CULTURAL & LINGUISTIC

DIFFERENCES IN THE ELL

ENVIRONMENT

A Culturally Responsive Teaching Perspective

Jim Stanmore
ITS 646
Saint Josephs
University

INTRODUCTION

Statistics
Connection with students
Teacher self-awareness

OVERVIEW

Introduction
Cultural & Linguistic differences
Cultural Differences
Linguistic Differences
Avoiding Bias
CLT
CLT and Communication
CLT and Technology
CLT and PA-ELP

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

Cultural Competence
Cultural Responsiveness
Culturally Responsive Instruction

CULTURAL COMPETENCE

Learn from other cultures

Relate to other cultures
Awareness of personal background

CULTURAL RESPONSIVENESS

Role of culture in education

Learn about students cultures and
communities
Learn about a variety of cultures
Discover issues facing diverse students

CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE
INSTRUCTION (CRI)

Unintentional bias
Culturally Relevant Teaching
Teach in a Way students understand

IMPACTS OF UNRESPONSIVE INSTRUCTION

Acting out when stressed

Feel unaccepted
not sure how to succeed
Inferior or different
Embarrassed by heavy accent

USING CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE INSTRUCTION

Content from other cultures

Make content relevant and meaningful
Vary presentation materials
Relate background to curriculum content
Varied instructional strategies
Use authentic materials
Connect culture with academic terminology

LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY

Method of communication (not means)

Linguistic competence
Teacher and cultural expectations differ
Goals
Linear response

LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY: COMMUNICATION

STYLES

Topic association or chaining

Dramatic presentation
Active participatory discourse
Gestures and body movement
Rapid rhythmic speech
Metaphorical imagery

LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY: LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

Stag
e

Description

Duration

Silent/ Receptive or Preproduction

Stage

up to six months

II

Early Production Stage

can continue for an

additional six months
after Stage I

III

Speech Emergence Stage

can last up to one year)

IV

Intermediate Language Proficiency

Stage

can last up to one year)

Advanced Language Proficiency

Stage

can require five to

seven years to gain
proficiency

CULTURE AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS

Importance of native language

Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills
(BICS)
Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency
(CALP)

COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING (CLT)

Aligns with principles of CRI

CLT and CRI in action

COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING

(CLT) & TECHNOLOGY

Cooperative learning
Social learning Network (Edmodo, Google
classroom)
Social media
Learn by teaching

Media production

Information gap
Internet search engines
Language learning software and sites

CLT AND PA-ELP

Word processors, spreadsheets, presentation

software
Social networking and sharing
Media production software
Authentic materials through the internet
Language learning programs

SJU LEARNING PRINCIPLE 1

Saint Josephs Learning Principle 1 (Faith,
Justice, and Education: Teaching from a faithbased perspective)
The teacher gives priority to the
development of social justice and equity
in the classroom.

COMMENTS & QUESTIONS

CONCLUSION

Thank you for joining us

REFERENCES
ACSD. (2011). Culturally Responsive Instruction. Retrieved from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/111022/chapters/Culturally-Responsive-Instruction.aspx
Coffey, H. (2015). Culturally relevant teaching. Retrieved from http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/4474
IRIS Center. (2015). IRIS | cultural and linguistic differences: what teachers should know. Retrieved
from http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/clde/
Pennsylvania Department of Education. (2007). Pensylvania english language proficiency standards.
Retrieved from
http://static.pdesas.org/content/documents/Pennsylvania_English_Language_Proficiency_Standards.pd
f
Rajagopal, K. (2015). Culturally Responsive Instruction. Retrieved from
http://ghspacers.com/create/culture.html
U.S. Department of Education. National center for education statistics. (2008).Characteristics of
public, private, and Bureau of Indian Education elementary andsecondary school teachers in the
United States: Results from the 200708schools and staffing survey. Retrieved on October 24, 2012,
fromhttp://nces.ed.gov/pubs2009/2009324.pdf
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statistics, 2011. Retrieved on October 24, 2012, fromhttp://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?
pubid=2012001
U.S. Department of Education. National center for education statistics. (2008). School and staffing
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pubid=2010363