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Heide Spruck WrigleyAguirre International
What Works in ESL Literacy?
Immigrants and Refugees
90s higher than any other decade in 20th C. Over 30 million foreign-born 8 m. don’t speak English well or not at all 43% from Spanish speaking countries 30 % from Mexico 2/3 of immigrants from Mexico don’t have
a high school education 26% percent – Asian Pacific Islanders Of those 43% - report limited proficiency
Who Are ESL Literacy Learners?
Immigrants from Mexico (and Haiti)
Refugees Hmong (150 000 in the
U.S.) Somali Bantu (10 000) Sudanese (death and
displacement; “lost boys”)
Characteristics of Adult ESL Literacy Students
Able to navigate systems without relying on print (are able to build conceptual maps)
Have store of sight words and “language gambits” that they depend on
Use compensation strategies to make up for lack of experience with print (knowledge of how the world works allows for “informed guessing”)
ESL Literacy Students
Six years or fewer of schooling Pulled out or pushed out of school in the
early grades Schooling interrupted by war or civil strive Low levels of native language literacy Difficulty succeeding in a regular ESL
class as teacher moves from oral language to print
Barriers to Language and Literacy Learning
Print is seen as a secret code, not accessible – takes time to “break the code”
Low levels of confidence in their own ability to learn and remember
Acquiring English language skills while trying to master the print system is cognitively very challenging
Learners’ Views
Reading means reading aloud fluently and accurately
Writing means copying and having nice hand-writing
Reasons for wanting to acquire literacy differ (Tenants’ rights, Catalogue)
Want to know every word before they attempt to make meaning
Students in the Study 500 Literacy students defined as having fewer than
six years of formal education and little or no literacy in any language (verified with a writing sample)
Over 20 languages represented but most students were: Spanish speaking from Mexico (58%) Spanish speaking from other countries (10%) Hmong (7%) Somali (8%)
Average age 41, most students female (74%) Average formal education of 3.1 years, but
Hmong and Somali had almost no education (0-1 year)
Things We Know For Sure
Literacy is Multidimensional
Emergent literacy (for non-literates, print is like wallpaper)
literacy for self-expression (refrigerator poetry)
functional literacy (create functional print) literacy for “self-defense” (legal issues) “I lost 20 lbs in 3 weeks” (critical literacy) literacy as a tool for social change (civics) literacy for “new times” (technology)
Language, Literacy & Learning
The brain is not pre-wired for reading and writing
Reading and writing are school-based skills You need to learn to read just once Learning takes
Engagement Focus Practice
What it takes to read & write
Bottom-Up Skills associated with decoding
Top down Skills Associated with meaning making and
comprehension The mind recreates (or constructs) a
message or text – it does not remember “as is”
Bottom-up and top down skills work together. Both are necessary. Neither is sufficient.
Thingamajigs
They are all over my house!Most are little, but some are huge.The baby loves them.I hate them and wish I could get rid of
them.But it’s not that easy!
Components of Reading & Writing
Alphabetics Phonemic Awareness Fluency
Accuracy Rate Rhythm and expression
Vocabulary Comprehension
Capturing the Teaching/Learning Experience
Learning opportunities Do students get a chance to
express their own ideas solve problems practice new skills see patterns and understand “how things work”
Instructional strategies Does the teacher
link classroom learning to students’ lives give clear instructions and provide feedback Offer multiple opportunities to “get it”
English Language Development
ESL Focus, including Controlled practice and open-ended
communication Vocabulary development and idioms “How English works” Connecting oral and written English Language functions Socio-cultural knowledge Learning the language of math
Elements of L2 Reading
Initial or emergent literacy (focus on “enabling” skills, related to phonemic awareness or fluenc)
Literacy for school (structured school-based tasks)
Literacy for self-expression (personal stories; poetry)
Functional literacy Critical literacy (to question; to challenge) Literacy for “new times” (technology-mediated)
Learn German in Five Minutes
Mein Bruder heisst Harald. Er wohnt in Heidelberg. Er hat drei Kinder, Judith, Simon und Gabriel. Seine Frau heisst Gisela. Jedes Jahr, im Herbst, gehen sie auf’s Octoberfest. Sie essen Wurst und Sauerkraut und Rotkraut und trinking viel Bier. Dann tanzen sie. Alle freuen sich!
My Brother Harald
Methods to Capture LiteracyMethods to Capture Literacy
Observation Guide
Class is described Observer keeps running record Observer codes, using glossary and
examples as guide Monitor double checks Background variables and codes
become part of the analysis
Findings
Key Findings – Attendance
Students attend about 2/3 of the time (average), even if class is mandatory
If class meets more often per week– associated with positive growth
Students who enrolled during the first three weeks of class attended more hours per week and attended longer
In terms of outcomes, rate of attendance (% of time) makes a difference – rather than total number of hours
Findings: Basic Reading Skills
Growth in reading basic skills (WJR-BRSC) “Connection to the outside” strategy Younger students have higher growth Years of formal education (proxy for native
language literacy), but fades over time Initial English oral proficiency (BEST score)
Findings: Reading Comprehension
Growth in reading comprehension skills (WJR-RCC) Use of students’ native language in
instruction. Rate of attendance (proportion of hours
student attends weekly by hours offered weekly).
Initial basic reading skills (BRSC score) – effect emerges slowly over time (quadratic effect).
Findings: Oral English Skills
Growth in Oral English Skills (BEST) Use of students’ native language in
instruction Oral communication instructional emphasis Varied practice and interaction strategy Higher rate of attendance Student age (younger students have higher
growth) Initial basic reading skills (BRSC score)
Summary: Instructional Findings
Bringing in the Outside – growth in basic reading skills. Direct connection to students’ lives makes
instruction meaningful. Use of Native Language – growth in
reading comprehension and oral English skills. Removes comprehension barriers. Comfortable learning environment. Allows critical thinking skills.
Implications for Practice
Bringing in the Outside
Connect the classroom to the community
Highlight links between learning and living
Provide a context (using visuals to set the stage)
Bringing in the Outside
Use of realia (real foods; household items)
“Environmental print” (flyers; inserts; labels; signs)
Mailbox items (bills; notes from school; letters from the INS)
Tasks for neighborhood contexts (visit to store; laundromat; fast food place)
Varied Practice and Interaction
Don’t try to do too much – but vary modality; layer instruction
Give students a chance to try out English in different ways – help them gain confidence and competence
Use (some) direct teaching – draw students’ attention to patterns and rules (discovery grammar)
Allow sufficient opportunities for practice, particularly for those new to literacy
Use of the Native Language
Preview/review Short explanations Focused tasks in English or L1 Extended opportunities to ‘think in
English and use English Opportunities to discuss a topic in L1 Opportunity to ask questions in L1
Implications for Programs
Provide staff development on ESL literacy
Find ways to assess for levels of native language literacy, not just English proficiency
Offer shorter, more intensive classes and consider managed enrollment
What About the Men?
Finally
“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”
William Butler Yeats
Finally
