The Teaching of English Language Learners Prek-12

ED 175a Syllabus

The Teaching of English Language Learners PreK-12

Dates and Times: Thursdays,

1/10 January 22, 2015 4:00-6:20

2/10 January 29, 2015 4:00-6:20

3/10 February 5,2015 4:00-6:20

4/10 February12,2015 4:00-6:20

5/10 February 26, 2015 4:00-6:20

6/10 March 12, 2015 4:00-6:20

7/10 April 2, 2015 4:00-6:20

8/10 April 9, 2015 4:00-6:20

9/10 April 16, 2015 4:00-6:20

10/10 April 30, 2015 4:00-6:20

Instructor:

Katherine Lobo ()

Office hours: After class by appointment only

Course Description

All Massachusetts teachers are now required to prepare to be teachers of English in addition to content teachers. As the number of students learning English as a second or other language continues to increase in our country, classroom teachers must understand how to meet students’ linguistic, academic, and socio-emotional needs. English learners (ELLs) born in and outside of the United States speak a variety of languages and come from diverse social, cultural, and economic backgrounds. All teachers of ELLs must learn how to understand and include the experiences of these students in their instruction.

In this course, we will examine the intersection of culture and language and learn about the process of second language acquisition. We will discuss specific issues confronting bilingual students, including testing, family involvement, and a variety of challenges facing children who enter the American elementary, middle or high schools.Those who plan to be mathematics, history, or science teachers will learn reasons and means for helping English Language Learners access specific texts and vocabulary. Students interested in elementary education will learn a variety of strategies to adapt their curricula and classrooms to meet the needs of the English language learner. Through analysis of case studies, participants will also learn to plan and deliver high quality instruction that is differentiated to meet the needs of English learners.

Upon completion of this course, participants will have acquired the skills and knowledge base that includes helping pre-service teachers to understand and embrace their responsibility for the teaching and learning of ELLs as well as to acknowledge the social and cultural issues that impact the schooling of ELLs. Students will expand their knowledge of how language functions and how children and adolescents acquire a second language. Students will apply knowledge to developing instruction aligned with a standards based curriculum (e.g. World Class Instructional Design & Assessment English language development standards and Common Core State Standards). The above goals are adapted from Massachusetts’ RETELL course syllabus 7/12/12.

General Requirements

Seminar Experience:

Students are expected to:

attend class meetings regularly,
read all assigned material,
participate in seminar discussions (in a variety of formats for multiple learning styles & temperaments),
and complete the assignments, and presentations to colleagues in class.

Participation and attendance in class are important components of your learning; the participation aspect of your grade will also be calculated based on how you contribute to the learning of the other students in the class. If you cannot come to class, please let me know ahead of time via email.

Experiential Learning:

This course will require that students either spend 2-3 hours/week observing and assisting in a classroom that includes English Language Learners, or where students are doing full practicum student teaching while taking this course. This experiential learning component is necessary so that you can observe how ELL students acquire language and the teacher’s strategies for teaching and learning.

This study will culminate in a final presentation that will combine theory with practice.

Required Texts:

ED 175a Reading Packet (variety of articles) will be provided by the professor as need be for in-class activities.

Echevarría, J., Vogt, M., & Short, D.J. (2012). Making Content Comprehensible for

English Learners: The SIOP Model. Boston, MA: Pearson.

Phelan Ariza, Eileen (2009) Not for ESOL Teachers: What Every Classroom Teacher Needs to Know About the Linguistically, Culturally, and Ethnically Diverse Student

Grades and Assignments:

Paper #1, First Assignment (Paper 1: Autobiography of a language learner): 10%

Paper #2a and Paper #2b, Second Assignment (Paper 2a Biography of a language learner and Paper 2b Next steps for a language learner): 20%

Paper #3, Third Assignment (Strategies Assignment and Strategies Tracker): 10%

Paper #4, Fourth Assignment (Cultural Experience and Reflection): 10%

Paper #5 Fifth Assignment (1 SIOP Lesson Plan ) Three Quotes with Reflection Assignment and 10 minute in class presentation, a summary of learning: 30%

The additional 20% will be an assessment of class attendance and participation.

Academic Integrity, Citing Sources and Plagiarism:You are responsible for following the policies and procedures outlined at the following sites:

For Brandeis statement on Academic Integrity, visit and , section 3.

For guidance on citing your sources, visit . See also .

For further detailed descriptions regarding plagiarism and citation, visit

Guiding Questions for the Course: What must mainstream (and pre-service) content teachers know and be able to do to meet the instructional needs of English language learners in their classes?

Session 1: Thursday, January 22, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: Who are our students, our English language learners? What are the key factors affecting second language acquisition?

Session 2: Thursday, January 29, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: What are some of the interrelationships between language and culture? What is culture? What is the art of crossing cultures? What is sheltering instruction and how can a teacher effectively shelter instruction for English language learners in the content areas?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Preface
Chapter 1 Introducing Sheltered Instruction

Not for ESOL Teachers: What Every Classroom Teacher Needs to Know About the Linguistically, Culturally and Ethnically Diverse Student, second edition, by Eileen N. Whelan Ariza, Allyn and Bacon, Boston, MA, 2010.

Notes to the Reader
Chapter 1 Voices from the Classroom
Chapter 2 Cultural Diversity in the Mainstream Classroom
Due Session 2, Paper 1 Assignment (Autobiography of a language learner) 10%

Session 3: Thursday, February 5, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: What are content and language objectives? What is standards based education? What is important to know about social language and Academic language in the school and classroom? What does one need to know to prepare an effective lesson for an English language learner? What impact does cultural diversity have on instruction and on the classroom climate? How can teachers better meet the needs of culturally diverse learners?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapter 2 Lesson Preparation

Chapter 3 Cross Cultural Understanding in Academic Settings
Chapter 4 Diverse Learning Styles

Session 4: Thursday, February 12, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: What are some of the ways one can assess and build background knowledge for English language learners? How does one make input comprehensible for English language learners in particular? What do teachers need to know about second language acquisition?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapters 3 & 4, Building Background & Comprehensible Input

Chapter 5 What Teachers Need to Know About Language Acquisition
Due Session 4 Paper #2A Assignment (Paper 2a Biography of a language learner) 10%

Session 5: Thursday, February 26, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: What strategies are particularly effective when used to shelter instruction for English language learners? How can meaningful interaction between students be increased and enhance sheltered instruction in the mainstream classroom?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapters 5 & 6, Strategies & Interaction

Chapter 6 The School Experience for the English Learner

Session 6: Thursday, March 12, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: What makes practice and application more meaningful for English language learners? How can one promote student engagement in learning? How does one integrate language and content objectives in standards based instruction? What does differentiated instruction look like for English language learners?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapters 7 & 8, Practice and Application & Lesson Delivery

Chapter 7 Why Integrate Language and Content
Chapter 8 Differentiated Instruction for English Learners
Due Session 6, Paper #2B Assignment (Next steps for a language learner) 10%

Session 7: Thursday, April 2, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: How can students be assessed? What types of assessment are particularly important to consider when assessing English language learners. What types of assessment are required by the state of Massachusetts?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapter 9, Review and Assessment

Chapter 9 Literacy and the English Language Learner
Chapter 10 Teaching Math to English Language Learners—Myths and Methods
Chapter 11 Traditional Assessment: Why It is Inappropriate
Due Session 7 Paper #3 Assignment (Strategies Assignment) 10%

Session 8: Thursday, April 9, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: How does one know if a student has a learning disability or not? What are some effective ways to teach reading for English language learners? What supports do parents need that teachers can provide? What more can personnel and staff do to support English language learners and the families of English language learners?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapter 10 Issues of Reading Development and Special Education for English Learners

Chapter 12 How Teachers Can Help Parents of ELLs
Chapter 13 Beyond the Classroom Walls: Suggestions for Non-instructional Staff
Due Session 8, Strategies Chart due, (total of 12 strategies) 10%

Session 9: Thursday, April 16, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions: How can one best make use of the SIOP Protocol when planning instruction?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Making Content Comprehensible for Secondary English Learners: THE SIOP MODEL by Jana Echevarria, MaryEllen Vogt, and Deborah Short, Pearson, Allyn & Bacon: Boston, MA, 2013:

Chapter 11, Effective Use of the SIOP Protocol
Due Session 9, Paper 4 Assignment (Cultural Experience and Reflection) 10%

Session 10: Thursday, April 30, 2015 4:00-6:30 pm

Guiding Questions:What does a sheltered lesson plan look like?

Read / prepare the following prior to today’s class:

Due Session 10, Fifth Assignment (1 SIOP Lesson Plan, Three Quotations and a 10 minute in class presentation, a summary of learning). 30%

Please note: Some assignments may be adjusted or be changed, as need be, at the discretion of the instructor.