KnowledgeQUEST
Why do some ELLs remain in ESL so long and seem to struggle so long to
be proficient in English?
In general, English Language Learners (ELLs) progress at different
rates and develop English in varying degrees. Research has shown that it
takes an average of 5-7 years for ELLs to develop the academic language
proficiency that is comparable to native speakers. This is an average.
Some students take more and some take less time to learn English. It is
not uncommon for ELLs to be in ESL for 6 years or more. It is also
possible that an ELL may never reach advanced academic language
proficiency. These English Language Learners may or may not have other
issues outside language acquisition. The topic of differentiating
learning issues with language acquisition will be the topic in the April
E-ZINE. One important consideration around the 5-7 year window for
acquiring grade appropriate academic language proficiency is that the
older the student, the less time they have to develop academic language
proficiency. For example, a student who arrives in Burlington at 14 will
have great difficulty attaining grade appropriate academic language
proficiency before they leave high school. Older students must also
contend with increasingly demanding academic language and content. ELLs
are chasing a moving target in terms of both academic language and
content. The Sheltered ESL Program at Burlington High School helps
accelerate academic language proficiency in ELLs by teaching English and
content simultaneously. The middle school and elementary ESL Programs
also integrate content and language instruction to promote academic
language development. Additionally, classroom teachers and educational
support staff play a huge role in the development of academic language
through their content instruction.
Another main factor for ELLs in attaining fluency in academic English
is their first language ability. Students who have strong first language
skills often take less time to develop academic language proficiency in
English. This is especially true for students who have received some
education in their first language. These students are able to transfer
academic language skills such as literacy from the first to second
language. Unfortunately, many ELLs in Burlington have not had strong
education in their first language and have to learn academic content and
language for the first time in the second language. This is a much
slower process than transferring skills from the first to second
language. The importance of first language skills in learning English is
not limited to prior school experience in the first language. In
Burlington, we are increasingly seeing students born in the city who
arrive in Kindergarten with low levels of language ability in both their
first language and in English. Because they lack a solid linguistic
foundation in any language, these students' acquisition of English and
their literacy development is often much slower than students with
strong first language ability when they arrive at school. From these
reasons, it is clear that promoting and encouraging first language
development is important for ELL students. We are fortunate in
Burlington to have first language support through our Bilingual
Home-School Liaisons. They are able to give background knowledge and
teach skills in the first language. Students are much more able to
interact with academic content through this assistance and their first
language skills are also improving. Some Liaisons also read native
language stories to students and lead book talks around the readings.
Encouraging the use of first language has additional benefits outside of
English and academic development. Recognizing and valuing the language
and cultural backgrounds of our students is another important benefit of
first language promotion.
Long-term language learners are ELLs who have been in the U.S. seven or more years and are below grade level in reading/writing and other content areas. These students are making progress in their English ability, but at a very slow rate. They often have very good conversational English skills and can appear fluent. It is not uncommon for these ELLs to reach an intermediate level (Level 3) of academic English proficiency, but have great difficulty raising their English skills past this level. They are clearly lacking the academic language proficiency to successfully cope with the language demands of the classroom, which in turn leads to inability to cope with the content itself. This situation gives us good reason to understand the totality of a student’s proficiency despite what the student may be outwardly showing. A student with oral English conversational fluency, but lacking academic language skills, will still need language support to make both gains in language and content learning. These language supports may include explicit vocabulary instruction (i.e. pre-teaching and contextualizing vocabulary), alternate reading text, and scaffolded writing activities. Please contact a QUEST or ESL teacher for help with language supports for your ELLs. Some students simply are not strong language learners and may continually need language support to access content. Just like academic content, academic language increases in complexity from grade level to grade level so ELLs are chasing a moving language target as well. Students who stay at the same English proficiency level from year to year may look like they are not making progress in academic English, but to stay at the same proficiency level at a higher grade level actually requires more English knowledge.
Academic struggles for long-term language learners may not only be a result of below average English language skills. These students have undoubtedly not accessed all of the content instruction to this point and have missed fundamental concepts that are necessary for comprehending grade level content. This issue that is not unique to ELLs and how to overcome missed foundations in learning is a complex dilemma. Some ELLs, like native English speakers, may not be academically strong students and despite receiving the best instruction with language support and appropriate materials, they do not make adequate academic growth.
Figuring out why ELLs are struggling is obviously not clear-cut and requires a comprehensive look at each individual student. A later E-ZINE issue will address the question, “How do you separate natural language acquisition from learning issues in ELLs?”
Can you
add to our knowledge? We welcome your input as we try to maintain
this source of useful information for you and all your colleagues.
Contact Mark, Mary
Kay, or Linda with your
comments or QUESTions!
