Using FLCs to Extend ESL Content Beyond the SEI Classroom

Using FLCs to Extend
ESL Content Beyond the
SEI Classroom
Melanie Gonzalez
Julie Whitlow
Millene Alves
MACTE
October 30, 2015

The Reality
“At the turn of the century, nearly every teacher in U.S. schools
could expect to have English Learners (ELs) in her class.With the
number of ELs predicted to double by the year 2050, it is more than
likely that every teacher will have ELs in her classroom at some
time” (Meskill, 2005, p. 740).

We are all
teachers of ELs
States are now realizing that all teachers need to be teachers of ELs
at some level. University teacher preparation programs need to be
able to respond quickly and comprehensively.

What teacher
candidates
need to know
 Language: the nature of language and its relation to society and
culture;
 Acquisition: the processes of first language (L1) and L2, including
best instructional strategies and accommodations;
 Culture: cross-cultural issues in schooling;
 Regulations: roles and responsibilities of schools and school
personnel regarding EL children; and
 Communication: methods for communicating effectively with
school personnel and parents regarding EL children (Meskill,
2005)

How do we get
them there?
Teacher preparation program curricular options:
 EL-dedicated (stand-alone) courses;
 Professional development (through schools; events); and
 EL infusion (ESL content woven into many or all teacher
preparation courses)

EL-dedicated
courses in
Massachusetts
 MA mandates via the RETELL initiative that all PreK-12 licensure
students to take a course in the foundations of teaching English as a
Second Language  Sheltered English Instruction (SEI) course
 Salem State University has been offering two SEI courses since
2013. Our undergraduate SEI course is for pre-service teachers and
our graduate course is for those in graduate licensure programs.
Many of these are already content-area teachers.
Survey of EL-DedicatedCourses in Massachusetts Educator
Preparation Programs 2012:
 Response from 38 out of 89 programs (43% survey response rate)
 Only 11 (29%) programs offer EL-dedicated courses
 71% (27 programs) do not offer EL-dedicated courses
 Most courses are only partially EL-dedicated
 85% reported spending less than 25% of course time on ELL-
dedicated content

Are we
prepared?
SSU 2014 Survey:
Of 20 full-time faculty in the Education Unit who attended 2-day
workshop on SEI:
 88% reported having had NO prior formal coursework in
TESOL/ESL issues
 55% had never attended a session at a conference or workshop on
working with ELs

Challenges
 University faculty not trained inTESOL can be unprepared to add
SEI/ESL content to their courses
 Early childhood providers are not well-versed on the models
 K – 12 content teachers are overwhelmed
 ESOL faculty/teachers feel pressure to “cover it all” in one course

Develop an “infusion model”
 Reduces the number of required ESL-dedicated courses for students;
 Incorporates content from ESL-dedicated courses into other classes
and field experiences; and
 Makes ESL content an INTEGRAL part of ALL curriculum and
instruction (Nutta & Stoddard, 2004).
Published ESL Infusion initiatives:
 Ontario Institute in Education (ESL content woven into teacher
preparation curricula);
 Boston College (Faculty Institute Sessions);
 University at Albany (“push-in” model);
 MiamiUniversity (ESL content woven into teacher preparation
curricula); and
 All Florida state-approved teacher preparation programs (ESL content
woven into teacher preparation curricula).
Infusion

Infusion
1
Foundations
2
Science, mathematics,
geography
3
LanguageArts, Elementary
Figure 1. The One Plus Model (Nutta, Mokhtari, &
Strebel, 2012)
Focus on
curriculum/assessment
in content
2+ assignments
Focus on the
learner/class
contexts
1+ assignment
Focus on literacy
development
3+ assignments

Can we
develop a true
EL-infusion
model in
courses?
Will need:
 Time
 Energy
 Trust
 Focus
 Negotiation
Unfortunately, the answer is
not in its pure form.
 Attitude
 Administrative model
 PD opportunities
 Collaboration

PD initiatives
for faculty at
SSU
 Summer syllabus workshops
 Presentations and workshops on SEI strategies
 Delivery of ESL/SEI content through Faculty Learning
Communities
 Guest speakers

One solution:
FLCs
Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs)
 Definition: “a group of trans-disciplinary faculty, graduate students
and professional staff group of size 6-15 engaging in an active,
collaborative, yearlong program with a curriculum about
enhancing teaching and learning and with frequent seminars”
(Miami University of Ohio, 2009)
At Salem State:
 Modified FLC format funded by Project SAEL NPD grant over the
course of the Spring and Summer 2015 terms
 Each FLC had an ESL specialist as a member and resource
 No more than six members per FLC; had to apply

Present study:
Participants
(n=13)
Rank
Years inTeacher
Prep Program Areas of Expertise
Experience with
ESL Content
Asst. Prof. = 7
Assc. Prof = 4
Full Prof. = 2
M = 7.8
Min. = 2
Max. = 20
English; History;
Literacy,
Theater/Comm.;
Curriculum/Assessment;
Early Childhood;
Elementary; SPED;
ESOL
Range 0-10 years
(3 participants
reported teaching
ELLs full-time in
the past)
Table 1. Participants (n=13)

Present study:
Methods
Qualitative case study analysis
Data collected:
 Pre-surveys
 Session exit surveys
 Post-surveys
 FLC reports
 FLC participant-generated products
Open coding of written survey responses

Present study:
Pre-survey
results
Pre-Surveys
 Looking forward to: collaboration with colleagues; “getting to
know” colleagues outside of departmental work; sharing ideas
 Interested in FLC: fellow participants, topic, timing, stipend
 Topics wished to discuss: WIDA; SEI best practices (e.g., language
objectives); differentiation; assessment
 Anticipated outcomes for research and teaching: None were
anticipating incorporating into their research, but all saw direct
application to their courses
 Support from ESL specialist: only 2 responses related to resources
for courses

Present study:
Exit survey
results
Exit Surveys (3 x’s)
 Most relevant to teaching: difference between “just good
teaching” and “teaching ESL” practices; finding content ready to
use in courses; knowing more about the SEI course
 Least relevant to teaching: very few answered this question – most
answered “nothing”; didn’t like strategy-based book
 Successful aspects of FLC format: collaboration; co-construction of
knowledge; brainstorming teaching ideas; “the people”
 Least successful aspects of FLC format: reading large chunks of text
and summarizing for others; choice of texts; time constraints;
scheduling (Spring FLC only)

Present study:
Post-survey
results
Post-Surveys
 Valued from FLC: collaboration with colleagues; dialoguing with
colleagues; Spring FLC liked “jigsawing” to create instructional
materials that incorporated SEI practices; work with ESL
specialist; common line of inquiry
 Will incorporate into research: 4 of the 13 participants planned to
incorporate ESL-related content into their research
 Will incorporate into teaching: 13 /13 participants planning to use
FLC content in courses (lesson planning “flags”; language
objectives; WIDA; products from FLC; build in explicit EL-focused
content into syllabi)
 Suggestions: Fewer texts; model videos/text/lesson plans; FLC
reconvene once a semester to check-in; summer run (Spring FLC)
 Effective aspects of FLC: summer run (2 Summer FLCs); stipend;
use of Padlet; having an ESL specialist as a member of the FLC

PresentStudy:
Products &
artifacts Padlet
Student
Readings
New Unit
Plan
Template
Differentiated
Assignment
Examples
New course in
Early
Childhood

Present study:
Discussion &
implications of
using FLCs for
EL-infusion
purposes
Set goals, desired outcomes, and mode of inquiry for FLC.
Faculty appreciate the opportunity to discuss pedagogy.
 “I felt like we could discuss both content AND the structures that would
support that content, which is rare.”
 “I rarely/never have a chance to talk about instructional strategies and
philosophies with them! “
Having an ESL specialist is critical to ESL-focused FLC.
 “[redacted] as a resident/on call ESL expert served the group incredibly
well – without [redacted] ongoing support and guidance, I’m not sure the
initiative would have stayed on track.”
FLC format works best outside of the academic year crunch and if
incentives are provided.
 “The opportunity to work over the summer was so important.”
 “I also appreciated the opportunity to set our own meeting schedule.”
 “Stipend.” / “I also really appreciated the books – always nice to have a
resource I can return to for clarification or a refresher.”
Follow-up after academic semester(s).

Next steps
 Interview FLC participants about implementation in their courses:
successes; challenges
 Collect EL-focused instructional artifacts and analyze

Other non-
funded/Low-
cost initiatives
 Book Club
 Brown Bag Lunches
 Inter-departmental presence of ESL faculty
 Support for adjuncts
 Administrative support and oversight
 Classroom observations
 Peer mentoring

Discussion
Turn &Talk:
 What are the successes you’ve experienced at your institutions in
implementing the mandates of RETELL?
 What are your experiences with FLCs?
 What are the challenges you face with FLCs?

Resources
 Meskill,C. (2005). Infusing English language learner issues
throughout professional educator curricula:The training all
teachers project. Teacher’s College Record, 107(4), 739-756.
 Miami University of Ohio. (2009). Website for developing faculty
and professional learning communities (FLCs):Communities of
practice in higher education. Retrieved from
http://www.units.miamioh.edu/flc/index.php
 Nutta, J., Mokhtari, K., & Strebel, C. (2012). Preparing every teacher
to reach English learners. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education
Press.
 Padlet. (n.d.). Padlet. Retrieved from http://padlet.com/

THANKYOU!!
MelanieGonzalez mgonzalez@salemstate.edu
JulieWhitlow cwhitlow@salemstate.edu
MilleneAlves m_dasilva8@salemstate.edu

Using FLCs to Extend ESL Content Beyond the SEI Classroom

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