Consistent+Scaffold+for+Academic+Language

Edison High School - Ina Ziegler – ESL, 9-12 Laura Byard – ESL, 9-12 Betsy VanThorre – ESL, 9-12 Torrey Lau – Biology, 10
 * Team Members/ School(s)**

We have noticed that many ELLs in our building lack the academic language to comprehend instruction in their content classes. Furthermore, this deficit makes it challenging for ELLs to work effectively with their peers and to communicate their learning, both in content classes and in ELD pull out classes. This problem is compounded by inconsistent use of language and visual scaffolds for students across departments and grade levels. Through this project, we hope to develop a set of scaffolds that can be used consistently with ELL students so that they can acquire the academic language needed to be successful across content areas.
 * Brief description of Learning Circle plan:**

Our plans are to: -research best practices for teaching academic language. -create visual supports that communicate language output expectations to students and teachers. -develop and teach WiDA level specific sentence frames, which are vertically aligned within the ESL department, to be used consistently across content areas. -establish a weekly planning routine with collaborative teachers (e.g. lesson planning template). -co-plan and explicitly teach language and skills for collaborative work (e.g. through modeling). -pilot the above in a collaborative setting (sheltered biology) and track student progress.

We will identify two learning objectives in each class that will demonstrate students’ acquisition of academic language at each level. We will identify four students at each ELD proficiency level and track their progress using a rubric, both in pull out classes and in collaborative settings. We will also include information observation and reflection in order to align our instruction across levels as a department.
 * Plan to measure results:**


 * Timeline:**

Develop Visual Scaffolds Teacher observation and pre-data collection Develop lessons to teach cooperative learning and how to use visuals || Implement scaffolds and co-planning routine Teach academic language (sentence frames and vocabulary) Teach cooperative learning lessons and how to use visuals || Track student progress (e.g. data collection, observation, etc.) – adjust if necessary || Reflect and plan PD workshop ||
 * March || April || May || June ||
 * Research Best Practices

**Work & Progress:**

As of May 17, 2012 We have compiled a final report of our research and findings. Follow the links to view it. [|Literature Review] [|Materials and Findings]

As of April 4, 2012 We have researched academic language and explicit language instruction for speaking, listening, reading, and writing and have started an annotated bibliography. We have posted some great links to videos from Kate Kinsella on the topic below. We have worked on organizing and outlining our project and its goals in more details. We have created some visual supports for Pull Out and Push In ELA 9 and 10 collaborative classrooms for transition words (see examples below). We have also created formative and summative assessments for academic language mini lessons that we will use in the pull out and push in classrooms to compare data. We created four-square vocabulary visuals to use in collaborative classrooms. See examples below of transportable poster for teachers and a student sample. We have also modified the Andersen co-planning template to start using after spring break in the biology collaborative.

As of April 19, 2012 We have begun using the co-planning template in our collaboratives (biology and world history). We have created and introduced WIDA speaking and writing rubrics in order to communicate consistent expectations for language production. We are using the rubrics in our collaboratives and have found it to be helpful not only for our students but for our co-teachers who now have a better understanding of student abilities. We have researched academic language learning strategies, with a focus on Jeff Zwiers' __Building Academic Language: Essential Practices for Content Classrooms__. We have implemented academic language strategies in our pull out classrooms as well as revisited these techniques in our collaboratives (e.g. prediction cafe and concept mapping). Here are some images of student work from the prediction cafe and concept map activities:


 * Collaborative Content Classroom Speaking and Writing Rubrics Piloted in Biology and World History:**

Learning Circle Annotated Bibliography - Influential articles, books, and research listed with annotations Co-Planning Template - Modified version of Andersen's co-planning template Kate Kinsella - Academic Language and Student Success Kate Kinsella - Academic Language and Student Success Part 2 - Kate Kinsella discussing the importance of explicit vocabulary teaching for teaching academic language for English Language Learners. Word Generation - Accountable Talk Kate Kinsella - Enhancing Students' Academic Discussion Skills - Webinar on increasing students' academic speaking with classroom examples. [|Jeff Zwiers - Academic Language Resources] - Lots and lots of downloadable resources for teaching vocabulary, reading, writing, and content-specific language. Academic Language Games - Academic Word List, divided by frequency - This list, from //Literacy Instruction for English Language Learners// (2009) by Nancy Cloud, Fred Genesee, and Else Hamayan, is organized by content area (math, science, social studies), and contains common text/talk structures, vocabulary words, phrases and lexical bundles, and communicative functions for each subject. It also includes suggested teaching strategies for each content area. - A powerpoint from Margarita Calderon, author of //Preventing Long-Term ELs//, with lots of great specific strategies and suggestions for teaching academic writing, reading, and vocabulary. Includes many examples! - This handout has excellent suggestions and stems for writing high-quality, targeted language objectives across modalities and content areas. - A short article by Jeff Zwiers that presents a procedure and directions for teaching students about features of academic discussion and scaffolding academic conversations among students about a given topic.
 * Resources:**

[|Teaching the Academic Language of Textbooks] - A short, readable article with a clear, easy-to-follow procedure for analyzing the linguistic demands of a given content text and planning for instruction.