This title is not my own; it is
borrowed from an article written by Larry Ferlazzo and published in Colorín
Colorado, a well-known site for ESL support. Larry Ferlazzo is a teacher at a
high school in Sacramento, CA whose population is 50% ELL students. Within his
school the population is 1/3 Latino, 1/3 African American and 1/3 Asian (mostly
Hmong). At one point, the school was identified as needing improvement. Here is
a list of some of the actions taken by Mr. Ferlazzo to improve the rating of
the school and achievement of the students:
#1
- Everyone has a story - Mr. Ferlazzo went out of his way to visit the homes of
all of his students to learn about them and their families. He often had
to take interpreters with him. This established relationships that included
trust and respect between himself and the families.
#2
- Learning Community Groups - The school was divided into learning communities
with about 300 students in each group. Within each group, both students and
teachers would be together for the duration of four years of high school.
#3
- Don't Teach to the Test - While teaching to the test is tempting, the school
instead focused on making lifelong learners out of their students.
#4
– School Focus – With a large group of ELLs, the entire staff had to focus
their minds on ELL improvement and teaching strategies. Some of the strategies
used across the board were graphic organizers, visual support, cooperative
learning and modeling.
#5
– Personal Development – As a whole, teachers sought out personal development
to help with the teaching of Ells. Teachers also developed peer to peer support
and study teams.
#6
– Technology – Computers and internet access were provided for families.
One
of my favorite quotes from this article was about the use of technology. Even though computers and internet access was
provided for families, Mr. Ferlazzo said, “Technology has its place, but also
has to be kept in its place”. He says
that nothing beats face to face and I agree.
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