According to an article by Mary Ellen Flannery, “Born in the U.S.A. and Other Things You Might Not Know About Today’s English Language Learner,” in NEA Magazine’s January/February 2009 issue, today’s English Second Language Learners are students born in America. Contrary to what the public thinks they are not illegal immigrants who have crossed the border nor are they here for asylum as their parents may have been. This generation of English Language Learners could hold in it a future president of the United States. Yet, despite being native born Americans, they hold many of the same academic struggles as their first-generation immigrants parents. Recent research does show, however, that they are more likely to be successful with the right support, differentiated instruction, and proper interpretation of their individual success in the classroom. How can we best assess these students to accurately measure their learning progress?
Discussion Questions
- How can public education continue to set high national standards with a diverse population without losing the significance of individual subgroups’ success?
- Should ELL learners be measured with the same assessments as native English learners? Is this an appropriate measurement for success for ELL learners?
- Who should be responsible for setting the standards for testing and how should these standards determined?
- What provides more validity for measuring ELL students’ levels of success on-going teacher assessment or standardized testing?
- What role can ELL parents play in their children’s success?
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By
Kelly Escueta Ayers
TNLI
Affiliate:
Fairfax County (VA)
If
you would like to learn more about Teachers Network Leadership
Institute, please e-mail Kimberly Johnson for more information. |
