Jessica's+thoughts

The Report of the National Literacy Panel was created in response to the lack of information regarding how language-minority children and youth acquire a second language. The rapid increase in the numbers of language-minority students within our schools and their low levels of literacy attainment prompted researchers to focus their attention on the literacy development of these students. The consequences of such slow and stagnant literacy development among these students have manifested themselves through high drop out rates, poor job prospects and poverty. The Institute of Education Sciences staff selected a panel of 13 experts in second-language development and other related areas to identify, assess and synthesize research on the education of language-minority children, in regards to their literacy achievement. The Panel was lead by its Principal Investigator, Diane August. The main purpose of the panel was evident in their question of effectiveness, which was, “How can we best improve literacy achievement for language-minority students?” (August, 2006, p.9). The Panel chose to investigate five major domains, which included; the development of literacy in language-minority children and youth, cross-linguistic and cross-modal relationships, sociocultural contexts and literacy development, instruction and professional development and student assessment. As a Kindergarten teacher with 15 of my 18 students being English-language learners, I look forward to this report shedding more light and insight into how my students acquire their second language and what are the best teaching methods and strategies that I can implement to help them reach their literacy goals. Our school is located in a very poor neighborhood and I, as a teacher, would like to see more research done on the influence of sociocultural variables on the literacy success of my students. For many of my students, they experience some form of neglect in their homes, whether it be social, emotional or physical. Diane August also agreed that, “…one general shortcoming in this area is that relatively few studies have examined the impact of sociocultural factors on actual student outcomes,” (2006, p.15). I have had several students in the past that had parents who were illiterate, not only in English, but in their primary language as well. I will never forget one of my most influential students, “Noelle,” who changed the way that I think about what second language learners are capable of. Both of her parents could not write or read in Spanish, their first language, and she had arrived in my class mid-year. Despite these major set backs, she excelled in acquiring English because she was motivated, determined and driven. I had never seen anything like it. At first, she was easily distracted because she could not understand my instruction, which was given all in English, but as the weeks progressed she became hungry to be the best and turned into a “super sponge” that soaked up all of the information given to her. Regardless, of whether or not she had some form of mastery in her primary language, which she did not, acquiring this second language, for her, was a challenge that she accepted with full tenacity. Although sometimes I feel a resistance from parents, regardless of their own literacy abilities, to become involved in their child’s education, I must be persistent in coaching and guiding them to give proper support and guidance in the literacy achievement of their child. August also concurs, that, “…schools underestimate and underutilize parents’ interest, motivation, and potential contributions.” I also could relate to the findings that some of our assessments seem unfair, because although my students may understand text in a second language, they may be unable to communicate their understanding in that language. I would like to see more research done on the benefits of administering assessments in more than one language to be able to better assess my students’ total vocabulary knowledge. During the last chapter of the report, Catherine Snow, identifies some of the limitations, weaknesses and topics that have been neglected by the Panel. For example, Snow states that researchers are ignoring the needs of preschoolers to design optimal learning environments for these second-language learners, since studies have shown that prevention is most effective if begun during the preschool period. As a Kindergarten teacher, who knows how academic Kindergarten has become and what our students are expected to be able to learn and know how to do, making preschool mandatory or providing adequate information on the benefits and importance of preschool to parents, seems to be the best type of intervention for these young students.Jessica's Thoughts