Big+Ideas

"Big Ideas" from our 1st Session:

Levels of proficiency matter. Bilingual education can help (or hinder?) a student's education. Negative consequences of asking English to be spoken at home. Always be alert to the distinctions between 2 languages; look for the root cause. There's so much more to language learning than a "program". Dispelling "myths" is so important. We need to engage ELLs in relevant activities and have high expectations for them. Educating ELLs should be a school wide approach. Positive attitudes are so important; open communication between classroom and ELL teacher. ELLs are/have "linguistic capital". Is there a public awareness? Are the ELLs a forgotten group?

"Big Ideas" from our 2nd Session:

Educating regular education teachers; starting with college training,(pre-service) ELLs are not ELLs for a half hour, they are ELL all day More collaboration between ELL teachers and classroom teachers Importance of preschool programs for ELL ELLs are not broken, they don't need to be fixed They're an asset not a deficit Acculturation is difficult Assimilation slows academic achievement Dr. Soltero: Bilingual ed. is the best way to educate, but this is not always practical Help teachers understand the difference between Language difficulties and learning disabilities Show what students know, not always what they don't know Talk about student strengths, not always their weaknesses Children benefit cognitively from learning more than one language Importance of the school vision & mission Community involvement so important Assemblies in culture/language Be mindful of urban ELLs and the stresses on those families Choosing a model that's appropriate for how a school is set up FRUSTRATIONS!!