View Content #6834
| Contentid | 6834 |
|---|---|
| Content Type | 1 |
| Title | Article: Challenge High School English Language Learners |
| Body | From http://tinyurl.com/277mpz Learning to Think in English Yu Ren Dong Summer 2007 Rather than treat high school English language learners like small children who are unable to understand, challenge them with higher-level thinking. Tran, a high school English language learner, is working with his teacher as he learns how to form sentences in English: TEACHER: Where is the tent? TRAN: It's behind the tree. TEACHER: Where is the family? TRAN: It's in the tent. TEACHER: Where is the bear? TRAN: It's in the jungle. A bear in a jungle? The teacher pretends to be shocked, and Tran laughs. A researcher in literary instruction who happens to be observing in the classroom that day asks, “Have you ever heard about any bears in jungles?” Tran confidently replies, “No, it doesn't make any sense. But you don't have to make sense, just make a sentence. Don't think!” (Fu, 1995, p. 82) In this lesson, a concentration on the basics of sentence formation has clearly short-circuited the meaning-making process, reducing learning to a thoughtless game. As mainstream subject-matter teachers see increasing numbers of English language learners come into their classrooms, many wonder how they can provide challenging and meaningful instruction to students with limited proficiency in English. Are basic reading and writing skills in English a prerequisite of content-specific learning? Are English language learners capable of dealing with complex ideas in English? Read the entire article at http://tinyurl.com/277mpz . |
| Source | Educational Leadership |
| Inputdate | 2007-10-14 09:32:01 |
| Lastmodifieddate | 2007-10-14 09:32:01 |
| Expdate | Not set |
| Publishdate | 2007-10-15 00:00:00 |
| Displaydate | Not set |
| Active | 1 |
| Emailed | 1 |
| Isarchived | 1 |
