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You should now consider yourself knowledgeable about second language acquisition and instruction to the
English language learners. Educators should and will seek your advice and expertise when they realize your
knowledge and understanding in this area. Read the following stories. Craft a reaction to each story based on the
problem in that story and according to the specific instructions given in class.
 
Story scenario 1: Your colleague tells you that one of her children who has been in this country for 11 months
is not doing well and may need special education services. She is considering referring him to be evaluated for a
learning disability. She says that he is still struggling to read but she sees him on the playground and he seems
to be able to communicate fine with his peers. When she takes you out to the playground, she shows you his
interactions during recess. He is playing ball and he is smiling and yelling, “chrowmedabow, chrowmedabow,
chrowmedabow!!!!!!!” She recalls you talking about taking a class with reference to English language learners
and asks if you can offer her any advice about this boy and what kind of disability he has. What is your reaction
to this teacher going to be?
I would first begin by thanking my colleague for not only bringing this to my attention but also for being
observant and wanting to help her students. I would let my colleague know that I do not believe that the student
has a disability from the time that I have observed the student. Though it may not be one of the direct common
mistakes, it would be advisable to remind the teacher that although it is common to make assumptions about
certain factors it is also important to remember the common mistakes. These mistakes are banning the use of the
first language, being fooled by students ease of use with predictable language, over correcting errors,
encouraging parents to speak only English at home, assuming students understand classroom instruction
because they are listening, and forcing students to speak. (Common Mistakes) Next, I would tell my colleague
that students reach proficiency in the different modes of language in the following order: listening, speaking,
reading, writing. (Stages of language acquisition) I would explain to my colleague that although the student is
using what seems to be English language, he is imitating what he is hearing. This language can be known as
BICS. BICS can be defined as Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills. These skills are a form of
conversational and social language that develop around 6 months to two years after beginning of learning a new
language. (BICS and CALP)
Based on the stages of language acquisition’s characteristics it can be said that the student is in the
speech emergent stage. The student knows around 3,000 words in English and is generally comfortable with
social language. The student is hearing that when other students want to receive the ball on the playground, they
say “throw me the ball!” The student hears what the students are saying to receive the ball and responds by
using what the words sound like and says, “chrowmedabow” Though the student is displaying that he is meeting
all the benchmarks for a student in his stage of language acquisition it is best to continue to monitor the
student’s improvement and provide the student with additional supports if he needs them. With time the student
will get better at understanding language and will be able to speak more words. (Stages of language
acquisition) I would then tell my colleague about SDAIE or sheltered instruction. This tool works for
intermediate English learners and stands for specifically designed academic instruction in English. This
teaching tools is designed to help English language learners to learn English as well as academic content. It
utilizes distinct instructional techniques to provide support to help English learners understand demanding
lesson content in the classroom. This tool would greatly help this and any other ELL students my colleague has
in their class.

Story scenario 2: You and your colleagues are beginning to plan for the upcoming state assessments that will
be administered to your third graders in April. The PSSA reading comprehension test will assess how well the
third graders are comprehending what they read. Current policy is that ELL children do not have to take the
PSSA reading comprehension test until they are in the United States for one year and will receive
accommodations, although minimal, when they do take it. One of your colleagues has made a statement that it
must be nice for ELLs to be able to wait a whole year before having to take the PSSAs AND receive
accommodations, while all the other third-grade children must take them every year with NO help. He further
stated that ELLs should be thankful for the year to just sit back and do nothing, and then get help from an
interpreter when they finally do take the PSSA reading comprehension test. What is your reaction to this
colleague going to be?
I would begin telling my colleague that while I respect his opinion on the matter, I believe that it is also
important to learn why the English Language Leaner students get the additional time and accommodations.
ELL students obtain Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills at around 6 months to 2 years after beginning to
learn English. These skills are used in social and conversational language such as during recess. It is not until
five to seven years after learning a new language that students begin to obtain Cognitive Academic Language
Proficiency. This is formal language that is used in academics. (BICS and CALP). I would then explain the
process of acquisition learning as stated by Stephen Krashen. Acquisition learning is when ELL’s acquire
language subconsciously through natural communication or communicative acts. ELLs also learn a language by
learning the rules or through formal instruction. It is important to also monitor and assess the student throughout
the acquisition process and to be understanding of the affective filter. The affective filter focuses on a teacher’s
attitude towards the ELL students. Teachers should be highly motivating, and students should be confident and
not scared or stressed about learning the new language. (Stephen Krashen’s hypotheses)
When starting out in the silent receptive stage of language acquisition teachers should focus on language
acquisition and vocabulary, don’t enforce speaking, read aloud to students, and provide extensive visual support
for listening, reading, and writing activities. As the student progresses into the early production stage, it is
important to also provide extensive visual support for reading and writing. (Stages of Language Acquisition) I
would then explain to my foliage that because the student(s) are just beginning to learn a new language drying
the first stage, it would not be appropriate to expect the student to take the test in English. In fact, for the
students to reach the speech emergent stage and where they can become comfortable with social language it
around a year. Before this stage the students are still learning and will continue to learn after their academic
language. Based off what I just said about the speech emergent stage it would not be appropriate to expect an
ELL student to be able to understand academic reading at the one-year point in their learning. The additional
accommodation of allowing the student to have an interpreter will also allow the student to be successful in
understanding the directions and questions of the test just as any fluent speaker of English.

Story scenario 3: One of your colleagues has just been informed that they will have a NON-English speaker in
their second-grade class starting on Monday. The only information they have been given is that the child has
arrived from Puerto Rico within the last week and the child as well as the parents do not speak ANY English,
only Spanish. The teacher complains to you that it isn’t fair that they are getting “stuck” with this child, and
they have NO IDEA what they are going to do if the child can’t speak any English. They tell you the best thing
to do for this child is to make the classroom “English only”, no exceptions. The teacher says that this will force
the child to learn English as quickly as possible, and then says to you, “They are in America now, they need to
speak English!” What is your reaction to this teacher going to be?
I would begin by telling my colleague that it is important to allow all children to part of the learning
process in the classroom and to understand that it is hard work for students to learn a new language that they are
unfamiliar with. I would emphasize the importance of my colleagues’ words and how significant using phrases
such as, “getting stuck with this child”, “make the classroom English only”, or “They are in America now, they
need to speak English! “As a teacher it is important to take challenges and be flexible in our teaching to our
students Next, I would remind the teacher that although it is common to make assumptions about certain factors
regarding a student it is also important to remember the common mistakes. These mistakes are banning the use
of the first language, being fooled by students ease of use with predictable language, over correcting errors,
encouraging parents to speak only English at home, assuming students understand classroom instruction
because they are listening, and forcing students to speak. (Six Common Mistakes) Banning the use of the first
language will only make the process of acquiring a new language more difficult. For English Language
Learners it is important to create a classroom environment that is highly motivating, welcoming, low anxiety,
and risk-free for children. (Stephen Krashen’s Hypotheses Affective Filter) Having an English only
environment would make the students feel unwelcomed in their classroom. It would also make the children
scared and suppress the student’s home language and culture.
I would also tell my colleague that not only should they allow the child to use their home language in
school but also appreciate their willingness to learn a new language. In fact, it is best for students to learn to
read in their native language and student kindergarten and first grade are unlikely to be literate in the first
language and should develop oral English before reading instruction in English begins. Also, students who are
already literate in another language will be able to transfer many skills and strategies to English. One of the
skills is being able to read from left to right and understanding the meeting and decoding words. (Stages of
Second Language Acquisition) It would be important for the teacher to review the stages of language
acquisition and the implications for instruction that go along with the stages. In the silent receptive stage, a
teacher should focus on language acquisition and vocabulary, build, and expand on previous knowledge, read
aloud to students, and use books with lots of visual aids, and provide this is visual support for listening, reading,
and writing activities with pictures. I would by telling the teacher that it would be important to create a
welcoming environment for not only the students but also their families. This could be done by giving parents a
welcome letter in their home language and offer them resources that are available within the school and the
community to assist in teaching their child and themselves a new language. When inviting the families into the
school, it would also be wise to have an interpreter available if they request one.