Guide For Classroom Teachers

RB 0074

English as a Second Language Learners:
A Guide for Classroom Teachers

1999

Ministry of Education
Special Programs Branch

Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data
Main entry under title:
ESL learners : a guide for classroom teachers
Includes bibliographical references : p. 32
ISBN 0-7726-3653-2
1. English language - Study and teaching as a second language - BritishColumbia.* I. British Columbia. Ministry of Education. Special Programs
Branch.
PE1128.A2E84 1998

2

428.3’4’0710711

ESL Learners: A Guide for Classroom Teachers
E SL

C98-960238-9

Table of Contents
Introduction .......................................................................................... 5
Using this Guide........................................................................................... 5

The ESL Learner ..................................................................................... 6
Adjustment Challenges Facing ESL Students ................................................... 7

The Nature of ESL Programming ......................................................... 11

Identification...................................................................................... 13
Formal Assessment and Placement .............................................................. 14

Classroom Planning with ESL in Mind .................................................. 16
Instructional Tips and Strategies................................................................... 17
ESL Students with Special Needs.................................................................. 22
ESL Students with Other Requirements ......................................................... 23
Assessing, Evaluating, and Reporting on Student Progress .............................. 24

Finding and Using Resources .............................................................. 30
Instructional Materials................................................................................ 30
The Role of the ESL Specialist ........................................................................ 31
Useful Print References ............................................................................... 32

Acknowledgments .............................................................................. 34

ESL Learners: A Guide for Classroom TeachersE SL

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ESL Learners: A Guide for Classroom Teachers
E SL

Introduction

S

tudents for whom English is a second or additional language (or dialect) are a
growing segment of British Columbia’s K-12 school population. Over the
past ten years, the number of students identified as needing ESL services in BC
has more than tripled. Lower Mainland school districts have beenespecially affected,
and educators in those districts have had to develop skills and processes to address the
growing need. With continuing growth in the numbers of ESL students provincewide,
however, the need to provide appropriate ESL services is becoming an issue for districts
in all areas of BC. This guide, which draws upon recent research and the advice of BC
educators with experience in thisfield, is intended to provide help for those who have
become involved in working with ESL students in their classrooms.

Using this Guide
This document is designed for K-12 classroom teachers who have had limited experience
working with ESL students. Produced with the input of both specialist and classroom
teachers, this document reflects the view that while the ESL specialist should beinvolved
in providing ESL services for any student who needs them, the classroom teacher also
has an important role to play in educating such students. The ESL specialist is an important source of assistance for classroom teachers. Typically the classroom teacher is called
upon to work with ESL students in a mainstream setting (i.e., with peers for whom
English is a first or native language)....