Classroom Interview Paper
During my interview with Mrs. P, I discovered that she and Laura her English Language Learner have a nurturing and positive relationship. While observing, I found that Mrs. P to patient and giving of her time with Laura. She was exemplary when providing Laura with time to collect her thoughts and finding the accurate words to explain or question something. Laura is a very outgoing student, and Mrs. P embraces Laura’s personality by allowing her to be herself in the classroom. Laura’s personality has aided in her adjustment in the classroom. Mrs. P shares how Laura’s personality is infectious and often brings the classroom together as a whole. She gets along well with others and is excited to learn. In the article How to Create a Welcoming
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Classroom Environment, it suggests that teachers create a nurturing environment by implementing some of these into the classroom: “learn their names, offer one-on-one assistance when possible, post a visual daily schedule, invite their culture into the classroom, help ELLs follow established rules and much more.” Some of the things I witnessed in the classroom were Mrs. P offering Laura one on one support when needed to explain a question or concept. As well as, maintaining high expectations of Laura. She also provides the class with a list of rules and expectations.
One instance that stood out during my observation occurred when Mrs. P was reviewing Laura’s return folder. The paperwork that was sent home to be signed and returned from the day prior was still there. Mrs. P pulled Laura aside and asked if her parents looked at the form, Laura shook her head yes; resulting, in Mrs. P asking why they hadn’t signed it. Laura shook her head again and said: “yes, they did.” Mrs. P said no they didn’t sign it and showed her the paper where the area was requesting a signature. After the third attempt, Mrs. P found an ink pen and showed Laura what was needed. The request finally clicked for Laura, and she took the paper and said “ok.” The paper was signed and returned the following day. As mentioned on page 92, in Why Tesol?, non-verbal communication can play a significant role when addressing your English Language Learners. However, a teacher has to be mindful of how different cultures perceive certain American gestures.
Laura’s schooling, in Haiti has played a prominent role in acquiring English. Although, English was taught as an “elective” course in Haiti, Laura’s background knowledge of cognates is sufficient enough to build on. In the short time, Laura has been in the United States; she has shown remarkable progress. During the interview with Mrs. P, she informed me that Laura’s ESOL instructor requested that Laura is on the iReady app during the first six weeks for 20 minutes a day. She was provided with a book that supplied everyday words in Laura’s first language. When Laura and Mrs. P ran into a word or discussion they could not figure out together; she would refer to the book in hopes of resolving the confusion. Although Laura is still in the early production stages of language acquisition, she is making great strides.
Due to Laura’s prior schooling her phonemic awareness skills are very good. Her phonemic awareness has allowed her to effectively breakdown and sound out unknown words. However, her vocabulary knowledge is still progressing. To help build Laura’s oral abilities and vocabulary knowledge, Mrs. P has partnered her with a strong reading partner. They work together during small groups reviewing meanings of words. Peer partnering is a highly effective way for English Language Learners to build their knowledge without fear of ridicule. Mrs. P has incorporated different activities to help Laura build her vocabulary.
Three examples that take place in Mrs.
P’s classroom are a small group writing center, a vocabulary finder center, and art center. At the writing center, the student has to write a short fun sentence correctly using the vocabulary word. For the vocabulary finder center, the student is provided with five to ten words and definitions. The student is to match the words to their correct definition. The art center consists of the student putting the word into action using visualizing; a strategy Maureen Mc Laughlin mentions in the book Reading Content Area Reading: Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. This process occurs when the student draws a picture demonstrating the word in motion (pg. 82). At the end of the week, Mrs. P takes all three parts and makes a study book for the student to use as a reference.
However, a difficulty mentioned in the article Best Practice for ELLs: Vocabulary Instruction when teaching vocabulary, is that “teachers assume that English learners know a concept and the word for that concept in their primary language.” Often this is seen with “technical” terms in math, science, geography, and history. The article suggests that if the student doesn’t know the word in their primary language, it should be taught “directly in English.” By understanding this concept is why assessing the ELL before starting a lesson is …show more content…
beneficial.
McLaughlin noted an assessment’s purpose is to “gather and synthesize” information about a student’s learning. Teachers can utilize a variety of assessments in the classroom when evaluating a student’s strengths, weaknesses, and gains. When a teacher understands where the student’s level of comprehension or lack thereof, they can create exercises that focus on the key items needed to grasp the content. Mrs. P stated that Laura scored low on the IPT proficiency assessment. In spite of Laura’s scores, Mrs. P believes that Laura understands “a lot more than the test shows.”
Mrs. P then shared with me with some samples from Laura’s portfolio. One assessment discussed on page 229, in Why Tesol?, is an informal assessment that examines a student’s “drawings, writing samples, letters, and poetry.” The items reflected Laura’s progress during the first nine weeks of school and the current semester. The items shown were drawings with writing underneath discussing the picture. The first picture was described using two words. The next picture provided a short description. The description read: paper bag Princess brave. When I mentioned error correction to Mrs. P, she insisted her focus was not on grammar but content. She said that most third grade students still struggle with grammar and punctuation; therefore, she only rephrases the sentence when necessary but doesn’t want to discourage Laura from trying in the classroom.
However, in the journal article on Tesol.org, it suggests before error correction is addressed “teachers must have knowledge of problematic grammar errors for ELL’s.” Also, teachers must be able to explain the reasoning behind grammar rules. Some examples of the grammar rules that should be addressed with ELL students are the reason why “we use in with years and on with days” or how “simple past tense for a past completed action and present perfect for an action that began in the past but still continues.” Although students may understand parts of the question without comprehension content comprehension is lost. Therefore, explaining the reasoning behind grammar rules will increase the ELL’s knowledge level.
The current goals established for Laura are to focus on the areas needed for the upcoming FSA testing.
Some areas they are focusing on are the main idea and supporting details, inferring from the text, and idioms. Laura will continue to use in the classroom is the iReady app to focus on areas on her comprehension level where she struggles. Recently Mrs. P has provided Laura with the Readtheory.org site that can help build reading comprehension. Mrs. P said that she uses technology to differentiate lessons in the classroom. One example she provided was showing fun, educational videos that students could relate to. She mentioned the last video she incorporated into her lesson was on Martin Luther King’s life as a young boy. She said all of her students enjoyed the video and many were able to recall most of the events in order as well as infer Mr. King’s purpose. Using technology in the classroom can enhance the student’s learning experience with fun, relatable information on a particular
topic.
Mrs. P believes Laura’s learning style is kinesthetic and visual because of the positive outcome when using these methods. I was able to witness this is small groups through various activities. As mentioned above, Mrs. P has students work together discussing vocabulary, writing sentences and drawing pictures. Mrs. P uses read-alouds to introduce new topics that are fun and exciting. However, Mrs. P stated that it is her goal to use a variation of all learning styles in the classroom to meet all students’ learning needs.
After interviewing Mrs. P, I believe she has Laura’s best interest at heart. She is nurturing and truly wants to see Laura excel in the classroom. I feel that Mrs. P and Laura will work together to reach Laura’s learning goals.
Classroom Environment, it suggests that teachers create a nurturing environment by implementing some of these into the classroom: “learn their names, offer one-on-one assistance when possible, post a visual daily schedule, invite their culture into the classroom, help ELLs follow established rules and much more.” Some of the things I witnessed in the classroom were Mrs. P offering Laura one on one support when needed to explain a question or concept. As well as, maintaining high expectations of Laura. She also provides the class with a list of rules and expectations.
One instance that stood out during my observation occurred when Mrs. P was reviewing Laura’s return folder. The paperwork that was sent home to be signed and returned from the day prior was still there. Mrs. P pulled Laura aside and asked if her parents looked at the form, Laura shook her head yes; resulting, in Mrs. P asking why they hadn’t signed it. Laura shook her head again and said: “yes, they did.” Mrs. P said no they didn’t sign it and showed her the paper where the area was requesting a signature. After the third attempt, Mrs. P found an ink pen and showed Laura what was needed. The request finally clicked for Laura, and she took the paper and said “ok.” The paper was signed and returned the following day. As mentioned on page 92, in Why Tesol?, non-verbal communication can play a significant role when addressing your English Language Learners. However, a teacher has to be mindful of how different cultures perceive certain American gestures.
Laura’s schooling, in Haiti has played a prominent role in acquiring English. Although, English was taught as an “elective” course in Haiti, Laura’s background knowledge of cognates is sufficient enough to build on. In the short time, Laura has been in the United States; she has shown remarkable progress. During the interview with Mrs. P, she informed me that Laura’s ESOL instructor requested that Laura is on the iReady app during the first six weeks for 20 minutes a day. She was provided with a book that supplied everyday words in Laura’s first language. When Laura and Mrs. P ran into a word or discussion they could not figure out together; she would refer to the book in hopes of resolving the confusion. Although Laura is still in the early production stages of language acquisition, she is making great strides.
Due to Laura’s prior schooling her phonemic awareness skills are very good. Her phonemic awareness has allowed her to effectively breakdown and sound out unknown words. However, her vocabulary knowledge is still progressing. To help build Laura’s oral abilities and vocabulary knowledge, Mrs. P has partnered her with a strong reading partner. They work together during small groups reviewing meanings of words. Peer partnering is a highly effective way for English Language Learners to build their knowledge without fear of ridicule. Mrs. P has incorporated different activities to help Laura build her vocabulary.
Three examples that take place in Mrs.
P’s classroom are a small group writing center, a vocabulary finder center, and art center. At the writing center, the student has to write a short fun sentence correctly using the vocabulary word. For the vocabulary finder center, the student is provided with five to ten words and definitions. The student is to match the words to their correct definition. The art center consists of the student putting the word into action using visualizing; a strategy Maureen Mc Laughlin mentions in the book Reading Content Area Reading: Teaching and Learning for College and Career Readiness. This process occurs when the student draws a picture demonstrating the word in motion (pg. 82). At the end of the week, Mrs. P takes all three parts and makes a study book for the student to use as a reference.
However, a difficulty mentioned in the article Best Practice for ELLs: Vocabulary Instruction when teaching vocabulary, is that “teachers assume that English learners know a concept and the word for that concept in their primary language.” Often this is seen with “technical” terms in math, science, geography, and history. The article suggests that if the student doesn’t know the word in their primary language, it should be taught “directly in English.” By understanding this concept is why assessing the ELL before starting a lesson is …show more content…
beneficial.
McLaughlin noted an assessment’s purpose is to “gather and synthesize” information about a student’s learning. Teachers can utilize a variety of assessments in the classroom when evaluating a student’s strengths, weaknesses, and gains. When a teacher understands where the student’s level of comprehension or lack thereof, they can create exercises that focus on the key items needed to grasp the content. Mrs. P stated that Laura scored low on the IPT proficiency assessment. In spite of Laura’s scores, Mrs. P believes that Laura understands “a lot more than the test shows.”
Mrs. P then shared with me with some samples from Laura’s portfolio. One assessment discussed on page 229, in Why Tesol?, is an informal assessment that examines a student’s “drawings, writing samples, letters, and poetry.” The items reflected Laura’s progress during the first nine weeks of school and the current semester. The items shown were drawings with writing underneath discussing the picture. The first picture was described using two words. The next picture provided a short description. The description read: paper bag Princess brave. When I mentioned error correction to Mrs. P, she insisted her focus was not on grammar but content. She said that most third grade students still struggle with grammar and punctuation; therefore, she only rephrases the sentence when necessary but doesn’t want to discourage Laura from trying in the classroom.
However, in the journal article on Tesol.org, it suggests before error correction is addressed “teachers must have knowledge of problematic grammar errors for ELL’s.” Also, teachers must be able to explain the reasoning behind grammar rules. Some examples of the grammar rules that should be addressed with ELL students are the reason why “we use in with years and on with days” or how “simple past tense for a past completed action and present perfect for an action that began in the past but still continues.” Although students may understand parts of the question without comprehension content comprehension is lost. Therefore, explaining the reasoning behind grammar rules will increase the ELL’s knowledge level.
The current goals established for Laura are to focus on the areas needed for the upcoming FSA testing.
Some areas they are focusing on are the main idea and supporting details, inferring from the text, and idioms. Laura will continue to use in the classroom is the iReady app to focus on areas on her comprehension level where she struggles. Recently Mrs. P has provided Laura with the Readtheory.org site that can help build reading comprehension. Mrs. P said that she uses technology to differentiate lessons in the classroom. One example she provided was showing fun, educational videos that students could relate to. She mentioned the last video she incorporated into her lesson was on Martin Luther King’s life as a young boy. She said all of her students enjoyed the video and many were able to recall most of the events in order as well as infer Mr. King’s purpose. Using technology in the classroom can enhance the student’s learning experience with fun, relatable information on a particular
topic.
Mrs. P believes Laura’s learning style is kinesthetic and visual because of the positive outcome when using these methods. I was able to witness this is small groups through various activities. As mentioned above, Mrs. P has students work together discussing vocabulary, writing sentences and drawing pictures. Mrs. P uses read-alouds to introduce new topics that are fun and exciting. However, Mrs. P stated that it is her goal to use a variation of all learning styles in the classroom to meet all students’ learning needs.
After interviewing Mrs. P, I believe she has Laura’s best interest at heart. She is nurturing and truly wants to see Laura excel in the classroom. I feel that Mrs. P and Laura will work together to reach Laura’s learning goals.