| The cornerstones of sound instruction while working with English Language Learners (ELL) must include the following six strategies: comprehensible input, language contextualization, language modification, repetition, questioning strategies and treatment of errors. First, comprehensible input is necessary for learning.� The input is most typically oral or written, and both must be modified to allow the student to gain meaning from each.� Stephen Krashen expresses the optimal level as i+1 with i being the student's current proficiency plus the next level of proficiency.� This theory is very similar to Lev Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development.� Two strategies for providing comprehensible input are language contextualization and language modification.� The most basic contextualization of language is a picture and the written or spoken word naming the picture, but contextualization can be used at all proficiency levels by focusing on a task and limiting vocabulary to that related to the task and supplying the student with necessary phrases or vocabulary to expand their ability to produce language.� A teacher must modify their language phonologically by intonating syllables clearly, syntactically by using clear, short sentence structure with less subordination, semantically by using basic vocabulary, and pragmatically by using pauses or stressing syllables or words for meaning.� Repetition is another important strategy teachers must implement.� Repetition and consistency in speech is important for an ELL.� Questioning is a vital tool in teaching, but with EL students teachers should take into consideration the student?s proficiency.� Even students in the silent stage of their development can answer questions by nodding, pointing, circling, or a variety of other actions to demonstrate not only comprehension of the teacher but also to answer the question posed.� As the students progress, they become ready for the next level of questioning in which the question presents the answers, i.e. ?either or questions.?� As students progress further in their production of language, they become ready to answer wh- questions, which require the students to create phrases or sentences.�� Finally, errors are inevitable in a classroom of English Learners, and the approach teachers take toward the errors of the students can greatly affect the affective filter individuals.� In the early stages of language development, communication is more important than fluency.� Teachers should not directly correct an error, but model the correct form of language in the response.� Syntax errors are common with English learners, for example a student might produce the following language:� "Bathroom go?"� The teacher can model the correct syntax by replying:� "Yes, you may go to the bathroom (with emphasis on go to the bathroom)."� Teachers must constantly monitor the errors of his/her students and classify each error into one of the following two groups: systemic errors or random errors.� System errors must be addressed through instruction to the individual student or the class as a whole.� Random errors are those caused by inattention, lapse of memory or inadequate rules acquisition.� |
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