Originally uploaded by Im *S
The central debate in the recent election for the position of Superintendent of Public Instruction was teacher and student accountability. The issue took the form – as it usually does: what type of objective tests will demonstrate student learning and, therefore, teaching effectiveness? There is one area that received scant attention from the candidates: the civil rights of students.
Romanian children learn to read
Originally uploaded by operation.blessing
Even native-English-speaking children have trouble shifting from informal playground English to Academic English. Academic English involves relating a single event to other events, discussing events of long ago, making comparisons, justifying a choice, knowing different forms and inflections of words, and modes of expression specific to one discipline or another. At some point the student has to be able to read and write in academic language.
Originally uploaded by Robert Pollack
Recently I have been observing several ESL teachers doing their practicum as a final step in achieving an Endorsement. I have noticed five behaviors in these very multicultural classrooms that struck me as almost paradoxical for an ESL teacher. I will raise these in the form of questions and hopefully some you can share your thoughts.
Originally uploaded by dcJohn
One of the most common questions we receive regarding our Teaching English as a Second Language program is: “What can I do with a TESL Certificate?”
At Washington Academy of Languages, we offer both a TESL Certificate and an ELL Endorsement. The latter is a state-regulated endorsement applied to an active Teaching Certificate. So, if a teacher would like to teach K-12 ELL in the public schools, they will need a Teaching Certificate as well as an ELL Endorsement.
The TESL Certificate, on the other hand, is offered for teachers who would like to teach ELL abroad or, where a certificate is sufficient, in the United States. Our courses cover pedagogy strategies for all ages, and help our teachers build knowledge of first and second language acquisition theories. After earning the TESL Certificate, what do our teachers do?
Originally uploaded by Danarah
Welcome back to school, teachers and students! With all of this fall’s discussion about Bellevue School District’s Curriculum Web, we wanted to take a look at how curricula are created for our local ELL classes.
We hear from teachers in our ELL Endorsement program all the time about the curricula their districts expect them to teach. They run the gamut from pre-prepared lesson plans to a list of texts they must use for developing a program to a lack of any formal guidance. These differences can mean major issues for the districts. What happens when a student must move frequently from one school to another within the district? Will s/he transition more or less seamlessly into a new ELL classroom? Or are the differences between classes too great to bridge the learning gap?