California Department of Education
Taking Center Stage – Act II

DOCUMENT LIBRARY

Professional Considerations
English Learners and Academic Success

Adapted from Taking Center Stage,  California Department of Education, 2001, pp. 164-165.

The new, global economy requires advanced level of academic literacy so that students may gain the more complex knowledge and skills in the grade-level content standards.

  1. Consider specific examples of the standards that you teach.
  1. To what extent do they already reflect an emphasis on academic literacy?
  2. Can they be improved?
  3. Do they need to be simplified or more clearly explained to English-language learners
  4. Are they clear to struggling readers      
  1. English-language development (ELD) is an essential program component for all English learners, even those at higher levels of English proficiency.
  1. Do all the English learners in your classes have access to a full program of English-language development?
  2. Is ELD included in English–language arts courses for students at the intermediate level of proficiency or higher?
  3. What strategies for ELD instruction are employed?
  4. What is the specific content of ELD instruction?
  1. SDAIE Strategies are presented to EL as they strive to develop both basic and advanced literacy levels.
  1. To what extent are you using the suggested SDAIE strategies?
  2. Prepare a checklist, using the discussion provided.
  3. Are there suggestions not yet part of your repertoire of instructional strategies that you would like to attempt?
  4. If so, try them out and keep a journal of the results.
  5. Share the process with potentially interested colleagues.
  6. Invite them to take part with you.          
  1. For teachers of subjects other than English–language arts:
  1. Do you regularly incorporate grade-level reading and writing skills development with your daily instruction?
  2. If your answer is yes, what kinds of experiences have worked best for you in your efforts to help your students achieve a higher level of literacy?
  3. Are your expectations based on the grade-level English–language arts content standards?
  4. Consider the recommendations related to reading and writing activities described in the text. Which have the most relevance for your own teaching situation? Find ways to mix and match your choices and, if you are not already doing so, integrate them into your teaching on a regular basis. Let your principal know what you are doing and provide her or him with a periodic progress report.      
  1. Proficiency in academic language is linked to equal access to the most valued curriculum.

Basic literacy skills and academic-language proficiency still present a difficult challenge in many schools.

  1. How can your school more aggressively ensure that basic reading and writing skills are consistently taught by every teacher?
  2. What would it take to move beyond this level to the development of academic literacy skills, including the ability of students to:
    • use effectively the formal language of each discipline; and
    • engage in assignments calling for complex reasoning based on their ability to read and interpret challenging material from grade-level texts and other sources. Ask your principal to convene interested members of your staff to pursue these issues.  
  1. Does your school have a literacy council

(a committee of staff members dedicated to the goal of achieving a significant level of academic literacy for all students)?

If not, encourage its creation. Focus on the development of school wide efforts to develop a comprehensive literacy program that incorporates multiple strategies and involves every staff member at the most critical point—daily classroom instruction.