By Guest Writer, Stephen Dolainski, ABE Consultant

Imagine you are an observer in an adult reading classroom. Twenty or so students are present; their reading abilities range from the 4th-grade level to the 8th-grade level. The teacher, like many adult reading teachers, has no specialized training in reading instruction. She relies on a variety of texts and instructional resources and is deeply committed to helping her students improve their reading ability so they can move on to the GED prep class or a job-training program.

On this particular occasion, the students are going to read a selection about cells that is from one of the texts. The teacher puts up a diagram of a cell that is labeled with the cell’s various parts. Before the students read the selection, the teacher asks students to study a vocabulary list that contains words from the selection, such as nucleus, cell membrane, cytoplasm, and vacuole. Next to each word is the definition. At the bottom of the list is a matching exercise. When the vocabulary activity is complete, the teacher conducts a brief discussion with the students about what they already know about cells. Then she has the students silently read the selection and answer a few questions at the end of the reading. After going over the correct answers with the class, the teacher has the students draw a cell and label the different parts.

Based on your “observation,” what can you say about the reading instruction that took place in the class? What activities helped students learn strategies they can use when they are asked to read a different selection, say, about volcanoes in Hawaii or the Civil War? Did studying content–area vocabulary (nucleus, cell membrane, etc.) give students practice in using high-frequency Tier 2 words (e.g., analyze, infer, distinguish, establish) they will encounter in readings in all content areas? Did the students receive instruction or practice that would help them improve their reading fluency? Did the teacher model a comprehension strategy such as questioning?

In other words, what did the teacher teach—the reading or the reader? With the exception of one activity, the teacher did not teach the reader. The discussion about what students already knew about cells was aimed at getting students to connect with their background information, an important comprehension strategy students can utilize no matter what they may read. However, the activity would have had more impact if the teacher had modeled the strategy first before asking students for their ideas.

Struggling readers, like the ones in this imaginary class, lack the skills that good readers practice automatically when they read. These struggling readers may possess basic decoding skills and be able to “read,” i.e., decode, a text, but they have great difficulty making meaning of text. (That is especially true if they have little or no background information to connect to what they are reading.) These adult learners don’t know how to approach text before they actually start reading. They rarely monitor their understanding as they read, and lack “fix-up” strategies to help them comprehend when they don’t understand something.

Time is precious in the adult reading classroom; students are in a rush to reach a goal, and teachers are under pressure to make it happen. Teach the Reader, Not the Reading is an approach that helps struggling readers become independent readers and successful students.

By Guest Writer, Stephen Dolainski, ABE consultant

I was talking to an adult reading teacher in Los Angeles the other day and asked her how her evening class was going.

“Well, I’m not sure,” she said. “I’ve got 40 students, so my administrator seems happy, but I’m not. Besides that, I’m exhausted and I’m afraid my students aren’t getting what they need.”

This was an experienced teacher who was not one to complain. She had recently been trained to deliver evidence-based reading instruction (EBRI) and was trying to phase it in. EBRI requires:

• assessment of students’ skills in the four crucial components of reading (alphabetic, fluency,vocabulary, comprehension)
• instruction based on the assessments
• direct, explicit instruction
• tightly-focused, systematic and sequenced lessons
• multiple opportunities for students to practice and receive teacher feedback

“Are you using managed enrollment at your school?” I asked.

She smiled weakly and shook her head. “No, we’re still on open enrollment, and I get new students just about every night.”

Think about that—a classroom with 40 high-needs adult learners, one teacher, and new students arriving almost nightly. Is that a recipe for success? Research suggests that open, or continuous, enrollment causes “attendance turbulence” (Sticht et al, 1998) and contributes to the widespread use of highly individualized instruction, which, in fact, results in students receiving little of the systematic or direct reading instruction the research tells us is more effective with this population.

Writing for the U.S. Department of Education, John Strucker, Ed.D, of Harvard University, says:

“It is difficult to imagine implementing systematic instruction when…learners are free to drop in or out at any point …. Under these circumstances, teachers face the dilemma of presenting material for which the new enrollees have no foundation, or endlessly reviewing what has already been covered and thus short changing previous enrollees.”

When it comes to managed enrollment (ME), one size does fit all. When I was the adult literacy adviser for the Los Angeles Unified School District, I worked with our adult school administrators and teachers to tailor ME models that worked for individual schools. In one case, where the reading class covered a four-hour block of time, we divided the class into two periods. Period 1 employed a six-week ME model, when new students were not permitted to enter after the first week of class. Period 2 was the open-enrollment class. At another school, ME looked like this: new students were admitted to the class weekly, but only on Monday.

When I taught adult reading at the adult school in Burbank, Calif., we used a nine-week ME model. Students could enter the class during the first two weeks; after that, they had to wait to enter the class until the next enrollment period. We also implemented an attendance policy. Students were allowed to miss three classes. At any time, if they missed more than three classes, they lost their place in the class.

Students, of course, need to be counseled and encouraged about enrolling in a reading class when they have the time to attend regularly. There is research (Comings, Parella and Soricone, 1999; 2000) to suggest that some form of ME may help learners improve their attendance and completion rates.

Strucker again:

“The case for managed enrollment rests on the following logic: teachers need to deliver reading instruction that is systematic, and the success of systematic instruction depends on good attendance by individual learners and relatively stable classroom environment with minimal turnover and turbulence.”

You can read Strucker’s policy paper on managed enrollment here.

Stephen Dolainski is an adult educator, editor, and author. He was the adult literacy adviser for the LA Unified School District for 10 years, and has trained adult reading instructors in evidence-based reading instruction. As an instructor, he had taught ESL, Adult Secondary Education, and Adult Basic Education. He is the co-author of series Words to Learn By: Academic Vocabulary (Contemporary/McGraw-Hill).

Dolainski recently presented a webinar for Reading Horizons titled, Adult Reading Instruction: What the Research Tells Us that can be viewed free at anytime.

By Guest Writer, Lauren Bailey

For several years now, I’ve actively participated in a local literacy organization, which aims at teaching ESL to recent immigrants. Although I’ve tutored and taught children before, this was my first experience teaching only adults. And what a learning experience it was! This particular organization allowed volunteer teachers to use whatever methods they thought best. Input from the class—that is, teaching adult learners what they wanted to learn specifically—was key in crafting lesson plans. Based on my experiences, this is what I’ve learned when teaching adults how to read and write in English:

1. Adults in particular always look for real–life application.

This is perhaps the most important lesson I learned while teaching adults English. Most adults have outgrown the curiosity about everything that young children naturally have. As such, adults need an immediate sense of purpose to keep themselves motivated. For my class, I usually culled reading material from things like job applications, newspapers, citizenship tests, online reviews of consumer products, etc.

2. Be aware that just because your students don’t know English doesn’t mean that they aren’t established professionals in their home countries.

Of course, as an ESL reading teacher, you know intuitively that foreign language proficiency is certainly not an indicator of intelligence or ability. Although you may know this theoretically, it can be difficult to understand this precept in practice, especially when you cannot communicate with your students fluently. Many of my students were well established professionals—doctors, lawyers, and journalists—in their home countries. Always respect the fact that your students are just as intelligent as you are, if not more.

3. Figure out each student’s learning style.

It can be easier to teach young students based on one learning style, simply because learning styles aren’t necessarily inherent; they’re learned over time. Adults, on the other hand have long-established their personal learning styles. Be sure you learn each student’s favored style, whether it’s auditory, visual, or kinesthetic, or something else, and try to teach to that style as much as you are able.

4. Give detailed feedback.

Young children do not yet have a very developed notion of what it means to “make progress.” They’re often happy just being immersed in the learning process. Adults, however, need constant feedback in order to keep them motivated. As such, be sure to give detailed feedback—including sincere praise and suggestions for improvement.

Teaching adult learners ESL, even in a casual, voluntary capacity, has been one of the most challenging experiences of my life. But when you see a mother from Korea break down crying from happiness after she sent her first email to her son who is fluent in English, you can’t help but want to continue, despite the difficulties. Good luck!

Lauren Bailey is a freelance blogger who loves writing about education, new technology, lifestyle and health. As an education writer, she works to provide information and advice to online college students and welcomes comments and questions via email at blauren99@gmail.com 

We thought it was about time that all you teachers out there got a pop quiz for a change!  So go ahead, take a time out, and look over this short quiz to test your knowledge about immersion classrooms as a method for teaching English as a Second Language (ESL).  Just a quick review:  immersion classrooms are classrooms that emphasize a rapid transition to English by teaching and speaking to non-English speaking students only in English. 

Scroll down and read over the questions listed below and then decide if you believe the answer is completely true, completely false, situational or inconclusive. Don’t worry, these quizzes will not affect your grade – we still think that if you are taking the time to learn something new, you deserve an A+ as far as teacher quality goes.  Good luck! 

1.  When teaching English as a second language (ESL), immersion classrooms are bad learning environments because children who do not speak the language of the classroom cannot keep up.

True          False          Situational or Inconclusive    

2.  Immersion classrooms work more in favor of younger students than of secondary students.

 True          False          Situational or Inconclusive  

3.  Schools expect immigrant students moving to the United States to become fluent in English in 3 years or less.

True          False          Situational or Inconclusive 

4.  If a student can learn to read in their native language, they will be able to read a foreign language.  

True          False          Situational or Inconclusive  

5.  Immersion education is better than bilingual education for students in the long run.

True          False          Situational or Inconclusive  

Answers and Explanations: 

1.  Situational. There are several factors that make immersion programs successful learning environments or not.  Qualified teachers who care, smaller class sizes, and access to helpful teaching resources seem to be the most important factors in whether a program is successful or not.

2.  True.  Research shows that children and adults who learn another language after the age range of 6-12 have a much harder time.  This is because a child's brain will automatically differentiate and sort the multiple languages the child is exposed to into separate speech centers in the brain as it develops.  Mature brains lose this ability after the sensitive period for language development has passed.  They must learn to subconsciously translate the second language to their primary language.  It takes much more time to become fluent this way.  

3.  True.  No Child Left Behind requires students to become fluent in English after 3 years.   However, this is an unfair expectation.  Immigrant students and their families are often not literate in their native language which makes becoming literate in a second language more challenging.  "It can take up to 8 years to learn enough English to function effectively in academic content areas"(Kauchak and Eggen 114).

4.  False…though this was a bit of a trick question.  According to Dictionary.com, the verb read is “to have such knowledge of (a language) as to be able to understand things written in it.” To be able to read a foreign language, you must be familiar with the words and know their meanings. However, skills such as sounding out words, decoding meanings, and grammar knowledge are transferrable although variations in rules will be inevitable among languages. 

5.  Inconclusive.  There are too many variables that affect the success of a program or method (as discussed in the answer to question one).  One argument that is pro-bilingual education suggests that in the later grades bilingual education gives students a deeper understanding of English because students learn better in their first language and understanding can be transferred from the first language to the second language as they learn it.  Strong evidence has been presented to show that immersion programs teach English more quickly.  However, the depth of the understanding of the language is called into question since the program places more emphasis on learning quickly and perhaps less fully.  

Got ELLs? Check out these free resources!

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View one of our free Webinars (be sure to request a certificate of attendance):

Using Learning Centers to Meet Needs in Multilevel ESL Classrooms 

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Why Phonics for ELLs?

Reading, spelling, and writing – they’re like a three-legged stool. If one is missing you’re in jeopardy of looking foolish.

Currently there is a run on articles relating to the subject of commonly misused words. I recently typed the words “misused words” into the search box on Pinterest and came across style guides and infographics relating to this hot topic.

I believe that the entire hubbub surrounding commonly misused words is a result of the fact that we write more than we ever now. We (and by we, I mean students too) text, tweet, write blogs, post on Facebook, and Linkedin and the lack of attention to proper English is appalling.

Help your students be better readers, spellers and writing by sharing this information in class:

Adverse / Averse
Adverse means unfavorable. Averse means reluctant.

Afterwards
Afterwards is wrong in American English. It’s afterward.

Complement / Compliment
This one is my personal pet peeve. Complement is something that adds to or supplements something else. Compliment is something nice someone says about you.

Farther / Further
Farther is talking about a physical distance. “How much farther is Disney World, Daddy?” Further is talking about an extension of time or degree.
“Take your future further by reading good books.”

Fewer / Less
If you can count it, use fewer. If you can’t, use less. “James has less incentive to do what I say.” “Tony has fewer fans on Facebook.”

Hopefully
This word is used incorrectly so much (including by me) it may be too late. But let’s make you smarter anyway. The old school rule is you use hopefully only if you’re describing the way someone spoke, appeared, or acted.

•    Smart: I hope she says yes.
•    Wrong: Hopefully, she says yes.
•    Wrong: Hopefully, the weather will be good.
•    Smart: It is hoped that the weather cooperates.
•    Smart: She eyed the engagement ring hopefully.

Imply / Infer                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Imply means to suggest indirectly (you’re sending a subtle message). To infer is to come to a conclusion based on information (you’re interpreting a message).

Insure / Ensure
Insure is correct only when you call up Geico or State Farm for coverage. Ensure means to guarantee, and that’s most often what you’re trying to say, right?

Irregardless

Irregardless is not a word. Use regardless or irrespective.

It’s / Its
It’s is a contraction of “it is.” Its is a possessive pronoun or adjective.

Lie / Lay
Lie has no object. It is an intransitive verb. Lay is a transitive verb. It has an object. “ How dare he lie where I lay my egg?”

Literally
“I’m literally starving to death.” No, odds are, you’re not. Literally means exactly what you say is accurate, no metaphors or analogies. Everything else is figurative (relative, a figure of speech).

Premier / Premiere
Premier is the first and best in status or importance, or a prime minister. Premiere is the opening night of Star Wars 8: George Wants More Money.

Principal / Principle
Principal when used as a noun means the top dog; as an adjective, it means the most important of any set. Principle is a noun meaning a fundamental truth, a law, a rule that always applies, or a code of conduct.

Then / Than
Use then when referring to points in time (“I did this, then I did that”). Use than when comparing (“I’m better than that”).

It’s not too late to insist that the students in your class learn these most commonly misused words. Someday they’ll be grateful. Literally.

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