Mod 2 Discussion: What the Research Means to Me
implications of ELL research
- The first thing that this research means to me as a classroom teacher is that these provisions would allow students to form stronger academic foundations by allowing them to maintain and strengthen their literacy skills. These provisions would also allow students to achieve a deeper understanding of classroom content by providing them with a means to grasp more challenging academic material. As an added bonus, these provisions would also provide students with a stronger sense of self and permit them to feel a stronger connection to their ethnic heritage.
- There are a number of benefits to be gained from properly preparing teachers to teach ELLs within mainstream classes, the most obvious being improved academic performance for ELLs. These provisions would also allow ELLs greater access to classroom content. A less obvious benefit would be a much more inclusive classroom environment. Lastly, these provisions would more confident and, therefore, more effective classroom teachers.
- Embedding English language instruction within content area classrooms can be seen to increase ELLs' motivation, improve their language skills and, by allowing them to learn both language and content at the same time, prevent them from falling behind in either area.
- Integrating ELLs into mainstream English-language content courses carries a number of significant implications. By interacting with native speakers, ELLs can increase their English acquisition and improve their academic performance. Integration would remove the stigma of non-English speakers having to be pulled from mainstream classes for separate language instruction. Finally, integration would increase ELLs sense of belonging to the group and boost their confidence.