Education Commons^™

Not Another One: The Over Identification Of Hispanic Children In Ecse, Gail I. Becker, Aaron R. Deris

Special Education Department Publications

This session presents a current study that examined the overrepresentation of Hispanic English language learners in early childhood settings. Results of this phenomenological study will be reviewed along with implications for practitioners. Participants will gain an understanding of the needs of English language learners and ways to increase school professionals' efficacy.

Integrated Reading And Writing: A Case Of Korean English Language Learners, Hyonsuk Cho, Janina Brutt-Griffler

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This study reports Korean English language learners’ perceived needs concerning their learning of reading and writing and how the integrated reading and writing instruction impacts their reading comprehension and summary-writing abilities. The study also delineates teacher’s challenges faced during the instruction. A total of 93 students in a middle school in Korea participated in a needs survey, and 69 students at three proficiency levels received the integrated instruction. The study found that students desired extra help on their writing to gain balanced English competence; also they wanted to learn reading and writing together. After the intervention, students at intermediate and …

Cultural Capital, Agency, And Voice: Literacy Practices Of Middle School English Language Learners, Bogum Yoon

Middle Grades Review

Grounded in cultural capital and agency theory, this study examines two middle school English language learners’ (ELLs) participatory behaviors in literacy practices in the U.S. classroom. A closer examination of the ELLs’ participatory behaviors through their authentic voices is important to understand for their literacy development. The purpose of this article is to discuss the interconnection among ELLs’ agency, identity, and classroom dynamics for their language and literacy learning. The data sources include formal and informal interviews, classroom observations, and artifacts, including reading and writing projects. Findings suggest that, despite the students’ similar background of race, native language, age, gender, …

New York State Education Department Policies, Mandates And Initiatives On The Education Of English Language Learners, Angela Carrasquillo, Diane Rodríguez, Laura Kaplan

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This article is a summary of a longer report, completed under the direction of the Research Institute for the Study of Language in Urban Society and the doctoral program in Urban Education at the Graduate Center in the City University of New York (CUNY) with funding provided by the New York State Initiative on Emergent Bilinguals (NYSIEB). It describes educational laws, policies, mandates, and initiatives regarding the education of English language learners, which took shape and reverberated in the New York State Education Department. This historical descriptive research focused on the historical period from 1965 to the year 2013. The …

The Psychological Impact Of English Language Immersion On Elementary Age English Language Learners, Elena B. Parra, Carol A. Evans, Todd Fletcher, Mary C. Combs

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

To date, most studies about English language learners (ELLs) in Structured English Immersion (SEI) classrooms in the state of Arizona have focused on ELLs’ lack of English acquisition in one year, a time frame expected by Arizona policymakers, as well as their lagging academic progress. While these studies almost uniformly have surfaced educational and policy concerns about the effectiveness of SEI, the debate about this approach has been marked by a lack of attention to research addressing the non-academic ramifications of enforcing this model on children who speak or understand little or no English. One relatively unexamined consequence of the …

Exploring Cultural Proficiency: A Case Study Of A Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Middle School In A Predominantly White School District, Jared Peo

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Issues of diversity continue to plague our nation. Recent events and Supreme Court cases have revealed a side of the United States that many wanted to believe was only part of our nation’s past. Diversity is a reality and predictions about future population demographics estimate an increase in diversity. As diversity increases, conflict becomes more frequent because “difference threatens dominance” (Howard, 2006, p. 57). The academic achievement and socioeconomic gaps between minorities and the dominant culture have been extensively researched and debated. However, they have not diminished despite legislation aimed at reducing them. This begs the question: how will the …

Acronyms And Identities: The Perceptions Of Latino Teenagers Regarding Their Experiences As Long-Term Second Language Learners, Kristina E. Granby

Doctor of Education (EdD)

The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explore the perceptions of older Latino teenagers regarding their experiences as long-term English language learners. The data were gained from in-depth interviews based on a phenomenological methodology. The participants were interviewed individually using a modified three-part interview structure. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using initial and thematic coding to identify common and related themes. The data was presented primarily using participant quotes to illustrate identified themes. The results of the study were organized into three major aspects of the culturally and linguistically diverse participants’ life experiences: Articulations of Personal …

A Case Study To Determine Characteristics For A Successful, Diverse School District, Tanya J. Vest

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In a rapidly changing society, education must make adjustments and keep learning focused on the needs of students by providing increased opportunities for success. Classrooms are filled with students of different cultural backgrounds which makes education a challenge to every building leader and teacher. The challenges are how to design instruction and implement it to meet the academic and Social needs of all learners. Understanding different lifestyles, languages, word context, body language, traditions, and dress present opportunities for educators to expand their cultural knowledge and create learning objectives for students which ultimately affect student achievement in the educational environment.

The …

Modifying Science Texts To Accommodate The Needs Of Struggling Readers And English Language Learners, Regina Suriel, Crystal Randolph

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

Students with learning differences, including English language learners, experience difficulties with reading classroom textbooks. This presentation, intended for educators and parents, will discuss and provide practice in the identification of readability levels of science texts discuss the importance of integration of visual stimuli in science texts, and explain culturally-relevant approaches to science curricula.

Immigrant Children In The Age Of Educational Reform, Audrey Figueroa Murphy

Curriculum & Instruction Faculty Publications

Immigrant children are the fastest growing subgroup among United States schoolchildren today. This paper explores how the new testing movement affects these students, many of which are English language learners.The passage of new federal laws mandating that all students be tested within one year of entrance into a U.S. school is refuted by long standing research. Studies have demonstrated that it takes five to seven years for students to attain the academic language necessary to achieve success in educational settings.This paper explores the instructional program options for immigrant students and advocates for changes in the current testing protocol for them.

Teachers’ Perceptions Of The Implementation Of The Literacy Common Core State Standards For English Language Learners And Students With Disabilities, Audrey Figueroa Murphy, Elizabeth Haller

Curriculum & Instruction Faculty Publications

This qualitative study explored the experiences of U.S. teachers of English language learners (ELLs) and students with disabilities (SWDs) as they sought to align the new Common Core State Standards (CCSS) with previously used standards and instructional approaches during the first year of CCSS implementation. Open-ended interviews were conducted with 20 ELL and SWD literacy teachers to investigate (1) the teachers’ experiences as they began the alignment of their curriculum and teaching methods with the CCSS, (2) the teachers’ perceptions of the support that they received and that they still require, and (3) the teachers’ perceptions of the challenges to …

Common Core Collaborations For The Sake Of Ells, Maria Dove Ed.D., Andrea Honigsfeld Ed.D.

Faculty Works: EDU (1995-2023)

Over a decade ago, Morse (﴾2000)﴿ suggested that through collaboration, “educators will recognize they are not alone in searching for new modes of human exchange,” noting as well that “rejecting collaboration is not an option” (﴾p. xi)﴿. The complex challenges that English language learners (﴾ELLs)﴿ and their educators encounter on a daily basis with the implementation of new learning standards calls for a collaborative approach to instruction so teachers are better able to pool their talents and resources and offer the best possible learning experiences to ELLs. More specifically, the Common Core Learning Standards (﴾CCLS)﴿—what the Common Core State Standards …

Integrating Science And Literacy For Young English Learners : A Pilot Study., Yuliya Ardasheva, Lori A. Norton-Meier, Thomas R. Tretter, Sherri L. Brown

Faculty Scholarship

This pilot investigated the promise of positive outcomes in literacy, science, and social behavior on K– 2 English learner (﴾EL)﴿ students after two months of implementation of the Science Inquiry Centered Argumentation Model (﴾ScICAM)﴿—a systematic teaching approach to science learning that integrates literacy instruction and argument-‐based inquiry. The sample included 17 teachers and 31 EL students. Results indicated that teacher practices (﴾proximal outcomes)﴿ aligned well with the ScICAM approach and resulted in increases in EL student learning (﴾distal outcomes)﴿. Teacher increase in the use of inquiry and writing scaffolds and student growth in the ability to express understandings through oral …

Improving Instruction For English Language Learners Through The Development Of Coteaching, Anna Parrish

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have described how a missing element in instructional services for English language learners is effective collaboration between general education and English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) teachers. This collaboration is vital to the success of English language learners. This multisite case study was designed to gain insight into current practices and how to improve collaboration between educators in a way that improves instructional services for English language learners. Knowles' theory of andragogy, the transfer of learning theory, and constructivism were used as a basis for analyzing educators' perspectives and instructional practices. Two sites were selected for the study-one …