making

The collaborative team approach is crucial when it comes to making instructional decisions about Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs. In this approach, educators work together with administrators, parents, and specialists to create a unified vision of support for student needs, teachers collaborate across disciplines, and all teachers receive Professional Development (PD) in accessible pedagogy.

Collaborative decision making essentially extends the building community goal. Once you have established reciprocal relationships among all stakeholders, it is far easier to begin asking those involved with these students to help make decisions about their education. Additionally, this strategy asks all teachers - not just teachers of Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs - to become involved and join their community of support.

CUNY-NYSIEB Successful Strategies: Making Decisions Collaboratively

At one cohort elementary school, a recent shift in enrollment had increased the numbers of emergent bilingual students, many of whom additionally received services under an IEP. Many teachers were unsure how to best serve the needs of their students. With the support of the CUNY-NYSIEB team and the principal, teachers formed a leadership team that involved all stakeholders: mainstream teachers, special education teachers, and ENL support specialists. Through regular meeting and dialogue, the team was able to learn and implement school-wide and classroom supports that all teachers agreed upon and were grounded in the principles of inclusion and bilingualism as a resource. As the year progressed, teachers were able to implement and then workshop strategies with their colleagues, in order to decide which interventions were the most useful to their students. At the end of the year, teacher provided the feedback to CUNY-NYSIEB support staff that they felt more competent in meeting the needs of their emergent bilingual students with IEPs, as well as had grown more skilled in seeing their colleagues as resources and partners. Moreover, the teachers felt empowered using the strategies, because they had all decided on using them together.

3. Base Pedagogical Choices on Student Needs

Every student is an individual, with different learning needs, cultural and linguistic background, and talents. Thus, instruction for Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs needs to be accessible and leverage their diverse abilities and language practices. Moreover, when instruction is relevant to students, they and their families see learning experiences as valuable.

B. Supporting Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs in the Classroom

One big way you can support students is by opening up your classroom to translanguaging. The principles of inclusive education are all about removing barriers to participation so that all groups and individuals can have access to high quality education. Because translanguaging affirms students' diverse language practices and uses them as a resource in education, translanguaging does this for emergent bilingual students. That makes it a natural fit in a special education context!

When special educators plan supports and scaffolds for their students, they always keep in mind the idea that students learn through different modalities. When we look at students' language repertoires through this lens, we see the need to include multiple means of representation, expression, and engagement in our lessons. The ideas we present below explain how translanguaging can help create a more inclusive environment for Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs. These strategies also fit in very well across the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework and are aligned to UDL principles of teaching and learning.

For more translanguaging strategies, click on the Guide above!

1. Activating Background Knowledge Across Languages

We must appreciate that Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs arrive in classrooms with considerable prior learning. This can help us design learning experiences that welcome and build on what students know, as well as intentionally teaching specific, relevant knowledge and skills that they need in order to access new content and tasks.

This can be done by providing materials and using instructional tools that give multilingual options for students to receive new information. Many curricular materials are English-only, and particularly in the case of these students, materials in the home language can provide an additional academic support.

CUNY-NYSIEB Successful Strategies: Activating Background Knowledge Across Languages

In an 8th grade integrated team teaching English Language Arts class, the teacher team planned to introduce their students to the idea of "taking a stand," a key theme in the unit they were starting that featured "To Kill a Mockingbird" as the class novel. Knowing the dense novel would be a challenge to their students, many of whom receive language and special education services, the teachers wanted to provide a low-stakes, high-interest entry point to engage their students in thinking about the book from the get go. They set up a multilingual and multicultural "gallery walk" of images and signage that represented individuals and groups from the students' linguistic and cultural communities "taking a stand" on important issues. Students rotated around the room with language partners, and had a "silent conversation" in English and the home language about what they saw. In a "silent conversation," students respond to each other in writing - in the case of this class, the teachers provided prompts in English and the home languages of the class to scaffold students' responses and teach them the language of building and questioning. After the activity, students read the posters together in mixed language groups, using each other as resources to make sense of the multilingual responses. They had meaningful conversations around what the images mean to them, as well as generated questions about what they might mean in connection to the unit they were starting. The teachers noticed that when students used their background knowledge (cultural context of the photographs) and home languages, students were able to successfully understand and engage in the activity and generate meaningful conversation and writing in English afterward.

Note: For more like this, see the CUNY-NYSIEB Translanguaging Pedagogy for Writing Guide

2. Using Multiple Entry Points for Task Completion

Students should be invited to demonstrate their learning using multiple modes and languages, including on assessments. When it comes to sharing what they know and have learned, the language students use is not critical unless that is what is being assessed. What does this mean? If you want students to demonstrate how well they have mastered writing a well-organized paragraph in English, the final product (the assessment or completed task) should be in English. However, if you are assessing how much they have learned about the life cycle of a butterfly and they are able to use gestures, home language, pantomime, or other modes to express this concept, it can be accepted as a completed task.

3. Support Planning and Strategy Development

Students can learn to monitor and support their own learning. You can support students in doing this by teaching them ways to develop executive functioning mechanisms such as reflection and self monitoring so they can learn to adjust their actions in ways that support their own learning.

4. Spotlight on Classroom Practices: Translanguaging and Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs

Translanguaging in Action for Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs: Special Educator Scaffolds Students' Writing:

A 6th grade Special Education teacher in an urban public school had a class of 12 students, some of whom were Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs with Haitian Creole, Bengali, Fulani, Arabic, and French as their home languages. The teacher asked the students to write 3-5 sentence narratives that described their daily lives. The teacher posted sentence stems such as, "On Saturdays, I like to ..." and "My favorite food is ... " The whole group listed different foods in English and in the students' home languages on the board and created a multilingual chart of terms. Afterward, students used the sentence starters to complete at least one sentence in English. The teacher further aided students' multi-literacy skills by having students write sentences in their home languages as well. Those who could explain more were challenged to write two or three sentences, but everyone was able to complete some type of authentic writing that served a real purpose and audience, and where students were able to make choices about topics and express their own voices. Even the most hesitant speakers were proud to share.

Successful uses of Translanguaging strategies in this lesson included:

Using students' home languages as a resource

Chunking what seemed to be a simple task into several steps

Brainstorming ideas before speaking and writing about them

Providing scaffolding in the form of English sentence starters and multilingual, student - generated vocabulary lists

Differentiating the task complexity according to student strengths

Allowing student choice of language use during the discussion

Spotlight on Students: Emergent Bilinguals with IEPs

Juan, 7, 2nd grade student from Puerto Rico

Juan is a 7-year-old student who arrived to the U.S. from Puerto Rico as a toddler. He speaks Spanish as a home language, and has been receiving ENL services since entering Kindergarten, and is additionally classified with another health impairment (OHI).

His class is a bilingual, co-teaching model, where his two teachers - the general education bilingual teacher and the special education teacher - work in consultation with the ENL teacher. Juan also receives pull-out resource room services to address his IEP goals in Spanish. Through the bilingual instruction in his classroom, Juan is developing good verbal English expressive and receptive abilities in addition to developing literacy skills in Spanish. He is below grade level in reading and writing in both languages, but is learning quickly and is really excited by his schoolwork.

Juan experiences academic successes when given the opportunity to express his learning in different ways. For instance, he likes to use a reading "app" on the classroom iPads to demonstrate his developing mastery of English phonics. He also benefits from reading texts in context and discussing them with his peers: On a recent class trip to the zoo, for instance, reading English and Spanish texts about the animals and talking about them with his peers helped him complete a detailed writing assignment about the trip.

However, Juan also faces some barriers to consistent success. The students in his class, half of whom receive one form of supplemental educational service or another, have a great deal of individual needs and Juan sometimes gets distracted or struggles when a teacher is assisting another student. Another challenge has been the medication Juan takes for his diagnosed Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). His doctors and parents are working to regulate the dosage, because when his medication is off, Juan is either lethargic or disruptive.

Héctor, 14, 8th grade student from Panama

Héctor is a 14-year old student originally from Panama who came to the U.S. in first grade. Since coming to the US he has been in three schools, in three different states.

Perhaps as a result of this inconsistency in schooling, Héctor was not identified as an EBL until 6th grade. In addition to the EBL label, he also receives services for a classified learning disability under an IEP. Héctor is placed in a general education classroom with pull-out ENL services and Special Education Teacher Support Services (SETSS).

Héctor is charming, likeable, and very social. While quiet in his classes, he likes to exchange secret messages or gestures with his peers. He loves basketball and plays for the school team. He seems to be well-integrated among his peers, although he can appear shy among adults. Where he thrives socially, Héctor's relationship with academics is more complex, particularly in regard to language use.

At home with his family, Héctor only uses Spanish. However, at school he only uses English. When other Spanish-English bilingual classmates communicate in both English and Spanish among themselves, Héctor does not participate. He doesn't feel comfortable providing Spanish translation to newcomer students who don't speak English and doesn't like to say that he was born in Panama. Also, though he can speak and understand Spanish he does not read or write it, possessing literacy skills in English only.

Héctor has been experiencing some academic successes recently, leading to notable improvements in his reading and writing proficiency in English (though he is still at below grade-level expectations). Héctor's teachers had been noticing he is often hesitant to begin a written task and is forgetful of steps, so this year they began supporting him with sentence starters and writing models. These graphic organizers have been helpful in teaching Héctor to structure his writing. When reminded of steps and presented with models, Héctor can now produce independent writing that fulfills the requirements of the task. Another area of strength is that he responds well to feedback from both his teachers and his peers.

Valentina, 17, 11th Grade Student from the U.S.

Valentina is a 17-year old student born in the U.S. of Mexican descent. She has been receiving ENL services for 11 consecutive years, so is classified as a Long Term English Language Learner. She also receives services under an IEP because of a classified learning disability. Valentina is in 11th grade at a high school in a large urban area, and receives language and special education services through integrated co-teaching with two or more teachers (general education, special education, and/or ENL teachers) in different subjects.

Valentina loves cooking and drawing, is social and polite, and gets along well with her peers. Valentina speaks both English and Spanish at home. She has strong Spanish literacy skills, having participated in one-way dual language programs as an elementary school student and "Spanish for Native Speakers" classes through middle and into high school, yet she prefers to speak and write in English. She demonstrates strong comprehension of written texts and the ability to retell or paraphrase what she has read. She is also a talented creative writer who enjoys crafting imaginative narratives and poetry.

Some areas of difficulty for Valentina include organization and applying appropriate mechanics in her writing. Specifically, she is inconsistent with distinguishing claims from counterclaims and using transitions to connect body paragraphs with claims. She also often has challenges remaining on task. Successful strategies her teachers have tried include giving her question prompts, using graphic organizers, applying annotation routines, and providing redirection. When her teacher gives her prompting with questions, Valentina can recognize and implement corrections on her own most of the time. For organization, her teacher has used T-charts to help her organize ideas for an essay and provided a pre-filled organizer for her to insert relevant information. Learning an annotation routine has also helped Valentina to improve her reading comprehension. Valentina is now able to apply the routine without prompting, and this has improved her overall proficiency in literacy-based skills.

Helpful Links: Further Reading and References:
Brown, J.E. & Campbell Ault, P. (2015). Disentangling language differences from disability: A case study of district-preservice collaboration. Journal of Multilingual Education Research, 6, 111-166. Retrieved from http://fordham.bepress.com/jmer/vol6/iss1/7

Celic, C. and Seltzer, K. (2012). Translanguaging: A CUNY-NYSIEB Guide for Educators. Available here: http://www.nysieb.ws.gc.cuny.edu/files/2012/06/FINAL-Translanguaging-Guide-With-Cover-1.pdf

Cheatham, G. A. & Hart Barnett, J.E. (2016). Overcoming common misunderstandings about students with disabilities who are English language learners. Intervention in School and Clinic, 1-6.

Ebe, A. (2010, Sept/Oct). Culturally Relevant Texts and Reading Assessment for English Language Learners. Reading Horizons, 50(3), 193-210. Retrieved from: http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1016&context=reading_horizons

García, S. & Tyler, B. (2010). Meeting the needs of English language learners with learning disabilities in the general curriculum. Theory Into Practice, 49(2), 113-120.

Gordon, D., Meyer, A., and Rose, D. (2014). Universal Design for Learning: Theory and Practice. Wakefield, MA: CAST Professional Publishing. Available here: https://www.amazon.com/Universal-Design-Learning-Theory-Practice/dp/0989867404/

Hart, J. E. (2009). Strategies for culturally and linguistically diverse students with special needs. Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 53(3), 197-208.

Wang, P., & Woolf, S. (2016). Trends and issues in bilingual special education teacher preparation: A literature review. Journal of Multilingual Education Research, 6(1), 35-59. Retrieved from http://fordham.bepress.com/jmer/vol6/iss1/4/

Acknowledgments

This CUNY-NYSIEB resource was created by Kathryn Fangsrud Carpenter, Kahdeidra Martin, and Louis Olander. María Cioè-Peña, Maite Sánchez and Kate Seltzer served as advisors to the authors. We would like to give special thanks to the teachers and administrators who provided feedback on this resource.

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Supporting Emergent Bilinguals with Individualized Education Plans: Tips from CUNY-NYSIEB

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Making sure the emergent bilingual learners (EBLs) in your class receive the support they need can be challenging, particularly if they also require support for a specific learning need as indicated in an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). This resource is designed to help you in your work with and advocacy for students who need support in language development and have additional learning needs.

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A group of educators has developed an instructional model to support English language learners with special needs.

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Many students in special education struggle with language. Those diagnosed with special needs who are also English language learners (ELLs) have specific, unique needs. These dually classified learners are identified with a disability and are eligible for both special education and English as a second language or bilingual services. As teachers, we are often underprepared to work with this population in our classrooms.

The U.S. Department of Education estimated in 2015 that 184,000 of the nation's 2.9 million students enrolled in programs for ELLs had disabilities. Only 63 percent of ELLs graduate from high school, compared to the national rate of 82 percent. The discrepancy is most likely even larger for students who are dually classified, though getting exact numbers is difficult. Providing these students with the support they may need in our classrooms is a real challenge for teachers.

Problem-Based Enhanced Language Learning

To help support these learners, a new instructional model called Problem-Based Enhanced Language Learning (PBELL) was developed by the iTeachELLs team at Arizona State University. I'm the project director of iTeachELLs, and we had heard from graduating teachers that they needed help-we were not fully preparing them to work with this population.

The PBELL model we developed combines elements of problem-based learning with the key principles of English language learning methods. PBELL is designed to raise student achievement through integration of instructional approaches in lessons that support acquisition of both content and language skills.

In PBELL experiences, a student utilizes language collaboratively in order to access prior knowledge, research new topics, brainstorm and discuss potential solutions, and present new findings to an audience. In a classroom using PBELL, all language is considered an asset in supporting rigorous learning opportunities.

A PBELL lesson has four basic components:

Meaningful problem development: Students work collaboratively to solve a meaningful problem.

Language and content in tandem: To help students master both instructional content and language, we must be intentional.

Assessment of content and language: We need to assess both the instructional content and the acquisition and use of language.

Specific support and strategies: Our lessons must include scaffolds and strategies that provide access to both the language and the content.

These lessons should be fun and student driven-involving students is key. There are plenty of free example lessons from experts in the field as well as teacher-created lessons available for use and adaptation on the iTeachELLs website. For a deeper look at these elements, take a look at the suite of short modules, complete with classroom footage.

Strategies for Working With Dually Classified Learners

Within PBELL lessons, teachers implement specific strategies to allow further access to content and provide strategic support on an individual basis.

Collaboration: Students are placed together in the inquiry process to support one another's learning. This can include small groups, pairs, or partners intentionally grouped together based on their primary language. Students may read and gather information together or pair up after the inquiry process to share the new learning they have discovered.

Graphic organization of learning: Charts, tables, or graphic organizers are used to help students understand new ideas and organize their new learning.

During the inquiry phase, for example, students may use a KWL (Know, Want to Know, Learn) graphic organizer to help process their new learning. They can brainstorm what they already know about a topic related to the meaningful problem, and then as a class they may form questions to represent what they want to know. These questions then drive the inquiry experience, and students complete the graphic organizer by noting the new learning they discover related to those questions.

Sensory strategies: Manipulatives, visuals, video, and real-world objects are used throughout the inquiry process to ensure that all students have access to new learning. Teachers can bring in real-world items to support student learning and understanding.

We know that teachers have heavy workloads and that adding new approaches is often time-consuming and challenging. If you don't have time to undertake a large PBELL project right now, it is possible to start small. We've found two basic components of lesson planning that can have immediate impact on student success: Ground learning in real-life, relevant experiences of the students, and recognize that language is a tool that needs to be specifically taught and modeled in all learning.

Starting with these small steps, we can help our dually classified learners make progress.

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Many students in special education struggle with language. Those diagnosed with special needs who are also English language learners (ELLs) have specific, unique needs. These dually classified learners are identified with a disability and are eligible for both special education and English as a second language or bilingual services.

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Special Education and ELLs: Opportunities and Challenges

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Special Education and ELLs: Opportunities and Challenges

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This is a section dedicated to articles and texts that discuss the opportunities and challenges that come with teaching bilinguals with special needs.

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What are the reasons that English language learners often tend to be under- or over-identified for special education services? Why do the numbers of ELLs receiving special education services vary greatly by state? And what are the myths and misconceptions that result in these trends? Learn more from our related videos and experts in the resource sections below!

For an in-depth look at students who are dually-identified as ELLs and students with disabilities, see Who Are English Language Learners with Disabilities?, published in the Impact Newsletter from the University of Minnesota in 2013.

This resource section was made possible through our partnership with the National Education Association. Additional support was provided by the American Federation of Teachers.

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Special Education and ELLs: Opportunities and Challenges

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What are the reasons that English language learners often tend to be under- or over-identified for special education services? Why do the numbers of ELLs receiving special education services vary greatly by state? And what are the myths and misconceptions that result in these trends?

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Special Education and ELLs: The Role of Language

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Special Education and ELLs: The Role of Language

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It's important to understand the role that language plays in education. This section will help acknowledge dealing with assessments and evaluations.

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Recommended Resources

From the Center for Parent Information and Resources: The IRIS STAR Legacy modules are meant to help train future teachers, administrators, and other school personnel. This module examines the ways in which culture influences the daily interactions that occur across all classrooms and provides practice for enhancing culturally responsive teaching. This module is a revision of 'Teachers at the Loom: Weaving Together Culture, Family, and Instruction for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional Students.'

Acknowledgements

This resource section was made possible through our partnership with the National Education Association. Additional support was provided by the American Federation of Teachers.

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Special Education and ELLs: The Role of Language

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From the Center for Parent Information and Resources: The IRIS STAR Legacy modules are meant to help train future teachers, administrators, and other school personnel. This module examines the ways in which culture influences the daily interactions that occur across all classrooms and provides practice for enhancing culturally responsive teaching.

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Identifying ELLs with Specific Learning Disabilities: Facts, Advice, and Resources for School Teams 

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Identifying ELLs with Specific Learning Disabilities: Facts, Advice, and Resources for School Teams 

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Nationwide, the majority of English language learners (ELLs) who have
been identified as having a disability
are classified as having a language and literacy-related disability known as a Specific Learning Disability (SLD). What exactly are SLDs? As defined in the Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004, SLDs refer to a psychological processing disorder in understanding or using spoken or written language.

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 TRANSLANGUAGING:A CUNY-NYSIEB GUIDE FOR EDUCATORS  

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 TRANSLANGUAGING:A CUNY-NYSIEB GUIDE FOR EDUCATORS  

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This guide offers advice and analysis with data for educators who work with bilingual students.

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TOOLS AND RESOURCES FOR ADDRESSING ENGLISH LEARNERS WITH DISABILITIES

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TOOLS AND RESOURCES FOR ADDRESSING ENGLISH LEARNERS WITH DISABILITIES

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Appropriate disability identification processes that evaluate the student’s disability-related educational needs and not the student’s English language skills will help school personnel to accurately identify students
in need of disability-related services.

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The Whys & Hows of Activating Students’ Background Knowledge

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The Whys & Hows of Activating Students’ Background Knowledge

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It is important for teachers to activate their students' prior knowledge so they know what students already know about a certain topic and what gaps in learning they will need to fill in order for students to be successful. It helps them to understand the reason why the students are struggling

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The new question-of-the-week is:
What are the best ways to activate and build students' background knowledge, and why is it important?
Our students have a great deal of background knowledge that teachers need to activate so that they can learn new content. And students need to be provided with additional background knowledge so that they can access even more content!

This two-part series will look at what we mean by the term "background knowledge," why it's important, and how we teachers can best identify and develop it both in the physical classroom and during remote teaching.

Today, Adam Fachler, Jeffrey Wilhelm, Rachel Bear, Cheryl Abla, Elizabeth Villanueva, Jenny Vo, and Sarah Said share their commentaries. You can listen to a 10-minute conversation I had with Jeffrey, Rachel, Cheryl, and Elizabeth on my BAM! Radio Show. You can also find a list of, and links to, previous shows here.
"Priming" students for success
Jeffery D. Wilhelm, Adam Fachler, and Rachel Bear are the authors of the book Planning Powerful Instruction: 7 Must-Make Moves to Transform How We Teach--and How Students Learn":

In our book, Planning Powerful Instruction (Corwin), we argue that a central move of teaching is priming to prepare students for success. (This is much more efficient and fun than remediating learners once they have begun to struggle.) The only resources that learners have for approaching a new challenge is what they already know and are already interested in. The only way to build new interests and capacities is by activating and building on students' prior interests and background knowledge before instruction. This process honors what students bring to the classroom and provides them with necessary context and connection to the purpose and payoff of what is to be learned. It is essential to culturally relevant pedagogy.

But the biggest reason we begin new learning experiences with activities that "prime" students for the learning ahead is this:

There is no alternative! All new learning builds on prior learning.

When we activate and build students' background knowledge:

Students see the connection between previous and current learning.

We establish a set of conceptual "hooks" on which students can "hang" new learning.

Students get on the same page with us.

We receive formative-assessment data we can use throughout the learning experience.

Not only does this practice provide myriad benefits and accord with how the brain functions, it also describes how experts in every field develop expertise. Everyone from engineers to entrepreneurs ask themselves, " What is already known and how do we know it-and how might we extend and build on it?" before undertaking a new project.

If the best instruction mirrors or approximates how individuals in the real world learn, then it stands to reason that we should do what they do.

So, what are the best ways to get it done? Here is a short list of our favorite techniques:

Solving a "junior," mini, or scaled-back version of the problem you will teach students to solve.

Unpacking images or art related to the targeted learning (e.g., see-think-wonder protocols that mirror the process of inquiry: establishing the facts, interpreting facts and inference chains, asking questions to drive further learning).

Providing autobiographical prompts related to the learning ahead (e.g., make students face a moral dilemma the character will face, putting them in the thematic driver's seat).

Asking questions that address problematic or controversial aspects of the content.

Facilitating a simulation.

Ranking products or concepts (which requires making value judgments and applying reasoning).

Conducting surveys or opinionaires.

Remember: The best priming activities are accessible, focused, relevant, and revealing of students' knowledge and abilities. If your priming activity leaves a good taste in your students' mouths and creates energy and interest in future learning, then that positive spillover can affect the vibe of the whole unit. So, while we know time is of the essence in every classroom, it's a necessary investment to make priming student learning a mainstay of yours.

Background knowledge and curiosity
Cheryl Abla is a former teacher who now, with McREL International, leads professional learning and coaching for K-12 educators on research-based strategies for effective instruction, use of classroom technology, English-language acquisition, and classroom culture and climate. She's a co-author of Tools for Classroom Instruction That Works, which provides easy-to-use tools and learning activities to help teachers get CITW strategies into the classroom on a daily basis:

At McREL, we're huge believers in the power of curiosity to propel lifelong learning, but we're not naïve about its limitations. Without background knowledge, what would students have to be curious about? You've got to start somewhere. Learning is about filling in the gaps between what is known and what isn't yet known.

The best way to leverage background knowledge is to give students cues, questions, and advance organizers about what they're about to learn. Sound familiar? Together, these tools form one of the nine classic research-based strategies from Classroom Instruction That Works. What cues, questions, and advance organizers have in common is that they're about beginnings. They all precede the delivery of new content and they all rely on the understanding that knowledge doesn't exist in a vacuum but builds upon prior knowledge and in turn gets built upon.

Vocabulary Knowledge Rating, which we adapted from Camille Blachowicz, introduces students to critical vocabulary terms before instruction begins. Students rate their understanding of each term before and after the lesson, to see if their knowledge has grown.

Anticipation Guide reverses the traditional model of learning enough about a subject to then be able to form an opinion about it. First, students are asked their opinion of a subject. Then the lesson is delivered. Was their background knowledge adequate to support their original position, or do they need to re-evaluate? Now they're not only learning new content, they're learning how additional evidence can influence their understanding.

Power Previewing teaches students to skim a text strategically. The teacher guides the previewing process by pointing out useful things to look for, such as recurring themes. There are many questions a teacher can include in an advance organizer, and one of them is, "Does anything look familiar or relate to something you've seen, read, learned about, or experienced?" Students become more proficient readers when memory is activated as part of the process of acquiring new knowledge.

While none of us wants schools to be curiosity-free drill-and-kill zones ever again, we have to acknowledge the importance of background knowledge and develop skill in helping students acquire it. Background knowledge plus curiosity is the most powerful formula of all.

"Funds of knowledge" Elizabeth Villanueva is a Spanish teacher and world-language department chair at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento, Calif. She has been recognized as the 2018 National Education Association Social Justice Activist Award Finalist; 2018 California Teachers Association, César Chávez "Sí Se Puede Human Rights Award"; and Sacramento City Unified school district, Teacher of the Year 2015-16. Elizabeth is an Ed.D. candidate at the University of San Francisco in the Learning and Instruction Doctoral Program with an emphasis in heritage-language maintenance:
Academic learning success must be founded at the personal level of each learner and teacher. Its relevance brings meaningfulness and connectedness to each individual creating a learning atmosphere of interconnectedness that stimulates curiosity for the known and unknown. That bridges to a deeper level of understanding to explore and discover the purpose for academic access and success. Therefore, the power of disseminating the funds of knowledge of each learner to develop self-determination for personal growth and academic success is correlated with the teacher's willingness to share their own personal funds of knowledge that may trigger students' interest and motivation to thrive.

I come from a family that can be labeled as "dysfunctional," since there was domestic violence, lack of love, low economic status, and then at an early age, my parents separated. It was then my mother left my father and migrated illegally to Salinas, Callif., looking for better life opportunities. It was she who, after crossing the border, began telling me and my siblings to get an education to have more and better life opportunities because being uneducated, she was only able to work in the fields and then at a packing company. So five years after her arrival to Salinas, I came to Salinas knowing her expectations. Those were to finish high school, learn English, get some educational degree, and find a better job than she had. It was her insistence to apply myself to study that made me realize how important it is to go to school and most importantly the role that teachers play in a child's education.

As a language teacher and an English-language learner, I believe there is no language more powerful than the language of empathy, sensitivity, and kindness for one another. I know that if I take care of my students' educational well-being by valuing and integrating their funds of knowledge, it is transformed into meaningful and relevant instructional material that becomes students' academic success. Building that relatedness can enhance students' competence to develop their autonomy to continue thriving. Thus, learning from the funds of knowledge of my students is my motivation to strive and enhance meaningful relationships that empower a bigger community.

ELLs & prior knowledge Jenny Vo earned her B.A. in English from Rice University and her M.Ed. in educational leadership from Lamar University. She has worked with English-learners during all of her 23 years in education and is currently an ESL ISST in Katy ISD in Katy, Texas:
Our English-learners come to us from many countries and bring with them different backgrounds and experiences. In order to successfully support their learning in the content areas, we need to make sure we find out what they already know and what gaps need to be filled. We can do this by activating the students' prior knowledge and then building their background knowledge.

What is prior knowledge and why do we need to activate it? Prior knowledge is what the students bring with them that they have gained from previous schooling and their life experiences. It is important for teachers to activate their students' prior knowledge so they know what students already know about a certain topic and what gaps in learning they will need to fill in order for students to be successful. It helps them to understand the reason why the students are struggling. Is the poor comprehension or struggle with assignments due to lack of language, lack of experience, or lack of skills? Having a firm grasp on the reason or reasons will enable the teacher to know how to support the students.

I like using anticipation guides at the beginning of a unit to see what students know. Anticipation guides have statements that students answer at the beginning of a unit and then at the end. The responses can be in an Agree/Disagree or True/False format. KWL (Know-Want to Know-Learn) charts are also great for activating prior knowledge. Charts can be filled out as a class or by individual students. Another great strategy is the observation chart. This GLAD strategy has students walking around the room looking at pictures and writing observations, comments, and questions on them. I either give each student a different colored pen or have them write their name after their observation so I can track which student wrote what.

Once you have a grasp of your students' prior knowledge, your next step is to build their background knowledge to fill in the gaps. Building background knowledge allows you as the teacher to link the students' past learning and experiences to new learning. There are many ways to build background knowledge. Videos are great for this. Choose ones that are not too technical and easy to understand. Stop periodically to check for understanding. Virtual field trips are a great alternative to live field trips when you are unable to schedule them. I like virtual field trips because you can keep going back to them if needed. The most important way teachers can build background knowledge is to explicitly teach key academic vocabulary. Give students multiple opportunities to use and practice the vocabulary so that the words are internalized and permanently connected to the topic of study.

As you can see, it is essential for you to plan activities to activate your students' prior knowledge and to build background knowledge so that your students, especially your English-learners, can make that critical connection between their past learning and their new learning. With the info gained from the activities, you can better plan how to support your students so they are successful in their learning.

"Language dives" Sarah Said is the director of language and equity programs at an EL (Expeditionary Learning) Education School in the Chicago suburbs. In her role, she oversees support programs for multilingual learners, works with others to create a community that fosters success for students from the diverse communities her school serves, and helps strengthen school to community outreach. In the past, she has been a director of ELL, dean, and curriculum coordinator. In addition to her role in her building, she is a contributor for ELL Confianza and has written a variety of blog posts online. She is a member of the #ELLChat and #ELLchat_bkClub where she helps advocate for multilingual learners. Follow her on Twitter at @MrsSaid:
As I always say, "We don't eat something in a restaurant when we don't understand what it is on the menu"-at least I don't. Our minds are "picky eaters" when it comes to what we engage in and connect with. Be able to front-load information and support students with connecting to past knowledge is something we need to do to support them as educators. How do we do this? We engage students in activities that help us learn about them. This helps support us in being culturally responsive teachers in the classroom.

One strategy that I like to use at the beginning of the year is a project that I call the "cultural bag." I explain to students that their cultural bag is something that they always carry around with them that holds their values, norms, and experiences. What I like about this activity is that it can be done with any age level from K-12 and be effective. Simply, you give students a paper bag, explain what a "cultural bag " is with an age-appropriate explanation, then they can collage or draw the bag with effective images to emulate the "cultural bag." Depending on the age level of the students, you can have them then either write or explain what the images on the bag mean.

As you continue to get to know your students during the year, you can use ideas from what you know about them to scaffold conversations about new content. This helps students learn, and it makes the classroom more engaging for all.

When you are considering multilingual learners, you need to think about other ways to build background knowledge. You may need to utilize cognates in the native language to support students' understanding vocabulary in English. This can be supported in an interactive word wall. These word walls are not just word walls that sit on a wall; students actually create the word wall and utilize the word wall to actively support it.

Building background for students helps support them in really engaging with and grasping content and language. This is an essential part of teaching and learning. It is critical in supporting a culturally responsive classroom.

Thanks to Adam, Jeffrey, Rachel, Cheryl, Elizabeth, Jenny, and Sarah for their contributions!

Please feel free to leave a comment with your reactions to the topic or directly to anything that has been said in this post.
Just a reminder; you can subscribe and receive updates from this blog via email or RSS Reader. And if you missed any of the highlights from the first eight years of this blog, you can see a categorized list below. The list doesn't include ones from this current year, but you can find those by clicking on the "answers" category found in the sidebar.

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The Whys & Hows of Activating Students' Background Knowledge (Opinion)

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Seven educators explain the importance of tapping students' background knowledge in order to learn new content, and they describe ways to do just that, including through the use of surveys and anticipation guides.

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5 Myths About English Language Learners (ELLs) and Special Education

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5 Myths About English Language Learners (ELLs) and Special Education

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There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about services and supports for students who are learning English. Knowing the facts behind these myths can help avoid them but also make changes to help your students succeed.

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When English language learners (ELLs) experience challenges in school, it can be hard to figure out why. There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about services and supports for students who are learning English. Knowing the facts behind these myths can help you not only debunk them, but also make changes that can result in better outcomes for your students.

Myth #1: The ability to speak English (or not) is a measure of intelligence.

Fact: It can be easy to focus on what students can't do instead of what they can do. But consider this: English language learners are not only on the path to learning English, they're also on their way to becoming multilingual. It's not as unusual as you may think. Research shows that 20 percent of school-age children in the United States are bilingual.

ELLs bring unique skills, gifts, and talents to the classroom. They often have rich background experiences, different perspectives, and the ability to navigate between multiple languages and cultures. They may also have sophisticated social-emotional skills (such as being tuned in to body language and tone of voice).

In fact, when some of these kids were asked what they wished their teachers knew about them, they said they wanted teachers to remember that they're intelligent. They also wanted to build meaningful relationships with their teachers.

Strategies for successfully addressing this myth in the classroom:

Myth #2: Students who rarely speak have a speech delay or auditory processing disorder.

Fact: Many students who are starting the process of learning a new language go through a nonverbal or "silent period." It's not unlike when toddlers and preschoolers first acquire language. They typically understand what they hear before they learn how to speak.

The length of the silent period when learning a new language depends on several factors. The richness of the student's language instruction and interaction in the classroom both matter. Students' confidence and whether they're being encouraged to take risks are key, too.

Even students who understand much of what they hear may still speak in short phrases or remain silent if they are not specifically engaged or don't feel welcome to participate in the classroom.

Strategies for successfully addressing this myth in the classroom:

Learn more about the stages of language acquisition and ways to support oral language development.

Look for ways to increase students' speaking time in class. Expert Claudia Rinaldi, PhD, suggests timing the amount of "teacher talk time" vs. "student talk time." She also suggests setting a goal for increasing the student talk time each week. For example, provide more "turn and talk" opportunities so students can interact with peers.

Give your English language learners questions they can answer ahead of time, and tell them they can try to answer during the classroom instruction. Also allow for ample time between when you ask questions and when you call on students.

Look at data from the student's most recent English language proficiency exams. Things to look for include: How do speaking and listening compare to reading and writing? Do the scores match what you've noticed in class?

Partner with your school's ESL teacher to learn strategies to increase student talk time, and to get support in interpreting student data.

Myth #3: Students who don't understand spoken directions have a learning disability.

Fact: In many situations, students are actually succeeding, even though it doesn't look like success to their teacher. Consider this scenario:
A kindergarten teacher is concerned that despite her engaging, rich use of literacy and language in the classroom, she has an English language learner who continues to struggle to tell the difference between initial consonant sounds. The teacher asks a bilingual colleague to observe a lesson. When she asks students for words that begin with the The student she's concerned about raises his hand and says confidently, "Maestra." The teacher gently tells him that this word begins with the /m/ sound. He looks down at the carpet, confused. /t/ sound, the native English-speaking students give examples like "tooth," "treat," and "tower."

Invite a bilingual colleague to observe your class or to review some student work.

Learn more about making your teaching more student-friendly and easier to understand. ELL-friendly strategies can help, including things like using visuals, graphic organizers, and concrete, everyday objects.

Use visuals to support written instructions or have students repeat the instructions to each other.

After class, the bilingual colleague explains to the kindergarten teacher that " maestra" is the Spanish word for "teacher."

This scenario is a clear example in which a student is succeeding, even though it doesn't look like success to the teacher. At first, it looked as though the student was struggling with phonemic awareness, which can be a sign of a learning disability.

With the support of her colleague, the teacher was able to recognize that the student understood what was being asked of him, but didn't know enough English yet to say all the words he understood.

Strategies for successfully addressing this myth in the classroom:

Myth #4: ELLs will get the kinds of support they need in special education classes.

Fact: A special education placement in and of itself is not an appropriate strategy to help English language learners succeed.

However, some schools may provide special education services to these students with the assumption that it will provide at least some help. This is often because special education services are designed to meet an individual student's needs and provide supports that may not be available in the general education classroom. It can also happen because there are certain strategies that support both students who need specially designed instruction and English language learners.

Learn more about the differences between the goals of special education services and ESL services to better understand what each is addressing and the support they are providing students.

Keep in mind that sometimes this kind of policy reflects a bigger, systemic issue at the school or district level. Nevertheless, small steps on behalf of individual students can add up to systemic change over time because you can use these small successes to advocate for bigger changes.

Know the services your school provides for ESL students. Talk with an ESL teacher about how the programming works and whether the response to intervention (RTI)/multi-tier system of supports (MTSS) takes the needs of these learners into account.

Start to identify some small areas you might like to focus on together in collaboration with the ESL teacher in order to improve outcomes for ELLs. You can also identify some bigger aspirational goals to work on over time.

ELLs have specific language, literacy, and academic needs. They need exposure to a rich language environment and scaffolded support that matches their level of language proficiency. Like all students, they also need access to the same rigorous curriculum as their peers. (Ideally, they will also have some level of academic support in their native language in order to tap into existing content knowledge and prior experiences.)

This is not to say that when an English language learner experiences academic challenges, it is always only a question of language. But special education placement without careful consideration is not likely to help.

Researchers note that more traditional interventions that help students with language-based learning disabilities often do not help students acquire proficiency in a second language. In fact, it can sometimes present additional challenges by limiting access to core curriculum and focusing on discrete skills taught out of context. This constricts language usage and can make it more difficult for ELLs to understand and retain information.

Strategies for successfully addressing this myth in the classroom:

Myth #5: Schools should wait a certain amount of time before assessing an ELL for special education services.

Fact: Providing special education services to English language learners when they don't need them focuses on overidentification. But the challenge of underidentification is also widespread. That's when schools don't identify students as needing special education services when they do need them.

Ask yourself if the policies and practices at your school serve the needs of the students in front of you. If you see some areas that might need to be revisited, talk with the ESL teacher, special education staff, and other colleagues. Making even small changes can build momentum for bigger change down the road.

Continue to closely monitor progress and determine the most appropriate course of action for students about whom you or a parent has ongoing concerns.

Advocate on behalf of the students about whom you have concerns by speaking with your school's teacher assistance team or by making a referral for special education evaluation.

Learn about the students' native language and educational background. And ask parents if their child is showing similar challenges in the native language. Share that information with the ESL teacher, and work closely together to corroborate that this is what is happening at school as well.

One of the most common reasons for underidentification is the use of subjective policies that determine when to test an ELL student for special education services. Many of these policies are put in place to avoid overidentification. But one expert notes that this can result in overcorrection, leading to students not getting the help they need in a timely manner.

For example, some schools decide to wait anywhere from one to seven years before assessing an English language learner for special education. That's because students generally take five to seven years to acquire an academic language.

Those policies don't consider the needs of students who may be struggling all of that time. Researchers point out that students have a better opportunity to be successful in school when they're identified sooner rather than later, and supported in culturally and linguistically responsive ways.

Strategies for success in the classroom:

What You Can Do Next

Becoming better informed about the needs of your English language learners is a great first step to helping them succeed. It also can help you begin to identify what's working (or not) in your setting. Don't be afraid to ask questions, try new things, develop new collaborative relationships, and share what works with your colleagues.

As you learn about your students' family background, learn more about the educational system they come from and cultural interactions as well. It allows you to interact with families in ways that respect their culture and cultural perspectives on education and learning challenges. You might just find the opportunity you've been looking for to make a difference for your students.

Additional Resources to Explore

Acknowledgements

This article originally appeared on Understood as part of a partnership between Colorín Colorado and Understood. ©2019 Understood For All, Inc.

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5 Myths About English Language Learners (ELLs) and Special Education

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When English language learners (ELLs) experience challenges in school, it can be hard to figure out why. There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about services and supports for students who are learning English. Knowing the facts behind these myths can help you not only debunk them, but also make changes that can result in better outcomes for your students.