Language Proficiency and Communicative Competence

Language proficiency can be defined as the ability to use language accurately and appropriately in its oral and written forms in a variety of settings ... ="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"viewBox="00512512"> Skiptocontent 2Chapter2:LanguageProficiencyandCommunicativeCompetence KeyIssues Languageproficiencyismultidimensionalandentailslinguistic,cognitive,andsocioculturalfactors. Asstudentslearnasecondlanguage,theyprogressatdifferentratesalongacontinuumofpredictablestages. CANDODescriptorsdepictwhatstudentscandowithlanguageatdifferentlevelsoflanguageproficiency. Communicativecompetenceinvolvesmorethanlinguisticorgrammaticalcompetence. Nativelanguages,cultures,andlifeexperiencesareresourcestobetappedandprovideasolidfoundationforlearninglanguageandcontent. Asyoureadthescenariobelow,thinkaboutEnglishlanguagelearners(ELLs)youmayknow.Whataretheirlanguageproficiencylevels?Howisinstructionplannedtoaddresstheirdifferentcontentandlanguageneeds?ReflectonhowknowledgeoftheirEnglishlanguageproficiencymighthelpteachersbetteraddresstheiruniqueneedsandtaptheirstrengths. Scenario RudiHeinz’sheadwasswimming:statecontentstandards,nationalcontentstandards,stateEnglishlanguagedevelopmentstandards,TeachersofEnglishtoSpeakersofOtherLanguages,Inc.(TESOL)Englishlanguageproficiencystandards,WIDA[1]standards,districtmandates,mandatorycurriculum.Itwasbecomingoverwhelmingtotrytofitallofthedifferentandsometimesconflictingobjectivestogetherintoacoherentlesson. “HowcanIpossiblyteachallofthis?WhydoIhavetoworryaboutEnglishlanguagedevelopmentstandardsanyway?”moanedRuditohimself.“That’stheEnglishdepartment’sjob—ortheELLteacher’sjob—notmine!Iteachhistory!” Suddenlythepictureofabumblingjuggler(withhimselfintheleadrole)tryingtoaddonemoreitemtohisroutinesprangintohismind.Likemanyothers,Rudiwasacreativeguywithapassionforteaching.Sure,stressaffectedhisabilitytobecreative,butherefusedtogiveup.Hedrewcourage,strength,andinspirationfromthememoryofthesmilingandinquisitivefacesofRoman,Marina,Yelena,Augusto,Faridah,andKumar. RuditurnedonceagaintothehistoryandEnglishlanguageproficiencystandardsspreadoutbeforehim.EachoneofhisEnglishlearnerswasauniqueindividualwithspecificstrengthsandweaknessesinbothlanguageandcontent.Thesediverseneedsmadelessonplanningchallenging,buthisELLkidswerecountingonhimtofindawaytocommunicatewiththem.Rudiwasdeterminedtodojustthat. STOPANDDO Toassistyouwiththepronunciationofmanyforeignnames,visitHowtoSaythatName.com.Manynamesareavailablewithaudiofilesbynativespeakers. STOPANDTHINK ThinkabouttheEnglishlearnersyouknow.Whatinformationdoyoualreadyhavethatwouldhelptoinformthestrategiesyoucanusetomeettheirinstructionalneeds?Whatinformationdoyoustillneedtoobtain? LanguageProficiency Languageproficiencycanbedefinedastheabilitytouselanguageaccuratelyandappropriatelyinitsoralandwrittenformsinavarietyofsettings(Cloud,Genesee,&Hamayan,2000).Kern(2000)developedabroadconceptualframeworkforunderstandinglanguageproficiencythatincludesthreedimensionsofacademicliteracy:linguistic,cognitive,andsociocultural.Tobeproficientinalanguagerequiresknowledgeandskillsusingthelinguisticcomponents.Italsorequiresbackgroundknowledge,criticalthinkingandmetacognitiveskills,aswellasunderstandingandapplyingculturalnuances,beliefs,andpracticesincontext.Finally,beingproficientinalanguagerequiresskillinusingappropriatelythefourlanguagedomains—listening,speaking,reading,andwriting—foravarietyofpurposes,inavarietyofsituations,withavarietyofaudiences. LanguageDomains Therearefourlanguagedomains:listening,speaking,reading,andwriting.Althoughthesefourdomainsareinterrelated,theycandevelopatdifferentratesandindependentlyofoneanother.Thesefourdomainscanbeclassifiedasreceptiveorproductiveskillsandasoralorwritten.ThematrixinFigure2.1depictsthefourlanguagedomains. Receptive Productive Oral Listening Speaking Written Reading Writing Figure2.1Languagedomains. Receptivelanguagereferstotheinformationsomeonereceivesthroughlisteningorreadingactivities. Listening.Englishlearnersprocess,understand,andrespondtospokenlanguagefromavarietyofspeakersforarangeofpurposesinavarietyofsituations.Listening,however,isnotapassiveskill;itrequirestheactivepursuitofmeaning. Reading.Englishlearnersprocess,interpret,andevaluatewrittenwords,symbols,andothervisualcuesusedintextstoconveymeaning.Learningtoreadinasecondlanguagemaybehinderedorenhancedbystudents’levelsofliteracyintheirnativelanguages.StudentswhohavestrongreadingfoundationsintheirfirstlanguagesbringwiththemliteracyskillsthatcantypicallybetransferredtotheprocessoflearningtoreadinEnglish. Productivelanguagereferstotheinformationproducedtoconveymeaning.Theverynatureofproductivelanguageimpliesanaudience,althoughnotalwaysanimmediateaudience,asinthecaseofwritingabookorane-mail. Speaking.Englishlearnersengageinoralcommunicationinavarietyofsituationsforavarietyofpurposesandaudiencesinawidearrayofsocial,cultural,andacademiccontexts.Contextualrolesforgettingandkeepingthefloor,turntaking,andthewayinwhichchildrenconversewithadultsareonlyafewexamples. Writing.Englishlearnersengageinwrittencommunicationinavarietyofformsforavarietyofpurposesandaudiences.Theseformsincludeexpressingmeaningthroughdrawing,symbols,and/ortext.ELLsmaycomewithwritingstylesandusagesthatareinfluencedbytheirhomecultures. UnderstandingthedifferentdemandsofeachlanguagedomainaidseducatorsinaddressingthelanguagelearningneedsoftheirELLs.Notethatproficiencyinalanguagemayvaryacrossthefourbasiclanguageskills.Forexample,thinkaboutthetimeswehaveheardanadultlanguagelearnersay,“IcanreadGerman,butIcan’tspeakitatall.”Likewise,someELLsmayhavestrongerlisteningandspeakingskills,whileothersmightbestrongerwritersbutnotasstrongwhenitcomestospeaking.WhenassessingtheproficiencylevelsofELLs,itisimportanttotakeintoaccountanindividualstudent’sperformancesineachdomain. STOPANDTHINK RudiHeinzhaslearnedthathissixth-gradeELLstudent,Faridah,scoredataLevel2onthestate’sEnglishlanguageproficiency(ELP)exam.However,thisinformationprovidesanincompleteandmisleadingpictureofFaridah’sneedsandabilities.Toaddressherlanguageneedseffectively,tounderstandtheimpactofherlanguageproficienciesinthecontentareas,andtobuildonherlanguagestrengths,RudimustuncoverFaridah’sindividualscoresineverylanguagedomainandincombinationsofdomains. Faridah’scumulativefileholdsacopyofthestate’slanguageproficiencytest,whichshecompletedthepreviousspring.Herearethescores(onascalefrom1to4,with4beingadvancedproficiency): Listening: 3 Reading: 2 Speaking: 1 Writing: 2 Rudifeltsomedegreeofsuccessatlocatingthelanguageproficiencyinformation,buthestillwonderedwhattodonext.Howarethesescoreshelpful?Whatdotheymeaninthereal-lifecontextofthebusyclassroom? EnglishLanguageProficiency Asstudentslearnasecond,third,orfourthlanguage,theymovealongacontinuumofpredictablestages.Carefulobservationofandinteractionwithindividualstudentsaidseducatorsinidentifyingeachstudent’sleveloflanguageproficiency.ThisinformationispivotalwhenplanningappropriateinstructionforELLs. StateEnglishlanguageproficiency(ELP)standards(e.g.,WashingtonstateELPsathttp://www.k12.wa.us/MigrantBilingual/ELD.aspx)ormultistateELPs(e.g.,TESOL’s2006PreK–12EnglishlanguageproficiencyStandards,orWIDA’s2012Englishlanguagedevelopmentstandardsathttps://wida.wisc.edu/sites/default/files/resource/2012-ELD-Standards.pdf)providehelpfulguidanceforteachingcontentacrossthefourlanguagedomains. TESOL’sfivepreK–12Englishlanguageproficiencystandards(seeFigure2.2)canguideteachersinhelpingELsbecomeproficientinEnglishwhile,atthesametime,achievinginthecontentareas. Standard1 Englishlanguagelearnerscommunicateforsocial,intercultural,andinstructionalpurposeswithintheschoolsetting. Standard2 Englishlanguagelearnerscommunicateinformation,ideas,andconceptsnecessaryforacademicsuccessintheareaoflanguagearts. Standard3 Englishlanguagelearnerscommunicateinformation,ideas,andconceptsnecessaryforacademicsuccessintheareaofmathematics. Standard4 Englishlanguagelearnerscommunicateinformation,ideas,andconceptsnecessaryforacademicsuccessintheareaofscience. Standard5 Englishlanguagelearnerscommunicateinformation,ideas,andconceptsnecessaryforacademicsuccessintheareaofsocialstudies. Figure2.2PreK-12EnglisLanguageProficiencyStandards. Source:PreK-12EnglishLanguageProficiencyStandardsbyTESOL.Copyright2006byTeachersofEnglishtoSpeakersofOtherLanguages,Inc.(TESOL).Reprintedwithpermission. EnglishLanguageProficiencyLevels Studentsprogressthroughthestagesoflanguageproficiencyatdifferentrates:someacquirenativelikecompetencyin7years,somemaytake10years,whileothersmayneverreachthatlevel.Moststudentslearningasecondlanguagefollowasimilarroute;thatis,certainlinguisticformsandrulesareacquiredearly,whereasotherstendtobeacquiredlate,asillustratedinFigure2.3.Inotherwords,whilemoststudentsfollowthesamepathinlearningEnglish,theirpaceandratearedifferentdependingonavarietyoffactors,suchasnativelanguage,familiaritywiththeLatinalphabet,competenceinthenativelanguage,age,previousschoolingexperiences,aptitude,motivation,personality,andothersocialandpsychologicalfactors. TypicalStagesintheAcquisitionofNegation (1)“nowantpizza” (2)“menowantpizza” (3)“Idon’twantpizza” LinguisticFeaturesAcquiredintheEarlyStages -/s/plural                                        “Kenhasmanybooks.” -ingverbending                     “Sandiisplayingball.” activesentences                     “Ronaldobuiltabigtowerwithblocks.” LinguisticFeaturesAcquiredintheLaterStages -/s/possessive                                                       “ThatisTamara’scoat.” -/s/thirdpersonsingular                                “SashaplayswithLeia.” passivevoice                             “AbigtowerwithblockswasbuiltbyLorca.” Figure2.3AcquisitionofEnglishfeatures Whilemanystateshavedevelopedtheirownsetsofstandardsandmayusefour,five,orsixproficiencylevelsorapplydifferentlabelsforeachstage(e.g.,beginning,earlyintermediate,intermediate,earlyadvanced,andadvanced),thestandardsoutlinetheprogressionofEnglishlanguagedevelopmentinthefourdomainsoflistening,speaking,reading,andwritingthrougheachofthedifferentlevelsfromnovicetoproficient. STOPANDDO CheckexamplesofstateEnglishlanguageproficiencystandardsforK–12educationonthewebsiteforthestateofCaliforniaathttp://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/englangdevstnd.pdf; Illinoisathttps://www.isbe.net/Pages/English-Language-Learning-Standards.aspx; andTexasathttp://ipsi.utexas.edu/EST/files/standards/ELPS/ELPS.pdf TheEnglishlanguageproficiency(ELP)standardsdevelopedbyTESOLprovideamodeloftheprocessoflanguageacquisitionthatcanbeadaptedbydistrictsandstateswithinthecontextoftheirownlanguagelevelingsystem(seeFigure2.4forthesestandards). StagesofEnglishLanguageProficiency(ELP) Level1:Starting Speaking/Listening Atthislevel,students... initiallyhavelimitedornounderstandingofEnglish. rarelyuseEnglishforcommunication. respondnonverballytosimplecommands,statements,andquestions. begintoimitatetheverbalizationsofothersbyusingsinglewordsorsimplephrases. oftenpassthroughasilentperiod,duringwhichtimethestudentmaynotspeakEnglish. begintouseEnglishspontaneously. Reading/Writing Attheearlieststage,learners... constructmeaningfromtextprimarilythroughnonprintfeatures(e.g.,illustrations,graphs,maps,tables). graduallyconstructmeaningfromthewordsthemselves. areabletogeneratesimpletextsthatreflecttheirknowledgelevelofsyntax. Student-producedtextsmayincludeunconventionalfeaturessuchas... inventedspelling grammaticalinaccuracies pictorialrepresentations wordsinthefirstlanguage(L1) surfacefeaturesandrhetoricalpatternsofthenativelanguage(suchasreplicationofwaysofstructuringtextfromnativecultureandlanguage) Level2: Emerging Speaking/Listening Atthislevel,students... understandphrasesandshortsentencesusingfamiliarvocabulary. communicatelimitedinformationineverydayandroutinesituationsbyusingmemorizedphrases,groupsofwords,andformulas. useselectedsimplestructurescorrectlybutstillsystematicallymakebasicerrors. begintousegeneralacademicvocabularyandfamiliareverydayexpressions. Reading/Writing Readingandwritingproficiencymayvarydependingonstudents’... literacydevelopmentintheirnativelanguage. familiaritywiththeLatinalphabet. Atthislevel,students readwordsandphrases. locatespecific,predictableinformationinsimpleeverydayorenvironmentalprint. approximatethespellingofwords. writeforthemselvestoexpresstheirownpersonalityandpersonalthoughts. Errorsinwritingarepresentandoftenhindercommunication. Level3: Developing Speaking/Listening Atthislevel,students... understandmorecomplexspeech. stillmayrequiresomerepetitionoraslowerrateofspeech. acquireavocabularyofstockwordsandphrasescoveringmanydailysituations. useEnglishspontaneously. mayhavedifficultyexpressingalltheirthoughtsduetoarestrictedvocabularyandalimitedcommandoflanguagestructure. speakinsimplesentencesthatarecomprehensibleandappropriatebutarefrequentlymarkedbygrammaticalerrors. mayunderstandandusesomespecializedacademicvocabulary. stillhavesometroublecomprehendingandproducingcomplexstructuresandacademiclanguage. Reading/Writing Proficiencyinreadingmayvaryconsiderablydependingonlearners’familiarityandpriorexperiencewith... themes,concepts,genre,characters,andsoon. Studentsaremostsuccessfulconstructingmeaningfromtextsforwhichtheyhavebackgroundknowledgeonwhichtobuild. Inwriting,theyareabletogenerate... increasinglycomplextexts. awidervarietyoftexts. morecoherenttextsthanbeginners. textsstillcontainingaconsiderablenumberofunconventionalfeatures. Level4: Expanding Speaking/Listening Atthislevel,students... possesslanguageskillsthataregenerallyadequateformostday-to-daycommunicationneeds. occasionallymakestructuralandlexicalerrors. mayhavedifficultyunderstandingandusingsomeidioms,figuresofspeech,andwordswithmultiplemeanings. communicateinEnglishinneworunfamiliarsettings. haveoccasionaldifficultywithcomplexstructuresandabstractacademicconcepts. Reading/Writing Studentsatthislevel... mayreadwithconsiderablefluency. areabletolocateandidentifyspecificfactswithinthetext. maynotunderstandtextsinwhichtheconceptsarepresentedinisolationandwithoutcontextualizedsupport,thesentencestructureiscomplex,orthevocabularyisabstractorhasmultiplemeanings. encountermoredifficultywithgrade-levelliteracythanwithorallanguage. mayreadindependentlybutmayhaveoccasionalcomprehensionproblems,especiallywhenprocessinggrade-levelinformation. mayproducetextsindependentlyforpersonalandacademicpurposes. producetextsthatapproximatethewritingthestructures,vocabulary,andoverallorganizationofnativespeakersofEnglish. makeerrorsinoneormoredomainsthatgenerallydonotinterferewithcommunication. Level5: Bridging Reading/Writing Students... areabletoworkwithgrade-levelmaterialwithsomemodification. haveagoodcommandoftechnicalandacademicvocabularyaswellofidiomaticexpressionsandcolloquialisms. canproduceclear,smoothlyflowing,well-structuredtextsofdifferinglengthsanddegreesoflinguisticcomplexity. makeminimalerrorsthataredifficulttospotoraregenerallycorrectedwhentheyoccur. Figure2.4Levelsoflanguageproficiency Source:PreK-12EnglishLanguageProficiencyStandardsbyTESOL.Copyright2006byTeachersofEnglishtoSpeakersofOtherLanguages,Inc.(TESOL).Reprintedwithpermission. Thelanguageproficiencylevelsarenotnecessarilyconnectedtocognitivefunctions.Oftenstudentsmaybeabletoprocessadvancedcognitivetasksandyetnotbeabletoexpressthoseunderstandingsinthesecondlanguage.Forexample,Level1orLevel2Englishlanguagelearnerscanstillanalyzeandclassifyinformationifitispresentedinsmallchunksandsupportedvisually. STOPANDTHINK TakeamomenttorecalltheinformationRudiHeinzcollectedaboutFaridah’sEnglishlanguageproficiencytestscores: Listening: 3 Reading: 2 Speaking: 1 Writing: 2 Usingtheinformationpresentedintheprecedingsection,answerthefollowingquestions. WhatareFaridah’sstrengths? HowdoesthisinformationhelpRudiplaninstructionforFaridah? WhatcanRudireasonablyexpectFaridahtounderstandanddoinhisancienthistoryclass? Isthatallthereistolearningalanguage? CommunicativeCompetence Pike(1982),notesthat“[l]anguageisnotmerelyasetofunrelatedsounds,clauses,rules,andmeanings;itisatotalcoherentsystemoftheseintegratingwitheachother,andwithbehavior,context,universeofdiscourse,andobserverperspective”(p.44).Asearlyasthe1970s,DellHymes(1972)putforwardanotionoflinguisticcompetencetomeanmorethanmasteryofformallinguisticsystems.Communicationisnotonlyaboutoralandwrittenlanguage.Whenwespeak,ourspeechisoftenaccompaniedbynonverbalcommunicationssuchasfacialexpressions,gestures,bodymovement,andsighs.Thewaywestand,thedistancebetweenourlistenersandus,thelooksonourfaces,andourtoneofvoiceallinfluencethemannerandcontentofourcommunication. Whiletheabilitytocorrectlyformwords,sentences,paragraphs,andlargerbodiesoftextisanimportantexpectationbyschoolsandeducators,theareaofcommunicativecompetencecansometimesbeoverlooked.Briefly,theideaofcommunicativecompetenceisthecommunicator’scomprehensiveknowledgeandappropriateapplicationofalanguageinaspecificcontext.Thisknowledgehelpsthecommunicatorknowwhattocommunicateand,moreimportant,how,when,andwheretocommunicatesomething.Forexample,thefollowingexchangebetweenaprincipalandhermiddleschoolHonduranstudentincludesappropriategrammaticalfeaturesbutmuchmoreinformationthanneeded: Principal: Antonio,you’vebeenabsentfortwodays.Why? Antonio: ThefirstdayIhadtostaywithmylittlesisterbecausemycousingotsickandmymomtookhimtothedoctor.Youknow,Ican’tdriveyet.Iwouldhavetakenmycousinfaster.Theytookthebus.Mycousinwillstayinthehospitalforafewdays.Idon’tknowwhat’stheproblem;it’ssomethingwithhisheart.Heisalotolderthanme. WhileAntonio’sgrammaticalconstructionsareacceptable,inU.S.settingsthismaynotbetheresponseexpectedbyaprincipalorteacherbecauseitcontainsmuchmoreinformationthanneeded. STOPANDTHINK CanyourecallanyconversationswithEnglishlanguagelearnersand/ortheirfamiliesthataresimilartotheexampleinvolvingAntonioabove? Whatdidyoufindinappropriateintheexample(s)thatyourecalled? Whywasthatinstancefromyourstudent(orfromhisorherfamilymember)inappropriate?Bywhosestandards? ElementsofCommunicativeCompetence Communicativecompetencedoesnotapplyonlytoorallanguage.Communicativecompetencemeanscompetenceinallfourlanguagedomains—boththeproductiveandthereceptive.Whentalkingofcommunicativecompetence,weneedtoconsiderfourimportantelements:grammaticalorlinguistic,sociolinguistic,discourse,andstrategic.Eachwillbedefinedbelow.ExamplesareprovidedinFigure2.6. Grammaticalorlinguisticcompetenciesinvolveaccuracyoflanguageused(e.g.,spelling,vocabulary,sentenceformation,pronunciation). Sociolinguisticcompetenciesentailtheuseoflanguageinanappropriatemannerorstyleinagivencontext.Thesecompetenciestakeintoaccountavarietyoffactorssuchasrulesandsocialconventions,thestatusofparticipants,andculturalnorms. Discoursecompetenciesinvolvetheabilitytoconnectcorrectlyformedphrasesandsentencesintoacoherentandcohesivemessageinaparticularstyle.Thesecompetenciesinvolvetheabilitytobeasenderandreceiverofmessagesandtoappropriatelyalternatethoserolesinconversationsorwrittenlanguage. Strategiccompetenciesinvolvethedevelopmentofstrategiessuchashowtogetintooroutofconversation,breaksilences,holdthefloorinconversations,anddealwithstrategiestocontinuecommunicatingwhenfacedwithbreakdownincommunication. ElementsofCommunicativeCompetence Examples Grammatical/linguistic Howdoyouspell____? Ican’tremembertheword! Isthecorrectwordorder“Ithedogsee”or“Iseethedog”? Sociolinguistic Whichwordsandphrasesfitwiththissettingandtopic? HowcanIexpressaspecificattitude(e.g.,courtesy,authority,friendliness,respect)whenIneedto? HowdoIknowwhatattitudeanotherpersonisexpressing? Discourse Howarewords,phrases,sentences,andparagraphsputtogethertocreatecohesiveandcoherentcommunication(conversations,speeches,e-mailmessages,reports,newspaperarticles)? Strategic HowdoIknowwhenI’vemisunderstoodsomeoneorwhensomeonehasmisunderstoodme? CanIthinkofanotherwaytoexpressmyideasifIcan’tremembertherightword?MaybeIcouldpantomimeordrawapicture? Figure2.6Elementsandexamplesofcommunicativecompetence. STOPANDTHINK Howcaneducatorsmodelandteacheachfacetofcommunicativecompetencewhilesimultaneouslyteachingcontent?Thinkofspecificexamples. TheRoleofNativeLanguagesandCultures Nativelanguageistheprimaryorfirstlanguagespokenbyanindividual.Itisalsocalledthemothertongue.TheabbreviationL1referstosomeone’snativelanguage.ItisgenerallyusedincontrasttoL2,thelanguageapersonislearning.Nativecultureisthetermoftenusedtorefertothecultureacquiredfirstinlifebyapersonortheculturethatthisindividualidentifieswithasagroupmember. Norton(1997)claimsthat,“[t]hecentralquestionsteachersneedtoaskarenot,‘Whatisthelearner’smothertongue?’and‘IsthelearneranativespeakerofPunjabi?’Rathertheteachershouldask,‘Whatisthelearner’slinguisticrepertoire?Isthelearner’srelationshiptotheselanguagesbasedonexpertise,inheritance,affiliation,oracombination?’”(p.418).Thereisanintimaterelationshipamonglanguage,culture,identity,andcognition.EducatingELLsincludesnotonlyfocusingonlanguagelearningbutalsoonbuildingonstudents’nativelanguages,cultures,andexperiences.MostEnglishlanguagelearnersareveryfamiliarwithatleastoneotherlanguageandhaveanintuitiveunderstandingofhowlanguageandtextswork.Thisknowledgeoftheirfirstlanguage(L1)willgreatlyenhancetheiropportunitiestolearnEnglish.Researchinthisareaindicatesthatfullproficiencyinthenativelanguagefacilitatesthedevelopmentofthesecondlanguage(L2)(August&Shanahan,2017).Nativelanguageproficiencycanalsoimpacthowstudentslearncomplexmaterial,suchaswhatistypicallyencounteredincontent-areaclassrooms(Ernst-Slavit&Slavit,2007). Thekeyistoconsiderstudents’firstlanguagesandculturesasresourcestobetappedintoandbuiltupon.ThinkingofourEnglishlearnersas“havingtostartfromscratch”istheequivalentofdenyingthemanyexperiencesthatchildrenhaveaccumulatedbeforecomingtotheUnitedStatesandthevastamountoffamilyandculturalknowledgeandtraditionsthathavebeenpassedontostudentsfromthemomenttheywereborn.Theconsequencesofdenyingstudents’firstlanguagecanbefarreachingbecauselanguage,culture,andidentityareinextricablylinked. STOPANDDO Forausefularticleonthevalueofthenativelanguageandculture,see“TheHomeLanguage:AnEnglishLanguageLearner’sMostValuableResource”in¡ColorínColorado!,byGenesee(2012),athttp://www.colorincolorado.org/article/home-language-english-language-learners-most-valuable-resource.Forideasabouthowtofindoutinformationaboutstudents’cultures,seethesectioncalled“Background”inChapter3ofthistext. Translanguaging Translanguagingaffordspractitionersandacademicsalikeadifferentwayofconceptualizingbilingualismandmultilingualism.Thisperspectiveviewsbilingualsandmultilingualsnotaspossessingtwoormoreautonomouslanguagesystems,butasusersofaunitarylinguisticrepertoirewheretheysortandselectwhateverresourcesareneededtomakemeaningandtocommunicatewithothers. ThetermtranslanguagingwasinitiallyusedbyWilliams(1996)torefertoapedagogicalpracticewhereWelshstudentswouldreceiveinformationinonelanguage(e.g.,reading)andthenuseitanotherlanguage(e.g.,writing).Someyearslater,theuseofthetermwasexpandedintheUnitedStatesbyOfeliaGarcia(see,forexample,García&Wei,2014;García&Kleyn,2016)torefertothelanguagepracticesofpeoplewhospeakmorethanonelanguage.Translanguagingisnotcode-switching;itisnotjustgoingfromonelanguagetoanother.Thenotionofcode-switchingassumesthealternationofseparatelanguagesinthecontextofasingleconversation(e.g.,“Mariaforgotsubolsa,”wherethechildusesSpanishtomean“herbag”).AccordingtoGarcia(2011),ratherthanlookingattwoseparatelanguages,translanguagingavowsthat“bilingualshaveonelinguisticrepertoirefromwhichtheyselectdiversefeaturesstrategicallytocommunicateeffectively”(Garcia,2011).ThefollowingexamplebyErnst-Slavit(2018)showcaseshowdemarcationsoflanguagesaredifficulttomakewhenseverallanguagesareusedfluidlyinonehousehold: Ifyouattendedagatheringatthehomeofabilingualfamily,youmightonlyuseEnglishwhileyouwerethere.However,differentfamilymembersmighthaveuseddifferentlanguagesformultiplepurposes.Forexample,ifyouvisitanIndianfamily(fromsoutheastAsia),youmightfindgrandmabusyinthekitchenpullingpansoutoftheovenandreadingrecipesinHindiwhilethekidsareplayingvideogamesinEnglish.Mom,Dad,andguestsmaybespeakingmostlyinEnglish.However,whenDadspeakstothechildrenhedoessoinUrdu.Andthenthereisgrandpa,watchingaBollywoodmovieinUrduthatincludesregionalvariantssuchasGujaratiandPunjabi(p.10). Theaboveexampleoftranslanguaginginactiondepictsafamilyusingtheirmanylinguisticresourcesintheireverydaylives.WhileUrduwasthehomelanguagementionedinthecensusandinthechildren’sschoolrecords,inthishouseholdthereisnotonehomelanguagebutafullrangeoflanguagepracticesusedfluidlyaccordingtothespeaker,purpose,andcontext(Ernst-Slavit,2018). Theuseoftranslanguagingineducationalcontextshasbroughtawealthofbothinterestanddisagreement.Manyeducatorsworkingonissuesoflanguageeducation—thedevelopmentofadditionallanguagesforall,aswellasminoritizedlanguages—haveembracedtranslanguagingtheoryandpedagogy.Othereducatorsarewaryoftheworkontranslanguaging.Someclaimthattranslanguagingpedagogypaystoomuchattentiontothestudents’bilingualism;othersworrythatitcouldthreatenthelanguageseparationtraditionallypositedasnecessaryforlanguagemaintenanceanddevelopment(Vogel&Garcia,2017). Forastudyontranslanguaginginathirdgradeclassroom,read“TranslanguagingandProtectedSpacesinaDualLanguageClassroom:TensionsAcrossRestrictionistPoliciesandUnrestrictedPractice”byKristenPratt&GiselaErnst-Slavit(inpress). STOPANDTHINK Whilewaitinginlineforahotlunch,Rafa,anewteacherintheschool,overhearsMrs.HoltontellingseveralnativeRussian-speakingimmigrantstudentstospeakonlyEnglish.WhatcanhesayordotoadvocateforthestudentswhileatthesametimemaintainingagoodworkingrelationshipwithMrs.Holton? Strategiesforusingthenativelanguageintheclassroom GiventhewidevarietyoflanguagesspokenbyimmigrantstudentsintheUnitedStatestoday,teacherswillnotknowallofthenativelanguagesoftheirstudents.Yetteacherscanstillpromotetheuseofnativelanguagesintheirclassrooms.BelowareselectedapproachesforsupportingnativelanguagedevelopmentinK–12classrooms. Organizeprimarylanguageclusters.Createopportunitiesforstudentstoworkingroupsusingtheirprimarylanguage.Thiscanbehelpfulastheydiscussnewtopics,clarifyideas,orreviewcomplexconcepts. Labelclassroomobjectsindifferentlanguages.LabelingclassroomitemsallowsEnglishlearnerstounderstandandbegintolearnthenamesofobjectsaroundtheclassroom.Labelsalsoassisteducatorsandotherstudentstolearnwordsindifferentlanguages. Assignabilingualbuddytoyournewcomerstudent.Havingabuddywhospeaksthechild’sfirstlanguagecanbeveryhelpfulasthenewstudentlearnshowtofunctioninthenewschoolandculture.Thisbuddyprovidescomfortwhileatthesametimeguidesthenewcomerthroughoutdifferentactivities(e.g.,calendar,circletime,journalwriting)andsettings(e.g.,busstop,sciencelab,cafeteria). Supporttheuseofthenativelanguagebyusingclassroomaidesorvolunteers.Byusingthepreview-reviewapproach(thatis,thetranslationofkeyconceptsbeforethelessonstarts,followedbyreviewofthenewcontent),aidesorvolunteerscanenhancethelearningopportunitiesofELLs. Encourageprimarylanguagedevelopmentathome.Intoday’sdiverseworld,bilingualismishighlyvalued.IfstudentscancontinuetodeveloptheirfirstlanguageastheylearnEnglish,theiropportunitiesasbilingualadultswillbeenhanced.Inaddition,whenstudentscontinuetodeveloptheirnativelanguage,theycancontinuetocommunicatemeaningfullyinthefirstlanguagewiththeirparentsandrelatives. Usetechnology.Englishlearnerscanbenefitfromusingtechnologyformultiplepurposes.Theavailabilityofgraphical,videoandaudioresourcescanprovideamazingsupportsforstudents.Forexample,discussionboardscancreateplatformforstudentstobeactivelyengagedusingbothacademicandeverydayEnglishinandoutsidetheclassroomcontext.Likewise,searchingforcognatesonparticularcontenttopicsmighthelpyourstudentshaveapriorofunderstandofthecontent.Whilesomestudentsmightnotbereadytoproduceawell-craftedfiveparagraphargumentativeessay,theymightbeabletoproduceanoutstandingPowerPointpresentation.Formoreideasabouttechnologyuseinlanguagelearning,seethefreeOERresourceCALLPrinciplesandPracticebyEgbert&Shahrokni(availablefromhttps://opentext.wsu.edu/call/). Usebilingualbooks.AnabundanceofbilingualbooksinavarietyoflanguageshasbeenpublishedintheUnitedStatessincethe1980s.Thesebooksprovideaneffectivetoolforraisingstudents’awarenessaboutdiversitybutalsoforfosteringliteracyandbiliteracydevelopment.Figure2.6providesalistofstrategiesforusingbilingualbooksintheclassroom;thelistwasdevelopedbyErnst-SlavitandMulhern(2003). Introducinganewtopic LiteraturethatrelatesthematicallytoanewunitorlessoncanacquaintabeginningEnglishlanguagelearnerwiththetopicathand. SupportingtransferofreadinginL1toL2 ChildrenwhocanreadintheirL1andhavelearnedsomeoralEnglishbenefitfromtakingturnswithanEnglishspeakerinreadingaloudabilingualbook. Supportingindependentreading AbookinthenativelanguagecansoothefeelingsoffrustrationandexhaustioncommonamongL2learners. UsingL1versionaspreview StudentscanreadorhavesomeonereadtothemtheL1versionofabookinordertounderstanditscontent. UsingL1versionasreview AfterabookhasbeenreadanddiscussedintheL2,studentscanusetheL1versiontowriteaboutthetopic,reviewissuesdiscussed,orfurthertheirunderstanding. Readingtwoversionsforself-assessment YoungESLstudentsenjoyfindingouthowmuchEnglishtheyarelearningbycountingthewordstheyunderstandbeforeandafterthebookisreadintheL1anddiscussedintheL2. Comparingandcontrastingcognates ComparingandcontrastingwordsinL1withEnglishwordscancontributetoincreasesinwordrecognition,vocabularydevelopment,phonicanalysis,andstructuralanalysis. Improvinghome–schoolconnections FamilymemberscanbeactivelyinvolvedintheeducationofL2students,eveniftheirEnglishskillsarelimited,whenbooksinL1areavailable. Supportingfamilyliteracyprograms AgreatwaytostartafamilyliteracyprogramforparentsofESLstudentsisbyassistingtheminlocatingbooksintheL1. Raisingallchildren’sawarenessofmulticulturalism BilingualbooksandmaterialsinlanguagesotherthanEnglishcanraiseallchildren’sawarenessthroughexposuretodifferentlanguagesandscripts. Helpingteacherslearnanotherlanguage Bilingualbookscanhelpteachersandotherslearnsomewordsinstudents’nativelanguages. Encouragingreadingforpleasure Onewayforstudentstoobtainsufficientamountsofwritteninputisthroughpleasurereading,whetherinL1orL2. Figure2.6Strategiesforusingbilingualbooksintheclassroom. Adaptedfrom“Bilingualbooks:Promotingliteracyandbiliteracyinthesecond-languageandmainstreamclassroom”byG.Ernst-SlavitandM.Mulhern.ReadingOnline,7(2).Copyright2003bytheInternationalReadingAssociation.Reproducedwithpermission. Conclusion Learningafirstlanguageisacomplexandlengthyprocess.Whilelearnersfollowasimilarrouteinlearningasecondlanguage,therateinwhichtheyacquirethetargetlanguagevariesdependingonavarietyoflinguistic,sociocultural,andcognitivefactors.AsstudentsnavigatethroughtheprocessofbecomingcompetentusersofEnglish,educators’awarenessoftheirlocationalongthelanguagelearningcontinuumcanhelpthembetteraddressthestudents’needsandbuildontheirstrengths. Extensions ForReflection Speakingasecondorthirdlanguage.Doyouspeakasecondorthirdlanguage?Ifyoudonot,doyouhaveafriendwhodoes?Doyouoryourfriendhaveequallevelsofcompetenceacrosslanguagedomains?Thinkaboutwhysomelanguagedomainsdevelopedmorethanothers. Typesofwritingsystems.LookatsomeofthedifferentalphabetsandwritingsystemsfordifferentlanguagesatOmniglot(http://www.omniglot.com/)oratanyotherwebsiteortext.Basedonthosewritingsystems,whatlanguagedoyouthinkwouldbeeasierforyoutolearn?Whichonewouldbemoredifficult?Why? ForAction Linguisticdiversity.WhatnativelanguagesotherthanEnglisharespokenbystudentsinyourclassroom?Inyourschool,district,andstate?Jotdownalistofwhatyoubelievearethetoplanguagesinyourareaandcompareitwithinformationyoucanfindaboutyourschool,districtandstate.(ForinformationaboutthedifferentlanguagesspokeninyourstateandacrosstheUnitedStates,visitthewebsitefortheOfficeofEnglishLanguageAcquisitionathttp://www.ncela.gwu.edu/stats/3_bystate.htm). Englishlanguageproficiencystandards.FindtheEnglishlanguageproficiencystandardsforyourstate.Thencomparethosewiththe2006TESOLPreK–12EnglishLanguageProficiencyStandards(https://sites.tesol.org/Bookstore/ItemDetail?iProductCode=318&Category=STANDARDS)oranysetoflanguageproficiency/developmentstandards.Whataresomesimilarities?Whataresomedifferences? References August,D.,&Shanahan,T.(2017).Developingliteracyinsecond-languagelearners:ReportoftheNationalLiteracyPanelonlanguage-minoritychildrenandyouth.NewYork:Routledge. Cloud,N.,Genesee,F.,&Hamayan,E.(2000).Duallanguageinstruction:Ahandbookforenrichededucation.Boston:Heinle&Heinle. Ernst-Slavit,G.(2018).UnderstandingCultureandLanguageinEducation.In:Egbert,J.&Ernst-Slavit,G.(Eds.),Viewsfrominside:Languages,cultures,andschoolingforK-12educators,pp.3-24.Charlotte,NC:InformationAgePublishing. Ernst-Slavit,G.,&Mulhern,M.(2003,September/October).Bilingualbooks:Promotingliteracyandbiliteracyinthesecond-languageandmainstreamclassroom.ReadingOnline,7(2). Ernst-Slavit,G.&Slavit,D.(2007).Educationalreform,mathematics,anddiverselearners:Meetingtheneedsofallstudents.MulticulturalEducation,14,20-27. García,O.(2011).Bilingualeducationinthe21stcentury:Aglobalperspective.London:UK:Wiley-Blackwell. García,O.,&Wei,L.(2014).Translanguagingandeducation.InTranslanguaging:Language,bilingualismandeducation(pp.63-77).London,UK:PalgraveMacmillan. García,O.,&Kleyn,T.(Eds.)(2016).Translanguagingwithmultilingualstudents.NewYorkandLondon:Routledge. Genesee,F.(2012).TheHomeLanguage:AnEnglishLanguageLearner’sMostValuableResource.”¡ColorínColorado!Retrievedfrom:http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/home-language-english-language-learners-most-valuable-resource Hymes,D.(1972).OnCommunicativeCompetence.InJ.Pride,&J.Holmes(Eds.),Sociolinguistics(pp.269-285).London,UK:PenguinBooks. Kern,R.(2000).Literacyandlanguageteaching.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress. Norton,B.(1997).Language,identity,andtheownershipofEnglish.TESOLQuarterly31(3),409–430. Pike,K.L.(1982).Linguisticconcepts:Anintroductiontotagnemics.Lincoln,NE:UniversityofNebraskaPress. Pratt,K.,&Ernst-Slavit,G.(inpress).TranslanguagingandProtectedSpacesinaDualLanguageClassroom:TensionsAcrossRestrictionistPoliciesandUnrestrictedPractices.BilingualResearchJournal. TeachersofEnglishtoSpeakersofOtherLanguages,Inc.(2006).PreK–12Englishlanguageproficiencystandards.Alexandria,VA:Author. Vogel,S.,&García,O.(2017,December).Translanguaging.InG.Noblit&L.Moll(Eds.),OxfordResearchEncyclopediaofEducation.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress. Williams,C.1996.“Secondaryeducation:Teachinginthebilingualsituation”.InC.Williams,G.Lewis,andC.Baker(Eds.),Thelanguagepolicy:Takingstock,pp.39–78.Wales,UK:CAI. World-ClassInstructionalDesignandAssessment(WIDA)Consortiumconsistsof40partnerstates,allusingthesame2012amplificationoftheEnglishlanguagedevelopmentstandards.YoumayfindthelistofWIDAstatesathttps://wida.wisc.edu.↵ PreviousSection NextSection Backtotop License Chapter2:LanguageProficiencyandCommunicativeCompetencebyGiselaErnst-SlavitandJoyEgbertislicensedunderaCreativeCommonsAttribution-NonCommercial4.0InternationalLicense,exceptwhereotherwisenoted. ShareThisBook IncreaseFontSize