ESL Teacher Reflection 10/30

While my placement for TE 401 does not have any English language learners in the class, I have been thinking about how the classroom dynamic would be different if ELLs were present in the class. With the strict schedule that my mentor teacher must abide by, it is often difficult for her to teach her native speakers all of the content that needs to be learned. If ELLs were thrown into the mix, I know that it would be even more difficult for her to incorporate more time into her lesson to account for the language barrier, and/or to include extra help that the ELLs may need during instruction. This worries me in my future teaching context, as I will not always have strictly native English speakers in my classroom.

I believe that in accounting for the ELLs that may be present, it would be important to use group work during many tasks and assignments completed inside the classroom. In my third grade placement, my mentor teacher often uses group work for math assignments, and especially uses groups during reading to account for the various levels that the students are at. By including group work, the students can be separated by the level at which they are at for each individual subject, which would also help the ELLs if they were struggling. Depending on the various English proficiency and fluency level they were at, they could either help one another, or seek the help of a more advanced native speaker in their assigned group.

With that said, I believe that having only a few ELLs in the classroom environment would be even more difficult than having an entire class of ELLs. In an entire class of ELLs, the teacher can adjust the instruction to their own levels. However, in a class where only a few ELLs make up the class number, it would be difficult for teachers to alter their instruction without halting the other native speakers development. While I do not have a correct answer of how to make this work now, I hope to gain a greater insight into the ways in which I can alter my instruction so that all of my students can continue developing their skills throughout this year, and into my internship next year. I believe that including authenticity in the content that I teach will not only be beneficial for the ELLs, it will also be important to expose the native speakers to authentic material. It is important for the students to see how what they are learning inside the classroom can be applied to the outside world, as that allows them to become effective citizens in society. 

In my future teaching context, I would like to use the ELLs as a bridge to authentic material in their own culture. It will be important for me to introduce my class to the culture of my future ELL students, as that will not only be a way to get to know them better, but it will hopefully make them feel more comfortable in the classroom. Also, it serves as a way to incorporate authenticity into the content of the instruction, which is a goal I want to fulfill as a future teacher.