Key Assignment for LEDU 341/ SEED 541

Your name: __________________ Single Subject or Multiple Subject (bold or underline)

Student pseudonym or initials _________________________ Grade ____ Date ____________
School __________________
CELDT/ELPAC level: _______ Primary language(s) _____________ Time in US schools _____

Part I: English Learner Focus Student Profile (1-2 pages)

Integrate information from your own observations, shadowing, and from the cooperating teacher to
write a summary profile of your focus student (1-2 pages).

Focus Student Information Questions

1) What is this student’s current language proficiency level in English? (CELDT/ELPAC)
2) Where would you find information about the student’s current academics?
3) Could this student (grades 5-12) be considered a Long Term English Learner (LTEL)?
4) What are the student’s cultural background and Funds of Knowledge? Why is that important for both
short-term and long-term planning of instruction?
5) What are the student’s content- and standards-related learning needs and goals? (Can ask about the
Common Core State Standards as well).

Part II: Assets & Application (Chart)

Based on information in the student profile, review the Essential Characteristics list to help you identify
student strengths in each of four domains: academic, linguistic/cultural, social/emotional, and cognitive.
Choose at least one from each column for which to design strategies or activities. Add any strengths to the
list that don’t appear there. On the chart below list at least one student strength for each area.

For each strength listed on the chart, describe in detail at least one specific strategy for instruction and/or
assessment designed to build on the accompanying strength to include the focus student in mainstream
curriculum.

Part III: Reflection and Faith Integration Essay (4-6 pages)

Follow the instructions below and respond in an integrative, cohesive paper.

*Please see the attached rubric for this project.

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 1

EL Focus Student Shadowing Form A Grade: ______ Date of observation: _________

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 2

 EL Focus Student Shadowing Form B Grade: ______ Date of observation: _________

5- Specific Student EL Shadowing Form for

min. Activity/ Speaking/Listening
inter- Location of Comments/
Speaking Listening
vals Student Impressions/
(What is the student Observations
Time doing?) Social Academic Social Academic

Primary Listener = Focus Listening mostly to

Student whom?
1. Other Students
2. Teacher

5-
EL Shadowing Form Comments/
minute for Reading & Writing: Impressions/
interval Observations
s Specific Student Activity (Questions/Wait Time,
Time (What is the student doing?) READING WRITING Strategies)

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 3

 With whom?
1. Whole class
2. Partner/small group

3. Alone

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 4

Part II: Identifying specific student assets and designing strategies
Based on observations during Shadowing and other information gathered, identify at least 1-2
student assets in each area below and complete the corresponding cells on the chart that follows.
Please write in any assets you see that do not appear on the chart.

Examples of characteristics to consider in identifying and applying student assets:

Academic  Overall background knowledge

 Prerequisite skill level
 Vocabulary usage – content-specific and cross-disciplinary
 Facility with academic skills: summary, finding main idea, inferencing,
predicting, categorizing
 Classroom performance or participation
 Homework completion
 Other: ___________
Linguistic/  English proficiency level in a particular domain: Listening, Speaking,
Cultural Reading, or Writing
 Strong L1 literacy skills (can read and write fluently in L1)
 Ability to handle language demands of the content area (vocabulary,
grammatical structures, reading, ratio of text: graphics, writing,
comprehension)
 Cultural background as a fund of knowledge
 Positive attitude toward home culture
 Other: _____________

 Ability to participate and contribute in a small group/pair

 High self-confidence
 High motivation
 Attitude toward subject area, school in general
Social/
 High risk-taking tolerance
emotional
 Willingness to ask for help
 Self-advocacy
 Introversion/extroversion
 Strong peer relationships
 Resilience; perseverance
 Other: ______________

Cognitive  Evidence of HOTS (Higher order thinking skills)

(Learning  Ability to self-monitor
Strategies)  Use of learning skills and strategies, e.g. use of text features, academic
resources, etc.
 Awareness of own learning style preference (visual, auditory, tactile,
etc.)
 Knowing how to ask questions
 Recognition of own strengths and weaknesses
 Other: ___________

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 5

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets

Part II: Continued – Strategies that build on students’ assets

EL Focus Student Grade:
Strategies for incorporating student’s assets into
Assets with evidence instruction and assessment (Your ideas); BE SPECIFIC
(at least 1 in each area) and PROVIDE RATIONALE; you can use your
strategy log.
Academic

Linguistic
/
Cultural

Social/
emotional

Cognitive
(Learning
Strategies
)

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 6

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets

Part III: Reflection and Faith Integration

In a written reflection of at least 5 full pages, please address the ideas below in a cohesive, well-written
essay with proper citations for course texts and other sources in APA format. Include relevant
connections to course content, readings*, and principles of educational equity and cultural
responsiveness, citing course texts and readings from class.

Starting with the Scripture references below, meditate prayerfully and humbly on them and respond to the
questions below in the final section of your paper. Add other passages you feel lend support to your ideas
related to Biblical perspectives on issues of equity, diversity, and justice.

Mark 12:28-31; John 13:34-35; Matthew 18:1-12; I John 4:19; Proverbs 29:7; I Cor. 13:1-13

Leviticus 19:34 - NKJV

The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as
yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

 In what ways does an assets-based approach to teaching reflect Biblical perspectives on how to
treat others? How does it impact the design of instruction and assessment differently than a
“deficit” model? (Cite the readings about “deficit thinking” and asset-based approaches as your
sources).

 Discuss previous assumptions and/or expectations about English learners that changed as a result
of working with your focus student.

 In what ways do institutional forces (i.e. policies, programs, and teaching practices) affect an
English learner’s experiences in school? How can negative forces be minimized?

 What was the most valuable part of this project for you and why?

 How might these scriptures apply to your focus student and his/her family? What can you pray for
this student? What do you pray for yourself as a current or future teacher of English learners?

*Don't forget to include citations and connections to course content and readings to support your ideas.
Written assignments exhibiting cursory organization and/or proofreading (grammar, spelling, and
mechanics) will not receive full points; 5-20% of the assignment’s point value may be deducted.

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 7

Rubric for Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets Score ______/375
Written assignments exhibiting less than exemplary organization and proofreading (grammar and
mechanics) will not receive full points; 5-20% of the assignment’s point value may be deducted.
Element Exceeds Expectation Meets Expectation 110 Approaching Does not meet ≤ 80
125 Expectations
English Synthesizes shadowing Analyzes shadowing Presentsuder5t95
shadowing Shadowing forms
Learner data, knowledge of data and knowledge of data and refers to missing or incomplete;
Focus students’ prior students’ prior some knowledge of data is not relevant;
Student experiences, assessment experiences, students’ prior little to no knowledge
Profile of prior learning, and assessment of prior experiences, of students’ prior
their funds of learning, and their assessment of prior experiences, their
(TPE 1, knowledge and cultural, funds of knowledge learning, and their funds of knowledge
4.1, 5.7) language, and and cultural, language, funds of knowledge and cultural, language,
socioeconomic socioeconomic and cultural, language, socioeconomic
backgrounds, as backgrounds, as socioeconomic backgrounds, is
available, in a holistic available, in a written backgrounds, as included; profile is less
profile of about more profile of at least 1 full available in a brief than 1/2 page or less
than a full page page written profile
Assets & Clearly articulates a Demonstrates an Demonstrates a Demonstrates an
Application thorough understanding of the limited or partial emerging
understanding of the importance of students’ understanding of the understanding of the
(TPE 1.1, 5) importance of students’ cultural and linguistic importance of importance of students’
cultural and linguistic background and students’ cultural & cultural & linguistic
background and experiences in planning linguistic background background and
experiences in planning instruction. Describes and experiences in experiences in
instruction. Describes in at least one strategy planning instruction. planning instruction.
detail 1-2 strategies somewhat related to Describes at least one Describes or repeats
directly related to student’s assets in each strategy vaguely the same strategy or
student’s assets in each area that allows student related to student’s are unrelated to
area that allow student to express meaning in a assets in each area that student’s assets.
to express meaning in a more than one way. allows student to
variety of ways. express meaning in
one or more ways.
Reflection & Insightful, compelling Integration of relevant Presents some Limited or no use of
Biblical integration of relevant Scriptures and Biblical relevant Scriptures Scriptures or
Integration Scriptures and Biblical perspectives on issues and Biblical discussion of Biblical
perspectives on issues of of equity and diversity. perspectives on issues perspectives on issues
(TPE 6.2) equity and diversity. Identifies personal of equity and of equity and diversity.
Analyzes personal assumptions about diversity. Limited or no
assumptions about diverse families, Demonstrates discussion of personal
diverse families, schools, and emerging awareness assumptions about
schools, and communities and/or of personal diverse families,
communities. Discusses institutional bias. assumptions about schools, and
ways to minimize diverse families, communities and/or
personal and/or schools, and institutional bias.
institutional bias. communities and/or
institutional bias.

LEDU 341/SEED 541 Key Assignment: Building on English Learners’ Assets 8