2.0 El/Civics and Fdoe Adult Esol Curriculum Standards

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 INTRODUCTION

2.0 EL/CIVICS AND FDOE ADULT ESOL CURRICULUM STANDARDS

3.0 PROJECT-BASED ACTIVITIES FOR EL/CIVICS GRANT RECIPIENTS

4.0 LESSON-PLANNING TOOLS

4.1 Lesson-Planning Tool #1

4.2 Lesson-Planning Tool #2

5.0 INSTRUCTION

5.1 Teaching Strategy #1: Active Learning

5.2 Teaching Strategy #2: Help Students to Develop and Share Informed Opinions

5.3 Teaching Strategy #4: Brainstorming to Share Ideas and Collaborate

5.4 Teaching Strategy #5: Role-Play

5.5 Teaching Strategy #6: Problem-Based Learning

5.6 Teaching Strategy#7: Scenarios for Problem Solving

5.7 Teaching Strategy#7: Scenarios for Problem Solving

6.0 FLORIDA RESOURCES

6.1 Florida Resource #1: Florida Literacy Coalition Project-Based Classroom Activities

6.2 Florida Resource #2: Florida TechNet

6.3 Florida Resource #3: Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) Adult ESOL

6.5 Florida Resource #5: Seminole State College (SSC) Adult ESOL

7.0 NATIONAL RESOURCES

7.1 National Resource #1: Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL)

7.2 National Resource #2: LiteracyWork International

7.3 National Resource #3:World Education

8.0 U.S. GOVERNMENT RESOURCES

8.2 U.S. Government Resource #2: U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

8.3 U.S. Government Resource #3: U.S. Department of State

APPENDIX A: web-based resources for EL/Civics instructors and Students

APPENDIX B: LESSON MAPPING TOOL

1.0 INTRODUCTION

This handbook is for teachers in adult English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) programs that receive supplemental funding through federal English Literacy and Civics (EL/Civics) Education grants.

ESOL teachersin regular ESOL programs have one main goal:

Increase the students’ abilities to communicate in English for a variety of purposes including employment, education, and life in the United States.

ESOL teachers in programs funded with EL/Civics grants have an additional goal. That goal is to increase students’ knowledge of civics in the United States and includes:

•U.S. History

•U.S. Government

•Civic Engagement

•Citizenship

The U.S. Department of Education,Office of Career and Adult Education(OCTAE) describes EL/Civics programs
this way:

These [EL/Civics] educational programs emphasize contextual instruction on the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, naturalization procedures, civic participation, and U.S. history and government in order to help adult students acquire the skills and knowledge to become active and informed parents, workers, and community members. ( accessed December 19, 2014).

These [curriculum topics and activities] include expanding English language skills through problem-solving activities, understanding local resources and services, citizen instruction, integrated English language and civics tutoring, computer literacy for immigrants, curriculum and professional development ( accessed December 19, 2014).

The Florida Department of Education,Division of Career and Adult EducationEL/Civics grant application, which is made available to local school districts, colleges and community-based organizations, states:

To effectively participate in the opportunities of this country for civic participation,education and work,students who participate in EL/Civicsinitiatives must not only master English but be able to navigate governmental, educational and workplace systems, and key institutions such as banking and health care. They can also benefit from learning about community resources, career exploration/planning, and consumer education.

2.0 EL/CIVICS AND FDOEADULT ESOL CURRICULUM STANDARDS

Identifying EL/Civics Benchmarks

The Florida adult ESOL standards align with the two goals mentioned above, and prepare students to be active participants in the everyday and civic life of their new country. The four language skill areas of reading, writing, speaking, and listening are addressed at each level. Lists of vocabularywords and grammar structures are presentedaccording to their corresponding EFL. The standards cover the following seven life skills topic areas:

Communication
Civics, Family and Community Resources
Employment
Consumer Education
Health and Nutrition
Transportation and Travel
Safety and Security

This is a sample competency from the ESOL standards, with labels to identify the various parts.

Civics, family and Community Resources

FOUNDATIONS / LOW
BEGINNING / HIGH
BEGINNING / LOW INTERMEDIATE / HIGH
INTERMEDIATE / ADVANCED
1 .02.08Recognize compulsory schooling for children 5-16. / 2. 02 .08
Identify educational services, facilities, and enrollment procedures for children.
VOCABULARY
day care, pre-K, K-12, private/public / 3.02. 08Identify means to access educational opportunities for children (special programs, scholarships, extracurricular activities, tutoring, NCLB). / 4.02.08 Identify ways of participating in child’s education. / 5.02.08
Recognize the role of the parents in a child’s education, including: advocate, “Choose Right” program, request assistance/special services. / 6.02.08
Write a note
to your child’s teacher

to report an absence, request
a parent-teacher conference, and/or share a concern.

In the graphic above, the competencies are presented in a matrix format, with six educational functioning levels (EFLs) across the top header:

Level 1: Foundations

Level 2: Low Beginning

Level 3: High Beginning

Level 4: Low Intermediate

Level 5: High Intermediate

Level 6: Advanced

In the graphic above, competency number 6.02.08 states:

“Write a note to your child’s teacher to report an absence, request a parent-teacher conference, and/or share a concern.”

The number 6 identifies the educational functioning level: Advanced.

The number 02 identifies the topic area being studied: Civics, Family, and Community Resources.

The number 08 identifies which competency is being studied in Level 6: Topic Area 2.

Each competency has three components:

A skill, usually represented by a verb or action. The skill in 6.02.8 would be,“Write a note to your child’s teacher.”
A concept, usually represented as an idea, a piece of information, or a fact. The concept in 6.02.8 would be“report an absence, request a parent-teacher conference, and or share a concern.”
A domain, based on Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning. Blooms taxonomy addresses six domains: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. The primary domain addressed by 6.02.08 would be “Synthesis.”

Inanother example, competency number 5.03.13 states:

“Identify appropriate skills and education necessary to attain short- and long-term career goals.”

The number 5 identifies the educational functioning level: High Intermediate.

The number 03 identifies the topic area being studied: Employment.

The number 13 identifies which competency is being studied in Level 5: Topic Area 3.

•The skill would be “Identify.”

•The concept would be “skills and education necessary to attain short- and long-term career goals.”

•The primary domain addressedby 5.03.13 would be “Knowledge.”

3.0 PROJECT-BASED ACTIVITIES FOR EL/CIVICS GRANT RECIPIENTS

The EL/Civics grant provides a list of 19 EL/Civics project-based activities. In order to carry out the project-based activities as part of the EL/Civics grant, the ESOL curriculum standardsinclude competencies that align with the grant objectives.

Project-Based Activities

1.Collect and share information in class on child-care services in the community.

2.Collect and share information in class on social service agencies in the community.

3.Collect and share information in class on health-related agencies in the community.

4.Collect and share information in class on emergency services in the community.

5.Identify and map emergency shelters in the community and share the information in class.

6.Collect and share information in class on the cultural groups in the community.

7.Collect and share information in classon how to obtain a Florida Driver’s License or ID.

8.Collect and share information in class on domestic violence services in the community.

9.Collect and share information in class on senior services in the community.

10.Collect and share information in class on recreational resources in the community.

11.Collect and share information in class on volunteer opportunities in the community.

12.Provide evidence of participation as an active volunteer in a community service program.

Involvement in Children’s Education Project-Based Activities

13.Prepare a sample note to a teacher about a child’s absence, illness, homework, or the like.

14.Prepare a sample note to a teacher requesting a parent-teacher conference.

15.Provide evidence of participation in a school event: open house, reading night, and so forth.

16.Provide evidence of participation in a parent-teacher conference.

17.Provide evidence of volunteering at a child’s school.

18.Prepare a schedule for reading with child/children at home.

19.Develop a written plan for checking child’s/children’s backpack(s) regularly.

In order to carry out a project-based activity, the teacher can combine several of the ESOL competencies in one project. Some projects can be done individually to allow students to showcase what they can do on their own. Other projects can involve a pair of students or a group of three to four students.

Projects align with the level of the students in the class. For example, competencies selected for a class with Foundations Level students would be different than the competencies selected for a class with High Intermediate Level students. Projects may be done with multi-level groups of students too, using competencies from several topic areas and levels. A project that involves students in learning about their community could address several competencies from different topic areas and levels.

The tablebelow providesa sample selection of three of the EL/Civics grant project activities. Each of the project-based activities is matched to several topic areas and competencies from the ESOL curriculum standards. The language skills covered (Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing) are also shown.

Project-Based Activity / ESOL Curriculum Standards Topic Areas / Language Skills
#1 Collect and share information in class on child-care services in the community.
Levels:
3 High Beginning
4 Low
Intermediate / Topic Area: 01 Communication
3.01.06 Demonstrate the ability to use telephone services. / L S R W
4.01.02 Interview others and restate information. / L S R W
3.01.10 Locate alphabetical and topical information in directories. / R
4.01.06 Demonstrate ability to communicate successfully by telephone for personal and work-related matters. / L S R W
4.01.10 Locate a variety of resources in telephone directories (maps, government agencies, coupons). / R
Topic Area: 02 Civics, Family and Community Resources
3.02.01 Demonstrate the ability to access services provided by local, state and/or federal government agencies. / L S R W
4.02.01 Describe local government structure. / S W
4.02.02 Discuss services available in the community for immigrants. / S
#11 Collect and share information in class on volunteer activities in the community
Levels:
5 High
Intermediate
6 Advanced / Topic Area: 01 Communication
5.01.01 Recognize and respond appropriately to verbal and nonverbal language. / L S
6.01.02 Use appropriate language for social, academic, and life situations, demonstrating sensitivity to gender, ethnic traditions and cultural bias, including voice volume and proper body language. / L S R W
6.01.03 Give a short formal presentation using appropriate body language. / S
Topic Area: 02 Civics, Family, and Community Resources
5.02.02 Read and discuss current events/happenings in the community. / R S
6.02.02 Analyze current issues that affect you at the local, state, and national level. / L S R W
Topic Area: 03 Employment
6.03.02 Compare/contrast qualifications and responsibilities for various types of jobs (in this project, substitute volunteer opportunities) in the local job market. / L S R W
6.03.06 Write a note to communicate progress on assigned tasks and activities. / W
#13 Prepare a sample note to a teacher about a child’s absence, illness, homework, etc.
Level:
1 Foundations / Topic Area: 01 Communication
1.01.02 Use simple sentences to identify and introduce self and others. / L S R W*
1.01.05 Identify days of the week and months of the year using words, abbreviations, and numeric form. / L S R W
Topic Area: 02 Civics, Family, and Community Resources
1.02.07 Identify family members. / L S R W
1.02.08 Recognize compulsory schooling for children ages 5 – 16. / L S R W

L = Listening S = Speaking R = Reading W = Writing

4.0 LESSON-PLANNING TOOLS

The Adult ESOL standards include many civics competencies. This section will give you some lesson-planning tools for use in the classroom.

4.1 Lesson-Planning Tool #1

Outreach and Technical Assistance Network (OTAN)

Source:

The OTAN website requires users to register, but it is free. The lesson-planning tool based on the WIPPEA (Warm-up, Introduction, Presentation, Practice, Evaluation, and Application) model, with an emphasis on backward design, is a guide for teachers in planning effective lessons. This model for lesson planning helps ESOL, ABE, ASE, and other teachers create a smooth instructional flow and scaffold learning in small chunks.

4.2Lesson-Planning Tool #2

Florida Practitioners’ ESOL and EL/Civics Lesson-Mapping Tool

A group of adult ESOL practitioners has developed a lesson-mapping tool specifically for the FDOE Adult ESOL standards that include the EL/Civics competencies. The lesson map they developed has the following fourcomponents:

•A competency from the FDOE ESOL standards at the center of the map.

•Activities that incorporate the four language skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

•Vocabulary words that align with the competency.

•Grammar concepts that align with the level of the competency.

To use the lesson-mapping tool, follow these steps:

Select a civics competency from the FDOE ESOL standards that matches the educational functioning level of the students and write itin center circle.
Create activities for reading, writing, listening, and/or speaking skills that relate to the civics competency selected and write them in the four circles that surround the civics competency.
Refer to theComprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS) competencies and content standards. Select those that align with this competency and the activities. Write them in the boxes next to the activities.

This basic lesson-mapping tool is designed for teachers who have little time to write out all the steps of a lesson. Projects that take more than two days could incorporatea series of lesson maps that build on each other sequentially.

Two sample lesson-planning maps are provided below. These maps cover two EL/Civics competencies from the FDOE ESOL standards: reporting the need for household repairs to a landlord, and obtaining a driver’s license. These samples are provided as a sketch of how a teacher could create a basic lesson that incorporates practice of the four language skills, vocabulary, and grammar structures.

A blank lesson-planning map is provided in Appendix B. EL/Civics reproducible masters and instructions on how to complete it are also available.

5.0INSTRUCTION

In this section, we will explore some teaching strategies that go hand in hand with the practice of civics activities by the community of students as they engage with the wider world. Civics is not only chunks of knowledge to be shared with students but also activities to be practiced with students.

5.1 Teaching Strategy #1: Active learning

Source:

Active Learning: 101 Strategies to Teach Any Subject, Mel Silberman

Active learning is a set of strategies that involve students in doing things with the information they are learning as an integral part of the process. It refers to a collection of techniques whereby students discover, process, and apply information. Active learning derives from two basic assumptions: (1) that learning is by nature an active endeavor, and (2) that different people learn in different ways. (Meyers and Jones, 1993) Active learning strategies use one or more of the four language skills ofSpeaking, Listening, Writing, and Reading, in addition to the element of Reflecting. Mel Silbermanwrote: “In order to learn information well, students should have an opportunity to:

Hear about the subject.
See images and illustrations about the subject.
Ask questions about the subject.
Discuss it with others.
Do something about the subject.”

By giving students the opportunity to do each of the above in the EL/Civics classroom, instructors are also building the capacity of students to become engaged in the civic life of their community. English language learners benefit greatly from having many opportunities to listen and hear about a subject. They also benefit from having opportunities to see images and illustrations about a subject. Both auditory and visual input is useful to learners as they go through the process of learning English.

ACTIVE LEARNING INDICATORS

In Active Learning, teachers will: / In Active Learning, students will:
Provide opportunities for students to identify what they want to learn. / Discuss what they want to learn and why they want to learn it.
Work with students to set realistic short-term goals that will help them make progress toward their long-term goals. / Set realistic short-term and long-term goals.
Pose problems for students to solve. / Use their skills to solve problems.
Plan multisensory activities that teach to a variety of styles, such as role-plays, games, group problem solving, presentations, etc. / Enjoy classroom activities, have fun while they are learning, look forward to their lessons, and come prepared.
Connect students’ daily lives to the topic they are learning by using role-plays, authentic materials, etc. / Identify ways to apply what they are learning in their daily lives.
Regularly check with students about their satisfaction with learning activities. / Let their instructors know what activities are and are not helping them learn.

5.2 Teaching Strategy #2: Help students to develop and share informed opinions

Source: Equipped for the Future (EFF) Standard, Advocateand Influence.

This EFF standard states, “In order to fulfill responsibilitiesas parents/family members, citizens/community members,and workers, adults must be able to advocate and influence others.” In order to foster meaningful civic engagement, teachers will find it useful to draw out students' prior knowledge about the topic being studied. When students have a chance to use the language they have already learned regarding the topic, and to express their opinions about it, this builds their capacity to be engaged in the civic life of their community. By creating opportunities for students to share what they know and think, teachers help their students to develop and share informed opinions, which is crucial to EL/Civics education. The EFF website has examples of activities that help students address one of the key activities of EFF standards, “Exercise Rights and Responsibilities.”