Welcome! Have you ever envied people their problems? Here’s one to ponder:

A recent article in Education Week http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2008/02/mixing_students_of_different_e.html) reported that in a school district in Illinois, educators are testing procedures to use ELLs’ English proficiency scores to decide when to move ELLs out of newcomer classrooms and into sheltered classrooms and, from there, into mainstream classrooms. That’s not as simple or straightforward a procedure as it sounds, but what a lovely problem to be grappling with!

In contrast, most Vermont educators are faced with the challenge of accommodating all ELLs--regardless of proficiency level--in mainstream classrooms. The need for mainstream teachers to ‘re-tool’ to develop the knowledge and skill to meet this challenge has never been greater, and the value of doing so is clear. In a recent issue of EdWeek’s Learning the Language (http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2008/02/a_california_high_school_gets.html) , California high school principal Ted Appel reported that having ELLs in his school actually helped his school move out of NCLB-mandated school improvement status. ‘"Teachers had to learn how to teach in ways that engaged students and how not to assume students had background knowledge that they didn't have", he said. He said that such a shift was beneficial to "any kind of struggling student."’

Comments like this are heard regularly by VCLA’s SIOP trainers, and mainstream teachers continue to appreciate the ease with which they can integrate meaningful accommodations for ELLs into their mainstream classrooms. As reported in the previous VCLA newsletter (http://www.smcvt.edu/sharedmedia/Documents/vcla/Newsletter_2007_11.htm), a variety of forms of SIOP training continues to be available from VCLA for districts or consortia committed to improving academic achievement for English Language Learners.

In this issue, we’ll go a bit farther afield to put you in touch with the wealth of resources out there for educators working with ELLs. The resources will be grouped by category, and will be followed by some announcements of upcoming events and opportunities. Happy reading!

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Resources for Teachers of ELLs

Pedagogy and Instructional Methods

1. Webcasts from the Center for Applied Linguistics. A new CAL-sponsored research group, CREATE (Center for Research on the Educational Achievement and Teaching of ELLs) has developed a series of user-friendly webcasts related to the pedagogy and methodology of ESOL education. These webcasts are free to all users and are available in their archived version at any time. Accompanied by PowerPoint slides and reading lists, these webcasts make great opportunities for group study and discussion. To access the webcasts, and to learn more about CREATE’s resources, go to their website  www.cal.org/CREATE/ and click on ‘Events’. Topics covered to date:

• Building Oral Language into the Basal, with Diane August

• Making Standards-based  Content Comprehensible for ELLs: The SIOP Model, with Jana Echevarria

• Learning All-Purpose Academic Words, with Catherine Snow

• Findings from the National Literacy Panel on Language Minority Children and Youth, with Diane August

• Double the Work: Challenges and Solutions to Acquiring Language and Academic Literacy for Adolescent ELLs, with Deborah Short

2. Web-based resources from WIDA. The WIDA Consortium website is another good sources for user-friendly resources. A variety of videotaped presentations by WIDA’s Executive Director Tim Boals are accompanied by PowerPoint slides, are free to all users, and can be downloaded at any time from the website, www.wida,us. Topics to date:

• Comprehensive School Reform for ELLs

• Key Elements of Good Language Objectives

• Meeting the Academic Needs of ELLs

• Teaching Language Through Content

Webcasts from either of these sites would be a good way for administrators to introduce these issues to faculty and to develop interest in more intensive, site-based staff development.

Boosting Achievement for Middle and High School ELLs

New book from TESOL - Helping ELLs Succeed in Middle and High Schools - focuses on models of classroom-based and school-based collaborative partnerships and includes a chapter by Saint Michael’s College professors Susan Jenkins and Elizabeth O’Dowd and Burlington School District’s Mark Nigolian, May Kay O’Brien and Linda Walsleben. (www.tesol.org)

Conference presentations from the 2007 CREATE Conference, Academic Language and Content: A Focus on English Language Learners in Middle School, are available online at www.cal.org/CREATE/

Cultural Diversity

New book out from ASCD-- "Managing Diverse Classrooms: How to Build on Students' Cultural Strengths" by Carrie Rothstein-Fisch and Elise Trumbull (www.ascd.org)

Literacy Development for ELLs

From the What Works Clearinghouse-- Effective Literacy and English Language Instruction for English Learners in the Elementary Grades  The following description is taken directly from their website, where you can download the entire report in a variety of formats. http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/practiceguides/

“…addresses the challenge of providing effective literacy instruction for English learners in the elementary grades. Although the target audience is a broad spectrum of school practitioners such as administrators, curriculum specialists, coaches, staff development specialists and teachers, the more specific objective is to reach district-level administrators with a Practice Guide that will help them develop practice and policy options for their schools. The Guide offers five specific recommendations for district administrators and indicates the quality of the evidence that supports these recommendations.” http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/practiceguides/

Math and ELLs

The upcoming VCTM conference  (March 20) has several workshops relevant to teachers of ELLs. Register on the webite, http://www.vtmath.org/  and attend workshops such as Games: A Path to Speaking Mathematically and No Symbols, No Chalk: Oral Tradition Cultures Teach Math.

Go to the NNETESOL website to download the PowerPoint presentation SIOP and Math Pedagogy: Adjusting the Fit. http://www.nnetesol.org/pages/2007NHconf.html

Special Education and ELLs

Go to the NNETESOL website to download the PowerPoint presentation ELLS with Suspected Language-Learning Disabilities: Guidelines for the Pre-referral and Special Education Process. http://www.nnetesol.org/pages/2007NHconf.html

Science and ELLs

New book by NSTA—Teaching Science to ELLs: Building on Students’ Strengths. Read a sample chapter at

http://www.nsta.org/store/product_detail.aspx?id=10.2505/9781933531250

Web-based or Free Materials for Classroom Support for ELLs

1. Science and Math--MIT has posted a wealth of K-12 materials on its website, and ESL teachers have found the website a great resource that allows students to see and hear science lessons, thus rounding out and reinforcing their reading. Read the story at http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/02/06/22mit.h27.html?tmp=1716575711 and  access MIT’s materials at http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/hs/home/home/index.htm

2. Social Studies— go to http://free.ed.gov/resource.cfm?resource_id=2027 to request 20 free posters to provide visual support for Social Studies. Picturing America includes images of "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere," "Washington Crossing the Delaware," and "Looking Down Yosemite Valley," and works by Audubon, Catlin, Benton, Cole, Homer, Rockwell, Wyeth, and others.

Announcements and Opportunities

Share your knowledge! Vermont teachers, like those in other low-incidence states, have developed very creative means of collaborating to meet their student’s needs. This year, the spring NNETESOL conference is right here in Vermont at Saint Michael’s College. Check out the website and consider sharing your ideas in a presentation or panel discussion at: www.nnetesol.org.

Teaching Ambassador Fellowships! You have until April 7 to apply for this incredible opportunity. From the announcement posted on www.ed.gov:

Secretary Spellings has announced the creation of Teaching Ambassador Fellowship positions for currently practicing, K-12 public school teachers at the U.S. Department of Education for the 2008-2009 school year. These positions will offer highly motivated, innovative teachers the opportunity to contribute their knowledge and experience to the national dialogue on public education. The Fellowship includes two kinds of opportunities for teachers across the U.S. Up to 20 Classroom Fellows will remain at their schools under their regular teaching contracts and will be paid to participate in additional Department discussions and projects throughout the school year on a part-time basis. Up to five Washington Fellows will be chosen to become full-time, paid federal employees in Washington, D.C. for the school year, working on education programs and participating in policy discussions.

Teaching Ambassador Fellows will be selected based upon their record of leadership, impact on student achievement, and potential for contribution to the field. Highly qualified K-12 public school teachers who have spent at least three years in the classroom are eligible to apply. Teachers must be currently practicing in and employed by a public school district to be eligible. To ensure collaboration at the school and district levels, teacher applicants must have the full support of their school principals.

Applications are due by April 7, 2008. Teaching Ambassador Fellows will be named by early summer for the 2008-2009 school year.

Please read the detailed information found at http://www.ed.gov/programs/teacherfellowship to learn more.