Supporting English Learners
Here in Arizona, 9.5% of students are considered English learners (ELs), learning to read and speak in English and other languages simultaneously. These students are also known as emergent bilinguals, dual language learners, or multilingual learners. In the early grades, the concentration of ELs is even higher.
For many decades, policies and practices across the country have labeled students learning English as deficient because they don’t know English. However, bilingualism and biliteracy are scientifically-proven assets in learning and cognitive development. Research shows that strong language and literacy skills in a child’s home language can facilitate the development of those same skills in English.
It is essential to have the same high expectations for English learners to become proficient readers in English, in addition to their home language. In one recent study, students formerly classified as ELs who achieved English language proficiency by the eighth grade did as well as their peers on reading tests, and better in terms of math, attendance, and class grades.
Effective Literacy Instruction for All Learners, Including English Learners
The body of research commonly referred to as the science of reading is based on thousands of studies conducted around the world in many languages, including research on English language learners and multilingual students. Research suggests that many of the same core instructional principles regarding the knowledge and skills that enable monolingual children to learn to read in English also work well for linguistically-diverse students. English language learners benefit from instruction that includes phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and text comprehension. However, ELs also need additional supports. These include tailored instruction and attention to continue developing in areas such as oral language proficiency, background knowledge, incorporating home language knowledge and literacy development, and culturally/linguistically responsive texts and materials. Adequate assessments are also necessary to determine student strengths and weaknesses to be able to design instruction that will meet the needs of individual students and ensure their progress.
Research supports that quality, evidenced-based literacy instructional practices work for all learners, including English learners with additional support in oral language instruction, vocabulary, and comprehension. English learners need additional oral language instruction to be able to understand the English words that they are learning to sound out. The science tells us that when students sound out a word, the brain begins to recognize it for future reading — if the student knows the meaning of the word they’ve just sounded out. If students can’t match the meaning of the word they’ve sounded out, the brain doesn’t build the neural mapping needed to read and recognize it easily later on. Further, instructional practices in which teachers explicitly encourage students to make connections between their home language and English benefit ELs language and literacy development.
Recommendations
In the early grades and beyond through middle and high school, teachers across subject area disciplines must build English learners’ English language skills, as well as teach the material in the disciplinary area. English learners need targeted support across all reading components, but EL students need support in disciplinary classrooms specific to vocabulary and comprehension, including building and understanding rich, academic language. Teachers should consider themselves as oral language models for the use of English in their classrooms, as well as provide many and varied opportunities for English learners to talk about the texts being read during class. English learners also benefit from the use of “frontloading” to reduce the language load and make the information in the text more accessible. Frontloading involves several potential strategies before reading a text, such as teaching important vocabulary, activating or building prior knowledge, and using visual aids or media.
Experts in teaching academic content and literacy to English learners suggest some key recommendations for helping ELs in elementary and middle school classrooms succeed:
- Teach a set of academic vocabulary words intensively across several days using a variety of instructional activities.
- Integrate oral and written English language instruction into content-area teaching.
- Provide regular, structured opportunities to develop written language skills.
- Provide small-group instructional intervention to students struggling in areas of literacy and English language development.
Multi-Tiered System of Supports
Research indicates that English language learners benefit from taking a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) approach. The MTSS model is a strength-based, proactive framework that integrates screening, data, and instruction to maximize student achievement and is used in schools across the country to meet student needs.
The multi-level prevention framework organizes supports for students based on three tiers of intensity for instruction and intervention:
- Tier 1 focuses on core instruction and ensures that students have access to the general education curriculum.
- Tier 2 focuses on targeted small group interventions that ensure students have access to the strategic interventions they need.
- Tier 3 focuses on individual, intensive interventions for students who are not at grade level or may be struggling.
MTSS is also used to accurately identify students who qualify for special education services. This is important for ELs who can be over or under identified for services. ELs can sometimes be placed mistakenly in special education classes (overidentified) or whose learning differences are overlooked because they are learning a new language (underidentified). According to experts, MTSS can offer a way to problem-solve and find the right approach for each EL student.
For more information see Helping English Learners Succeed with a Multi-tiered System of Support (MTSS).
Sources
Elsa Cárdenas-Hagan, Literacy Foundations for English Learners, (Brookes Publishing, 1st Edition, May, 2020).
Bellwether, January 2024, Kelly Robson Foster, Tanvi Kodali, Bonnie O’Keefe, Andrew J. Rotherham, and Andy Jacob, On the Same Page: A Primer on the Science of Reading and Its Future for Policymakers, School Leaders, and Advocates.
EdSource, Zaidee Stavely, October 2023, Advocates for English Learners and the ‘Science of Reading’ Sign On to Joint Statement.
The Hechinger Report, Penny Nixon, March 2019, How Our Youngest, Neediest Learners Benefit from Deeper Phonics and Other Reforms.
Diane August and Timothy Shanahan, Developing Reading and Writing in Second-language Learners: Lessons from the Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth (Routledge 2008).
The Reading League and the National Committee for Effective Literacy, October 2023,
Joint Statement: Understanding the Difference: The Science of Reading and Implementation for English Learners/Emergent Bilinguals.
American Institutes for Research, Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, Special Topics: English Learners.
Colorín Colorado, Claudia Rinaldi, 2018, Helping Students Succeed with a Multi-tiered System of Support (MTSS).
Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, What Works Clearinghouse, Baker et al., 2014, Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School.