Week 2 Reader's Response

Linguistically Responsive Teacher Education

This article examines how although ELL's are increasing in numbers across the nation, teachers a re drastically unprepared. The teacher needs to have content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, pshycology, and knowing how to teach to a diverse population. There are additions to the classroom which can be added to help ELL's gain fluency.

1. ELL's should have access to on level and above level content.

2. Social interaction and cooperative learning.

3. Understating of the students native skills ability. Students with stronger native language skills tend to gain English skills with greater accuracy.

4. An understanding of the students language.

Scaffolding is an important key to helping a diverse student population. Through scaffolds the mainstream teacher can a variety of students with different needs all participating in the same project. This also lends itself to group learning such as literacy circles.The teacher can use scaffolds such as supplementing text, and modifying oral language facilitating the use of the students oral language.

Organizing Instruction for Struggling Readers in Tutorial Settings

The authors of this article suggest that struggling readers tend to have difficulty with the type of texts, the tasks the student must participate in, and the social context of the content.The authors use a "Alyssa" a third grade struggling reader as a case study for their research.

Alyssa was referred to the project because she had scored poorly in the general reading area of her state tests. The researchers felt it was necessary to assess the student further to understand the case study's strengths and need using the QRI-4. Not only did Alyssa's reading scores show low performance, but her ERA's demonstrated that she has a poor attitude toward reading.

The teacher put together a three step program to help Alyssa  as she tutored her for an hour, four days a week. This strategy includes:

1. "Use Multiple Assessment Data to haelp Design and Guide Instruction." Using the information from the assessments Sarah had given Alyssa, she targeted her fluency first. She used tactics such as sight word recognition, modeling, and building vocabulary and context. Sarah also provided time to select appropriate reading.

2. "Implement an Instructional Framework for Organizing and Managing Instruction".  The researchers us an existing reading framework called "Roller's tutoring" which included reading easy books, reading new book, writing activity, minilesson and introduction of a new more challenging book.

3."Monitor Student's Response to Instruction." Observations of the student and ensuring that Alyssa is engaged in the sessions is the final component to the stratagey.