This activity comes from New Ways of Classroom Assessment,
Revised, edited by James Dean Brown (TESOL, 2013). Purchase the book in
the TESOL Bookstore, and check out the other books in the New Ways
series.
Levels:
Pre-beginning/preliterate
Aims: Assess
pre-reading skills before starting instruction
Class Time: 20–30
minutes
Preparation: Time 60
minutes
Pre-beginning or preliterate learners present a
unique challenge for assessment. Students may speak a language that uses a
non-Latin alphabet such as Arabic, Chinese, or Japanese. Some learners may
speak a language with no written alphabet, or they may be nonliterate in their
own language. An oral interview can determine speaking proficiency, but how can
literacy readiness be assessed? Student levels of proficiency may range from
none, to some word and letter recognition skills.
Basic literacy is essential to the learning
process. Both reading and writing are active skills that aid language
acquisition and reinforce speaking skills. Preliterate students will vary in
their ability to use and recognize the written word. The following suggestions
will help ESL instructors find a starting point for ESL literacy instruction.
Can the reader see the differences between symbols and recognize the concepts
of same-and-different and left-to-right visual sequencing? Does the reader look
to the number on the left and track to the right?
Procedure
Because of the nature of this diagnostics
assessment, it should be done individually, giving instructions orally in
language the student can understand.
Give students a copy of the assessment
activities in the Appendix.
Walk each student through the tasks.
If a student gets 2 of the 4 nonexample items
correct in a task, continue to the next task until the student falls below that
score. Note the last letter the student successfully identified.
When the student is finished, thank him, and
tell him when you will provide feedback.
Feedback and
Scoring
Each subtest in the sequenced assessment
activities indicates a higher level of pre-reading ability. From symbols, the
test moves on to letters, and then to words. Some students may recognize
familiar words.
Use this information diagnostically to form
groups of students or to place students into levels of literacy study as
follows:
A and B = Beginning
C and D = Letter recognition
E and F = Word recognition
G = Basic word knowledge
Caveats and
Options
This test assumes that students have mastered
left–right visual sequencing. If they have not, then the instruction can begin
at the level of left–right orientation. Some students will recognize sight
words, especially if they have lived in an English-speaking country for a
while.
Content and background knowledge or content
schemata are an important consideration (Grabe, 1991, p. 381). For example, one
would not use tropical words (e.g., frog, palm) in a program based in Alaska.
Cultural knowledge is another factor that must be considered; pig or pork would
not be good words for an ESOL program with Middle Eastern students. A phone
icon would not work with a learner only familiar with cell phones.
References and Further
Reading
Grabe, W. (1991). Current developments in second
language reading research. TESOL Quarterly, 25(3),
375–406.
Magrath, D. (1988). Teaching non-Latin alphabets
through communication. International Review of Applied Linguistics,
26(3), 244–247.
Happy October from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte! This month, my Dad’s turning 90 and for this blog post I’d like to share one of the stories he’s told us about growing up on the island of Guam during World War II. This one is about my Uncle Juan learning when to plant corn. It goes like this:
Just a few months before the outbreak of the War in the Pacific, my grandfather died, leaving behind his widow and eight children. Juan, 13, suddenly became the man of the family. With the help of neighbors, Juan cleared a small piece of land to plant the crops that they would count on to feed the nine of them. Read more.
Many people equate policy with law and politics—something that brings to mind lawmakers and politicians rather than educators. However, teachers are central to policy implementation in a number of ways:
Classrooms can turn educational policy into action.
Teachers are key actors who enact language policies in education.
Teachers make decisions about which languages to use during instruction, which languages to encourage among learners, and which languages or varieties are not accepted in the classroom.
These decisions about language are shaped by teachers’ language orientations.Read more.
As a new academic year starts, I’m excited to be back to teaching in-person classes without the restrictions of social distancing. While the last 2 years have been fruitful in pushing me to think of how to engage my students over Zoom in creative and interactive ways, some of my favorite aspects of teaching are much more enjoyable when students are all in the same room and can move around freely.
Scholars have argued for the value of movement in the classroom, as it has been shown to increase focus and memory while also facilitating learning of new concepts. Even in a skill like writing that would seem to be more appropriate to sedentary, individual work, students can practice their skills through physical activity as well. In this post, I share some of my favorite movement-oriented activities for teaching second language writing. Many of these activities can be adapted for learners of different proficiency levels and for varying class sizes. Read more.
While engaging and motivating students in the classroom has always been critical for student success, it is even more important and challenging in the online learning environment. This practical guide will provide English language educators with a number of strategies and ready-to-use activities to help them engage and motivate their students for improved learner outcomes. It also covers trends in online learning, engagement and motivation principles and competencies, as well as ways administrators can support teachers' professional development. As an additional resource, the book comes with a companion website. **This title also includes a companion website with online resources.
While SEL is becoming increasing critical for learners’ success, teachers often feel unprepared to incorporate or address it in their classrooms. This book serves as a practical, concise, and easy-to-follow reference that English language teachers in K-12 and adult education and English language teacher educators can use in their classrooms. It is one of the limited emerging SEL resources available that is tailored to the English language teaching field and contributes to filling the existing gap of SEL in English language education. Teachers will be equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to practice self-care and be confident in implementing SEL in their learning spaces to support and benefit their learners.
This book guides educators in teaching young learners (2- to 12-year-olds) in an English as a foreign language setting by using The 6 Principles for Exemplary Teaching of English Learners® as a framework. A core set of principles for the exemplary teaching and learning of English as a new language, The 6 Principles and their recommended practices are targets of teaching excellence that provide teachers with the knowledge to improve instruction and assessment. Instructional techniques are illustrated throughout the book with numerous classroom examples, case studies, checklists, and vignettes.
Active TESOL members may read current and recent issues of TESOL Connections online at http://www.tesol.org/tc. Inclusion in TESOL Connections does not constitute an endorsement by TESOL.
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