Recently, Dr. Robin Lovrien Schwarz presented a very resourceful webinar for Reading Horizons on teaching emerging literacy to non-literate ELL students (with an emphasis on adult learners). Here are some of the questions and answers from the presentation:
What is the difference in the timeline of learning these skills between a kindergartener and an ELL adult?
We have no norms whatsoever for non-literate adult learners particularly those coming from a different language. It is very difficult to say what is normal. But don’t forget that a kindergarten child has already spent 6 years pursuing pre-reading training and has heard language and played with literacy based tools, such as books and toys with letters. It’s not comparable to compare a non-literate adult to a kindergarten child.
It was said that English readers start in the left corner and read down the page, has this changed with the prevalence of internet use?
No.
What are some of the significant differences between students from oral cultures and literate cultures who have not themselves participated in literacy?
There are two big differences between these groups. One is, a person from a literate culture knows that books and signs contain important information that is helpful to them. A person from an oral culture has no orientation to text whatsoever – so they aren’t even looking for information from text. The other thing is that people who come from oral cultures have a heightened sense of oral information.
How to differentiate whether a ELL student has a learning disability or if the student is just taking longer to learn the material?
It’s almost impossible to determine that and besides even if you did determine that you would still teach them in the same way – start with what they know and gradually build on that. You should rarely focus on learning disabilities when it comes to ELL students.
Does the age of the non-literate ELL learner affect their success in accomplishing literacy?
Probably… but there is little scientific data on this. We do know that age makes processing more difficult for older learners. But I have worked with learners that are in their 70’s and 80’s that have had success. It is very individualized.
Where do you stand on teaching literacy through a student’s first language rather than English (their 2nd language)?
No question it’s easier to teach students that are literate in their first language, however, students that are not literate in their 1st language may not want to learn literacy in their 1st language because it doesn’t offer them much value. Also many of these learners do not have a written language in their 1st language.
Click here to watch the entire webinar and to download the presentation slides! >
