A Success Story of a Young ESL Learner’s Literacy Learning

A Success Story of a Young ESL Learner’s Literacy Learning

in the Australian Mainstream Classroom:

Some Insights for the Teaching of ESL/EFL literacy

in Developing Countries

Bambang Yudi Cahyono

One thing considered important for successful development of literacy learning in a second language is how pedagogical activities in the classroom are carried out. Pedagogical activities which are supportive of second language learners will enable them to learn second language literacy successfully. This paper synthesizes two research reports regarding literacy learning of Aida, an Indonesian young English language learner, who was mainstreamed in an Australian primary school in the capital city of Victoria, Melbourne. The first report, based on a nine-month longitudinal study (Cahyono, 2003), focused on Aida’s early development of literacy learning in English as a second language (ESL). The second report, based on research conducted at the end of Aida’s third year learning of ESL (Cahyono, forthcoming), described Aida’s development of more advanced literacy learning and of learning how to learn. In light of the results of these two research studies, this paper highlights factors contributing to Aida’s successful literacy learning of ESL in the Australian mainstream classroom. This paper suggests that conducive literacy learning environment and supportive pedagogical activities in the Australian classroom have been made possible by the policy of literacy education. For example, the “Early Years Literacy Program” implemented in Victoria requires primary schools to allocate two hours daily, called “two-hour literacy block”, for structured literacy teaching activities. These activities have benefited not only mainstream students, but also ESL learners. Reflecting on the literacy education policy in Australia and its successful implementation in the classroom, as experienced by Aida, this paper offers some insights regarding the teaching of ESL/EFL literacy in developing countries, more particularly in Indonesia.

Introduction

Following a series of application and selection process conducted in 2001 by the Australian-Indonesian Joint Committee of the Australian Development Scholarship (ADS), I was granted to be an ADS/AusAID scholarship receiver. A good thing about this scholarship is that it provides additional fund for family members should they wish to accompany the students who have to pursue their postgraduate study in Australia. My family and I did not want to miss this opportunity. I was enrolled as a PhD student at the University of Melbourne in February 2002 and my family (wife and two children) went to Australia in March the same year.

My son and daughter were enrolled in Grade 5 and Grade 2, respectively, at a Carlton Gardens Primary School in Carlton, which is located at the heart of Melbourne City. As new students who came from a non English-speaking country, they were not taught in a special class, such as an “ESL class” where the instructional language is suited with the students’ English proficiency, but included in mainstream classrooms along with local students. I had an opportunity to carry out a couple of research studies focusing on the literacy learning development of my daughter in particular, Aida. These studies include a longitudinal study conducted from the beginning to the end of her Grade 2 education (March-December 2002) and an ex-post facto study conducted in the mid-year of her Grade 5 education (June 2005). The two studies revealed that Aida could develop her ESL literacy learning successfully and use her literacy knowledge and skills in life. These two studies are discussed in the following sections and the comparison of these studies is shown in Figure 1.

The First Study (Cahyono, 2003)

This study aimed to see Aida’s English language learning activities in her mainstream classroom and examine the development of her early ESL literacy within a period of 9 months. Aida was nearly 8 years old when she started her Grade 2 education in Australia. In home country she took a private English course twice a week. The course was intended to make her like the English language. Thus, before enrolling into the Australian primary school, she understood little English, but her motivation to learn English was high.

The study was a longitudinal case study and used a number of data collection methods. Observation was conducted in Aida’s classroom to see the literacy learning environment. Documents which include portfolios and school reports were examined to get an understanding of day-to-day and periodical literacy learning and its evaluation. Interviews were held personally with Ms. Diane Ortisi, Aida’s teacher, to get a general impression of her performance and with Aida to know what she thought about her literacy learning, especially reading and writing.

The study showed that Aida’s classroom environment was rich in items and materials for literacy development (e.g., posters, stories on walls, shelves full of books and children’s literature). Reading activities, which included classroom reading, home reading, and summarizing from reading materials encouraged her to read various stories, fairy tales, fables and other children’s literature and to write summaries of books she had read. Writing activities which included handwriting, spelling exercises, diary writing, and story writing enabled her to hand-write clearly, write most of the words correctly, describe her weekly activities, and produce her own creative stories.

The results of the study also showed Ms Ortisi’s appreciation of Aida’s literacy learning. This can be seen Ms Ortisi’s evaluation written in the school reports at the end of the academic year (William, 2002: 3; Cahyono, 2003: 234) as follows:

Aida is to be congratulated for bringing her homework and reader to school regularly. She is writing her own creative stories independently and her handwriting is neat. Aida demonstrates enjoyment in her ability to read independently and often shares stories to peers. She has achieved excellent result in weekly spelling tests and has built up a good sight vocabulary … Well done Aida!

The Second Study (Cahyono, Forthcoming)

This study aimed to investigate Aida’s ESL literacy development after a three-year immersion in the Australian mainstream classroom. When the study was conducted, Aida was in Grade 5 and had already received her first semester school reports. She was now 11 years old and she demonstrated high motivation in learning all subjects at school. She actively took part in various school activities (e.g., weekly assembly, cultural school events, and camps) and was appointed a member of the school council. These activities enabled her to interact with classmates, schoolmates, and teachers. At home, Aida mostly spoke English with her brother and Indonesian with her parents.

The study was an ex-post facto study involving data collection conducted at a particular time. The data for this study were mainly collected from documents such as portfolios and school reports. Aida’s portfolios consisted of several types of workbooks: spelling, literacy, creative writing, literature, and writing drafts, and journal writing. This study used the school reports that Aida had recently received when the study was conducted, i.e., Semester 1, 2005 (the academic year starts in January and ends in December). In addition to documents, an interview with Aida’s teacher, Ms. Lyn Novak, was conducted in order to know the teacher’s general impression of Aida’s learning achievement. Aida’s self-assessment paper was also examined to see what she was good and not good at.

The results of the study indicated that Aida read reading texts of various genres (e.g., fiction, non-fiction, adventures) and showed excellent performance in various reading assignments (e.g., book reviews, text analysis). Aida has successfully written creative stories (fiction) and journals and produced a series of written texts. More importantly, Aida was able to assess her own learning and see at which areas she was (not) good (see Appendix 1 for Aida’s self-assessment of her learning and Appendix 2 for one of her creative stories).

In the school report (Bell, 2005), Ms. Lyn Novak writes:

Aida is increasing the variety of texts she reads and generally self corrects when reading orally. She makes accurate inferences and predictions about the texts she reads and responds by completing book reviews and other literature activities. Her responses are becoming increasingly more detailed and sophisticated. Aida writes a sustained text with effective use of detail. She engages the reader by using humour, suspense and interesting descriptions. Aida makes few spelling errors and generally uses punctuation correctly and effectively. She makes a good effort to edit and proof read her work but sometimes experiences difficulty using correct tense and grammar. Overall an excellent semester’s work Aida! (p. 2)

The First Study

The Second Study

Aim:

· Early ESL literacy development (Grade 2)

Personal background:

· Nearly 8 years old (7.10)

· Private English learning (in home country)

· Understood little English

· High motivation

Method:

· Case study

· Longitudinal (9 months)

· Observation

· Documents

· Interviews

Results:

· Classroom: rich in materials à

“language experience approach”

· Reading: classroom reading, home reading,

summarizing.

· Writing: spelling exercises, handwriting, story

writing, and diary writing.

Assessment of literacy learning:

· Enjoys reading

· Reads independently

· Shares stories to peers

· Fantastic weekly spelling tests

· Neat handwriting

· Confident in writing

· Writing creative stories independently

Aim:

· ESL literacy development (Grade 5)

Personal background:

· 11 years old

· English immersion at school

· English exposure (over 3 years)

· Bilingual at home

· High motivation

Method:

· Case study

· Ex-post facto

· Documents (portfolios and school reports)

· Interview

· Self-assessment paper

Results:

· Reading: read texts of various genres,

reading tasks

· Writing: creative stories, writing journals,

Assessment of literacy learning:

· Increases text variety

· Self corrects when reading orally

· Makes accurate inferences and predictions

· Completes book reviews

· Writes a sustained text

· Engages the reader by using humor,

suspense and interesting descriptions

· Makes few spelling errors

· Uses punctuation correctly and effectively

· Makes a good effort to edit and proof read

· Experiences difficulty using correct tense

and grammar.

Figure 1: A comparison of the first and second studies on Aida’s literacy learning.

Factors Contributing to the Successful Literacy Learning

Drawing on the two studies reported above, it is believed that there were a number of factors which contributed to Aida’s success in literacy learning. These factors include effective literacy learning policies, conducive literacy learning environment, and supportive teachers.

Effective literacy learning policies. In Victoria, Australia, literacy education is carried out according to the “Early Years Literacy Program”. This program requires literacy teaching and learning to be conducted effectively because of their importance in the process of literacy education (Raban and Essex, 2002: 218). Two important features of the program are the application of “a daily, focused two-hour literacy session” and “strategically planned home/school partnerships” (Department of Education and Training, 2002, p. 1).

With the allocation of two hours daily, also called “two-hour literacy block”, for literacy learning, teachers can structure various literacy learning activities to meet the needs of the students. As a result, teachers can provide different reading and writing tasks and have sufficient time to assess and give feedback during the learning process. Home/school partnerships are implemented through assigning parents to be actively involved in monitoring student literacy learning. For example, they are expected to check the students’ home reading activities by filling in the home-reading log. The “Early Years Literacy Program”, which is carried out for five years from prep to Year 4, has been considered to be a successful program as it has affected the way Victorian children learn literacy (Raban & Essex, 220: 228).

Completing the “Early Years Literacy Program”, students continue their literacy learning under the “Middle Years” program, designed for those at Years 5 to 9. Although this program is not specifically designed for literacy, it emphasizes literacy as “a key focus for innovation and excellence” (Hamilton, 2002: 1). With a theme “Making a difference”, this program aims to enhance students’ more advanced literacy skills “beyond the decoding aspect of reading” and help them develop their “self-management strategies” (Hamilton, 2002: 1). To this end, support is provided in the form of literacy initiative funding, teacher professional development, and research (Hamilton, 2002: 1).

Conducive literacy learning environment. Reading and writing activities are mainly conducted in the classroom. The classroom not only had basic learning facilities such as desks and the blackboard, but also wooden shelves for mini library and storage for other learning materials. The desks in the classroom were not arranged in line where all the students face forward, but arranged with clustered chairs. The students had colorful plastic containers where they could keep their notebooks, textbooks, and other learning materials. When the students began to work with their learning tasks, they could go to the wooden shelves where these containers were kept, to take their exercise books or textbooks, and return them back when they were done.

I had an impression that the classroom was set up to provide comforts and easy access to the literacy materials and tasks. The students were given freedom to choose where they would like to do their reading and writing tasks. They could sit or lie down on the wall-to-wall carpeted floor, on the sofas, or remain at their learning desks. The classroom fits Wells’ (1986) description of a classroom as a learning environment which applies the “language experience approach” (p. 159). In the same vein, Wales (1990) stated that a classroom environment which can assist the development of English literacy learning is one which has a “caring, supportive and stimulating” atmosphere (p. 171).

Supportive Teachers. Aida’s classroom teachers were supportive and encouraging. In general, the teachers were able to translate the literacy learning policies and use the literacy learning facilities and materials to support the development of their students’s literacy learning. These characteristics of the teachers are evident from how they managed the teaching and learning process. For example, Aida had a number of exercise books such as those for spelling exercises, journal writing, book reviews, and creative stories. The teachers had an important role in providing feedback for the students with their encouraging comments on their works.

The effective role of the teachers may also result from their awareness of the principles for managing the literacy learning for second language learners in the mainstream classroom. According to Wales (1990), the principles which need to be considered include obtaining “as much information as possible about each student” and doing “everything possible to build confidence in learners that they can learn English” (p. 170, emphasis original). Wales argues that they key element of the principles is communication between the teachers and the children. Sampson, et al., (2003) added that the communication skills of the students should be developed through “numerous activities, experiences, and strategies” (p. 22).

I found that Aida loved all her classroom teachers and she was always eager to go to school and always did her assignments. This would not have been possible if there was no good communication between Aida and her teachers. One of the ways to maintain good communication is through the weekly interactive journal. In order to illustrate how communication between Aida and her teachers went through well, extracts from Aida’s journal, written in the beginning of her Grade 5, are shown below:

Monday 31^st January 2005

… I had to go to another dance lesson. It was nearly exactly the same. The teacher (the person that lives in the house that we went to), she didn’t let us have a long break coz this week we’re not doing any practice. The dance that were about to do is for the Tsunami victims.

Teacher’s response:

You must really enjoy your dancing to be practicing so often! Where and when are you dancing for the Tsunami victims?

Monday 7^th February 2005

Hi Lyn! We’re dancing at Melbourne Town Hall in the 18^th this month.

… I was thinking yesterday that I might be going to the city with my mum but instead I went to the pool with my dad. My goggles are now too small for me but I didn’t care. I taught my dad how to star fish but he still can’t do it (not even with a swimming board) …

Teacher’s response:

Sounds like you had fun with your family! How is that brother of yours? Say hello to him from me!!

Insights for the Teaching of English Language Literacy

It is apparent that Aida’s success in learning ESL literacy in the Australian mainstream classroom is attributable to a number of important factors. An important issue is how we can learn from the success story in order that we can meet the students’ need of learning English as a second/foreign language in developing countries, especially in Indonesia. We may start by understanding the definition of literacy as cited below:

Literacy is the ability to read and use written information and to write appropriately in a range of contexts. It is used to develop knowledge and understanding, to achieve personal growth and to function effectively in our society. (The Australian Language and Literacy Policy, 1991, cited in Winch, et al., 2004, p. xxix)

The definition contains two basic points: understanding of the notion of literacy and (first sentence) how literacy is important for life (second sentence). In the Indonesian context, with the dominant role of the national language Bahasa Indonesia, English literacy mastery seems to be a long-term or secondary goal. However, to ensure the successful English literacy learning, there is no reason to delay the provision of English literacy education to our students, considering its importance in the modern era of globalization. With regard to the importance of literacy, Winch, et al., (2004) stated:

Literacy is integral to modern society. It pervades almost every area of social interaction including education, work, leisure, communications, and business and a key component of the information revolution. (p. xxx)

In light of the importance of literacy and the Australian experience in teaching English literacy to ESL learners, insights are provided below. These insights are elaborated in terms of questions: With regard to English learning literacy, (1) are our English literacy learning policies effective? (2) is our literacy learning environment conducive? (3) are we supportive teachers?

It is a great challenge to provide answers for these questions. These questions cannot be answered simply by “yes” or “no” as they require quite a number of research studies and a review of what we have done so far, either on a national, institutional, or classroom level. More importantly, the questions require our conscience and commitment, as teachers, for the development of the English literacy learning of our students.

Conclusion

To conclude this paper, I would like to emphasize the importance of English literacy learning. What we can do now is (1) to start thinking of designing literacy learning policies which are effective in meeting the needs of the students, (2) to equip our classrooms with English literacy learning materials (e.g., textbooks, tasks for reading and writing, picturebooks, and literary work) as well as to set up our classroom as a conducive literacy learning environment, and (3) to begin identifying ourselves as supportive teachers by applying the principles for managing English literacy learning.

Considering the development of today’s world, our job in teaching English literacy to our students seems to be a responsibility that cannot be taken lightly. This is because, as Christie (1990) stated, “The contemporary world demands a level of sophistication in literacy greater than at any time in the past” (p. 21).

References

Bell, L. (2005). Student report: Aida Ikrima. Melbourne, VIC: Carlton Gardens Primary School.

Cahyono, B. Y. (2003). Aida and her mainstream classroom: A case study of a young English language learner’s literacy development. TEFLIN Journal, 14(2), 219-238.

Cahyono, B. Y. (forthcoming). After three-year exposure in the mainstream classroom: Towards more advanced literacy learning development.

Christie, F. (1990). Literacy for a changing world. Hawthorn, VIC: Acer.

Department of Education and Training (2002). Early years literacy program. Vic, Australia: State of Victoria. Retrieved September 6, 2005, from http://www. sofweb.vic.edu. au/eys/lit/classroom.htm

Hamilton, K. (2002). Middle years of schooling. Vic, Australia: Department of Education and Training, State of Victoria. Retrieved September 6, 2005, from http://www.sofweb.vic. edu.au/mys/literacy/index.htm

Raban, B., & Essex, G. (2002). The literacy block in primary school classroom, Victoria, Australia. In R. Fisher, Brooks, G., & M. Lewis (Eds.), Raising standards in literacy (pp. 216-230). New York: Routledge.

Sampson, M. B., Rasinski, T. V., Sampson, M. (2003). Total literacy: Reading, writing, and learning. Belmont, CA: Thomson.

Wales, L. (1990). Literacy for learners of English as a second language. In F. Christie, Literacy for a changing world (pp. 167-186). Hawthorn, VIC: Acer.

Walkers, S. (2002). Mid-year report: Aida Ikrima. Melbourne, VIC: Carlton Gardens Primary School.

Wells, G. (1986). The meaning makers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Winch, G., Johnston, R. R., March, P., Ljungdahl, L., & Holliday, M. (2004). Literacy: Reading, writing, and children’s literature. South Melbourne, VIC: Oxford University Press.

About the Author

Bambang Yudi Cahyono is a faculty member of the English Department of the State University of Malang. He earned his MA degree in Applied Linguistics from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada (2000). He co-edited The Tapestry of English Language Teaching and Learning in Indonesia (State University of Malang Press, 2004). He has recently submitted his PhD thesis at the Department of Linguistics and Applied Linguistics, the University of Melbourne, Australia (2005). He is currently developing a network of English language teachers in Indonesia. Email: eltindonesia@yahoo.com Web: www.geocities.com/eltindonesia

Appendix 1

Self Assessment—June 2005

Name: …Aida Ikrima……………. Grade…5…………….

What I have enjoyed:

In English, I particularly enjoyed writing Narrative Text and the Task Cards about them. I wrote one of my best stories with the help of Task Card 13. I’m not such a fan of maths but I’ve enjoyed doing things about chance, like by doing experiments with the dice. I’ve enjoyed doing all the activities in arts, especially the papier mache. It was the best sculpture I’ve ever made. I also enjoyed netball, it’s a great sport for Interschool Sports.

What I have achieved:

In English, I’ve improved in writing stories. I’ve made my stories more intersting and I’ve learned that just because the story is long doesn’t mean that it’s intersting. In Maths, I’ve got better in measurements, especially in area. I’ve learnt how to tell how many squares in an irregular shape. I’ve learned a lot of things about Australia. I’ve also got better at construction work in art.

What I need to improve:

I need to improve on reading clearly and reading it the right volume, just enough for everyone to hear. I need to improve in drawing 3D shapes more accurately. I also need to improve on giving my creations details and being more careful in painting.

[Note: emphasis on literacy learning added]

Appendix 2

Friday, 13^th of May 2005 Task card 13

It was 11:55 pm. I just missed the train going to Melbourne. Worse, the last train ‘till another week. I’m all puffed up. I had to run down 256 stairs, because I was getting souvernieers for my friends. I was 5 minutes late, the train left at 11: 50. The weather was really bad, it’s raining really wildly. The weather forcast said that it was going to be cloudy, max 19. But they were wrong. Totally, totally wrong. So I decided that I should go back to the sovenier shop. I mean, there’s no point of me staying here, in a wet train station in Sydney. I turned towards the stairs, I wish there was a lift, or at least an escalator. I turned my body but my eyes are staring at the train tracks. When I looked at the stairs and there was a man, dressed in black with a hat covering his face. He was walking towards me, slowly. I had a feeling that he’s got a plan to follow me. I ran the opposite way of where the stairs are, towards the fences. I remembered when I was still in primary school I climed fences. I started climbing, the man was still walking towards me. I was over the fence. I couldn’t see the man anymore. When I turned, the man was right in front of me, with a knife pointing at my eyes. He swang his hand, holding the knife … wham. It was all a dream. I was sitting on one of the seats in Sydney’s train station. I looked at the stairs. There was a man dressed in black ……

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Cahyono, B. Y. (2005, September). A success story of a young ESL learner’s literacy learning in the Australian mainstream classroom: Some insights for the teaching of ESL/EFL literacy in developing countries. Paper presented at 1^st International Seminar on Literacy Education in Developing Countries, Semarang, Indonesia.

Website: www.geocities.com/eltindonesia

Email: eltindonesia@yahoo.com