Success with Multicultural Newcomers & English Learners

Proven Practices for School Leadership Teams

Margarita Espino Calderón, Shawn Slakk

• Publisher: ASCD
• Year: 2019
• Print ISBN: 9781416616665
• eBook ISBN: 9781416616696
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Multicultural Education

This book is a road map for teachers and school leaders who need to meet the needs of increasing numbers of Newcomers and other English Learners (ELs). The authors draw from years of experience in working with, listening to, and coaching administrators, teachers, and coaches nationwide to help you develop and implement an effective plan for your school.

Beginning with the core belief that "getting to know the student is pivotal, " the authors show how to address both the academic and the social needs of Newcomers to help them integrate and excel—from their first day of school. The main components of the plan are the following: - Identifying your students and assessing educational and socioemotional needs.
- Identifying qualified teachers and staff.
- Developing highly effective programs for Newcomers and other ELs.
- Accelerating English learners' acquisition of language, literacy, and knowledge through proven classroom teaching techniques.
- Supporting Newcomers' socioemotional well-being through classroom and administrative structures.
- Designing, implementing, and sustaining professional development for all staff.

If you already have a plan for integrating Newcomers and ELs, you can use the information in this book to assess and strengthen it and to learn more about resources for continued coaching and growth. Whether your school has a formal plan or not, the information in this practical guide can help your staff better collaborate to attend to the needs and build on the strengths of Newcomers and ELs in your school.

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Chapter 1

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Identifying and Getting to Know the Newcomers and Other English Learners in Your School

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Your school is experiencing a large influx of students new to the United States, and you know that more arrive in the country every day. If it hasn't already affected your school, it soon will. Schools nationwide are experiencing an increase in Newcomers and other English Learners (ELs). Are you ready for them? Most of them have limited English language skills. You and your staff wonder how best to meet their language and academic needs. Your school also has ELs who are much more advanced in their English and content learning. Should the Newcomers receive instruction in the same classrooms as the advanced ELs and the other students? Should the Newcomers have separate classroom interventions? Is a Newcomer Center needed? Does your school have enough credentialed teachers to serve the Newcomers? Are all your teachers and administrators prepared for the increase in Newcomers? What kind of professional development do you need?

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We were asked to write this book as so many schools are experiencing an influx of Newcomers. As we have worked with school districts throughout the country, we've been asked the same questions: What do we do? How do we get started? How do we know if what we are doing is working?

This book is a road map for leadership teams that need to answer these questions. We hope teams of administrators, coaches, teacher leaders, and assessment specialists use our recommendations to begin to answer these questions, and those that you may have, by mapping out plans. The recommendations offered come from years of working with, listening to, and coaching administrators, coaches, and teachers from New York to Kauai. We've coached thousands of teachers in their classrooms as they implement the strategies outlined and we have combined our notes and their experiences in this book. The recommendations herein have been refined by Margarita Espino Calderón, an expert auditor for civil rights, based on her observations and documentation for various research projects, and further honed by Shawn Slakk's classroom, leadership, state agency, and professional development delivery experience. Additionally, practical ideas come from Margarita and Shawn's visits to Newcomer Centers throughout the country.

The Organization of This Book

We begin with details about a Newcomer's educational background as a foundation for expediting an individual student's learning. Getting to know the student is pivotal. With basic information in hand, the processes for formal identification, assessment, and placement in an instructional program can begin (as outlined in Chapter 2). While the academic aspects are being determined, another important learning aspect is being appraised—the socioemotional (discussed in Chapter 3). Socioemotional well-being, or lack thereof, can be the make it or break it factor in the Newcomer's productive school and life experiences.

As Newcomers and ELs are now in almost every classroom, it is incumbent on the school's entire staff to become involved in the effort to teach and care for them and to participate in professional development programs designed specifically to train staff to meet the diverse needs of Newcomers while serving all students. The research and effective practices described in Chapters 4 and 5 provide guidelines for the design of such programs. Chapters 6, 7, and 8 detail the implementation of strategies for teaching vocabulary and discourse, reading comprehension, and writing, respectively.

Professional Development Program: Key Components

The main components and purpose of the professional development program aimed at training staff to meet the needs of Newcomer and ELs (as illustrated in Figure 1.1) are:

• Identifying your students
• Identifying your qualified teachers and staff
• Developing a programmatic structure of service
• Accelerating ELs' language, literacy, and knowledge base
• Supporting Newcomers' socioemotional well-being
• Designing, implementing, and sustaining professional development for all staff

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Figure 1.1. Key Components of Professional Development Program

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We will address each of these items to help you develop your plan. If you already have a plan or a program, when you meet in collegial teams, you can review to identify gaps, progresses, and successes.

We offer evidence-based, effective instructional practices in Chapters 6, 7, and 8.

For years, it was thought that Newcomers had to wait to start reading and writing. It is our contention that this myth has delayed students and is the primary reason why there are so many long-term ELs. Our research and practice indicate that with certain systematic instructional strategies, coupled with socioemotional approaches, Newcomers can excel.

Who Are Your Newcomers?

Do you know who your Newcomers are and where they come from? Culturally responsive teaching begins by knowing your students' histories, cultures, experiences, and canons. The more we know about each student, the better we can build on their strengths and scaffold success in rigorous core-content curricula (LeMoine & Soto, 2017). After you discuss the following with your registrar or intake center personnel, you can use the chart shown in Figure 1.2 to map out the educational experiences and needs of your Newcomers.

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Figure 1.2. 2nd to 12th Grade Newcomers: Language and Literacy in First Languages Continuum

← No Schooling in First Language (L1) ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ Literate in L1 →

Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education

Unschooled SLIFE

No schooling
New to print
Need alphabet, phonics, sound to letter concepts, concept of word, basal beginning word/vocabulary study, reading and orthographic/writing skills
Need language for socioemotional expression and survival in school and community

SIFE

Missing 2+ years of elementary or secondary level
Some L1 literacy
Need advanced phonics, long/short vowels, syllables and affixes, concept of words in text, grammar and mechanics, vocabulary, basic reading and writing
Need language for socioemotional expression and survival in school and community

Schooled SLIFE

Missing 1–2 years of elementary level
Elementary level L1 literacy
Need elementary word/vocabulary study, reading comprehension skills, and text-based writing
Need language for socioemotional expression and survival in school and community

Missing 1–2 years of secondary level
Some L1 reading skills but limited writing
Need secondary advanced content words, more vocabulary study, multiple genre reading comprehension skills, and text-based writing
Need language for socioemotional expression and survival in school and community

* * *

Highly Schooled EL

Significant schooling
Grade level L1 reading and writing skills
Need vocabulary labels for known concepts, reading comprehension, and text-based writing skills
Need language for socioemotional expression and survival in school and community

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Classification of Newcomers and Other ELs

• Refugees. These students are from places made inhospitable by severe violence and war. Refugee parents can apply for U.S. permanent resident status after one year from legal entry and then may request U.S. citizenship after five years. When refugees arrive, they are placed near private resettlement agencies that assist them with housing and job placement.
• Non-Refugee Newcomers. These are students from, for example, Mexico, India, China, and Cuba, as well as well as students displaced by natural disasters (who are ineligible for refugee status). They may not possess the U.S. residency permits necessary for them to receive governmental aid.

  Note

  Students from Puerto Rico, though U.S. citizens, are sometimes classified as non-refugee Newcomers as, due to their educational system's "Spanish as the official language" policy and newness to English, their English proficiency is limited.

• Highly Schooled Newcomers (HSN). These students are children of government officials, professionals, and other highly schooled immigrants from all over the world, with the highest numbers from India. These students may speak great English but may need cultural and pronunciation assistance. Even those from countries where English is a national language—Liberia, South Africa, Singapore—might have gaps in dialect, reading comprehension skills that meet state standards, and cultural adaptation.
• Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE)/Students with Interrupted Formal Education (SIFE). These students arrive in 2nd to 12th grades with little or no education experiences in their previous countries (see Figure 1.2 for more details). Their language, literacy, and content knowledge may also be limited in their primary languages. Hence, they may need basic decoding skills and emergent writing skills, along with abundant vocabulary.
• Dually Identified Newcomers. These students also need to be considered for special education services. They must be assessed 30 days after arriving, per the Every Student Succeeds Act guidelines, and receive both English as a Second Language/English Language Development (ESL/ELD) and special education services.

Other EL Students New to Your School

The following ELs not new to the United States, who have more advanced English skills, may also arrive at your school:

• Migrant ELs. These are students who are most likely born here and thus could fit in several categories of ELs or non-ELs. Migrant students travel with their parents from state to state following the crops or other temporary job opportunities. State Migrant Education offices typically have records of their schooling from the various places in which they have resided.
• Long-Term ELs (LTELs). These are students who are most likely U.S. citizens, perhaps second- or third-generation, and have had U.S. EL status for at least five years. They, unfortunately, did not receive quality instruction. The U.S. Department of Education publications state that 70 percent or more of all students categorized as ELs are LTELs.
• Dreamers. These are undocumented students who were brought here by their parents. They constantly fear deportation. They often work and study relentlessly and are on track to attend college.
• Standard English Learners (SELs). California uses this term for students who were never classified as ELs but who speak nonstandard forms of English (e.g., Chicano English or African American vernacular English) and have academic linguistic needs. The dialects and language that they bring to school should be built upon and not viewed as a deficit (Soto-Hinman & Hertzel, 2009).

Some of these categories overlap. Migrant ELs could be SLIFE or SIFE. A Dreamer could be an SEL who is proficient and excelling in English. Some Migrant ELs may be SIFE and others valedictorians. Unfortunately, despite the wide range of background knowledge and skills, we have observed in many schools that Newcomers are typically grouped together with LTELs in the same ESL/ELD classrooms. This makes it very difficult for ESL/ELD teachers to reach students at diverse levels. The usual solution is to teach to the middle. The usual isn't working for many of these students, nor is giving ESL/ELD teachers only 25 to 30 minutes to try to a...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Chapter 1. Identifying, Getting to Know, and Assessing the Newcomers and Other English Language Learners in Your School
• Chapter 2. Assessing Academic Needs and Placing in EL Programs
• Chapter 3. Understanding Social and Emotional Needs
• Chapter 4. Staffing the Programs and Professional Development
• Chapter 5. Schoolwide Programs
• Chapter 6. Teaching Vocabulary and Discourse
• Chapter 7. Teaching Reading Comprehension
• Chapter 8. Teaching Writing
• Conclusion
• Appendix
• Bibliography
• Study Guide
• Related ASCD Resources
• About the Authors
• Copyright