Oral Language Development and ELLs: 5 Challenges and Solutions

In this article, Dr. Lindsey Moses Guccione shares five key challenges related to the oral language development of ELLs, as well as tips for addressing each of the challenges.

Getting Started

I am fortunate to work with many teachers who have the opportunity to impact the lives of children and families who speak more than one language. As I work with these teachers and families, I have found five common and reoccurring challenges that they seem to face in the area of oral language development that parallel my own experiences. I detail these challenges and questions below, as well as suggestions for addressing each challenges based on strategies I used in my classroom.

Questions and Classroom Scenarios

1.   What do I do if they don't know ANY English?

Understanding the characteristics of language learners at different proficiency levels helps to think about how we can best support students in their oral language and reading development. Below is a chart that gives a description of the first two levels of language proficiency as well as implications for using oral reading. This is a nice place to start when thinking about how to interact with and support our Starting and Emerging English speakers.

Levels of Language Proficiency	Description	Implications For Using Oral Reading
Level 1: Starting	Students are in a silent period in which they listen, but do not speak in English. They may respond using nonverbal cues in attempt to communicate basic needs.	The teacher and other more advanced students should model oral reading. Students in the silent period should not be forced to speak, but should be given the opportunity to participate in a group activity where they won't be singled out.
Level 2: Emerging	Students are beginning to understand more oral language. They respond using one- or two-word phrases and start to produce simple sentences for basic social interactions and to meet basic needs.	Teacher and students should continue to model oral reading. Students should be encouraged to begin taking risks with simple, rehearsed oral reading in non-threatening situations.

Opitz & Guccione (2009). Comprehension and English Language Learners: 25 Oral Reading Strategies that Cross Proficiency Levels.

Classroom scenario

My classroom phone rang, and the secretary told me the custodian was bringing down an extra desk because I was getting a new student. The secretary came down with my new student, Ricardo, his mother, father, and two younger siblings. Ricardo looked nervous as the secretary introduced me to his parents and him in Spanish. I told him I was excited to have him in our classroom and asked him if he wanted to hang up his jacket and go see his new desk. Blank stares and no response. The secretary immediately translated, and we headed into the classroom. She explained to me that the parents wanted Ricardo in English instruction all day because they felt this was the best and fastest way to learn to speak English.

I welcomed Ricardo into my room, and thankfully, even though he was in the silent stage, many of my students were fluent in Spanish so he was able to begin building relationships with his peers. During the first couple of weeks, he felt comfortable speaking in Spanish with his peers, but was only using English to meet his basic needs like using the bathroom.

During literacy time, I continued reading aloud and facilitating discussion about books. I encouraged students to volunteer to participate in both discussions and reading aloud. However, I never called on or requested students to share unless they volunteered. Ricardo began sharing and talking with his peers in partner and small group discussions by the fourth week he was in my class.

After a couple weeks of feeling comfortable sharing in small group and observing his peers share in a whole group setting, Ricardo also began contributing to the whole group discussion. In order to set Ricardo (and other students) up for success, the opportunities to share whole group were always preceded by discussion and practice with partners and/or small group. The ability to discuss and rehearse responses allowed for students to feel comfortable and confident during their whole group participation.

2.   How do I provide instruction and support for the ELLs without holding back the students who are fluent in English?

Differentiation is the key to effective instruction for all students. Students of varying proficiency levels can learn the same content when the teacher provides a wide range of learning opportunities for students with different academic and linguistic needs. Three key strategies for this approach include differentiating or modifying the texts, creating grouping structures, and targeting the amount and nature of support based on students' needs (Opitz & Ford, 2008).

• Modifying the text: Teachers can differentiate the text by selecting various levels of text difficulty on similar content, or they can also divide the text up into smaller portions appropriate for certain groups/individuals for a jigsaw activity. Another idea is to summarize text that might be too difficult and provide ways to make the text more accessible (such as vocabulary support, visual support, connecting to background knowledge, etc.).
• Creating grouping structures that set students up for success: While some grouping structures can be established according to language or literacy skill levels and needs, it is also important to think about providing students exposure to interact with peers who demonstrate a wide range of different language and literacy skills. Additionally, teachers can improve engagement and motivation by creating choice/interest groups where students gather, read, discuss and work together on topics of common interest.
• Targeting the amount and nature of student support: It is important to think about scaffolding the experience and using comprehensible input to make it accessible for all students. Comprehensible input means that students should be able to understand the gist of what is being said or presented. There are many ways to do this, such as selecting key vocabulary, using context or visual cues, building background knowledge, building on experiences the students have had, using consistent language, and providing images or visual representations to support vocabulary and content. Teachers can support their students by embedding comprehensible input into their whole-group instruction, but this also becomes particularly effective when used in the different grouping structures. Teachers can also modify the amount of support and interaction between teachers and students depending on their individual and group needs.

Classroom scenario

While working in a second-grade bilingual classroom, we began introducing inquiry instruction where students were encouraged to research topics of their choice. The goal was to provide students with opportunities to read, write, question, think and talk about natural disasters. The students self selected their topic groups, so the groups were heterogeneous. Each day I provided an anchor lesson where I introduced a new strategy or skill that could be used during their research and/or the poster they were creating about their research. These included strategies ranging from questions, to documenting information they learned, to summarizing, to making connections, etc.

One of the first lessons I taught was about using non-fiction, image-related text features. I demonstrated how to create a picture that provided information with captions and labels. I purposefully selected the topic group of volcanoes for my anchor lesson so that I could model, introduce, and illustrate the important vocabulary that might be needed to understand a volcano because I knew that a couple of my students in the Volcano Group would be needing more vocabulary support. I asked the students to go back to their group and texts and explore important information that they wanted to present in their illustration and caption.

Next, teachers began providing support in small groups. Some of the students were able to go back to what they were reading in the text and had no problem creating a detailed illustration with captions and labels. Those students were encouraged to continue on with their reading and research (using other strategies already presented, such as documenting their new learning). They were also encouraged to elaborate in greater detail or include additional vocabulary. Some of the emerging students worked in greater depth with a teacher to pick out three vocabulary words to use as labels, and they did not include a caption. Each student had the opportunity to orally share their illustration with captions and/or labels with a partner first. Then, the students had a chance to present their illustration and talk about it in their small, choice interest groups.

Finally, if students volunteered and wanted to share out whole group, they gave a brief oral presentation to accompany their illustration and captions and/or labels. This provided an opportunity for students to use their new understandings and academic vocabulary in the presentations and discussions about their illustrations. As the students were beginning to experiment with using this academic language, we wanted to set them up for success, make the content comprehensible, and simultaneously support the needs of ALL learners by modeling, providing guided practice, and then supporting students in their current stage of understanding as they worked through the research process.

3.   This student knows English — I hear him talking to his friends and on the playground. He just doesn't want to try in class.

I have heard many teachers discussing variations of this same idea. However, I would caution teachers and parents about jumping to this conclusion. Academic language (or the language specifically related to school and/or academic content) can be complicated to acquire. Students often first develop social language and demonstrate near proficiency or proficiency in English in social settings. A student may be demonstrating sophisticated use of social language, but they may have difficulty using language in more formal settings such as school.

Much of the academic language required to be successful in school — everything from instructions to expectations to content-specific vocabulary — requires assistance in acquiring. Students hear and use their social language in various settings from home, community, and school, but academic language is often only used in the school setting. These students need specific instruction and support surrounding their language development in this area.

The same children who appear to be functioning at a high level of English proficiency in social settings may actually be functioning at a beginning stage in other settings, depending on how they are called on to use language. The students need to feel safe and in a low-anxiety environment in order to begin to feel comfortable taking risks with their oral language. When they have less exposure and instruction related to academic language, this can often cause students to feel intimidated and less likely to be willing to share in class.

One idea for reducing anxiety and encouraging students to experiment with language might include allowing students to read, practice, and discuss their responses in partners and small groups before sharing out to the entire group. This allows students an opportunity to hear language modeled by peers, practice what they want to say, and possibly revise their original thought and/or language before sharing it in a public way. As students find more success with their language production and classroom participation, they will be more likely to share and take risks, and in turn continue building their confidence.

Classroom scenario

Think-Pair-Share is a favorite for allowing students an opportunity to process their thoughts, try it out with a partner, and then eventually share it with the class. When my students learned about habitats, for example, I introduced some strategies for comprehending non-fiction text.

·       First, I modeled how to summarize important information from the text to share with peers. This included reading the text aloud, identifying information I thought was important and then putting it in my own words. I modeled this using a think aloud so that students could understand my thought process.

·       Then, I asked the students to identify something in the reading that they thought was interesting or important. I asked them to share it with their partner.

·       Next, I asked the students to put that idea into their own words and then share it with their partner.

·       After students all had a chance to share, I asked them to talk with their partners and see if they wanted to change or add anything to their statement before writing their idea/own words down on a sticky note. Students had the opportunity to change or modify their original idea or keep it the same before taking the time to finalize it in writing. I asked the students to read their idea to their partner again to practice before they would have a chance to share their thinking with the whole class.

·       Finally, once they all had the opportunity to practice, I invited volunteers to share.

I elaborated on the Think-Pair-Share with multiple versions of the Think and Pair steps, but I found that my students built more confidence and felt more successful when they had multiple opportunities for repeated exposure and practice.

4.   How is the child ever going to learn English if they don't speak it at home?

It is important to celebrate being bilingual and biliterate. Research has shown that development of a students' first language can facilitate development in the second language (Genessee, Geva, Dressler, and Kamil, 2007). Understanding this helps parents, teachers, and children to encourage the use and development of the students' home language while they are at home. All of the home literacy activities that we recommend for English speakers, such as reading aloud, making lists, discussing books, reading environmental print, etc., should also be encouraged for the English language learners in their home language. Students can begin to use more English as they feel comfortable in different settings, but it is important to note that speaking two languages will not hinder their English development.

Another important idea to remember is that we want to invite parents to feel confident in their interactions with their children regardless of their English proficiency level. As they begin to read or retell stories and discuss them at home, they are developing vital oral language and comprehension skills, and these skills will transfer over into their school language.

Classroom scenario

This topic always reminds me of my first set of parent-teacher conferences. I had my list of suggested activities that I recommended my primary students do at home with their parents. Many of my students did not have access to books at home, and if they did, they were not in English.

However, my suggestions to parents remained the same: read with your child, let them help you make the grocery lists, ask them to read the signs while you are driving and walking, ask them to help you pick out the items at the grocery store, tell them stories, have them tell you stories, ask them questions, talk to them, go to the library, talk about the pictures, etc. During my first conference with a translator, I began going through this list, and the translator stopped me and said, "Miss, they don't speak any English. They can't do these things at home."

I told her that they could absolutely do these things at home! These aspects of oral language can be developed in any language, and these students were becoming bilingual and biliterate, so I wanted the parents enriching their oral language with their home language when they were at home. Knowing that this only enhanced their oral language and comprehension skills helped me to involve the families, value the language and contributions they were bringing to their students, and allowed me to build on what they were already doing at home.

5.   What kinds of activities should I be doing to help the student develop their oral language and oral reading?

McCauley and McCauley (1992) report four factors as necessary for acquiring a second language: a low-anxiety environment, repeated practice, comprehensible input, and drama. These are all important components of setting children up for success and language development.

• A low-anxiety environment includes a setting where students feel nurtured and supported by their teacher and peers, and in turn, they feel safe to take risks without the fear of being laughed at or made fun of.
• Repeated practice is just like what it sounds! Students need repeated practice hearing and using a new language. They need multiple opportunities to comprehend and express their ideas in a new language. Like with anything new that we learn, practice helps us get better.
• Comprehensible input, as explained above, means finding different ways to make what is being said comprehensible and easier to understand. Things to consider with comprehensible input might include using speech that is appropriate for students' language proficiency, providing a clear, step-by-step explanation of tasks, and using a variety of techniques to support their understanding.
• Drama, or a sense of excitement and engagement, can be found in activities like Reader's Theatre, dramatic play, puppetry, narrating wordless picture books, etc. All of these activities also have the other three factors embedded within them. These activities assist in the development of oral language in addition to introducing students to oral reading and rich literacy experiences and responses in a classroom setting.

Classroom scenario

My students absolutely LOVED Reader's Theatre! The first couple of times I tried this, I created a script for my students in small group reading groups to read, reread, practice and perform the play of the story we were reading and they really enjoyed it. This activity provided multiple exposures to the text; the students had opportunities to add lib; and they really understood the characters and story line in a deeper context than the first time we just read through it.

Then, we started making our own scripts for Reader's Theatre. Students would create a script as a summary of a story or others would create their own story/script. They had almost as much fun creating the script as they did performing it. This provided opportunities for all of the essential four factors necessary for learning a new language, and it also included a great deal of fun and laughter!

Closing Thoughts

As you can see from these questions and examples, there are a lot of different approaches to helping ELLs build their oral language development skills, and you may have to try different activities until you find what works for your students. The most important thing, however, is to build your students' confidence while giving them new words and phrases to practice. Don't be afraid to try something new — and most of all, don't be afraid to have fun doing it!

Comentario:

Este artículo trata acerca de la experiencia de una profesora de Primaria en una escuela bilingüe. Esta maestra anuncia qué hacer si los alumnos no saben nada de inglés (L2). Para ello, lo primero que hace esta maestra es separar dos niveles de hablantes del idioma en la clase. El nivel 1 o nivel inicial, en el cual los alumnos reciben la información en inglés y responden con silencio y respuestas no verbalizadas, y el nivel 2 en el que los alumnos verbalizan una o dos palabras/frases a lo sumo. Además explica su experiencia con un nuevo alumno, y como los padres del mismo le marcan que utilice con él expresiones en inglés constantemente, pues ellos entienden que esta es la mejor manera de aprender inglés.

Muestra también como instruir y apoyar a los que aún están aprendiendo el inglés en un nivel más básico sin dejar atrás a los estudiantes que tienen un uso más fluido del mismo. Enuncia una serie de técnicas que podemos observar en el artículo como por ejemplo modificar los textos y otras.

Es importante que el aprendizaje no solamente se realice en el colegio pues este alumno sólo aprendería las estructuras básicas en el mismo.

Observamos de forma ejemplificada de manera práctica, cómo los efectos socioculturales influyen de manera considerable en el aprendizaje de una L2 y como la toma de riesgos a la hora de manifestar algo de forma oral es necesario para, mediante la corrección de esos riesgos (si es necesaria) obtener unos resultados mejores de una forma mas rápida. Habla de cuáles son las las mejores actividades para la mejora de las habilidades de comunicación y lectura oral. Éstas son:

-        Poseer un entorno de confianza, tanto por parte de los compañeros, como por parte del profesor.

-        Prácticas de repetición.

-        Adaptar el lenguaje a los alumnos.

-        Actividades de dramatización.