Closing the Literacy Closing the Literacy Gap for ELLsGap for ELLs

Which model is most effective? Ashley Martin

Education 7201:Seminar in Applied Theory and Research I

Fall 2010

Table of ContentsTable of Contents Introduction - Review of the models

Statement of Problem: Slide 3

Review of Related Literature: Slides 4, 5, 6, 7

Statement of Hypothesis: Slide 8

References Slide 9

¡Hola! Hello!

Statement of ProblemStatement of Problem To instruct first-grade ELLs at PSX, the

school has implemented a side-by-side dual-language setting that separates L1 and L2 literacy development by classroom. For Spanish-speaking students (L1), English proficiency (L2) is below expected levels according to ECLAS-2 results and Fountas & Pinnell reading levels.

What’s the Debate?What’s the Debate? Reversing the Bilingual Education Act (1968) with NCLB

Pro - Native Language SupportPro - Native Language Support Early literacy instruction in a dual-language (Spanish-

English) kindergarten. Culatta & Reese (2006)

Student Spanish use and investment in a dual language immersion classroom: Implications for second language acquisition and heritage language maintenance. Potowski (2004)

Additional sources that support L1 maintenance as a literacy transfer tool: Lee & Schallert (1997), Slavin & Cheung (2005), Vaughn et

al. (2006), Winsler et al. (1999).

Con - No Native Language SupportCon - No Native Language Support Dismantling bilingual education implementing

English immersion: The California initiative. Rossell (2002).

Additional sources that cite English-only immersion models as most effective Helmsley, Holm & Dodd (2006). Leung, et al. (2010). Garcia, E. (2007).

States in agreement - California, Arizona, Georgia, Massachusetts

Bilingual Education TheoristsBilingual Education Theorists

James Cummins

Bilingualism and special education: Programs and pedagogical issues (1983).

“students must receive sufficient comprehensible input in the target language while maintaining ties to the native language”

Ofelia Garcia

Statement of HypothesisStatement of Hypothesis

HR¹: Use of bilingual small-group literacy instruction in English Classroom A that is implemented two times a week over a four-month period will increase L2 proficiency of Spanish-speaking ELLs in the dual-language program (ECLAS-2, Fountas & Pinnell)

HR²: Bilingual small-group literacy instruction in English Classroom A will yield a greater improvement compared to English Classroom B.

ReferencesReferences Carlo, M.S., August, D., McLaughlin, B., Snow, C. E., Dressler, C., Lippman, D., . . . White, C. E. (2004). Closing the gap: Addressing the

vocabulary needs of English language learners in bilingual and mainstream classrooms [Electronic Version]. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(2) 188-215.

Combs, M. C., Evans, C., Fletcher, T., Parra, E., & Jiménez, A. (2005). Bilingualism for the children : Implementing a dual-language program in an English-only state. Educational Policy, 19, 701-727. doi: 10.1177/0895904805278063.

Culatta, B., Reese, M., & Setzer, L. (2006). Early literacy instruction in a dual-language (Spanish-English) kindergarten. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 27(2), 67-82. doi: 10.1177/1525740106027002051.

Cummins, J. (1983). Bilingualism and special education: Programs and pedagogical issues. Learning Disability Quarterly, 6(4), Autumn, 373-386.

Garcia, E. (2007). Education comes in diverse shapes and forms for U.S. bilinguals. In J, Noel, (Ed.), Multicultural Education, 2nd ed. 138-144. New York: McGraw Hill.

Garcia, O. (2008). Bilingual education in the 21st century. West Sussex, United Kingdom: Wiley-Blackwell. Helmsley, G., Holm, A., & Dodd, B. (2006). Diverse but not different: The lexical skills of two primary age bilingual groups in comparison to

monolingual peers. International Journal of Bilingualism, 10(4). 453-476. doi: 10.1177/13670069060100040401. Lee, J., & Schallert, D. L. (1997). The relative contribution of L2 language proficiency and L1 reading ability to L2 reading performance: A test

of the threshold hypothesis in an EFL context [Electronic version]. TESOL Quarterly. 31. 713-739. Leung, C. B., Silverman, R., Nandakumar, R., Qian, X., & Hines, S. (2010). A comparison of difficulty levels of vocabulary in first grade basal

readers for preschool dual language learners and monolingual English learners [Electronic Version]. American Education Research Journal. doi: 10.3102/0002831210382890.

Potowski, K. (2004). Student Spanish use and investment in a dual language immersion classroom: Implications for second language acquisition and heritage language maintenance. The Modern Language Journal, 88(1), Spring, 75-101.

Rossell, C. (2002). Dismantling bilingual education implementing English immersion: The California initiative. Public Policy Inst. of California, San Francisco. ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED467063.

Slavin, E., & Cheung, A. (2005). A synthesis of research on language of reading instruction for English language learners. Review of Educational Research, 75(2). Summer, 247-284. doi: 10.3102/00346543075002247.

Tong, V., Lara-Alecio, R., Irby, B., Mathes, P., & Kwok, O. M. (2008). Accelerating early academic oral English development in transitional bilingual and structure English immersion programs. American Educational Research Journal, 45(4), 1011-1044. doi: 10.3102/0002831208320790.

Vaughn, S., Linan-Thompson, S., Mathes, P. G., Cirino, P. T., Carlson, C. D., Pollard-Durodola, S. D., . . . Francis, D. J. (2006). Effectiveness of Spanish intervention for first-grade English language learners at risk for reading difficulties. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 39(1), 56-73. doi: 10.1177/00222194060390010601.

Winsler, A., Diaz, R., Espinoza, L., Rodriguez, J. (1999). When learning a second language does not mean losing the first: Bilingual language development in low-income, Spanish-speaking children attending bilingual preschool [Electronic version]. Child Development, 70(2). 349-362.