Developing+Literacy+in+Second-Language+Learners

=Part 1: Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners=

Summary of Findings
Reported by David Fisher and Kelly Baker

Does Oral proficiency in English have any relationship to English reading and writing? Chapter five of the National Literacy Panel, titled //Second Language Oral Proficiency and Second Language Literacy// by Esther Geva, investigates this relationship. This relationship was given its own chapter because of the important role it is presumed to play in the language development of second language learners. The studies used to measure this relationship were both quantitative, measuring vocabulary and grammar, and qualitative, because for oral language “naturalistic, authentic language samples provided more valid assessment of language proficiency.” (NLP p.123) Unfortunately, for the purposes of the NLP, there was a lack of relative studies in some of the researched areas. Some studies were even mentioned in more than one section. There were five main areas of interest in their relationship to English Oral Proficiency: Word Level skills, English Spelling, English Reading Fluency, English Reading Comprehension and English Writing.  The largest number of studies examined the relationship between English oral language proficiency and word level skills (word skills and spelling). Overall these studies indicated that phonological processing skills and working memory can be consistent predictors of accurate English word reading skills and may help with vocabulary knowledge and grammatical sensitivity. One study showed indirect evidence for a lack of association between oral language proficiency in English word and pseudoword reading (phonemic awareness). Other studies showed very little relationship between oral speaking and reading of leveled words. An interesting note was mentioned that in one study, students were supported in Spanish and not just being taught in English. It seems that the higher grade level one moves the less research is available. A student coming into the educational system with phonemic awareness in his first language would only need to learn the different sounds and symbols that are present in the second language.  In the second section, the researchers looked at the relationship of Oral English Proficiency and Spelling. This is one of the sections where there was little research to examine. There were only four studies used and one of them was mentioned in the prior section. The few studies observed, one study used first graders, one used second and third graders, and one used high school English-language learners. The overall conclusion of the small handful of studies was that oral grammar skills were not strongly related to spelling in English. In other words, an English language learner might be proficient in oral language, but that does not mean they will be proficient in spelling. It is necessary for learners to have support in phonemic awareness, understanding of word families, prefixes and suffixes, and vocabulary skills in order to become more proficient spellers.  The weakest section was the relationship between English oral language proficiency and English fluency. The section itself, a scant two paragraphs, only identifies one relevant study, Jackson and Lu (1992) and this is the third time this study has been cited (once in each of the first 3 sections!). This previously mentioned study, used for both word skills and spelling section of the report, indicated that students who had lower oral language skills did just as well in fluency than students that did have oral language proficiency. The research findings, from this single piece of research, indicated that students who can read in English may not be able to speak as well as they read. The research also indicated the reverse; students who speak well may not be able to read well.  The most interesting relationship was between English oral language proficiency and reading comprehension. The researchers were able to find many studies that looked at this relationship and stated that the research indicated that there was a positive correlation between the two. It was reported in several studies of first, second and third graders from various native that there was a strong correlation between oral vocabulary and reading comprehension. These studies crossed cultural as well as economic boundaries. Another study brought up an interesting point that middle school students who understood the relationship between English and Spanish cognates did better at reading comprehension. Other researchers reported that providing formal and informal definitions for nouns in English was also related to vocabulary knowledge and thereby reading comprehension. Adding to this, research on seventh to ninth graders concluded that comprehension is related to different components of English Language proficiency, including oral vocabulary knowledge, awareness of cognates, listening comprehension, and oral storytelling skills. An interesting point was brought up that home language use and literacy practices were an important part in order to facilitate oral language proficiency. Chapter eleven titled //Sociocultural Influences on the Literacy Attainment of Language-Minority Children and Youth// investigates this area of study. Overall the findings suggest that having a well developed oral language proficiency in English is associated with well developed reading comprehension skills.  The final relationship between English oral language proficiency and English writing is a complicated one. In this section, there were only five studies examined that investigated this relationship; two at the elementary level and two at the middle school level and 1 at the high school level. A study of third graders showed that exact correlation between oral language, vocabulary knowledge, listening comprehension, and knowing how to read is reciprocal to writing. Two separate studies concluded that if students had writing skills in Spanish could transfer that awareness to English even though their oral language proficiency was not as strong. One study involving high school students showed indirect evidence to oral language and writing. They observed that the students were improving in oral skills as the grade level went up. The study concluded that the improved writing could not be solely based on oral development but could be attributed to learning writing strategies. Because writing is a complex concept, the studies in this section indicate that it takes more than well-developed oral language, but also grammar knowledge, vocabulary, thinking skills, and reading skills. Higher level thinking ability and word level skills are also needed. Overall the studies showed that oral proficiency does correlate to better writing skills. 

Recommendations
The research, although limited, is clear. Oral language does relate to aspects of reading and writing. For any language learner, even if it is the native language, oral skills are an important aspect to literacy growth. The research also indicated that spelling, even though not related to oral proficiency, should be taught through direct instruction of cognates and definitions through authentic texts. It is clear, though, that there needs to be more research done in this entire field of study.

Putting Recommendations into Practice
 
 * Have students have authentic conversation about topics in class to build oral language proficiency
 * Understanding home language use and literacy practices in order to support those possible needs
 * Have students discuss what they are going to write before they begin writing
 * Instruction for students in vocabulary development and understanding cognate relationships

**Activity:** [[file:root_words.doc]]
Here is an activity for direct instruction in latin roots and suffixes and reference sites.With this activity you give direct instruction on 1-2 words a day (approx 5 a week). Students try to figure out the meaning of the word by looking at its parts. Discussion starts with whether the parts have cognates. Discussion revolves around how the parts fit together. The teacher then gives the dictionary definition. Discussion revolves around how close the definition is to the sum of the parts. ( Created by Kelly Baker)


 * Resources:**

http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/ksd/MA/resources/greek_and_latin_roots/transition.html#prefix http://www.betterendings.org/homeschool/Words/Root%20Words.htm http://www.michigan-proficiency-exams.com/prefix-meanings.html http://www.virtualsalt.com/roots.htm http://www.michigan-proficiency-exams.com/suffix-list.html http://www.nwlincs.org/mtlincs/opi/reading/worksheets/suffix.pdf Reported by Kelly Baker  ===Teaching vocabulary through cognates is an important direction to take for increasing oral proficiency and reading comprehension. A study (Jimenez, Garcia, & Person, 1996) mentioned in the NPL’s on language learners, stated that student knowledge of cognates relationships helped in reading comprehension. ===

Read aloud <span style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal; FONT-SIZE: 11pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">
The read aloud can be used for discovering spelling rules or families, vocabulary and cognate understanding to facilitate reading comprehension, oral retelling and other skills. Another use for a read aloud is to ask the students to raise their hand when they think they hear a cognate. Stop reading and discuss that cognate. Point out the slight differences heard between the Spanish and English words. A bilingual book may be of help. With the use of bilingual books, it can not only be used for teaching cognates and vocabulary, but also create a classroom appreciation for the Spanish language. One set of index cards (5 x 7 inch) Pictures of vocabulary words Sharpie pen, markers, crayons, colored pencils List of cognates Each group is to make two sets of cards, Spanish and English. The word and picture is located on one side of the card. The picture can be drawn by the student or pasted on the card. Each group of students can have a different list of cognates to create a library of cognate matching game cards. The teacher needs to monitor the accuracy of the cards. The students place the cards face down. On each turn, a player turns over two cards (one at a time) and keeps them if they match. If they successfully match two cognates, that player also gets to take another turn. When a player turns over two cards that do not match, those cards are turned face down again and it becomes the next player’s turn. When everyone has found the partner cards at the end of the game, regroup and share out what was learned. Chart paper, Sharpie pen, markers, crayons, colored pencils List of cognates Make the tables on a large sheet of chart paper. Each table should have three columns with the following titles: English, Drawing, Spanish. Have the chart ready to use in order to model and have the same kind of charts pre-made for groups of three or four students to work on at a time. To show as an example, the teacher writes the English cognate in its column, the Spanish in its column and does a drawing in the middle. The students will make their charts with the given cognates. Once they are all done, the group can share the poster with the class. The cognate charts can be displayed in the room and more cognates can be added. As an extension, they can find then during their independent reading time http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/kids/index.html Teaches students science vocabulary in English and in Spanish http://eslbears.homestead.com/cognates.html Fun games involving cognates useful for second language learners http://www.colorincolorado.org/pdfs/articles/cognates.pdf A list of Spanish and English cognates http://www.appletonlange.com/product.php?isbn=0844279625 NTC's Dictionary of Spanish Cognates Thematically Organized http://www.nea.org/readacross/resources/bilingualbooks.html#k-4 List of bilingual books to assist vocabulary development http://www.jstor.org/staple/748241 Jimenez, R. T., Garcia, G. E., & Pearson, D. P. (1996). The Reading Strategies of Bilingual Latina/o Students Who Are Successful English Readers: Opportunities and Obstacles. //Reading Research Quarterly//, //31//(1), 90-112. // Reported by David Fisher //
 * Teaching cognates that could be related to the read aloud **
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