Diversity Group

Powerpoint
Elaura Oshiro
Education 277
November 29, 2020
 English Language Learners
Background
English Language Learners (ELLs) “are students who are unable to
communicate fluently or learn effectively in English, who often
come from non-English-speaking homes and backgrounds, and
who typically require specialized or modified instruction in both
the English language and in their academic courses”
(English-Language Learner Definition 2013).
Other Names (English-Language Learner Definition 2013):
➢ English Learners (ELs)
➢ Limited English proficient students (LEP)
➢ Non-native English speakers
➢ Language-minority students
➢ Bilingual students

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 What characteristics identify this group?
➢ Parents speak a different language and students may or may not know
how to speak it as well.
➢ Students understand other languages other than English.
➢ They may struggle with some, if not all, of the following:
○ Speaking in English
○ Reading in English
○ Writing in English
○ Listening in English
➢ Cultural Background
○ Indian students refuse to eat meat/ any products that come from
animals
➢ Family Focus
○ For example, cousins are considered brothers or sisters.

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According to the National
Center for Education
Statistics, In 2017, there were
10.1 % of students in America
who were ELLs. In Hawaii,
there were 6 to less than 10%
of our students who were
ELLs. These students can be
found in most states in
America. Some states do have
less than 3% of ELLs like
Montana, Mississippi, West
Virginia, New Hampshire, and
Vermont.

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 Where Can You Find Students From This
Background?
You can find these students all over the United States of America. Many
families come to the States for either job opportunities (working Visa) or to make
permanent residence here. These families usually have children that either know
their native language, they understand it, or their family members are the only ones
who speak it. Regardless whether they know their native language or not, as long as
their family member speaks it at home, they could potentially be considered an ELL
student.

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 This group approaches language in different ways. Depending on their
English literacy they could struggle with either one to almost all skills for English
(reading, writing, speaking, and listening). Each student is different based on
their prior knowledge and the support they can get at home and school.
Something that teachers should know when working with ELL students is
“Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences” because this group of students are
very different from each other and they learn differently, learning about
Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences can help teachers accommodate to
students based on their learning styles.

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 These students can use space differently. Depending on their cultural
background they can be very close or they can be private. I noticed that some
asian cultures are shy and can sometimes be private. But most of the time
students, especially the younger students, like to share their space.
Some things that need to be considered with this group is that there are
some cultures that discriminate against other people based on their gender,
culture, or skin tone. Teachers need to keep this in mind and work around
these differences especially if their parents emphasize on the separation.

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 Time
Teachers should take some time to know these group of students. When
teachers take that time, they can see how and where the student needs help. Some
ELL students don't have support at home. If the teacher took the time to find this out
and took the time to know their parents, the teacher could possibly find solutions to
get the student the help they need at home. A personal example I had experienced
was when I was confronted with an ELL student who had behavior issues with his
classmates. I took some time to talk to him and found a cultural issue. He was being
told by his dad that in China it was acceptable for him to rebell and miss behave
because it shows that he is smart and strong. I was able to tell the teacher this and
she was able to find a solution to this problem.
Teachers should also give more time for these group of
students. Some students need more time to either finish
working on their assignment or they need more time for the
teacher to work with them and explain in greater detail the
assignment the steps to finish the assignment.

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 Obstacles
Students in this group have a language barrier that
can sometimes be hard to cross. Whether it's reading,
writing, speaking, or listening, ELLs have that obstacle of
understanding/translating the English language. Some
students are completely illiterate and because of this,
understanding and learning English is a huge obstacle
that they have to overcome when it comes to learning the
standards. Other students have a hard time translating
what they want to say/write in English. What’s worse there
are students who don’t know the basic sounds that each
letter in the alphabet make. Besides the students, getting
parent involvement can also be an obstacle. Some
students need that support at home to strengthen their
English literacy. But the problem is is that some parents
don't know English themselves and/or they don't see the
importance in supporting their child’s learning.
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Lessons that teachers teach sometimes are taken from
material that teachers from the mainland have prepared.
Teachers need to double check the vocabulary that is used
within the lesson because if it references to buildings,
animals, or places that the students don’t know then it would
make learning harder for students to learn the lesson. For
example, in the article “Reading, 'Rithmetic, and Raccoons:
The Reality of NCLB in Hawai'i” a teacher is teaching a lesson
using raccoons as an example. The students start to get
frustrated because even though they were learning math,
they have no idea what a raccoon is. This can be a situation
that ELL students go through. If we are teaching students
from korea, they may not know American/Hawaiian history.
Teachers need to go through the lesson and the materials to
find vocabulary words that the ELL students may not know.
They need to add these words to teach to the whole class.

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 I work with the ELL students at Salt Lake Elementary School for the
past 4 years. From my personal experience, I have worked with Chinese
students whose parents denied that their child needed extra help. I noticed
that the in some Chinese cultures it looks bad if your child is different/
needs extra help. This poses a problem because the student is being
denied the help that they need to succeed and could potentially be
hindering them more.
I have also worked with many ELL students whose parents are
constantly working so they have no time to help their child at home. This is
a problem because these students struggle in their learning since they
aren't practicing at home. In this situation, I have also seen students
become discouraged in learning. They have that misunderstanding that
since their parents don’t care about their school work then they shouldn’t
care as well.

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Traditional Learning Styles That Work Best

Using art, such as drawing, coloring,

or painting, helps the ELL students
express themselves and how they
want to answer. Recently I worked
with an ELL student on his math
assignment. He enjoyed solving the
math problems because he got to
color a picture. The picture was of a
turkey but each section had to be
colored a certain color according to Name:______________________________________________ Date:__________________

the answer to the problem written After reading the story, “Cinderella” write/draw what happened in

within it. The ELL teacher I work

the beginning, middle, and the end of the story. If you draw make
sure to label your pictures.

with also likes to create worksheets Beginning Middle End

where students get to write and

draw their answers.

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 Other Approaches

➢ Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence
Using Gardner's theory, I think teachers should include this in their
lesson plans when dealing with stories or social studies. Having the kids
act out what their learning will make the lesson more enjoyable and
memorable for ELL students.

➢ Musical Intelligence
For this theory, it will help the ELL students with memorizing the
material. For example if you play this video,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6DSMZ8b3LE for students to learn
the 7 continents, the music and the lyrics are very catchy and might get
students singing along. If students sing along to this song they can
easily remember the 7 continents of the world.

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➢ Interpersonal Intelligence
ELL students work very well with one another. Especially if you have an
illiterate student speaking with another student who knows both their
native language as well as English. They can help each other with their
work. Even if they aren’t from the same culture, having that practice in
communicating with one another is essential for ELL students to learn
English. I had this one ELL student who had trouble pronouncing the
letter “R.” One of her classmates worked with her in pronouncing it
correctly.

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 Research

According to the article “6 Essential Strategies for Teaching English

Language Learners,” it states how these tips can help with ELL students.
❖ Getting to know your students
❖ Acknowledging their culture
❖ Touch up on English literacy throughout the class
❖ Practice speaking English with them
❖ Talking slowly while teaching or explaining
❖ Give more time for them to do work
❖ Give them options on how to answer the prompt
❖ Using their native language in the lesson
❖ Use technology while teaching or for their work

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 Research

Having them do collaborative group work can be

beneficial to them and the rest of the class because it
works on their speaking skills, their ability to work with
others and it helps them become more comfortable
being around others who are their age. It also benefits
the class because it subconsciously teaches diversity in
the classroom. Doing a think-pair-share can also help
them become more verbal and comfortable talking to
others in English.
Assessments that can either be done by them
using visuals, like drawing, or creating a video of them
speaking can be a great assessment. If the assessment
is about the lesson rather than their writing/reading
skills, these types of assessment will give students a
chance to share the answer in a way that makes them
feel more comfortable and confident.

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 What did you learn from your research that you would apply to
your own teaching?

I learned how diverse this group of students can be and how I can
accommodate to their needs. I now know how important it is to know
these students. I need to learn about their culture, language, their
skills, and their family. I must learn these things about them to give
them more helpful and creative ways for them to learn and express
themselves.

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 How might you approach this group of students?

I would approach these students by giving them more opportunities

to teach them as well as ways for them to do the assessments. I know
that I would probably use a lot of powerpoints to provide more visuals
and audio for them to see and listen too. I hope to incorporate a
drama like assessment where they can act out what they learned and
videotape them as proof of their assessment that they learned the
criteria.

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 Explain how working with diverse groups of students impacts your
teaching style.

As a teacher we need to think of ways to accommodate for all students. We

must think of ways to either teach the class as a whole or split them up into
groups to accommodate to their individual needs. Having different groups of
students can really affect the teaching style. For example, if I was teaching just
based off of my lectures, the ELL students or the SPED students will be
completely lost and frustrated because some of them learn better with visuals
or they need me to talk more slowly so they can understand what I am saying.

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 Work Cited
English-Language Learner Definition. (2013, August 29). Retrieved November 29,
2020, from https://www.edglossary.org/english-language-learner/
English Language Learners in Public Schools. (2020, May). Retrieved November
30, 2020, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cgf.asp
Kaplan, E. (2019, April 12). 6 Essential Strategies for Teaching English Language
Learners. Retrieved November 29, 2020, from https://www.edutopia.org/
article/6-essential-strategies-teaching-english-language-learners
Maaka, M. (May 8). Reading, 'Rithmetic, and Raccoons: The Reality of NCLB in
Hawai'i. Retrieved November 29, 2020, from https://laulima.hawaii.edu
/access/content/user/jaydene/ED100/ED100.Article.%20Racoon,%20was%20
dat.pdf
Marenus, M. (2020, June 9). Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Retrieved
November 29, 2020, from https://www.simplypsychology.org/multiple-
intelligences.html
Pace, J., & Pace, M. (Directors). (2017, August 11). Seven Continents Song
[Video file]. Retrieved November 29, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=K6DSMZ8b3LE
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