Decoding Unfamiliar Text

Have you ever tried to read a text in another language?  

Reading a novel written in Spanish was a very unpleasant experience, but a very important one.  The frustration I experienced during this activity allowed me to develop even more empathy for the English Language Learners in my classroom.  For this activity I located a Spanish novel called La Regenta by Leopoldo Alas.  The full version of this text can be found at: http://www.donquijote.org/spanishlanguage/literature/library/laregenta/. 

What was the text about?

I gathered from the picture and title that this text was about a woman.  I predicted that this story would be about her life.  I thought since many Spanish words are similar to English words that I would be able to gather some meaning from the text.  However, I could not have been more wrong.  I was shocked at how little of the text I could understand. 

What did I do to make meaning?

In order to make meaning of the text I started with a small section. I tried to use background knowledge.  I thought of words our Spanish teacher has used on the announcements, or during conversations with students.  I was able to guess the meanings of a few words based on this limited knowledge, but other than that I was completely lost.  I kept rereading the text hoping something would come to me, but I continued to be overwhelmed.  Ultimately, I realized I had very few strategies for comprehending the text.  I did not know the meanings of the words, so I thought of giving up.  I thought to myself that there was no way to make meaning of the text if I knew none of the words.  Then, I decided to try to look for patterns in the sentences to determine syntax and word meaning.  I think I determined which words were transitions, nouns, and adjectives based on syntax, but I still had no idea what they meant.  In order to understand what I was reading I had to scale back to the word level.  I finally resorted to using a translator to look up individual word meanings.  I then combined that knowledge with my knowledge of syntax to try to understand the story.  This process was labor-intensive, and not very efficient.

Strategies Used to Make Meaning

• Use background knowledge.
• Focus on a small section first.
• Reread text.
• Use relationship between English and Spanish to determine word meaning.
• Examine syntax for clues.
• Use a dictionary to look up unknown words.

What did I learn from this experience?

Not only did I develop more compassion for ELL students, but I was able to have a first-hand experience that illustrated the need of scaffolding.  I have always learned about the importance of providing scaffolding, but I never experienced the need of scaffolding until this activity.  I kept thinking to myself that if there would have been appropriate scaffolding in place that I might be able to get some meaning out of the text.  I graduated with an ESOL endorsement, and learned the importance of scaffolding instruction for ELL students.  However, I never knew what it felt like to learn a new language.  Now, I know the frustration that comes along with reading in a foreign language without the appropriate level of scaffolding.  In the future, I will be thoughtful of what my students go through when learning a new language.

What are the implications to teachers?

• Teachers must provide appropriate scaffolding for students so that it is possible for them to comprehend the text.  Scaffolding instruction before, during, and after reading is crucial to success.  Actively engaging students in this process is also important (Irjuo, n.d.). 
• Teachers should provide nonverbal support for reading (Irjuo, n.d.).  Pictures, diagrams, real objects, gestures, and graphic organizers help students understand a passage (Irjuo, n.d.). 
•  Teachers should not give students the same activities as everyone else.  Teachers need to implement a curriculum at a language level that is accessible to ELLs (Irjuo, n.d.).  Also teachers should give more time for students to decode and comprehend texts.
• Teachers should plan interactive activities around reading and interpreting texts.  Sharing ideas, comparing perspectives, and coming to agreement are ways for students to process language, which leads to reading comprehension (Irjuo, n.d.). 

References

Irujo, S. (n.d.). What Does Research Tell Us About Teaching Reading to English Language Learners? Retrieved May 7, 2015.

Oral Language and Reading for ELL Students

The development of oral language provides a foundation for reading.  Oral language provides an opportunity for students to develop vocabulary knowledge, develop knowledge about linguistic rules, and learn the patterns of English (Freeman & Freeman, 2004).  Essentially, oral language and the reading process go hand-in-hand.  Students are able to find patterns in oral communication, and use this knowledge to understand and produce messages (Freeman & Freeman, 2004).  When English Language Learners use this knowledge to produce messages they process the language more deeply, and push their knowledge of language (Gibbons, 2002).

The reading process requires skills that are taught.  Students must learn skills to decode the words on the page.  However, oral language makes the transition much easier.  Once students decode the printed words on a page, they will recognize them as words in their oral language (Freeman & Freeman, 2004).  Students who have a strong foundation of oral language are likely to have an easier time learning to read, as they will already have knowledge of words and their meanings.  In other words, oral language helps students make sense of the words they are decoding, which leads to the ultimate goal of comprehension.

Knowing that oral language and learning to read go hand-in-hand, teachers must best support their ELL students by teaching these skills together.  Students must have opportunities to practice listening, speaking, and reading skills in order to become proficient at a second language.  Classroom talk needs to be deliberately and systematically planned so that it pushes second language development (Gibbons, 2002).  Keeping oral language and the reading process in mind when structuring tasks, setting up group work, and responding to students can foster second language development.  After all, as stated by Gibbons (2002): “Talk is how education happens!” (p. 38).

Freeman, D., & Freeman, Y. (2004). Written and Second Language Acquisition. In Essential linguistics: What you need to know to teach reading, ESL, spelling, phonics, and grammar. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Gibbons, P. (2002). Scaffolding language, scaffolding learning: Teaching second language learners in the mainstream classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Writing Instruction

While it is difficult to remember the early years of writing instruction I received, I know my experiences most closely aligned with the learning view.  My teacher had a traditional writing classroom, where direct instruction was used to teach the aspects of writing.  Instruction started with the parts of writing, and then eventually we wrote whole texts (Freeman & Freeman, 2004).  However, we never began with a message.  We always learned the skills, and then worked on actual writing.  I wonder how much better of a writer I would have been in my early years if I would have been encouraged to start with a message, and then taught the skills needed to publish my thoughts.  I was always directly instructed to combine words into sentences, but never taught the power and beauty that language can convey.  Upon reflecting on this experience I realize that I am more of an inspired writing teacher, ensuring my students do not miss out on the writing instruction I did.  It is almost as if I am making up for lost experiences in my own writing instruction.  Teaching writing from an acquisition view is exciting and refreshing, and helping students express themselves in writing is invigorating. 

Freeman, D., & Freeman, Y. (2004). Written and Second Language Acquisition. In Essential linguistics: What you need to know to teach reading, ESL, spelling, phonics, and grammar. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Philosophies on Teaching English Language Learners

Discussing teaching philosophies is very beneficial.  I always enjoying hearing others viewpoints on education, and using these discussions to further strengthen my own philosophy.  This week I sat down with a colleague to discuss her viewpoints on teaching literacy to English Language Learners.  The conversation was very insightful. 

I found that my colleague strongly believes in providing English Language Learners with a supportive learning environment, helping them develop literacy through meaningful activities, and meeting their needs to succeed in the English academic environment. She aims to make the learning process meaningful by considering students’ prior knowledge, relationships, values, and experiences.  She also finds the value in having English Language Learners actively participate in classroom activities to develop literacy, rather than passively learn.  She also believes that when teaching literacy to English Language learners it is crucial to create a friendly, supportive learning environment, where students are comfortable experimenting with a new language without fear of making mistakes.  Keeping in mind the affective filter, Mrs. Merry knows it is crucial to do her best to keep anxiety, stress, and tension from interfering with a learner’s ability to learn. 

Mrs. Merry also believes that when teaching literacy to English Language Learners it is imperative to use appropriate approaches, methods, and techniques.  She compared preparing English Language Learners for a reading task to packing for a camping trip.  She spoke to how you always double check to make sure you have everything you need to have a great trip, so when planning instruction you should always double check that ELLs have everything they need to comprehend the text. 

Lastly, Mrs. Merry ended our discussion with by reminding me to always consider the power of scaffolding, classroom talk, collaborative groups, and think-alouds when working with English Language Learners.