Return-Path: <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id e6UF59P20023; Sun, 30 Jul 2000 11:05:09 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sun, 30 Jul 2000 11:05:09 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <11.7292686.26b59d33@aol.com> Errors-To: rgspacone@aol.com Reply-To: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: Swr629@aol.com To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-4EFF:1139] Goal Setting With Beginning Students X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: AOL 4.0 for Windows 95 sub 106 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Status: O Content-Length: 2884 Lines: 53 Goal Setting With Beginning ESL Students At the St. James ESL Program we have a student population that includes mostly preliterate and beginning students whom we match with tutors. We work within the Equipped for the Future framework and start a learner-generated process during intake. Using the Role Map with the Family, Worker and Community Member Roles does this. A Role Map is placed before the student and the questions written at the bottom are asked: What do you want to be able to do in English? Who do you want to talk to? What do you want to be able to say? It is not unusual for a student to look at the tutor and me with confusion and even suspicion that we are not quite right in the head. So, we ask do you have a family? If they do, we inquire about children, teachers and interaction with schools. Also doctors and anyone else who could possibly be involved in English with the child. Eventually the student tells us they would like to be able to read announcements that come home from school or attend parent teacher meetings. We repeat the process for the Worker and Community Member Role, but find for non-English speakers that the Family Role is the best place to begin. The next step and this is a learning opportunity for both students and tutors. The goal for the student in the context of the family Role might be to be able to talk to the school and read paperwork that comes home with the child. This is a goal because it is long-term and involves many teaching and learning pieces. So, a measurable objective is needed. We ask the student and tutor to devise a first step. For example the student will collect the paperwork that arrives from the school for a week. That then is the curricular material for the tutor to plan lessons around. The measurable objective becomes: Student will be able to read with understanding school paperwork for the week of June 12-18th. When the student is able to read, understand and tell us what it means, we have measured that objective and create another one that fits with the goal. As the process continues over time, we expect the student to take charge of designing his or her measurable objectives. At the same time we work with our tutors, as part of our teacher training program, on familiarization with the EFF Content Standards and ask them to identify and plan lessons for the Standard the measurable objective of the student reflects. We work slowly with our students and tutors in introducing this new way of working. We don't overwhelm anyone with information, things to read or things to change. We work carefully in pieces. When a piece has been mastered, we move to the next piece. This has proved to be tremendously successful for our students and tutors. Susan Rowley ESL Specialist St. James ESL Program Seattle, WA Sjesl@aol.com
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Mon Oct 29 2001 - 15:04:14 EST