[NIFL-ESL:10591] RE: literacy issues

From: Mona Curtis (MCurtis@tvcc.cc)
Date: Mon Nov 22 2004 - 11:51:04 EST


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From: "Mona Curtis" <MCurtis@tvcc.cc>
To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov>
Subject: [NIFL-ESL:10591] RE: literacy issues
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This is a very big issue in Adult ESL classes.  Many of our students
have limitied literacy skills in their native language.  But the
situation is magnified because our students are now adults so the little
literacy training that they did have was 20 -40 years ago.  We have been
working hard to have a Spanish literacy program that compliments our ESL
program.  We offer Spanish GED for those who have a fair amount of
literacy in Spanish, but we have been working hard to develop a
beginning Spanish literacy program for students who come to us with only
a few grades of schooling, and that 20 years ago!  Unfortunately more
and more federal programs refuse to fund any instruction that is not in
English.  Since the current administration is bent upon scientific
research, I hope somehow we can get this information to policy makers,
that students cannot gain skills in a second language that they do not
have in their first language.  

Mona Curtis
ESL Coordinator
Treasure Valley Community College
650 College Blvd. 
Ontario, OR 97914
www.tvcc.cc
541-881-8822 x 316
fax 541-881-2747

>>> crandall@umbc.edu 11/17/04 01:49PM >>>
I have worked with schools who have increasing numbers of secondary
school
immigrant students with limited prior education or literacy, and one
of
the things we did was to provide an extended language and literacy
program
consisting of beginning ESL (which is focused mostly on oral langauge
development), a course in basic ESL literacy and numeracy, and one
content
area course such as science or art.  The students spoke a number of
different languages, so literacy in their first language was not
possible.

However, you have the student enrolled in Spanish.  Is it possible to
provide another hour of Spanish literacy and numeracy for him (perhaps
with a tutor) and then to transition him to ESL literacy later?  He
will
make faster progress in Spanish literacy and he can be developing his
oral
English while he is developing his reading and writing first in
Spanish.

We also found that we had to provide additional instructional time for
these students through after-school sessions, summer sessions, and even
a
Saturday program which brought together parents and their children in
a
math course/experience.  Other students can serve as tutors in this,
meeting with him before and/or after school and even during lunch. 
The
personal attention should help.

Jodi

-- 
JoAnn (Jodi) Crandall
Professor, Education Department
Director, Ph.D. Program in Language, Literacy, & Culture
University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)
1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250
ph:    410-455-2313/1417
fax:   410-455-8947/1880
email: crandall@umbc.edu 
www.umbc.edu/llc/ 
www.umbc.edu/esol/ 
www.tirfonline.org 


 intrigued most of all with your question:  what services would he be
> offered if he were not an ELL?  Literacy/basic math support.  That's
a
> great question and I'll ask around to find that baseline.
>
> Thank you, and the notion of putting him into more electives is
> helpful--each grade has but two daily five days a week--but why not
7th
> grade art . . .?
> thank you,
> emilie condon
> ---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
> From: "dezreen@excite.com" <dezreen@excite.com>
> Reply-To: nifl-esl@nifl.gov 
> Date:  Wed, 17 Nov 2004 09:30:31 -0500 (EST)
>
>>
>> If this child was not ELL (i.e. a native English speaker) what sort
of
>> services would they receive? Would they get basic literacy and math
>> support?
>>
>>If there are other options available, I would get him out of the
multiple
>> science classes. Can he take art more than once and with different
>> lessons during the day? What sort of literacy help is he getting,
how
>> often and through whom? This should be in addition to ESL class, as
your
>> initial focus will be on communicative language. He should also
receive
>> some basic math skills.
>>
>>Students with similar profiles have caused my district to rethink
their
>> servicing of ELL's who also happen to come in with skills that are
not at
>> grade level. This is not only an ESL issue, it needs to involve the
>> entire school.
>>
>>Kathleen Morgan
>>Telluride School District
>>Telluride CO
>>
>>
>>
>> --- On Wed 11/17, pop.intrex.net < econdon@intrex.net > wrote:
>>From: pop.intrex.net [mailto: econdon@intrex.net] 
>>To: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov 
>>Date: Wed, 17 Nov 2004 06:07:23 -0500 (EST)
>>Subject: [NIFL-ESL:10562] literacy issues
>>
>>A student has just arrived from Honduras.  He has been
>> placed<br>age-appropriately into the 8th grade at the public middle
>> school in Durham,<br>NC where I am an ESL teacher.<br><br>He has
>> completed 1st grade in his home country and some of 2nd.  He
is<br>unable
>> to read or even write his name.  He has been working as a
>> brick<br>layer.<br><br>We have thought to put him into one class
most of
>> the day--the science<br>teacher's class in part because she is so
hands
>> on.  He will get the same<br>lesson over and over and have an
environment
>> that is familiar to him.<br><br>He will go to an elective ESL class
(that
>> is how ESL is scheduled in this<br>public school) and a Spanish
>> class.<br><br>Does anyone have any wisdom, or material ideas--print
or
>> computer that could<br>be available or purchased in a public
>> school?<br><br>thanks<br>emilie condon<br><br><br>
>>
>>_______________________________________________
>>Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com 
>>The most personalized portal on the Web!
>>
>



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