Using Online Literacy Software Programs

General education classroom teachers are responsible for providing the primary instruction for English Language Learners (ELLs) development in English literacy skills (Thompson, 2004). Supplying ample resources to accommodate ELLs inside and outside of the classroom are essential as the number of ELL students has grown steadily. According to research, “one out of four of all children in the United States are from immigrant families, and in most cases these children speak a language other than English at home” (Samson & Collins, 2012 p. 4). Further research suggests, “students from a non-English speaking home and background account for the fastest growing population of children in the kindergarten through twelfth grade setting (Short &

English Language Learners (hereafter referred to as ELLs) currently comprise 10% of the total school population in the United States (National Center for Education Statistics, 2005). It is a population that is going to continue to increase in American public education and their specific needs for learning literacy are of great importance to teachers. Since schools and teachers are increasingly judged based upon the academic achievement of students, then the success of the growing population of ELLs is going to be increasingly important. In the present paper the role of the teacher and specific research-based literacy strategies for ELLs is investigated.

When an educator walks into her classroom for the first time, she needs to be prepared to encounter students that come from a variety of backgrounds. The children will be in different stages of language development, and the educator must accommodate for each of these students. Magruder, Hayslip, Espinosa, and Matera (2013) state, “The US Census Bureau projects that by the 2030s, children whose home language is other than English will increase from roughly 22 percent to 40 percent of the school-age population” (p. 9). This increase in second language learners will cause the educator to accommodate for those needs. Second language learners “need teachers who welcome them and recognize their unique abilities, what they know, and what they need to learn” (Magruder, Hayslip, Espinosa, and Matera, 2013, p. 10).

All these strategies gives all students an equal opportunity to practice English, participation and involvement. ELLs students when it’s time to read or participate in class they may be reluctant to speak because of their lack of proficiency in English or feel uncomfortable in an environment where they have to share their ideas. ESL teachers must provide a positive and supportive environment that offers significant influence on student comfort level, success and participation that requiring ELLs to use the language in front of class without force them

Selecting materials relevant to ELL’s experience or culture; strategically using students’ first languages to make the content delivered in a second language more comprehensible teaching word learning strategies that build on first language knowledge such as using cognates; and frequently using partner talk to give low-English-proficient students more opportunities to talk with more English-proficient

be English Language Learners, (ELL) for them to benefit from this lesson or to meet state

The situation amongst ELLs and literacy instruction, including assessment practices, is confusing for many teachers; therefore there is still much exploration left in terms of the best practices for the instruction and assessment of ELLs (Ebe, 2010).

Students who are English Language Learners are taught in whole group with their general education teacher and in a small group with their ELL paraprofessional. About 5 % of students who are ELL are on or above grade level in Reading based on the i-Ready Diagnostic Assessment 3. This is why the district believes these students and others should have extra practice or progress monitored on their mastery of vocabulary skills in school. Helping students master the skill of vocabulary teachers need to be able to have time to demonstrate an effort to systematically teach word study. They also need to be able to use vocabulary techniques and practices that will be intense and meaningful to the students in third grade. Last but not least, they need to be able to share effective vocabulary techniques in their PLC’s that have worked for them in their

I had an opportunity to meet the ELL teacher who is responsible for educating ELL students in the district. She allowed me to observe her teaching a couple of her students at Brighton Elementary School. The teacher informed me that she teach ELL students using Scholastic books and a Scholastic app. Additionally, she informed me that the scholastic app is usually used to help students replace missing words in a sentence, and also assist students with pronunciation, punctuation, & comprehension. The students were able to tap on a word and the computer would pronounce the word. The teacher had several strategies that she utilize in her classroom to help students understand the English as their second language, for instance, she mentioned

When these non-English-speaking children arrive at their local school for the first time, they will unfairly be expected to perform at the same level academically as their English-speaking peers, and this will be a big challenge for them because they will have a hard time understanding what their teachers are teaching and what their textbooks are saying. In addition, learning the English language is especially important for young English language learners who have recently immigrated to the United States because they have an additional and serious responsibility beyond just adding a new language; once they do begin to pick up the language, they will more than likely have to take on the role of translator for their parents and will become the sole line of communication between their non-English speaking parents and the school’s teachers, guidance counselors and administrators.

Diverse cultures within the United States are rapidly developing and growing and the educational sector is the number one target to ensure that English –learners are receiving adequate education. Within the educational sector there are administrators and teachers who are involved in students lives on a daily basis to ensure that education is equal. In order to achieve the vital objective of equality, socio-cultural influences on ELL students, bilingualism and home language use, parental and community resources, and partnerships between families and schools all have to be considered to provide an opportunity for equal education.

The research question the group asks is, “Do supplemental software and technologies help English as a Second Language (ESL) and English Language Learner (ELL) students in both short and long term ways?” Our target population for this study is college students that are ELLs. Finding participants is one part of the study, but since we are researching students on a college campus they will have to be at least 18 to 30 years old to participate in the study. UMKC has a very large and diverse campus; we will reach out to the Applied Language Institute (ALI) students through a class survey. We decided that college would be a better population to start out with because it provides many social opportunities. We are looking for a population that will provide us with direct feedback from the trial. Students in college will know how they learn and be able to explain how technology either helped them or hurt them while learning. Having students participate on campus also ensures that they have access to internet and WiFi. We are aware that there are many limitations that face college students, but there are also benefits to choosing students in college.

During the 1990s the immigrant population expanded quickly and by a large amount. According to Eggen and Kauchak (2007) “experts estimate that by the year 2020 two thirds of the school population will be African American, Asian, Hispanic, or Native American. This means there will be great cultural diversity in our society and in our schools.” Educators will need to be educated on how to teach in a diverse classroom. Teachers will need to have an understanding for English-language learning children and the way they learn. All educators must be able to teach ELL students while encouraging them to continue to use their native language while learning to speak English. Teachers must also remember to try to keep all families

Nowadays, Digital literacy helps to understand and analyze information through digital technology. The use of technology plays an important role within the process of teaching and learning; it can be used to teach reading and writing skills by using digital devices such as laptops, iPads, Chromebooks, or desktops. However, within the context of the use of technology in the area of education, and specifically in the area of language, digital literacy would also encompass its application both in development of language skills and learning of languages (reading, writing, oral comprehension and oral production). Although there are many limitations to the technological advances of digital literacy I believe that the advantages are greater than

much simpler for the students to publish their own work on the internet. When it comes to learning how to improve reading skills, many programs exist, one of the better being Reader Rabbit, which uses games to disguise drill-and-practice routines to help students improve reading ability. All of these are examples of how technology has positively affected Language Arts education.