Types of Scaffolding to Use with English Learners

I am student teaching in a ninth grade history/sociology/psychology classroom at Berkley High. Most of my students are African American with a sprinkling of Latino/a students. I have observed my cooperating teacher use three types of instructional scaffolding methods that are especially salient: modeling, bridging, and schema building.

Modeling: In my classroom the students are in the beginning stages of writing a creative story about an issue(s) that affect teens. Many of the students are struggling to envision what this story looks like. Thus, my cooperating teacher provided students with an example of a creative writing piece about a teen issue. The short story was written by my cooperating teacher. My cooperating teacher is stressing that the students use dialogue, descriptive language, and follow a story-arch. In addition to his paper, my cooperating teacher also gave out a sheet on how to write an effective short story. The last time my cooperating teacher did this project with another class the stories all ended at the height of the conflict. He wanted to ensure that this did not happen hence his use of his own story and the visual aid. I think modeling is an important teaching method. However, it is important that teachers make students aware that the model being shown is accessible and makes sense to the students. For English language learners I think modeling is an especially powerful tool because such students may not have the cultural background to independently visualize a concept or project.

Bridging: While I have not observed my CT employing bridging as a tool in the most traditional way he does draw on the students' experiences quite often. For example, last week each day was devoted to the idea of conformity. Each night the students were asked to write about in what ways they had conformed or not conformed that day. They were also asked to observe others around them and they ways they conformed and did not conformed. Students were asked to share their thoughts in class. This allowed the students to gain a fuller understanding of a meaty idea like conformity. They became keenly aware of issues of conformity, issues that they never before noticed. I thought it was powerful. They were also required to fill out a chart and decide if their observations were examples of good or bad forms of conformity. Again, I think this is a wonderful teaching tool for all students. Everyone has life experiences. Unfortunately I was not in the classroom the day my CT first brought up conformity so I am not sure how he went about defining it for the class. That would have been interesting to see and given me more insight into how this assignment affected ELL students.

Schema Building: My CT quickly realized that he could not expect his students to go home and write a rough draft for their teen story, even with the model of a story in hand. He would have to scaffold more. Thus, my CT gave each student a double-sided piece of paper that assisted them in organizing their thoughts. It basically worked as a rough draft. It guided the students through the process of writing a short story. It forced students to write down their main characters, the setting, the conflict, the resolution, etc. Again, a great teaching tool for EL students. I believe the more scaffolding done the better. Especially given the fact that my CT had received papers in the past that did not meet his standards and it was due to his failure to scaffold well. It cannot be assumed that adolescents, let alone EL students, know what a creative writing piece looks like or how to write one. I think this exercise was key for my students.

Thoughts on Context and Language

I do not have a placement yet so I am going to answer the prompt from a different angle. I believe that all students need to learn and understand the language of power, which, in the United States is Standard English. District, state, and federal policies demand that students in public schools have knowledge of and a facility with standard english. Indeed, parents, administrators and teachers also desire that their students conquer the language of power. Indeed, it is impossible to critique or refute texts or other forms of media that one does not understand; comprehension is an important prerequisite for critique. Moreover, students must learn how to present themselves powerfully and persuasively. Thus, the goals of all involved in education are the same; mastery of Standard English. Thus, as a teacher, even if the state demeans other forms of English or does not recognize the power issues involved in language acquisition, teachers can make this process clear to their students. As teachers we are here, despite what the state and district say, to make our students critically empowered and critically literate citizens. Too often the combination of the policies of the district, state, and federal government in combination with a school's administrators and teachers approach learning academic english as a life choice. The life choices of urban non-white youth are reduced to that of choosing between staying behind (in the community) as failure and "getting out" as success. Faced with the prospect of leaving their communities, i.e. their way of speaking many youth opt out of school. they choose to retain an urban and cultural identity that they perceive to be in conflict with the expectations of schools. As teachers we have to find a way to encourage their identities as urban young people while convincing youth of the great importance of knowing and understanding academic english. It does not have to be a conflict of interests. But we must make this clear to our students.

Ahhhh! I completely forgot to relate my blog entry to the diagram! The use of swear words, which are charged with meaning and incite certain emotions from people definitely falls on the outer parts of the concentric circle. The use of words such as f#*$# are loaded with emotion. Swear words have connotative meanings. Duncan-Andrade clearly used non-academic words to shock, to show solidarity, and to express anger. He did not use euphemisms but rather consciously used dysphemisms. 

i love swear words too

Last semester I had the privilege to hear Jeffrey Duncan-Andrade speak at a Teachers for Social Justice Conference. He blew me away. His presentation was quite unorthodox. Duncan-Andrade used the f-word the entire presentation and I felt that it made his argument about the urgency of the situation of the fate of kids in the inner city more powerful. Duncan-Andrade certainly had command of academic English but chose to give his presentation to a group of teachers using language more similar to that of the students living in the neighborhoods where he taught.  I, too, often feel like I express myself better when I am able to use the f-word. This sounds strange. I struggle with what to do with my students when they swear in class. I know they need to learn that it is unacceptable in certain contexts, but on the other hand sometimes it is a powerful way to express a thought or feeling. I joked with a colleague that I would allow Fridays to be a free for all for my students. But I was so moved by Duncan-Andrade , more moved by him than anyone else I have ever heard speak. And to some extent that was because of his use of non-standard English. I thought it was an interesting choice on his part to give a presentation to a group of teachers using profanity in such a way

i never did pick up any Portuguese!

I spent the summer of 2004 in Salvador, Brazil, the center of Afro-Brazilian culture. I traveled to this city with a not-for-profit organization that placed people of varying ages and backgrounds in Salvador's favelas (shantytowns).  Most individuals, including myself, worked with young children in community-run daycare centers, while their mothers worked.  The program assured me that my complete lack of knowledge of the Portuguese language was not an issue and that most Americans eventually picked up enough of the language within the first month or so in Brazil. So off I went.

I have never felt confident about my abilities to learn new languages. I failed miserably at Hebrew, though probably due more to my inability to refrain from ditching class and goofing off with my friends during the oh so dreaded... HEBREW SCHOOL! I took French from 7th - 11th grade and never felt that I had a grasp on the language. Though I did well in class (I was once a straight A student), I was extremely insecure about my acquisition of the French language and was certain that I was far behind most of the students in my class.  I joked, or rather insisted, to my friends that if I traveled to France I would be the only one unable to pick up the language. I was convinced that my brain was unable to process language effectively. 

So when I arrived in Salvador I was nervous. I knew I would be working with young children and I do believe that human beings, especially children, can connect on levels that transcend language. However, I was aware that my experience and the children's experience would be enriched if we could communicate to each other in Portuguese. I failed. I never picked up any Portuguese. I convinced myself that I was mentally impaired when it came to language acquisition and I depended on my friends to communicate with bus drivers, hostel folks, strangers on the beach, etc. I want to believe that I formed close relationships with the young children I came to love but the language barrier obviously affected the depth of that relationship. Perhaps most importantly, I could not connect with their mothers. This greatly saddened me. And it felt unfair to the mothers who left their children in my care. 

This experience significantly affected me in two ways. One, I think many people assume that they are unable to learn another language, especially past a certain age. Perhaps this is more true with women. My lack of confidence in my cognitive abilities discouraged me from making any attempt to challenge myself and immerse myself in Portuguese. As a teacher I want to be fully supportive of my students who are English Language Learners.  I do not want my students to feel the way I feel about my ability to learn a new language. To this day, I am afraid to take a Spanish class for fear I will be the only one who will not pick it up. I want my students to be more bold than I am. 

This experience also made me think about the importance that teachers have an understanding of the language their students speak at home with their parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. It is essential that as teachers we understand the culture of the community in which we teach. It is problematic if we cannot communicate with the community. I often think about this because I do not know Spanish. I think all public teachers should be required to be enrolled in Spanish classes before or while teaching. Language is about institutions, culture, economics, politics, power. It is so much more than units and how they are organized. as public school teachers it is essential that we understand our students and the community and that they understand us. my experience in salvador was beautiful. but it was severely limited by my inability to speak Portuguese.