Democratic Classrooms and the Second Language Learner

1. Democratic Classrooms and the Second Language Learner A discussion

2. Overview • Your experiences and fears • Why it matters • Challenges we face • Language and identity • Empowerment • Suggestions for ESL instruction within a democratic framework

3. Your Experiences? • How would you describe your own experiences in classrooms when we consider English language learners? • Look at it from either the perspective of a student or of a teacher

4. Your fears? • What are you most concerned with when it comes to ESL students in your own classrooms? • What issues do you foresee occurring with ESL students as you strive to create a democratic classroom?

5. Why Does It Matter? (The Numbers) • 17.9% speak a language other than English at home • 4 million students identified as LEP by 2000 • One in every eleven students in school • Half of all teachers provide services to LEP students • What do these numbers suggest to you? Grubbs, 2003

6. Why Does It Matter? (The Law) • 14th Amendment • Equal protection • Are you truly providing equal access when the student cannot speak the language? • Lau v. Nichols (1974), Plyler v. Doe (1982) • Students must have access to academic instruction in the language they are most comfortable in and get help in learning English • NCLB (2001) • LEP students are not excused from testing

7. What do you think? • Should we be required to provide students with instruction in their native tongue, whenever possible? • What problems does the law seem to pose for educators? • Let’s talk now about challenges we face!

8. Preparation • Preparation • Only 30% of teachers, on average, get PD related to ESL • ESL programs generally provide services lasting one to three years, on average • How prepared do you honestly feel for LEP students in your own classroom? • How might you change preparation at our own level?

9. Language • Language • Should we require teachers to have a minimum familiarity with a particular foreign language? • How can we as teachers overcome the language issues?

10. Cultural Norms • The mainstream American culture may differ from that of the student and his/her family • Issues of respect, interaction, discipline, curriculum • In what way or ways do you plan on addressing the issue of different cultural expectations in your classroom?

11. Time • The migratory nature of many LEP students makes it difficult to ensure effective English language instruction • Time matters! • Two years for LEP student to converse fluently • Five to seven years for LEP student to gain academic English fluency

12. Language and Identity • What does the term identity mean to you? • Norton (1997): • How people understand their relationship to the world • How the relationship is constructed across time and space • How people understand their possibilities for the future

13. The Shifting Nature and Investment • Identity often shifts in accordance with changing social and economic relations (West, 1992) • Nature of identity reflects investment in target language • Construction of that relationship over time • LEP learner shaped by and shapes social identity and language

14. Power Relationships • Investment in language acquisition often reflects power relationships • Coercive • Dominant group exercises power that is detrimental to others • Marginalization and belittling of the LEP student • Collaborative • Power is shared and mutually generated • Empowering

15. Dealing with Identity • ELP students as individuals • Social needs and aspirations of these students are often tied to linguistic needs • Language is almost inherently a transmitter of culture and shaper of identity • Language expertise, language inheritance, language affiliation • Think about your own experiences in the classroom as a teacher and/or student. How is this true?

16. Language and Identity Current Issue • “If these teachers want to be accepted in my school, they must totally get rid of their accent because the students will have trouble understanding them.” (Norton, 1997, p. 423) • The Debate in Arizona: • The Story: No Accents Please • Do you agree with these commentators?

17. Language as Empowerment • What do you see as your own role in teaching LEP students? • How do we define the term ‘empowerment’?

18. What determines empowerment? • Cummins (1986): • Incorporation of minority students’ language and culture into school program • Encouragement of minority community participation • Pedagogy encourages buy-in and intrinsic motivation (investment!) • Advocacy rather than problem pointer-aters

19. ESL and Your Democratic Classroom: Suggestions • The following slides are taken from a presentation developed by Dr. Lee Chen. The full presentation is available at: • http://daphne.palomar.edu/lchen/

20. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 1. Let students jump start the class • A question for the teacher • One-minute motivator • Language-related class opener • Brain tease

21. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 2. Let students teach/explain back • 3-step coaching • You say; you do • You say; they do • They say; they do • Cartoon recreation • Notice grammar in the newspaper, etc.

22. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 3. Let students come up with authentic teaching materials • Topics for discussions • Student work as text • Community Teaching Method

23. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 4. Let students help each other • Paragraph peer review • Audience feedback on team presentations • Discussion board • Student mentors

24. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 5. Let students manage themselves • Daily class management jobs • Classroom rules • “Round robin” reading

25. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 6. Let students vote • Student of the week • Day or location of tests • Reading selections

26. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 7. Let students participate in and represent their teams • Team projects • Daily team jobs • Radio frequency clickers • Cross-word puzzle solving • Grammar review workout

27. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 8. Let students show off • Student paper showcase • Computer station swaps • “Did you know…?”

28. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 9. Let students speak their mind • One-minute feedback on the day’s class • Opinion polls on course-related issues • www.getfast.ca • Anonymous discussion board • Exercises for thinking independently, critically, or creatively

29. Ten ways to impart democratic principles on a daily basis 10. Let students share their insights and experiences with the world • Weblog • “Voices of ESL”

30. Pedagogy of the Oppressed • Paolo Freire: The teacher is no longer the only one who teaches. The students, while being taught, also teach. They become jointly responsible for a process in which all grow.

31. Democratic Ways in a Classroom • share control in class • build a community spirit • are pedagogically sound • create a dynamic environment • value and validate student voices • develop greater student-centrality • bring out humans’ cooperative nature

32. Democratic Ways in a Classroom • teach the students to have a say and take a stake in their immediate classes—and, hopefully, in their outside community as well—with the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy

33. Democratic Ways in a Classroom • produce self-managed, independent learners • serve the students well and create raving fans • enhance a more collaborative approach to language teaching • change the teacher mentality of having to dictate everything in class • engage and empower the students as active partners in the instructional process

34. Finally… • Be realistic! • Connect language acquisition to course content as closely as possible! • Collaboration and hands on activities! • Develop connections and familiarity with the students’ culture! • And ROCK ON! WOOHOO!

35. Your Articles • Can be lesson plans appropriate for ESL students within a democratic classroom context and/or relating to civic instruction • Model a part of the lesson • Summarize • Strengths and weaknesses • Can address current issues or problems with current approaches to ESL education (in the style of the three we read) • Summarize • Find a way to present it and connect to the classroom/our class • Can be a historical piece • Summarize • What surprised you about the issues the piece raised • Have things changed, remained the same? • Tone of the piece/arguments?