Acquisition Of Literary Skills In ESOL Content Area

Students can benefit in learning both English and other subjects when the language is taught through content in combination with reading and writing instructions. Such a strategy ensures that the students are able to acquire both the language and the content. Combining both academic content area and the English language lessons ensures that there is no delay in studying other subjects especially for older students who feel their time is limited. Another reason that makes teaching language through content is that the language is easily acquired in its natural context. For example teaching language in biology or chemistry classes assists the students in grasping the vocabulary naturally since it is being used in its application. The students are able to understand the meanings and usage of words much better when the language is being used for its real life purpose. They will be able to focus better on the subject matter when the language is used in its academic content.

There are several techniques teachers can employ in helping ESOL students to develop proficiency in English in order to perfectly master content area subjects. In teaching the language, the teacher should recognize second language acquisition is a gradual process that is built on the student’s skills in his or her first language. The teacher should also provide genuine opportunities for students to apply what they have learnt in a friendly non-threatening environment. Another technique would be to ensure that the students are able to connect learned key vocabularies with the subject content. The structure and style of the English language might appear daunting to the students initially but this can be overcome by teaching text and sentence level grammar in their real context. It would also be quite helpful if students are taught the different features of language that are applicable in social and academic contexts.

Techniques that a teacher can use in language reading lessons should be aimed at ensuring the students develop competence in reading and writing in English. The teacher can find it helpful to use culturally relevant reading materials in class, connect the readings to the students’ backgrounds, and encourage them to discuss the readings in their cultural dimensions. This helps in achieving better comprehension among the students when the readings have some relevance to their lives. Other techniques include reading aloud, simulating content knowledge, and monitoring growth f both first ad second languages.

Writing in grammatical and comprehensible English is one of the major hurdles an ESOL student has to overcome. Acquisition of vocabulary and achieving syntactic competence is a gradual process that does not happen overnight. The teacher should thus keep in mind that students may not have properly mastered the sills and terminology used in the writing process which includes drafting, revision and editing among others. They should thus strive to provide support through provision of an environment that nurtures good writing, use of collaborative writing activities, promoting interaction and learning from each other, use of single response prompts for writing exercises, and offering clear and explicit comments on strengths and weaknesses of the student papers among others.

The increase in bilingual students makes it necessary for teachers to apply effective techniques and methods of engaging students in both language acquisition and in content area knowledge in order to succeed in their academic fields. The teachers on the other hand should be supported too to enable them work efficiently in promoting the success of their students.

References

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Bernhardt, E. B. (1991). A psycholinguistic perspective on second language literacy. Reading inTwo Languages. AILA Review, 8, 31-44.

De Jong, E. J. (2002). Effective bilingual education: From theory to academic achievement in atwo-way bilingual program. Bilingual Research Journal, 26(1); 1-15.

Gándara, P., Rumberger, R., Maxwell-Jolly, J., & Callahan, R. (2003). English learners inCalifornia schools: Unequal resources, unequal outcomes. Education Policy AnalysisArchives, 11 (36). Retrieved January 26, 2011, from HYPERLINK “http://epaa.asu.edu/” o “Click here to visit this online resource” http://epaa.asu.edu/.

Menken, K., & Antunez, B. (2001). An overview of the preparation and certification of teachersworking with limited English proficient students. Washington, DC: NationalClearinghouse of Bilingual Education. Retrieved January 26, 2011, from HYPERLINK “http://www.ericsp.org/pages/digests/ncbe.pdf” o “Click here to review this online resource” http://www.ericsp.org/pages/digests/ncbe.pdf.