Dynamic Development of Complexity and Accuracy: A Case Study in Second Language Academic Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosmawati

2014-01-01

This paper reports on the development of complexity and accuracy in English as a Second Language (ESL) academic writing. Although research into complexity and accuracy development in second language (L2) writing has been well established, few studies have assumed the multidimensionality of these two constructs (Norris & Ortega, 2009) or…

Bilingualism and Special Education: Program and Pedagogical Issues.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cummins, Jim

1983-01-01

Application of the research-based principle that first and second language cognitive and academic development are interdependent and that language acquisition is largely dependent on students receiving sufficient comprehensible input in the target language is discussed in reference to program planning for academically at risk language minority…

Academic Language in Shared Book Reading: Parent and Teacher Input to Mono- and Bilingual Preschoolers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aarts, Rian; Demir-Vegter, Serpil; Kurvers, Jeanne; Henrichs, Lotte

2016-01-01

The current study examined academic language (AL) input of mothers and teachers to 15 monolingual Dutch and 15 bilingual Turkish-Dutch 4- to 6-year-old children and its relationships with the children's language development. At two times, shared book reading was videotaped and analyzed for academic features: lexical diversity, syntactic…

Reading-Writing Relationships in First and Second Language Academic Literacy Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grabe, William; Zhang, Cui

2016-01-01

Reading and writing relations, as this concept applies to academic learning contexts, whether as a major way to learn language or academic content, is a pervasive issue in English for academic purposes (EAP) contexts. In many cases, this major link between reading/writing and academic learning is true even though explicit discussions of this…

A Longitudinal Study on Children's Music Training Experience and Academic Development

PubMed Central

Yang, Hua; Ma, Weiyi; Gong, Diankun; Hu, Jiehui; Yao, Dezhong

2014-01-01

This study examined the relation between long-term music training and child development based on 250 Chinese elementary school students' academic development of first language (L1), second language (L2), and mathematics. We found that musician children outperformed non-musician children only on musical achievement and second language development. Additionally, although music training appeared to be correlated with children's final academic development of L1, L2, and mathematics, it did not independently contribute to the development of L1 or mathematical skills. Our findings suggest caution in interpreting the positive findings on the non-musical cognitive benefits of music learning. PMID:25068398

A longitudinal study on children's music training experience and academic development.

PubMed

Yang, Hua; Ma, Weiyi; Gong, Diankun; Hu, Jiehui; Yao, Dezhong

2014-07-28

This study examined the relation between long-term music training and child development based on 250 Chinese elementary school students' academic development of first language (L1), second language (L2), and mathematics. We found that musician children outperformed non-musician children only on musical achievement and second language development. Additionally, although music training appeared to be correlated with children's final academic development of L1, L2, and mathematics, it did not independently contribute to the development of L1 or mathematical skills. Our findings suggest caution in interpreting the positive findings on the non-musical cognitive benefits of music learning.

Teachers' Perceptions of Language Teaching for English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schulz, Yoshiko

2017-01-01

Under the No Child Left Behind's educational accountability requirements, the U.S.'s mainstream classroom teachers were responsible for all students' academic language and content knowledge development regardless of students' academic or linguistic backgrounds. A lack of teachers' language awareness appeared to be responsible for teachers'…

Using Academic Language to Level the Playing Field for English-Language Learners in Physical Education: Part 1

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Constantinou, Phoebe; Wuest, Deborah A.

2015-01-01

With the common core emphasis on English language art and mathematics skills, physical educators are faced with a challenging task. Educators, in general, are expected to identifying the language demands of their discipline and develop academic language skills within each disciplinary area. In other words, educators are expected to prepare…

A Triangulated Study of Academic Language Needs of Iranian Students of Computer Engineering: Are the Courses on Track?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Atai, Mahmood Reza; Shoja, Leila

2011-01-01

Even though English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) courses constitute a significant part of the Iranian university curriculum, curriculum developers have generally developed the programs based on intuition. This study assessed the present and target situation academic language needs of undergraduate students of computer engineering. To this…

Teachers' Perspectives on Academic Achievement and Educational Growth of U.S.-Born Hispanic Students in a Midwestern Spanish Language Immersion Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salgado, Herlinda Arlene Galve

2016-01-01

Elementary Spanish language immersion programs have become more popular in the educational field in the United States to support the academic achievement of minority students. The final goal of immersion programs is to develop proficiency in the home language and dominant language, identified as first language (L1) and second language (L2), to…

Supporting Academic Language Development in Elementary Science: A Classroom Teaching Experiment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jung, Karl Gerhard

2017-01-01

Academic language is the language that students must engage in while participating in the teaching and learning that takes place in school (Schleppegrell, 2012) and science as a content area presents specific challenges and opportunities for students to engage with language (Buxton & Lee, 2014; Gee, 2005). In order for students to engage…

Language Specialists' Views on the Academic Language and Learning Abilities of English as an Additional Language Postgraduate Coursework Students: Towards an Adjunct Tutorial Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fenton-Smith, Ben; Humphreys, Pamela

2017-01-01

As in other Anglophone nations, a large percentage of Australia's postgraduate international students come from English as an additional language (EAL) backgrounds, and many require development of their academic language and learning (ALL) capabilities to successfully navigate a higher degree. This paper investigates those capabilities through the…

Integrating Academic Language into Content Methodology: Supporting Math and Science Teacher Candidates to Meet Students' Language Needs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freking, Frederick; Park, Jaime; Francois, Annamarie

2015-01-01

This article describes how a teacher-education program (TEP), whose mission is to improve schooling for linguistically diverse students, develops its' teacher candidate's critical dispositions and pedagogy related to academic-language (AL) development and how candidate performance on PACT can help TEPs better assess and improve how AL…

Redefining Individual Growth and Development Indicators: Oral Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradfield, Tracy A.; Besner, Amanda C.; Wackerle-Hollman, Alisha K.; Albano, Anthony D.; Rodriguez, Michael C.; McConnell, Scott R.

2014-01-01

Language skills developed during preschool contribute strongly to later reading and academic achievement. Effective preschool assessment and intervention should focus on core components of language development, specifically oral language skills. The Early Language and Literacy Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs) are a set of…

Language (In)competency, Communication Strategies, and the Development of an International Academic Teacher Identity: Becoming an Audible Minority

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McAllum, Kirstie

2017-01-01

Despite universities' enthusiasm for internationalization, international academic mobility requires considerable institutional and cultural adjustment in terms of teaching and supervision styles, research expectations, and departmental relationships. Although language competency underpins these practices, research on international academics has…

The English proficiency and academic language skills of Australian bilingual children during the primary school years.

PubMed

Dennaoui, Kamelia; Nicholls, Ruth Jane; O'Connor, Meredith; Tarasuik, Joanne; Kvalsvig, Amanda; Goldfeld, Sharon

2016-04-01

Evidence suggests that early proficiency in the language of school instruction is an important predictor of academic success for bilingual children. This study investigated whether English-proficiency at 4-5 years of age predicts academic language and literacy skills among Australian bilingual children at 10-11 years of age, as part of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children ( LSAC, 2012 ). The LSAC comprises a nationally representative clustered cross-sequential sample of Australian children. Data were analysed from a sub-sample of 129 bilingual children from the LSAC Kindergarten cohort (n = 4983), for whom teachers completed the Australian Early Development Index (AEDI) checklist (a population measure of early childhood development) and the Academic Rating Scale (ARS) language and literacy subscale. Linear regression analyses revealed that bilingual children who commenced school with stronger English proficiency had higher academic language and literacy scores at the end of primary school (β = 0.45). English proficiency remained a significant predictor, even when accounting for gender and socio-economic disadvantage (β = 0.38). The findings indicate that bilingual children who begin school without English proficiency are at risk of difficulties with academic language and literacy, even after 6 years of schooling. Risk factors need to be identified so early support can be targeted towards the most vulnerable children.

Early Parenting Beliefs and Academic Achievement: The Mediating Role of Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Im-Bolter, Nancie; Zadeh, Zohreh Yaghoub; Ling, Daphne

2013-01-01

Studies have demonstrated the association between parenting style and children's academic achievement, but the specific mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. The development of skills that lay the foundation for academic success might be found in early parent-child interactions that foster language competence. Early negative…

Language Development: Understanding Language Diversity in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levey, Sandra; Polirstok, Susan

2010-01-01

Language Development: Understanding Language Diversity in the Classroom offers comprehensive coverage of the language development process for pre- and in-service teachers while emphasizing the factors that further academic success in the classroom, including literacy skills, phonological awareness, and narrative. With chapters written by respected…

Meeting Common Core English Language Arts and English Language Development Standards with Character Education Lesson Plans in Alternative Education Grades 9 through 12

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoedel, Joseph M.; Lee, Robert E.

2016-01-01

This is a case study in which the Character Development and Leadership Program replaced an alternative high school's traditional English language offerings. A triangulated case study used student records, field notes, and interviews of stakeholders to compare the academic year prior to this substitution and the 2 academic years following it. All 3…

English Language Proficiency and Early School Attainment Among Children Learning English as an Additional Language.

PubMed

Whiteside, Katie E; Gooch, Debbie; Norbury, Courtenay F

2017-05-01

Children learning English as an additional language (EAL) often experience lower academic attainment than monolingual peers. In this study, teachers provided ratings of English language proficiency and social, emotional, and behavioral functioning for 782 children with EAL and 6,485 monolingual children in reception year (ages 4-5). Academic attainment was assessed in reception and Year 2 (ages 6-7). Relative to monolingual peers with comparable English language proficiency, children with EAL displayed fewer social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties in reception, were equally likely to meet curriculum targets in reception, and were more likely to meet targets in Year 2. Academic attainment and social, emotional, and behavioral functioning in children with EAL are associated with English language proficiency at school entry. © 2016 The Authors. Child Development published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Research in Child Development.

Toward Integration: An Instructional Model of Science and Academic Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Silva, Cecilia; Weinburgh, Molly; Malloy, Robert; Smith, Kathy Horak; Marshall, Jenesta Nettles

2012-01-01

In this article, the authors outline an instructional model that can be used to optimize science and language learning in the classroom. The authors have developed the 5R instructional model (Weinburgh & Silva, 2010) to support teachers as they integrate academic language into content instruction. The model combines five strategies already…

Content Analysis of Memory and Memory-Related Research Studies on Children with Hearing Loss

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dogan, Murat; Hasanoglu, Gülcihan

2016-01-01

Memory plays a profound role in explaining language development, academic learning, and learning disabilities. Even though there is a large body of research on language development, literacy skills, other academic skills, and intellectual characteristics of children with hearing loss, there is no holistic study on their memory processes.…

Developing Academic Language and Content for Emergent Bilinguals through a Science Inquiry Unit

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mercuri, Sandra; Ebe, Ann E.

2011-01-01

There is growing evidence that schools are not meeting the needs of emergent bilinguals who are falling behind in both academic language development and content knowledge learning. In response to this concern, this article proposes five research-based guidelines for promoting effective instruction for emergent bilinguals. In order to connect…

Developing Oral Language Skills in Middle School English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Douglas; Frey, Nancy

2018-01-01

Oral language development can help English learners develop academic proficiency with the English language. In this investigation, at one middle school, teachers focused on improving oral language skills. Using a formative experiment process, the teachers developed an intervention to accomplish their pedagogical goal and then tracked data to see…

Connecting English Language Learning and Academic Performance: A Prediction Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kong, Jadie; Powers, Sonya; Starr, Laura; Williams, Natasha

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of English language proficiency and academic reading assessment scores to predict the future academic success of English learner (EL) students. Data from two cohorts of middle-school ELs were used to evaluate three prediction models. One cohort of students was used to develop the prediction…

The Effectiveness of Adopting E-Readers to Facilitate EFL Students' Process-Based Academic Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hung, Hui-Chun; Young, Shelley Shwu-Ching

2015-01-01

English as Foreign Language (EFL) students face additional difficulties for academic writing largely due to their level of language competency. An appropriate structural process of writing can help students develop their academic writing skills. This study explored the use of the e-readers to facilitate EFL students' process-based academic…

The Growth of English for Academic Communication in the Nordic Countries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brock-Utne, Birgit

2001-07-01

This article discusses the danger of subtractive English in higher education in Norway. If the use of a mother tongue as the medium of communication at the highest academic levels ceases, is drastically reduced and replaced through the use of a foreign tongue, we may speak of subtractive learning. If the mother tongue is being replaced by a foreign tongue in academic writing, in research and university level teaching, the mother tongue will stagnate. The vocabulary needed has not been allowed to develop at the highest academic level. The author maintains that the Norwegian language is threatened as an academic language and here discusses the following five phenomena, all contributing to this threat: 1. The increasing use of English words in Norwegian academic, bureaucratic or technological language. 2. The sale of more academic literature in English and stagnation of academic literature in Norwegian. 3. The recruitment of teaching staff who do not speak Norwegian. 4. The growth in Master degree courses taught in English. 5. The financial rewards being given to academic staff publishing in an international language (read: English) instead of in the mother tongue.

Opportunities and Outcomes: The Role of Peers in Developing the Oral Academic English Proficiency of Adolescent English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carhill-Poza, Avary

2015-01-01

Although researchers often acknowledge the importance of linguistically rich interactions in the academic language development of emergent bilingual students, few studies have explicitly examined the role of linguistic peer support and the underlying structure of social relationships in the second language learning experiences and outcomes of…

Engaging in vocabulary learning in science: the promise of multimodal instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Townsend, Dianna; Brock, Cynthia; Morrison, Jennifer D.

2018-02-01

To a science 'outsider', science language often appears unnecessarily technical and dense. However, scientific language is typically used with the goal of being concise and precise, which allows those who regularly participate in scientific discourse communities to learn from each other and build upon existing scientific knowledge. One essential component of science language is the academic vocabulary that characterises it. This mixed-methods study investigates middle school students' (N = 59) growth in academic vocabulary as it relates to their teacher's instructional practices that supported academic language development. Students made significant gains in their production of general academic words, t(57) = 2.32, p = .024 and of discipline-specific science words, t(57) = 3.01, p = .004 in science writing. Results from the qualitative strand of this inquiry contextualised the students' learning of academic vocabulary as it relates to their teacher's instructional practices and intentions as well as the students' perceptions of their learning environment. These qualitative findings reveal that both the students and their teacher articulated that the teacher's intentional use of resources supported students' academic vocabulary growth. Implications for research and instruction with science language are shared.

Associations of Emotion-Related Regulation with Language Skills, Emotion Knowledge, and Academic Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eisenberg, Nancy; Sadovsky, Adrienne; Spinrad, Tracy L.

2005-01-01

Research suggests that the development of emotional regulation in early childhood is interrelated with emotional understanding and language skills. Heuristic models are proposed on how these factors influence children's emerging academic motivation and skills. (Contains 2 figures.)

Double threshold in bi- and multilingual contexts: preconditions for higher academic attainment in English as an additional language

PubMed Central

Lechner, Simone; Siemund, Peter

2014-01-01

Bi- and multilingualism has been shown to have positive effects on the attainment of third and additional languages. These effects, however, depend on the type of bi- and multilingualism and the status of the languages involved (Cenoz, 2003; Jessner, 2006). In this exploratory trend study, we revisit Cummins' Threshold Hypothesis (1979), claiming that bilingual children must reach certain levels of attainment in order to (a) avoid academic deficits and (b) allow bilingualism to have a positive effect on their cognitive development and academic attainment. To this end, we examine the attainment of English as an academic language of 16-years-old school children from Hamburg (n = 52). Our findings support the existence of thresholds for literacy attainment. We argue that language external factors may override positive effects of bilingualism. In addition, these factors may compensate negative effects attributable to low literacy attainment in German and the heritage languages. We also show that low attainment levels in migrant children's heritage languages preempt high literacy attainment in additional languages. PMID:24926277

Position Paper: English Language Curriculum Guidelines for Elementary School English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miele, Anthony

2007-01-01

English Language Development (ELD) and Academic English Development (AED) curricula in most public schools lack a communicative method and consist mostly of dry, meaningless grammar lessons devoid of relevance and authentic context. The purpose of this project is to develop guidelines to teach English language to elementary school children…

Developing Academic English Language Proficiency Prototypes for 5th Grade Reading: Psychometric and Linguistic Profiles of Tasks. CSE Technical Report 727

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailey, Alison L.; Huang, Becky H.; Shin, Hye Won; Farnsworth, Tim; Butler, Frances A.

2007-01-01

Within an evidentiary framework for operationally defining academic English language proficiency (AELP), linguistic analyses of standards, classroom discourse, and textbooks have led to specifications for assessment of AELP. The test development process described here is novel due to the emphasis on using linguistic profiles to inform the …

Extending the Flipped Classroom Model: Developing Second Language Writing Skills through Student-Created Digital Videos

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Engin, Marion

2014-01-01

This paper describes a project that aimed to leverage the students' interest and experience of technology and multimodal environments to develop their academic writing skills and second language learning. Students were expected to follow a model, research a topic, and craft a digital video tutorial on an aspect of academic writing which would form…

76 FR 14954 - National Professional Development Program; Office of English Language Acquisition, Language...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-18

... Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement for Limited English Proficient Students; Overview... to provide instruction that accelerates ELs' acquisition of language, literacy, and content knowledge.... Rosalinda Barrera, Assistant Deputy Secretary and Director for English Language Acquisition, Language...

School-Community-University Collaborations: The American Indian Language Development Institute.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCarty, Teresa L.; Watahomigie, Lucille J.; Yamamoto, Akira Y.; Zepeda, Ofelia

This paper describes the American Indian Language Development Institute (AILDI), which can serve as a model for connecting school, community, and university resources to strengthen indigenous languages. Since 1978, AILDI has held annual summer institutes that team community-based native speakers of indigenous languages with academic linguists and…

Investigating the Impact of Professional Development on Teachers' Instructional Time and English Learners' Language Development: A Multilevel Cross-Classified Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tong, Fuhui; Luo, Wen; Irby, Beverly J.; Lara-Alecio, Rafael; Rivera, Hector

2017-01-01

We examined the direct impact of an ongoing, intensive, and structured professional development (PD) within an English-as-second-language (ESL) instructional intervention on (a) teachers' time allocation in cognitive--academic language proficiency (CALP) and (b) Spanish-speaking English language learners' (ELLs) CALP development from the second to…

Even Math Requires Learning Academic Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barrow, Melissa A.

2014-01-01

ELLs need to practice using the language in their speech. Teachers can ask students to restate the definition in their own words and provide opportunities for students to use academic vocabulary in discussions. Chunking (instead of teaching inch in isolation, also teach foot, centimeter, and yard) helps students develop their schema and mentally…

A Framework for Explicit Vocabulary Instruction with English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nisbet, Deanna L.; Tindall, Evie R.

2015-01-01

Academic vocabulary development is critical to the success of all learners--particularly English language learners (ELLs). This article presents a framework for integrating explicit academic vocabulary instruction for ELLs into middle school classrooms. The framework embodies five research-based principles and serves as a vehicle for structuring…

"WordSift": Supporting Instruction and Learning through Technology in San Francisco. The Senior Urban Education Research Fellowship Series. Volume IV

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hakuta, Kenji

2011-01-01

In developing a tool to help address academic language development, the author and his team began by identifying the challenges of presenting science text to English Language Learners and students who struggle with reading. The goal was to balance the practical and logistical challenges of identifying, teaching, and learning academic and content…

Developing Academic English Language Proficiency Prototypes for 5th Grade Reading: Psychometric and Linguistic Profiles of Tasks. An Extended Executive Summary. CSE Report 720

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailey, Alison L.; Huang, Becky H.; Shin, Hye Won; Farnsworth, Tim; Butler, Frances A.

2007-01-01

Within an evidentiary framework for operationally defining academic English language proficiency (AELP), linguistic analyses of standards, classroom discourse, and textbooks have led to specifications for assessment of AELP. The test development process described here is novel due to the emphasis on using linguistic profiles to inform the …

Adolescents' Use of Academic Language in Historical Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shen, Ting

2011-01-01

Despite its importance of academic language, research on academic language is often limited to academic vocabulary and focused on the English language learners. Informed by systemic functional linguistics, this study examined adolescents' use of academic language and the relationships between its use and students' reading ability and their writing…

Academic writing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eremina, Svetlana V.

2003-10-01

The series of workshops on academic writing have been developed by academic writing instructors from Language Teaching Centre, Central European University and presented at the Samara Academic Writing Workshops in November 2001. This paper presents only the part dealing with strucutre of an argumentative essay.

Gender difference in academic performance of nursing students in a Malaysian university college.

PubMed

Wan Chik, W Z; Salamonson, Y; Everett, B; Ramjan, L M; Attwood, N; Weaver, R; Saad, Z; Davidson, P M

2012-09-01

To examine differences in academic performance between male and female nursing students, and to identify whether professional identity and language usage were explanatory factors of academic performance. Although the numbers of men entering the nursing profession are increasing, societal stereotypes and the lack of male role models in nursing may have a negative impact on motivation, and hence, academic performance. A total of 147 students who were enrolled in an undergraduate nursing programme in Peninsula Malaysia were surveyed in January 2011. In addition to demographic and academic data, three instruments were administered to measure language acculturation and professional identity. The mean age of participants was 20.0 (SD: 1.5) years with 81% being female. Almost all students spoke the Malay language at home. Although there were no differences between male and female nursing students in relation to professional identity (P=0.496), male nursing students reported a lower mean English language usage score (9.9 vs. 10.9, P=0.011) and a higher mean Malay language usage score (20.4 vs. 18.8, P=0.017). Males were also found to have lower academic performance than female students, as measured by grade point average (GPA) (2.7 vs. 3.2, P<0.001). Regression analysis revealed gender was the only significant predictor of academic performance (β=-0.44, P<0.001). Males represent less than 10% of the nursing workforce in developed countries, with some developing countries experiencing even lower participation rates. Promoting academic support of male nursing students may assist in increasing the number of male registered nurses in the nursing workforce. © 2012 The Authors. International Nursing Review © 2012 International Council of Nurses.

On the use of evidence in humanitarian logistics research.

PubMed

Pedraza-Martinez, Alfonso J; Stapleton, Orla; Van Wassenhove, Luk N

2013-07-01

This paper presents the reflections of the authors on the differences between the language and the approach of practitioners and academics to humanitarian logistics problems. Based on a long-term project on fleet management in the humanitarian sector, involving both large international humanitarian organisations and academics, it discusses how differences in language and approach to such problems may create a lacuna that impedes trust. In addition, the paper provides insights into how academic research evidence adapted to practitioner language can be used to bridge the gap. When it is communicated appropriately, evidence strengthens trust between practitioners and academics, which is critical for long-term projects. Once practitioners understand the main trade-offs included in academic research, they can supply valuable feedback to motivate new academic research. Novel research problems promote innovation in the use of traditional academic methods, which should result in a win-win situation: relevant solutions for practice and advances in academic knowledge. © 2013 The Author(s). Journal compilation © Overseas Development Institute, 2013.

The nature and impact of changes in home learning environment on development of language and academic skills in preschool children.

PubMed

Son, Seung-Hee; Morrison, Frederick J

2010-09-01

In this study, we examined changes in the early home learning environment as children approached school entry and whether these changes predicted the development of children's language and academic skills. Findings from a national sample of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N = 1,018) revealed an overall improvement in the home learning environment from 36 to 54 months of children's age, with 30.6% of parents of preschoolers displaying significant improvement in the home environment (i.e., changes greater than 1 SD) and with only 0.6% showing a decrease. More important, the degree of change uniquely contributed to the children's language but not to their academic skills. Home changes were more likely to be observed from mothers with more education and work hours and with fewer symptoms of depression.

Semantic language as a mechanism explaining the association between ADHD symptoms and reading and mathematics underachievement.

PubMed

Gremillion, Monica L; Martel, Michelle M

2012-11-01

ADHD is associated with academic underachievement, but it remains unclear what mechanism accounts for this association. Semantic language is an underexplored mechanism that provides a developmental explanation for this association. The present study will examine whether semantic language deficits explain the association between ADHD and reading and mathematics underachievement, taking into account alternative explanations for associations, including verbal working memory (WM) impairments, as well as specificity of effects to inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive ADHD symptom domains. Participants in this cross-sectional study were 546 children (54 % male) ages six to twelve (M = 9.77, SD = 1.49). ADHD symptoms were measured via maternal and teacher report during structured interviews and on standardized rating forms. Children completed standardized semantic language, verbal WM, and academic testing. Semantic language fully mediated the ADHD-reading achievement association and partially mediated the ADHD-mathematics achievement association. Verbal WM also partially mediated the ADHD-mathematics association but did not mediate the ADHD-reading achievement association. Results generalized across inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive ADHD symptom domains. Semantic language explained the association between ADHD and reading underachievement and partially explained the association between ADHD and mathematics underachievement. Together, language impairment and WM fully explained the association between ADHD and reading underachievement, in line with developmental models suggesting that language and WM conjointly influence the development of attention and subsequent academic achievement. This work has implication for the development of tailored interventions for academic underachievement in children with ADHD.

An Exploration of Planning for English-as-Foreign-Language (EFL) Academic Language Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Elizabeth

2012-01-01

This paper arises from a concern that in English-as-foreign-language (EFL) curricula there are apparently unsystematic and linguistically under-theorized approaches to language development. The paper explores EFL unit plans across upper primary and lower secondary schooling, in a context where secondary school graduates need English mainly for…

The Effects of Synchronous Text-Based Computer-Mediated Communication Tasks on the Development of L2 and Academic Literacy: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Jinrong

2012-01-01

The dissertation examines how synchronous text-based computer-mediated communication (SCMC) tasks may affect English as a Second Language (ESL) learners' development of second language (L2) and academic literacy. The study is motivated by two issues concerning the use of SCMC tasks in L2 writing classes. First, although some of the alleged…

English Language Learners in Canadian Schools: Emerging Directions for School-Based Policies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cummins, Jim; Mirza, Rania; Stille, Saskia

2012-01-01

This article attempts to provide ESL teachers, school administrators, and policymakers with a concise overview of what matters in promoting academic success among learners of English in Canadian schools. We review research focused on bilingual and biliteracy development, the nature of academic language, and the roles of societal power relations…

On the Relationship between Self-Concept and Literacy Development in the Spanish Heritage Language Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beaudrie, Sara M.

2018-01-01

Researchers have studied academic self-concept and its relationship to academic achievement extensively, but not in the Spanish heritage language context. Using measures of reading, writing, and spelling performance, I investigate the relation between self-concept and performance and whether self-concept can predict performance scores. I obtained…

Talking about Writing: Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Adolescents' Socialization into Academic Literacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilliland, Elizabeth A.

2012-01-01

This dissertation describes and analyzes the academic language socialization of culturally and linguistically diverse adolescents through a multi-case ethnographic study of high school writing instruction in California. I argue that there is a significant gap between the norms for writing in English language development classes and those in the…

Individual differences in fifth graders’ reading and language predict their comprehension monitoring development: An eye-movement study

PubMed Central

Connor, Carol McDonald; Radach, Ralph; Vorstius, Christian; Day, Stephanie L.; McLean, Leigh; Morrison, Frederick J.

2015-01-01

In this study, we investigated fifth-graders’ (n=52) fall literacy, academic language, and motivation, and how these skills predicted fall and spring comprehension monitoring on an eye movement task. Comprehension monitoring was defined as the identification and repair of misunderstandings when reading text. In the eye movement task, children read two sentences; the second included either a plausible or implausible word in the context of the first sentence. Stronger readers had shorter reading times overall suggesting faster processing of text. Generally fifth-graders reacted to the implausible word (i.e., longer gaze duration on the implausible v. the plausible word, which reflects lexical access). Students with stronger academic language, compared to those with weaker academic language, generally spent more time re-reading the implausible target compared to the plausible target. This difference increased from fall to spring. Results support the centrality of academic language for meaning integration, setting standards of coherence, and utilizing comprehension repair strategies. PMID:27065721

The Academic Spoken Word List

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dang, Thi Ngoc Yen; Coxhead, Averil; Webb, Stuart

2017-01-01

The linguistic features of academic spoken English are different from those of academic written English. Therefore, for this study, an Academic Spoken Word List (ASWL) was developed and validated to help second language (L2) learners enhance their comprehension of academic speech in English-medium universities. The ASWL contains 1,741 word…

Measuring Language Dominance and Bilingual Proficiency Development of Tarahumara Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paciotto, Carla

This paper examines the language dominance and oral bilingual proficiency of Tarahumara-Spanish speaking students from Chihuahua, Mexico, within the framework of Cummins' model of bilingual proficiency development. Cummins' model distinguishes between basic interpersonal communicative skills (BICS) and cognitive academic language proficiency…

Early Science Instruction and Academic Language Development Can Go Hand in Hand. The Promising Effects of a Low-Intensity Teacher-Focused Intervention

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henrichs, Lotte F.; Leseman, Paul P. M.

2014-11-01

Early science instruction is important in order to lay a firm basis for learning scientific concepts and scientific thinking. In addition, young children enjoy science. However, science plays only a minor role in the kindergarten curriculum. It has been reported that teachers feel they need to prioritize language and literacy practices over science. In this paper, we investigate whether science lessons might be integrated with learning the language functional for school: academic language. The occurrence of scientific reasoning and sophisticated vocabulary in brief science lessons with 5-year-olds is evaluated. The aim of the study was twofold: first, to explore the nature of kindergarten science discourse without any researcher directions (pre-intervention observation). Second, in a randomized control trial, we evaluated the effect on science discourse of a brief teacher training session focused on academic language awareness. The science lessons focussed on air pressure and mirror reflection. Analyses showed that teachers from the intervention group increased their use of scientific reasoning and of domain-specific academic words in their science discourse, compared to the control group. For the use of general academic words and for lexical diversity, the effect was task-specific: these dependent measures only increased during the air pressure task. Implications of the study include the need to increase teachers' awareness of possibilities to combine early science instruction and academic language learning.

Project LEAP: Learning English-for-Academic-Purposes. Training Manual Year Three.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snow, Marguerite Ann, Ed.

Project LEAP (Learning English-for-Academic-Purposes) is a three-year faculty development and supplemental instruction partnership to improve the academic literacy skills of native-born, immigrant, and international language minority students. This manual is the third set of faculty development materials produced by the project, presenting…

Theory to Practice: Cultivating Academic Language Proficiency in Developmental Reading Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neal, Heather N.

2015-01-01

Academic language plays a key role in reading comprehension, disciplinary thinking, and overall academic success. However, many approaches to teaching academic language, such as a focus on academic vocabulary, overlook other language features that can pose challenges for students. Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), arguably one of the three…

Teachers' Use of Linguistic Scaffolding to Support the Academic Language Development of First-Grade Emergent Bilingual Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lucero, Audrey

2014-01-01

Research suggests that teachers need to scaffold emergent bilingual students as they develop the complex language associated with school success. This may especially be true in dual language settings, where children are learning two languages simultaneously. In this study, therefore, I investigate the linguistic scaffolding practices of…

A method to develop vocabulary checklists in new languages and their validity to assess early language development.

PubMed

Prado, Elizabeth L; Phuka, John; Ocansey, Eugenia; Maleta, Kenneth; Ashorn, Per; Ashorn, Ulla; Adu-Afarwuah, Seth; Oaks, Brietta M; Lartey, Anna; Dewey, Kathryn G

2018-05-11

Since the adoption of United Nations' Sustainable Goal 4.2 to ensure that all children have access to quality early child development (ECD) so that they are ready for primary education, the demand for valid ECD assessments has increased in contexts where they do not yet exist. The development of early language ability is important for school readiness. Our objective was to evaluate the validity of a method to develop vocabulary checklists in new languages to assess early language development, based on the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories. Through asking mothers of young children what words their children say and through pilot testing, we developed 100-word vocabulary checklists in multilingual contexts in Malawi and Ghana. In Malawi, we evaluated the validity of the vocabulary checklist among 29 children age 17-25 months compared to three language measures assessed concurrently: Developmental Milestones Checklist-II (DMC-II) language scale, Malawi Developmental Assessment Tool (MDAT) language scale, and the number of different words (NDW) in 30-min recordings of spontaneous speech. In Ghana, we assessed the predictive validity of the vocabulary checklist at age 18 months to forecast language, pre-academic, and other skills at age 4-6 years among 869 children. We also compared the predictive validity of the vocabulary checklist scores to that of other developmental assessments administered at age 18 months. In Malawi, the Spearman's correlation of the vocabulary checklist score with DMC-II language was 0.46 (p = 0.049), with MDAT language was 0.66 (p = 0.016) and with NDW was 0.50 (p = 0.033). In Ghana, the 18-month vocabulary checklist score showed the strongest (rho = 0.12-0.26) and most consistent (8/12) associations with preschool scores, compared to the other 18-month assessments. The largest coefficients were the correlations of the 18-month vocabulary score with the preschool cognitive factor score (rho = 0.26), language score (0.25), and pre-academic score (0.24). We have demonstrated the validity of a method to develop vocabulary checklists in new languages, which can be used in multilingual contexts, using a feasible adaptation process requiring about 2 weeks. This is a promising method to assess early language development, which is associated with later preschool language, cognitive, and pre-academic skills.

The role of preschool teacher-child interactions in academic adjustment: An intervention study with Playing-2-gether.

PubMed

Van Craeyevelt, Sanne; Verschueren, Karine; Vancraeyveldt, Caroline; Wouters, Sofie; Colpin, Hilde

2017-09-01

Social relationships can serve as important risk or protective factors for child development in general, and academic adjustment in particular. This study investigated the role of teacher-child interactions in academic adjustment among preschool boys at risk of externalizing behaviour, using a randomized controlled trial study with Playing-2-gether (P2G), a 12-week indicated two-component intervention aimed at improving the affective quality of the teacher-child relationship and teacher behaviour management. In a sample of 175 preschool boys showing signs of externalizing behaviour (M age  = 4 years, 9 months, SD age  = 7 months) and their teachers, we investigated P2G effects on academic engagement as well as on language achievement. Academic engagement was rated by teachers at three occasions within one school year (T1 = pretest, T3 = post-test, and T2 = in-between intervention components). Language achievement was assessed by researchers at pre- and post-test, using a standardized test. Cross-lagged path analyses revealed a direct intervention effect of P2G on academic engagement at Time 2. In addition, a significant indirect intervention effect was found on academic engagement at Time 3 through academic engagement at Time 2. Finally, academic engagement at Time 2 was found to predict language achievement at post-test. A marginally significant indirect intervention effect was found on language achievement at Time 3, through academic engagement at Time 2. This intervention study suggests that teacher-child interactions predict academic engagement over time, which in turn improves language achievement among preschool boys at risk of externalizing behaviour. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.

Cultivating Bilingual Learners' Language Arts Knowledge: A Framework for Successful Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Almaguer, Isela; Esquierdo, J. Joy

2013-01-01

It is essential to support bilingual learners' language and academic development; however, teaching second language learners English has taken precedence over teaching content area knowledge and vocabulary, specifically for language arts. The focus has shifted from content area instruction to primarily second language instruction due to an…

Accelerating Literacy for Diverse Learners: Classroom Strategies That Integrate Social/Emotional Engagement and Academic Achievement, K-8. Second Edition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herrera, Socorro G.; Kavimandan, Shabina K.; Perez, Della R.; Wessels, Stephanie

2017-01-01

Research indicates that the culturally responsive teaching strategies outlined in this book accelerate literacy, language development, and academic growth for students in grades K-8, particularly for English language learners. Completely revised and updated, this bestselling resource speaks to the social-emotional needs of learners and helps…

Foreign Language Professional Communicative Competence as a Component of the Academic Science Teacher's Professional Competence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valeeva, Roza A.; Baykova, Olga V.; Kusainov, Askarbek K.

2016-01-01

The urgency of the problem raised in the article is explained by the increasing demand for qualified specialists who have a good command of a foreign language. The communicative competence of an academic science teacher under the conditions of international cooperation development is of great importance. The article discusses the problem of…

Developing a University Learning Community of Critical Readers and Writers: The Story of a Liberal Arts and IEP Partnership

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ernst, Beth Kozbial; Wonder, Kelly; Adler, Julie

2016-01-01

Integrating English language learners into the academic mainstream is a critically important goal. For students who are learning content in their second or third language as well as negotiating the university's social context, integrating into the mainstream academic environment can be challenging. Instructors at a public university intensive…

Negotiating Grammatical Choices: Academic Language Learning by Secondary ESL Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shin, Sarah J.

2009-01-01

This paper reports on a part of a year-long investigation into high school ESL students' academic language development. Eight participants were pulled out of their intermediate ESL class for weekly 50-minute sessions with the author for a year. While the main focus of the sessions was reading news magazine articles for meaning, the author…

Individual Differences in Fifth Graders' Literacy and Academic Language Predict Comprehension Monitoring Development: An Eye-Movement Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Connor, Carol McDonald; Radach, Ralph; Vorstius, Christian; Day, Stephanie L.; McLean, Leigh; Morrison, Frederick J.

2015-01-01

In this study, we investigated fifth graders' (n = 52) fall literacy, academic language, and motivation and how these skills predicted fall and spring comprehension monitoring on an eye movement task. Comprehension monitoring was defined as the identification and repair of misunderstandings when reading text. In the eye movement task, children…

How Elementary Pre-Service Teachers Acquire Pedagogical Language Knowledge for Supporting English Learners' Academic Language Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harmon, Lois

2017-01-01

Increasingly large populations of English Learners (ELs) attend public schools within the US and teachers are held accountable for the academic performance of these students. Unfortunately, multiple studies have concluded that teachers graduating from teacher education programs are not equipped with the competencies to clearly identify the…

The Effect of Visual Variability on the Learning of Academic Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bourgoyne, Ashley; Alt, Mary

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify effects of variability of visual input on development of conceptual representations of academic concepts for college-age students with normal language (NL) and those with language-learning disabilities (LLD). Method: Students with NL (n = 11) and LLD (n = 11) participated in a computer-based…

Causal Connections between Mathematical Language and Mathematical Knowledge: A Dialogic Reading Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purpura, David J.; Napoli, Amy R.; Wehrspann, Elizabeth A.; Gold, Zachary S.

2017-01-01

The acquisition of early mathematical knowledge is critical for successful long-term academic development. Mathematical language is one of the strongest predictors of children's early mathematical success. Findings from previous studies have provided correlational evidence supporting the importance of mathematical language to the development of…

Collaborative Writing to Enhance Academic Writing Development through Project Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robayo Lun, Alma Milena; Hernandez Ortiz, Luz Stella

2013-01-01

Advanced students at university level struggle with many aspects of academic writing in English as a foreign language. The purpose of this article is to report on an investigation aimed at analyzing what collaborative writing through project work tells us about students' academic writing development at the tertiary level. The compositions written…

Academic Biliteracies: Multilingual Repertoires in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palfreyman, David M., Ed.; van der Walt, Christa, Ed.

2017-01-01

Research on academic literacy within higher education has focused almost exclusively on the development of academic literacy in English. This book is unique in showing how students use other languages when they engage with written academic content--whether in reading, discussing, or writing--and how increasingly multilingual higher education…

Talk Like a Scientist! Simple "Frames" to Scaffold the Language of Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoffman, Lisa

2013-01-01

This article shares a teaching strategy for science teachers to use when supporting language development among English language learners. Students from other language backgrounds who are learning English need to learn both grade-level academic content and the language necessary to express scientific concepts. However, most science teachers are not…

The Language of Language: An Interdisciplinary Approach To Language Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mann, Jesse Thomas

1993-01-01

The study of language in general and the study of foreign languages in particular have attracted new interest in academic circles during the past decade. The concepts of the "global village" and "cultural diversity" have become commonplace in the jargon of the 1990s. The development of two new courses at Westminster College…

Cultural Dimensions of Feedback at an Australian University: A Study of International Students with English as an Additional Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warner, Richard; Miller, Julia

2015-01-01

International students with English as an additional language face transitional challenges when entering a new academic culture. One such challenge involves optimising feedback to help foster their academic development, bearing in mind that feedback is not a culturally neutral entity (Nazif, A., Biswas, D., & Hilbig, R. (2004-2005). Towards an…

An academic writing needs assessment of English-as-a-second-language clinical investigators.

PubMed

Wang, Min-Fen; Bakken, Lori L

2004-01-01

Academic writing for publication is competitive and demanding for researchers. For the novice English-as-a-second-language (ESL) researcher, the pressure to publish compounds the difficulties of mastering the English language. Very few studies have used ESL graduate and post-graduate students as academic writing research subjects. The purpose of this project was to assess the learning needs of ESL clinical investigators regarding academic writing for English scholarly publication. A qualitative evaluation approach was used to examine the gap between the current and desired proficiency level for the academic writing of ESL clinical investigators. We considered the perspectives of seven ESL clinical investigators plus three mentors and three writing instructors. Semi-structured questions were asked. Field notes were organized using a field-work recording system. They were analyzed using the constant comparative method. ESL clinical investigators do not accurately perceive their writing deficiencies. They have little knowledge of criteria for academic writing and they are influenced by their prior English learning experiences in their home culture, which engender passive attitudes toward seeking appropriate writing resources. Adequate time is especially needed to develop successful writing skills. Four basic steps are recommended to guide program planners in developing ESL writing activities for professional learning: (1) recognize discrepancies, (2) establish clear standards and performance criteria for scholarly writing, (3) develop individual plans, and (4) organize long-term writing assistance.

Content and Language Integrated Learning and the inclusion of immigrant minority language students: A research review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Somers, Thomas

2017-08-01

This article addresses the inclusion of immigrant minority language students in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) bilingual education programmes. It reviews results of research on (1) the reasons, beliefs and attitudes underlying immigrant minority language parents' and students' choice for CLIL programmes; (2) these students' proficiency in the languages of instruction and their academic achievement; and (3) the effects of first language typology on their second and third language proficiency. The author explores conditions and reasons for the effectiveness of CLIL pedagogy, as well as the comparative suitability of CLIL programmes for immigrant minority language students. The review shows that CLIL programmes provide a means to acquire important linguistic, economic and symbolic capital in order to effect upward social mobility. Findings demonstrate that immigrant minority language students enrolled in CLIL programmes are able to develop equal or superior levels of proficiency in both languages of instruction compared to majority language students; with previous development of first language literacy positively impacting academic language development. CLIL programmes are found to offer immigrant minority language students educational opportunities and effective pedagogical support which existing mainstream monolingual and minority bilingual education programmes may not always be able to provide. In light of these findings, the author discusses shortcomings in current educational policy. The article concludes with recommendations for further research.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

Developing Professional-Level Language Proficiency.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leaver, Betty Lou, Ed.; Shekhtman, Boris, Ed.

This collection of papers examines approaches to teaching near-native ability in foreign languages. The 13 papers focus on the following: (1) "Principles and Practices in Teaching Superior-Level Language Skills: Not Just More of the Same" (Betty Lou Leaver and Boris Shekhtman); (2) "Toward Academic Level Foreign Language Abilities:…

Factors Underlying Second Language Reading Motivation of Adult EAP Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Komiyama, Reiko

2013-01-01

Characteristics of English for Academic Purposes students' second language (L2) motivation were examined by identifying underlying motivational factors. Using the motivation constructs created by first language reading researchers, a survey was developed and administered to 2,018 students from 53 English language programs in the U.S. Survey…

The Impact of Teacher Responsivity Education on Preschoolers' Language and Literacy Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cabell, Sonia Q.; Justice, Laura M.; Piasta, Shayne B.; Curenton, Stephanie M.; Wiggins, Alice; Turnbull, Khara Pence; Petscher, Yaacov

2011-01-01

Purpose: This study examined the extent to which teacher responsivity education affected preschoolers' language and literacy development over an academic year. Additional aims were to determine whether children's initial language abilities and teachers' use of responsivity strategies were associated with language outcomes, in particular. Method:…

Balancing Content & Language in the English Language Development Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reynolds-Young, Danielle; Hood, Sally

2014-01-01

Although course assignments require English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher candidates to design activities, performance assessments, and lessons that balance the teaching of the English language and academic content, the ESL teacher candidates remain perplexed as to how to teach without a prescribed curriculum. The answer is challenging, given…

Knowing English is Not Enough! Cultivating Academic Literacies among High School Newcomers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franquiz, Maria E.; Salinas, Cinthia

2013-01-01

Secondary school teachers face remarkable challenges when they are asked to incorporate language objectives because the traditional approach to the education of English Language Learners (ELL) separates English language development from content instruction. The underlying assumption is that English language proficiency is a prerequisite for…

Multilingual Faculty across Academic Disciplines: Language Difference in Scholarship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavazos, Alyssa G.

2015-01-01

Due to the dominance of the English language in scholarship, multilingual academics often encounter challenges in achieving academic biliteracy and identifying successful language negotiation practices in academia. Through personal interviews with self-identified multilingual academics across academic disciplines, this paper explores how they…

Workplace Influences on Chinese TEFL Academics' Development as Researchers: A Study of Two Chinese Higher Education Institutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bai, Li; Millwater, Jan; Hudson, Peter

2013-01-01

Workplace influences on Chinese Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) academics' development as researchers were examined in two Chinese higher education institutions in this qualitative collective case study. Data sources included research documentation and interviews with 12 Chinese TEFL academics. Both institutions were keen on research…

The Effectiveness of Training Program Based on the Six Hats Model in Developing Creative Thinking Skills and Academic Achievements in the Arabic Language Course for Gifted and Talented Jordanian Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ziadat, Ayed H.; Al Ziyadat, Mohammad T.

2016-01-01

The main purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a training program based on the six hats model in developing creative thinking skills and academic achievements in the Arabic language for gifted and talented Jordanian students. The study sample consisted of 59 gifted male and female students of the 7th grade from King Abdullah…

Critical Thinking through Writing: Expressing Scientific Thought and Process in a Deaf Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manjarrez, Leslie

Within Deaf classrooms there is often a disconnect between academic areas and writing curriculums that develop in both common and academic language, where often classrooms focus solely on writing as a skill rather than as a method for producing language through an academic area. This work focuses on the development of academic language in ASL and English print of science. The curriculum is written to be implemented as a bilingual academic curriculum to support Deaf and Hard of Hearing students in various self contained classroom settings. Lessons are conducted in three Units, A B and C. Unit A focuses on research, thought and writing of preparatory materials in small groups. Unit B is comprised of procedural lessons on conducting x experiments and the evaluation of those experiments through mathematics. Unit C is a group of lessons that ties together Units A and B through writing and peer teaching as a method of concluding the work and presenting information in an effective manner. The success of the project was evaluated on the basis of student work, rubrics, and final works from the students. The results showed promise in aspects of Critical Thinking, writing development, and expression of new concepts in both ASL and English.

The Impact of an Instructional Intervention on the Science and Language Learning of Middle Grade English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

August, Diane; Branum-Martin, Lee; Cardenas-Hagan, Elsa; Francis, David

2010-01-01

The goal of this study was to assess the effectiveness of an intervention--Quality English and Science Teaching (QuEST)--designed to develop the science knowledge and academic language of middle grades English language learners studying science in their second language and their English-proficient classmates. Both English language learners and…

Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Muscular Strength as Mediators of the Influence of Fatness on Academic Achievement.

PubMed

García-Hermoso, Antonio; Esteban-Cornejo, Irene; Olloquequi, Jordi; Ramírez-Vélez, Robinson

2017-08-01

To examine the combined association of fatness and physical fitness components (cardiorespiratory fitness [CRF] and muscular strength) with academic achievement, and to determine whether CRF and muscular strength are mediators of the association between fatness and academic achievement in a nationally representative sample of adolescents from Chile. Data were obtained for a sample of 36 870 adolescents (mean age, 13.8 years; 55.2% boys) from the Chilean System for the Assessment of Educational Quality test for eighth grade in 2011, 2013, and 2014. Physical fitness tests included CRF (20-m shuttle run) and muscular strength (standing long jump). Weight, height, and waist circumference were assessed, and body mass index and waist circumference-to-height ratio were calculated. Academic achievement in language and mathematics was assessed using standardized tests. The PROCESS script developed by Hayes was used for mediation analysis. Compared with unfit and high-fatness adolescents, fit and low-fatness adolescents had significantly higher odds for attaining high academic achievement in language and mathematics. However, in language, unfit and low-fatness adolescents did not have significantly higher odds for obtaining high academic achievement. Those with high fatness had higher academic achievement (both language and mathematics) if they were fit. Linear regression models suggest a partial or full mediation of physical fitness in the association of fatness variables with academic achievement. CRF and muscular strength may attenuate or even counteract the adverse influence of fatness on academic achievement in adolescents. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Typology of Tasks for Mobile-Assisted Language Learning: Recommendations from a Small-Scale Needs Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Moonyoung; Slater, Tammy

2014-01-01

In response to the research priorities of members of TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages), this study investigated language learners' realworld tasks in mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) to inform the future development of pedagogic tasks for academic English as a second language (ESL) courses. The data included…

Drawing on Students' Experiences, Cultures and Languages to Develop English Language Writing: Perspectives from Three Lao Heritage Middle School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Souryasack, Rassamichanh; Lee, Jin Sook

2007-01-01

Lao students have not fared well in the American educational system. Raised in a home culture that emphasizes and values the oral tradition, the acquisition of academic writing skills has been especially problematic even for U.S.-born students of Lao heritage. Recognizing that writing is a critical component for academic success, this study…

Academic language and the challenge of reading for learning about science.

PubMed

Snow, Catherine E

2010-04-23

A major challenge to students learning science is the academic language in which science is written. Academic language is designed to be concise, precise, and authoritative. To achieve these goals, it uses sophisticated words and complex grammatical constructions that can disrupt reading comprehension and block learning. Students need help in learning academic vocabulary and how to process academic language if they are to become independent learners of science.

The Relationship between Mathematics and Language: Academic Implications for Children with Specific Language Impairment and English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alt, Mary; Arizmendi, Genesis D.; Beal, Carole R.

2014-01-01

Purpose: The present study examined the relationship between mathematics and language to better understand the nature of the deficit and the academic implications associated with specific language impairment (SLI) and academic implications for English language learners (ELLs). Method: School-age children (N = 61; 20 SLI, 20 ELL, 21 native…

Academic Language Socialization in High School Writing Conferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilliland, Betsy

2014-01-01

This study examines multilingual high school writers' individual talk with their teachers in two advanced English language development classes to observe how such talk shapes linguistically diverse adolescents' writing. Addressing adolescent writers' language socialization through microethnographic discourse analysis, the author argues that…

Using Educative Assessments to Support Science Teaching for Middle School English-language Learners

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buxton, Cory A.; Allexsaht-Snider, Martha; Suriel, Regina; Kayumova, Shakhnoza; Choi, Youn-jeng; Bouton, Bobette; Baker, Melissa

2013-03-01

Grounded in Hallidayan perspectives on academic language, we report on our development of an educative science assessment as one component of the language-rich inquiry science for English-language learners teacher professional learning project for middle school science teachers. The project emphasizes the role of content-area writing to support teachers in diagnosing their students' emergent understandings of science inquiry practices, science content knowledge, and the academic language of science, with a particular focus on the needs of English-language learners. In our current school policy context, writing for meaningful purposes has received decreased attention as teachers struggle to cover large numbers of discrete content standards. Additionally, high-stakes assessments presented in multiple-choice format have become the definitive measure of student science learning, further de-emphasizing the value of academic writing for developing and expressing understanding. To counter these trends, we examine the implementation of educative assessment materials—writing-rich assessments designed to support teachers' instructional decision making. We report on the qualities of our educative assessment that supported teachers in diagnosing their students' emergent understandings, and how teacher-researcher collaborative scoring sessions and interpretation of assessment results led to changes in teachers' instructional decision making to better support students in expressing their scientific understandings. We conclude with implications of this work for theory, research, and practice.

An Intensive Academic English Course for Generation 1.5 ELLs Bound for Postsecondary Studies: Curriculum Design, Development, and Implementation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crossman, Katie; Pinchbeck, Geoffrey

2012-01-01

Immigrants and the children of immigrants who have completed their schooling in Canadian school settings, commonly referred to as Generation 1.5, are increasingly identified in the research literature as academically at risk due to inadequately developed academic language proficiency and learning strategies. This article describes the design,…

Effective Strategies for Developing Academic English: Professional Development and Teacher Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowers, Erica; Fitts, Shanan; Quirk, Mathew; Jung, Woo

2010-01-01

The development of academic English and advanced literacy is crucial for student success, especially for English language learners. In this study, researchers used a survey to investigate which instructional strategies 108 fourth- and fifth-grade teachers learned in professional development and found to be effective for providing English learners…

The Role of Technology in Teaching Languages for Specific Purposes Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arno-Macia, Elisabet

2012-01-01

Within the integration of technology into language education, special attention needs to be paid to languages for specific purposes (LSP), drawing on developments in computer-assisted language learning and applied linguistics, on the one hand, and on the pervasive use of technology in academic and professional communication, on the other. From a…

Using Educative Assessments to Support Science Teaching for Middle School English-Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buxton, Cory A.; Allexsaht-Snider, Martha; Suriel, Regina; Kayumova, Shakhnoza; Choi, Youn-jeng; Bouton, Bobette; Baker, Melissa

2013-01-01

Grounded in Hallidayan perspectives on academic language, we report on our development of an educative science assessment as one component of the language-rich inquiry science for English-language learners teacher professional learning project for middle school science teachers. The project emphasizes the role of content-area writing to support…

Bridging English Language Learner Achievement Gaps through Effective Vocabulary Development Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gibson, Charles

2016-01-01

Despite a well-documented history of immigration in the United States of America and rise in population of students that speak a language other than English, academic achievement gaps between English Language Learners and their native English language speaking counterparts from Grades Pre-Kindergarten through the college/university level still…

The Language of Ideas and the Language of Display: Reconceptualizing "Academic Language" in Linguistically Diverse Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bunch, George C.

2014-01-01

Introducing a distinction between language of ideas and language of display as a means of reconceptualizing what counts as "academic" language, I examine one brief stretch of talk by a small group of linguistically diverse 7th grade students in a U.S. mainstream social studies classroom designed to maximize academic and language…

Teaching and Learning the Language of Science: A Case Study of Academic Language Acquisition in a Dual Language Middle School

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gose, Robin Margaretha

English language learners (EL) are the fastest growing sub-group of the student population in California, yet ELs also score the lowest on the science section of the California Standardized Tests. In the area of bilingual education, California has dramatically changed its approach to English learners since the passage of Proposition 227 in 1998, which called for most EL instruction to be conducted in English (Cummins, 2000; Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2008). In reality, this means that EL students are often placed in programs that focus on basic language skills rather than rigorous content, meaning that they are not getting access to grade level science content (Lee & Fradd, 1998). As a result, many EL students exit eighth grade without a strong foundation in science, and they continue to score below their English-speaking peers on standardized achievements. While the usefulness of the academic language construct remains controversial (Bailey, 2012), the language used in science instruction is nevertheless often unfamiliar to both EL and English proficient students. The discourse is frequently specialized for discipline-specific interactions and activities (Bailey, 2007; Lemke, 1990). This qualitative case study examined academic language instruction in three middle school science classrooms at a dual language charter school. The goal was to understand how teachers integrate academic language and content for linguistically diverse students. The findings fom this study indicate that targeting language instruction in isolation from science content instruction prohibits students from engaging in the "doing of science" and scientific discourse, or the ability to think, reason, and communicate about science. The recommendations of this study support authentically embedding language development into rigorous science instruction in order to maximize opportunities for learning in both domains.

Language Use in Kindergarten Science Lessons: Language Production and Academic Language during a Video Feedback Coaching Intervention in Kindergarten Science Lessons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Menninga, Astrid; van Dijk, Marijn; Wetzels, Annemie; Steenbeek, Henderien; van Geert, Paul

2017-01-01

This paper aims to gain insight into language production and academic language of 4- and 5-year-old students and their teachers in the course of a teacher intervention during kindergarten science education. The study is based on videotaped classroom observations, and specifically focuses on the academic language use of students (N[subscript…

Academic Language in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Constantinou, Phoebe

2015-01-01

This article focuses on defining academic language in physical education and provides a step-by-step approach designed to help preservice and inservice teachers understand and incorporated academic language into their lesson planning. It provides examples of discipline-specific vocabulary, language functions, syntax, and discourse, aiming to…

An Examination of the Special Education Teacher Training Programs in Turkey and European Union Member Countries in Terms of Language Development and Communication Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akmese, Pelin Pistav; Kayhan, Nilay

2016-01-01

The academic terms and the periods of the courses related to the language development and communication differs considerably in the programs of the countries which train teachers for the special education department. The aim of this study is to examine the contents and credits of the communication and the language development courses in Teacher…

Assessing Reading Strategies of Engineering Students: Think Aloud Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nalliveettil, George Mathew

2014-01-01

Literacy in reading and understanding printed words is significant for all undergraduate students to succeed in their academic career. Developments in digital technology improved the quality of academic texts in terms of design, format and layout. Further, availability of academic related English language resources in electronic versions gave…

How Does Ethics Institutionalization Reduce Academic Cheating?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Popoola, Ifeoluwa; Garner, Bart; Ammeter, Anthony; Krey, Nina; Beu Ammeter, Danielle; Schafer, Stuart

2017-01-01

Extant research on academic cheating primarily focuses on the impact of honor codes on academic cheating. However, the influence of ethics institutionalization is curiously missing in past research. The authors developed and validated a structural equations model in the R programming language to examine the impact of formal (explicit) and informal…

An Analysis of Academic Library Web Pages for Faculty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gardner, Susan J.; Juricek, John Eric; Xu, F. Grace

2008-01-01

Web sites are increasingly used by academic libraries to promote key services and collections to teaching faculty. This study analyzes the content, location, language, and technological features of fifty-four academic library Web pages designed especially for faculty to expose patterns in the development of these pages.

A Small-Scale, Feasibility Study of Academic Language Time in Primary Grade Language Arts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roskos, Kathleen A.; Zuzolo, Nicole; Primm, Ashley

2017-01-01

A small-scale feasibility study was conducted to explore the implementation of academic language time (ALT) in primary grade classrooms with and without access to digital devices. Academic language time is a structural change that dedicates a portion of language arts instructional time to direct vocabulary instruction using evidence-based…

Helping ELLs Meet Standards in English Language Arts and Science: An Intervention Focused on Academic Vocabulary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

August, Diane; Artzi, Lauren; Barr, Christopher

2016-01-01

The Common Core State Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards require students to understand and produce academic language that appears in informational text. Vocabulary is a critical domain of academic language, but English language learners (ELLs) come to the English Language Arts classroom with more limited English vocabulary than…

Second Language Instructional Competence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rolstad, Kellie

2017-01-01

Recent developments in education policy in the USA have focused attention on language and literacy, especially for bilingual learners, in US schools. More specifically, these efforts, prominently related to the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), focus on the development of "academic English" for immigrant students.…

Constructing Culturally Relevant Pedagogy in Chinese Heritage Language Classrooms: A Multiple-Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Hsu-Pai

2011-01-01

Culturally relevant pedagogy uses cultural references to develop students' knowledge and identities thereby empowering them academically, socially and politically. This article examined how four Chinese heritage languages teachers constructed culturally relevant pedagogy in their language instructions. Qualitative cross-case analysis indicated…

A Comparison of Career Technical Education--16 Career Pathway High School Participants with Non-Participants on Academic Achievement, School Engagement, and Development of Technical Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Orozco, Edith Aimee

2010-01-01

The objective of this research was to compare Career Technical Education--16 Career Pathway high school participants with non-participants on academic achievement, development of technical skills and school engagement. Academic achievement was measured by Exit Level Math and English Language Arts Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS)…

Sources of Difficulty in the Processing of Written Language. Report Series 4.3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chafe, Wallace

Ease of language processing varies with the nature of the language involved. Ordinary spoken language is the easiest kind to produce and understand, while writing is a relatively new development. On thoughtful inspection, the readability of writing has shown itself to be a complex topic requiring insights from many academic disciplines and…

Reading, Writing and Linguistics Areas in French as a Foreign Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erkan, Senem Seda Sahenk

2017-01-01

Globalization and technological developments have caused several students to start their academic careers with the challenge of mastering at least two languages. The purpose of this study is to examine the importance of reading, linguistics, and writing areas in French as a Foreign language (FFL) at the A2 (Waystage) language level. This study was…

Preparing English as a Second Language Students for College Level Math

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valenzuela, Hector

2014-01-01

In a diverse classroom, there are students who are in need of both mathematics and English as a second language instruction. One of the challenges faced at Lake Washington Institute of Technology (LWIT) was the development of a pathway for English language learners into core academic courses at the college. In addition, English language learners…

The Impact of an Instructional Intervention on the Science and Language Learning of Middle Grade English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

August, Diane; Branum-Martin, Lee; Cardenas-Hagan, Elsa; Francis, David J.

2009-01-01

The goal of this study was to assess the effectiveness of an intervention--Quality English and Science Teaching (QuEST)--designed to develop the science knowledge and academic language of middle grades English language learners studying science in their second language and their English-proficient classmates. Ten sixth-grade science teachers in 5…

Academic Language in Early Childhood Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnes, Erica M.; Grifenhagen, Jill F.; Dickinson, David K.

2016-01-01

This article defines academic language by examining the central features of vocabulary, syntax, and discourse function. Examples of each feature are provided, as well as methods of identifying them in oral language and printed text. We describe a yearlong study that found teachers used different types of academic language based on instructional…

Latina/os in Rhetoric and Composition: Learning from Their Experiences with Language Diversity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavazos, Alyssa Guadalupe

2012-01-01

"Latina/os in Rhetoric and Composition: Learning from their Experiences with Language Diversity" explores how Latina/o academics' experiences with language difference contributes to their Latina/o academic identity and success in academe while remaining connected to their heritage language and cultural background. Using qualitative…

Developmental Diversity in the Academic Language-Learning Experiences of Adult English as a Second or Other Language Learners: A Constructive-Developmental Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ouellette-Schramm, Jennifer R.

2016-01-01

Academic language is a challenging yet increasingly important skill for Adult Basic Education/English as a Second or Other Language learners. Related to academic language learning is an adult's developmental perspective. Developmental perspectives have been shown to vary in adulthood and shape qualitatively distinct ways of reasoning and learning…

Adult Psychosocial Outcomes of Children with Specific Language Impairment, Pragmatic Language Impairment and Autism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitehouse, Andrew J. O.; Watt, Helen J.; Line, E. A.; Bishop, Dorothy V. M.

2009-01-01

Background: The few studies that have tracked children with developmental language disorder to adulthood have found that these individuals experience considerable difficulties with psychosocial adjustment (for example, academic, vocational and social aptitude). Evidence that some children also develop autistic symptomatology over time has raised…

Secondary School Students' Reading Anxiety in a Second Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ismail, Sadiq Abdulwahed Ahmed

2015-01-01

Developing an appropriate competence in reading in English as a second language is a key factor for subsequent academic success. This study investigated second language reading anxiety of secondary school students. A questionnaire was distributed to 72 female students and focus-group interviews were conducted with 19 volunteer students. Overall…

Developing the Scholar's Ethos in Minority High School Students: The Vital Link to Academic Achievement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welch, Olga M.; And Others

1989-01-01

Describes Project Austin-East EXCEL, a pilot college preparatory program for inner-city minority high school students in Knoxville (Tennessee). Develops an "academic ethos" through the following components: (1) reading, writing, and foreign language program; (2) "demystification" of the college experience; and (3) career…

Effect of Hypertextual Reading on Academic Success and Comprehension Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durukan, Erhan

2014-01-01

As computer technology developed, hypertexts emerged as an influential environment for developing language skills. This study aims to evaluate a text prepared in a hypertextual environment and its effects on academic success and comprehension skills. In this study, "preliminary test final test control group experimental pattern" was used…

Use of internet technologies for students' communicative competence development in the process of professional foreign language study in technical universities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khasanova, A. N.

2017-01-01

Problems of mature thinking formation and development of foreign-language professional communicative competence of competitive graduates of technical universities are considered in the article. The most important factors influencing the achievement of high standard of knowledge, students' abilities and skills and increase of their abilities to establish deep meta-subject connections due to Internet technologies in the course of professional foreign language training are analyzed. The article is written on the basis of project material "Network School of National Research Nuclear University MEPhI" aimed at optimization of technological aspect of training. The given academic on-line program assigns to the teacher a part of an organizer who only coordinates creative, academic students' activity.

The Effectiveness of the Peabody Language Development Kits and the Initial Teaching Alphabet with Disadvantaged Children in the Primary Grades: After Two Years.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dunn, Lloyd M.; And Others

This Cooperative Language Development Project had two objectives: (1) to provide a modified language program for culturally disadvantaged first graders and (2) to evaluate the effectiveness of the program in terms of academic, intellectual, and linguistic growth. In a 2-year intervention program experimental versions of the Peabody Language…

Six principles of language development: implications for second language learners.

PubMed

Konishi, Haruka; Kanero, Junko; Freeman, Max R; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy

2014-01-01

The number of children growing up in dual language environments is increasing in the United States. Despite the apparent benefits of speaking two languages, children learning English as a second language (ESL) often face struggles, as they may experience poverty and impoverished language input at home. Early exposure to a rich language environment is crucial for ESL children's academic success. This article explores how six evidenced-based principles of language learning can be used to provide support for ESL children.

Social, emotional, and behavioral functioning of secondary school students with low academic and language performance: perspectives from students, teachers, and parents.

PubMed

Joffe, Victoria L; Black, Emma

2012-10-01

Adolescence is a time of transition when young people with language difficulties are at increased risk of experiencing social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties (SEBD). Most studies of social, emotional, and behavioral functioning (SEBF) in individuals with language difficulties focus on children with a clinical diagnosis of language impairment. This study explores SEBF in a nonclinical group of 12-year-old students with low educational and language performance from their own perspectives and those of their parents and teachers. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire ( Goodman, 1997) was given to 352 mainstream secondary school students who were underperforming academically and had poor language performance. Two hundred and twenty-five of their parents and 230 of their teachers also completed the questionnaire. Students with low educational attainment and poor language showed significantly greater SEBD than a normative sample as reported by themselves, their parents, and their teachers. Significant differences were found across informants, with students identifying more overall difficulties than parents or teachers. Secondary school students with low academic and language performance are more vulnerable to experiencing SEBD compared to typically developing peers. The extent of their difficulties varied depending on the informant, emphasizing the importance of gaining views from multiple perspectives.

Examining Academic Writing Motivation of Prospective Indonesian Language Teachers Using Exploratory Factor Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Surastina; Dedi, Fransisca S. O.

2018-01-01

Motivation determines students' success in academic writing. The current study adopted 28 items of the academic writing motivation questionnaire by Payne (2012) translated into Indonesian language to explore students' motivation in academic writing. This study involved 120 prospective Indonesian language teachers at STKIP PGRI Bandar Lampung that…

Core Academic Language Skills: Moving beyond Vocabulary Knowledge to Predict Reading Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uccelli, Paola; Galloway, Emily Phillips; Kim, Ha Yeon; Barr, Christopher D.

2015-01-01

Despite a longstanding awareness of academic language as a pedagogically-relevant research area, the construct of academic language proficiency--understood as a more comprehensive set of skills than just academic vocabulary--has remained only vaguely specified. This study examines the potential--for both research and practice--of a more inclusive…

Investigating Correspondence between Language Proficiency Standards and Academic Content Standards: A Generalizability Theory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Chih-Kai; Zhang, Jinming

2014-01-01

Research on the relationship between English language proficiency standards and academic content standards serves to provide information about the extent to which English language learners (ELLs) are expected to encounter academic language use that facilitates their content learning, such as in mathematics and science. Standards-to-standards…

"Words that Hold Us up": Teacher Talk and Academic Language in Five Upper Elementary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ernst-Slavit, Gisela; Mason, Michele R.

2011-01-01

This study investigates the oral academic language used by English as a second language prepared teachers during content area instruction in five upper elementary classrooms in the United States. Using ethnographic and sociolinguistic perspectives the authors examine the oral, academic language exposure students received from their teachers during…

Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth. Executive Summary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

August, Diane, Ed.; Shanahan, Timothy, Ed.

2006-01-01

Teaching language-minority students to read and write well in English is an urgent challenge in the nation's K-12 schools. Literacy in English is essential to achievement in every academic subject-and to educational and economic opportunities beyond schooling. Compounding this challenge are increasing numbers and diversity of language-minority…

Within- and Cross-Language Relations between Oral Language Proficiency and School Outcomes in Bilingual Children with an Immigrant Background

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prevoo, Mariëlle J. L.; Malda, Maike; Mesman, Judi; van IJzendoorn, Marinus H.

2016-01-01

Sixteen meta-analyses were conducted to examine relations of typically developing bilingual immigrant-background children's oral language proficiency in their first and second language with the school outcomes of early literacy (k = 41), reading (k = 61), spelling (k = 9), mathematics (k = 9), and academic achievement (k = 9). Moderate to strong…

Developing Independent Listening Skills for English as an Additional Language Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Picard, Michelle; Velautham, Lalitha

2016-01-01

This paper describes an action research project to develop online, self-access listening resources mirroring the authentic academic contexts experienced by graduate university students. Current listening materials for English as an Additional Language (EAL) students mainly use Standard American English or Standard British pronunciation, and far…

Curriculum Guide for the Educable Mentally Handicapped.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

South Carolina State Dept. of Education, Columbia. Div. of Instruction.

Focusing on the general objectives of emotional, social, and academic development, and economic and physical growth, five areas of curriculum are described. The area of language arts includes motor, oral sensory development in readiness, habits and attitudes, reading, writing, spelling, and language. Arithmetic instruction is divided into primary,…

Promoting the development of resilient academic functioning in maltreated children.

PubMed

Holmes, Megan R; Yoon, Susan; Berg, Kristen A; Cage, Jamie L; Perzynski, Adam T

2018-01-01

This study examined (a) the extent of heterogeneity in the patterns of developmental trajectories of language development and academic functioning in children who have experienced maltreatment, (b) how maltreatment type (i.e., neglect or physical abuse) and timing of abuse explained variation in developmental trajectories, and (c) the extent to which individual protective factors (i.e., preschool attendance, prosocial skills), relationship protective factors (i.e., parental warmth, absence of past-year depressive episode, cognitive/verbal responsiveness) and community protective factors (i.e., neighborhood safety) promoted the development of resilient language/academic functioning trajectories. Longitudinal data analyses were conducted using cohort sequential Growth Mixture Model (CS-GMM) with a United States national representative sample of children reported to Child Protective Services (n=1,776). Five distinct developmental trajectories from birth to age 10 were identified including two resilient groups. Children who were neglected during infancy/toddlerhood or physically abused during preschool age were more likely to be in the poorer language/academic functioning groups (decreasing/recovery/decreasing and high decreasing) than the resilient high stable group. Child prosocial skills, caregiver warmth, and caregiver cognitive stimulation significantly predicted membership in the two resilient academic functioning groups (low increasing and high stable), after controlling for demographics and child physical abuse and neglect. Results suggest that it is possible for a maltreated child to successfully achieve competent academic functioning, despite the early adversity, and identifies three possible avenues of intervention points. This study also makes a significant contribution to the field of child development research through the novel use of CS-GMM, which has implications for future longitudinal data collection methodology. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Developing and Validating a Science Notebook Rubric for Fifth-Grade Non-Mainstream Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huerta, Margarita; Lara-Alecio, Rafael; Tong, Fuhui; Irby, Beverly J.

2014-07-01

We present the development and validation of a science notebook rubric intended to measure the academic language and conceptual understanding of non-mainstream students, specifically fifth-grade male and female economically disadvantaged Hispanic English language learner (ELL) and African-American or Hispanic native English-speaking students. The science notebook rubric is based on two main constructs: academic language and conceptual understanding. The constructs are grounded in second-language acquisition theory and theories of writing and conceptual understanding. We established content validity and calculated reliability measures using G theory and percent agreement (for comparison) with a sample of approximately 144 unique science notebook entries and 432 data points. Results reveal sufficient reliability estimates, indicating that the instrument is promising for use in future research studies including science notebooks in classrooms with populations of economically disadvantaged Hispanic ELL and African-American or Hispanic native English-speaking students.

Embedded academic writing support for nursing students with English as a second language.

PubMed

Salamonson, Yenna; Koch, Jane; Weaver, Roslyn; Everett, Bronwyn; Jackson, Debra

2010-02-01

This paper reports a study which evaluated a brief, embedded academic support workshop as a strategy for improving academic writing skills in first-year nursing students with low-to-medium English language proficiency. Nursing students who speak English as a second language have lower academic success compared with their native English-speaking counterparts. The development of academic writing skills is known to be most effective when embedded into discipline-specific curricula. Using a randomized controlled design, in 2008 106 students pre-enrolled in an introductory bioscience subject were randomized to receive either the intervention, a 4-day embedded academic learning support workshop facilitated by two bioscience (content) nursing academics and a writing and editing professional, or to act as the control group. The primary focus of the workshop was to support students to work through a mock assignment by providing progressive feedback and written suggestions on how to improve their answers. Of the 59 students randomized to the intervention, only 28 attended the workshop. Bioscience assignment results were analysed for those who attended (attendees), those randomized to the intervention but who did not attend (non-attendees), and the control group. Using anova, the results indicated that attendees achieved statistically significantly higher mean scores (70.8, sd: 6.1) compared to both control group (58.4, sd: 3.4, P = 0.002) and non-attendees (48.5, sd: 5.5, P = 0.001). A brief, intensive, embedded academic support workshop was effective in improving the academic writing ability of nursing students with low-to-medium English language proficiency, although reaching all students who are likely to benefit from this intervention remains a challenge.

English Language Proficiency and Teacher Judgments of the Academic and Interpersonal Competence of English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freberg, Miranda E.

2014-01-01

The purpose of the study was to investigate how English language proficiency is related to teacher judgments of students' academic and interpersonal competence. It was hypothesized that English Language Learner (ELL) students would generally be perceived as having weaker academic and interpersonal skills than their non-ELL counterparts regardless…

A Snapshot of Teacher Candidates' Readiness for Incorporating Academic Language in Lesson Plans

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lim, Woong; Moseley, Lauren Jeneva; Son, Ji-Won; Seelke, John

2014-01-01

With the national rollout of edTPA that champions language supports in content lessons, there is a renewed interest in academic language across disciplines and related pedagogy in the U.S. This study examines current knowledge of academic language demonstrated by teacher candidates at middle grades. An analysis (n = 42) of teacher candidates'…

Voices of Pedagogical Development--Expanding, Enhancing and Exploring Higher Education Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jalkanen, Juha, Ed.; Jokinen, Elina, Ed.; Taalas, Peppi, Ed.

2015-01-01

"Voices of Pedagogical Development" is a collection of articles written by teacher-researchers at the University of Jyväskylä Language Centre. It shares the fruits of their ideas and development work in the areas of academic literacies, new forms of teaching and learning, and internationalisation. Part one aims at establishing and…

The China Educational Development Yearbook, Volume 2. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Yearbooks: Educational Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dongping, Yang, Ed.; Chungqing, Chai, Ed.

2010-01-01

The second volume of the English-language The China Educational Development Yearbook offers international scholars a glimpse into key issues in Chinese education today from the perspective of Chinese academics, practitioners, and applied researchers. An edited translation of the 2009 volume of the Chinese-language "Blue Book of…

"Professional Contexts for Modern Languages": Work Experience and Academic Reflection in a Multilingual Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gomez-Cash, Olga

2016-01-01

In the second year module "Professional Contexts for Modern Languages" at Lancaster University, students take 20-25 hour placements, and using a multimodal forum, they articulate their challenges, development and understanding of the varying contexts in which they are working. In summative assessment, students across languages and types…

Video-Based Interaction, Negotiation for Comprehensibility, and Second Language Speech Learning: A Longitudinal Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saito, Kazuya; Akiyama, Yuka

2017-01-01

This study examined the impact of video-based conversational interaction on the longitudinal development (one academic semester) of second language production by college-level Japanese English-as-a-foreign-language learners. Students in the experimental group engaged in weekly dyadic conversation exchanges with native speakers in the United States…

Examining Online Forum Discussions as Practices of Digital Literacy in College-Level ESL Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bauler, Clara Vaz

2012-01-01

This research study examines the role of digital media, more specifically online forums, in the development of academic literacy and language learning in English as a Second Language (ESL) college writing. Studies in Second Language Acquisition suggest that participation in online forum discussions can potentially foster collaboration,…

Examining English Language Development among English Language Learners with Specific Learning Disability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Estrada, Karla V.

2013-01-01

As the population of English Language Learners (ELLs) continues to grow in schools, so does the concern for their lack of academic progress and the possible inequitable representation of this culturally and linguistically diverse population in special education (Artiles, Rueda, Salazar, & Higareda, 2005; Guiberson, 2009; Mac Swan &…

The Role of Parental Support and Family Variables in L1 and L2 Vocabulary Development of Japanese Heritage Language Students in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mori, Yoshiko; Calder, Toshiko M.

2017-01-01

This study investigated the role of parental support and selected family variables in the first (L1) and second language (L2) vocabulary development of Japanese heritage language (JHL) high school students in the United States. Eighty-two JHL students ages 15-18 from eight hoshuukoo (i.e., supplementary academic schools for Japanese-speaking…

Academic and Personal Development through Group Work: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steen, Sam

2011-01-01

This exploratory study linked academic and personal development within a group counseling intervention. A pre-test post-test research design compared social skills, learning behaviors, and achievement with a convenience sample and control group of students from three elementary schools. For the treatment group, grade point average in Language Arts…

Early Learning Foundations. Indiana's Early Learning Development Framework Aligned to the Indiana Academic Standards, 2014

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Indiana Department of Education, 2015

2015-01-01

The "Foundations" (English/language arts, mathematics, social emotional skills, approaches to play and learning, science, social studies, creative arts, and physical health and growth) are Indiana's early learning development framework and are aligned to the 2014 Indiana Academic Standards. This framework provides core elements that…

Using Sentence Frames to Develop Academic Vocabulary for English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donnelly, Whitney Bray; Roe, Christopher J.

2010-01-01

Often, English-language development (ELD) is taught during a dedicated time of the school day. There is often a mismatch between the content of ELD and the lessons taught during core instruction provided during the remainder of the day. During core instruction, teachers use specially designed academic instruction in English strategies to ensure…

Analyzing the Relationship between Learning Styles and Basic Concept Knowledge Level of Kindergarten Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balat, Gülden Uyanik

2014-01-01

Most basic concepts are acquired during preschool period. There are studies indicating that the basic concept knowledge of children is related to language development, cognitive development, academic achievement and intelligence. The relationship between learning behaviors (sometime called learning or cognitive styles) and a child academic success…

77 FR 31606 - Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-29

... Acquisition, Language Enhancement and Academic Achievement for Limited English Proficient Students, Department.... Barrera, Assistant Deputy Secretary, Office of English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement and... Secretary and Director for English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement and Academic Achievement for...

"Yo Pertenezco Aquí": Academic Identities, Formal Spanish, and Feelings of Belonging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Minor, Denise

2016-01-01

This study examines the impact that membership in a Spanish language theater and poetry troupe had upon a group of Mexican and Chicano university students in terms of the development of academic identities, feelings of belonging, connections with friends and family, and other factors that correlate with academic perseverance. Also examined was the…

Moving Globally to Transform Locally? Academic Mobility and Language Policy in Brazil

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Archanjo, Renata

2017-01-01

This paper discusses academic mobility in Brazil over the past few years due to the increase in governmental initiatives to promote internationalization of higher education and student mobility. The aim is to address the challenges faced by the international academic mobility program Science without Borders (SwB) to boost the development of…

Bilingual Education for Majority and Minority Language Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swain, Merrill

1981-01-01

The fact that early immersion in a second language has led to bilingualism and academic success among majority language children has been used as an argument against mother tongue instruction for minority language children. However, for minority language children, immersion in a second language has often led to language loss and academic failure.…

The Challenge for Non-First-Language-English Academic Publishing in English Language Research Outlets

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geiger, Vince; Straesser, Rudolf

2015-01-01

This paper is a reflective critique of practice within the field of mathematics education in relation to the challenges faced by non-first-language-English speaking academics when they attempt to publish in English language research outlets. Data for this study are drawn from communications between a German and an Australian academic as the…

An Exploration of Language Anxiety in L2 Academic Context for Chinese International Students in U.S. Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhao, Qing

2013-01-01

This mix-methods study examined the language anxiety levels that the Chinese international students perceived in second language (L2) academic context at four universities in the northeastern region of the United States of America; it explored the impact of language anxiety that these students perceived on their academic learning; it also…

The IDEALL Approach to Learning Development: A Model for Fostering Improved Literacy and Learning Outcomes for Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skillen, Jan; Merten, Margaret; Trivett, Neil; Percy, Alisa

A model of assisting students in the transition to university education is presented that takes a developmental approach. This Integrated Development of English Language and Academic Literacy and Learning (IDEALL) model recognizes that all students need to develop new or more sophisticated academic skills for the new environment and that the most…

Developing and Validating a Science Notebook Rubric for Fifth-Grade Non-Mainstream Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huerta, Margarita; Lara-Alecio, Rafael; Tong, Fuhui; Irby, Beverly J.

2014-01-01

We present the development and validation of a science notebook rubric intended to measure the academic language and conceptual understanding of non-mainstream students, specifically fifth-grade male and female economically disadvantaged Hispanic English language learner (ELL) and African-American or Hispanic native English-speaking students. The…

The Influence of Typewriting on Selected Language Arts Skills and Motor Development of the Educable Mentally Handicapped, Volume II. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gladis, Sister Mary Paulette

The second of two volumes, the document contains the appendixes to a study which investigated the influence of typewriting on selected language arts skills and motor development of educable mentally retarded students. The academic achievement of such students in reading, vocabulary, spelling, and in motor skill development, after completing…

Math and Science Achievement in English Language Learners: Multivariate Latent Growth Modeling of Predictors, Mediators, and Moderators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guglielmi, R. Sergio

2012-01-01

The effectiveness of various strategies for educating the growing U.S. population of English language learners (ELLs) has attracted a great deal of controversy. Bilingual education theory posits that retention and continued development of native language (L1) skills facilitate academic achievement through two mediating mechanisms. First, L1…

Self-Esteem and Cultural Identity in Aboriginal Language Immersion Kindergarteners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morcom, Lindsay A.

2017-01-01

In gauging the success of Aboriginal language immersion education, the focus is often placed on measuring language acquisition and academic achievement. Although useful, these metrics only tell part of the story; to achieve real school success, it is also vital to develop high personal self-esteem that results in a positive concept of oneself as a…

Contesting Language Orientations: A Critical Multicultural Perspective on Local Language Policy in Two Middle Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cole, Mikel; Puzio, Kelly; Keyes, Christopher; Jimenez, Robert; Pray, Lisa; David, Samuel

2012-01-01

This article presents findings drawn from the development of an intervention designed to leverage Spanish to improve English reading comprehension. Five teachers and 18 middle school English language learners (ELLs) in 2 urban middle schools participated in the project over the course of an academic year. Analysis of policy documents, interviews,…

Borrowing Legitimacy as English Learner (EL) Leaders: Indiana's 14-Year History with English Language Proficiency Standards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morita-Mullaney, Trish

2017-01-01

English language proficiency or English language development (ELP/D) standards guide how content-specific instruction and assessment is practiced by teachers and how English learners (ELs) at varying levels of English proficiency can perform grade-level-specific academic standards in K-12 US schools. With the transition from the state-developed…

The Impact of Computer-Based Instruction on the Development of EFL Learners' Writing Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zaini, A.; Mazdayasna, G.

2015-01-01

The current study investigated the application and effectiveness of computer assisted language learning (CALL) in teaching academic writing to Iranian EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners by means of Microsoft Word Office. To this end, 44 sophomore intermediate university students majoring in English Language and Literature at an Iranian…

Curiosity Didn't Kill This Cat: Studs Terkel for English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Susan

2010-01-01

After years of studying academic English, many students are ready to move beyond language designed for the classroom, or what Yoshida (2001) calls "fishbowl" English, to the language of the "open sea." As students develop beyond the beginner level, they are ready to read and discuss appropriate authentic texts. Even students who are unsure of…

Turkish EFL Teachers' Perceptions and Practices of Foreign Language Assessment in Primary Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirkgoz, Yasemin; Babanoglu, Muzaffer Pinar; Agçam, Reyhan

2017-01-01

The present study aimed to investigate perceptions of EFL teachers working at state primary schools on core language skills, assessment types and question types used in assessing student's foreign language development and proficiency during an academic year. Data were gathered from 56 EFL teachers working at 42 primary state schools in Turkey…

What's Language Got to Do with It?: A Case Study of Academic Language Instruction in a High School "English Learner Science" Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richardson Bruna, Katherine; Vann, Roberta; Perales Escudero, Moises

2007-01-01

This article presents a case study of academic language instruction in a high school "English Learner Science" course. It illustrates how a teacher's understanding of academic language affects her instruction and students' opportunities for learning. We examine a transcript of classroom discourse for the "didactic tension" that exists between this…

Towards a portal and search engine to facilitate academic and research collaboration in engineering and education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonilla Villarreal, Isaura Nathaly

While international academic and research collaborations are of great importance at this time, it is not easy to find researchers in the engineering field that publish in languages other than English. Because of this disconnect, there exists a need for a portal to find Who's Who in Engineering Education in the Americas. The objective of this thesis is to built an object-oriented architecture for this proposed portal. The Unified Modeling Language (UML) model developed in this thesis incorporates the basic structure of a social network for academic purposes. Reverse engineering of three social networks portals yielded important aspects of their structures that have been incorporated in the proposed UML model. Furthermore, the present work includes a pattern for academic social networks..

Ten-year follow-up of a consecutive series of children with multichannel cochlear implants.

PubMed

Uziel, Alain S; Sillon, Martine; Vieu, Adrienne; Artieres, Françoise; Piron, Jean-Pierre; Daures, Jean-Pierre; Mondain, Michel

2007-08-01

To assess a group of children who consecutively received implants more than 10 years after implantation with regard to speech perception, speech intelligibility, receptive language level, and academic/occupational status. A prospective longitudinal study. Pediatric referral center for cochlear implantation. Eighty-two prelingually deafened children received the Nucleus multichannel cochlear implant. Cochlear implantation with Cochlear Nucleus CI22 implant. The main outcome measures were open-set Phonetically Balanced Kindergarten word test, discrimination of sentences in noise, connective discourse tracking (CDT) using voice and telephone, speech intelligibility rating (SIR), vocabulary knowledge measured using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (Revised), academic performance on French language, foreign language, and mathematics, and academic/occupational status. After 10 years of implant experience, 79 children (96%) reported that they always wear the device; 79% (65 of 82 children) could use the telephone. The mean scores were 72% for the Phonetically Balanced Kindergarten word test, 44% for word recognition in noise, 55.3 words per minute for the CDT, and 33 words per minute for the CDT via telephone. Thirty-three children (40%) developed speech intelligible to the average listener (SIR 5), and 22 (27%) developed speech intelligible to a listener with little experience of deaf person's speech (SIR 4). The measures of vocabulary showed that most (76%) of children who received implants scored below the median value of their normally hearing peers. The age at implantation was the most important factor that may influence the postimplant outcomes. Regarding educational/vocational status, 6 subjects attend universities, 3 already have a professional activity, 14 are currently at high school level, 32 are at junior high school level, 6 additional children are enrolled in a special unit for children with disability, and 3 children are still attending elementary schools. Seventeen are in further noncompulsory education studying a range of subjects at vocational level. This long-term report shows that many profoundly hearing-impaired children using cochlear implants can develop functional levels of speech perception and production, attain age-appropriate oral language, develop competency level in a language other than their primary language, and achieve satisfactory academic performance.

High School Foreign Language Study and College Academic Performance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiley, Patricia Davis

1985-01-01

Examines the correlation between high school foreign language study and success in college. Found that those who studied Latin, French, German, or Spanish in high school may be expected to perform better academically in college than students of equal academic ability who do not take a foreign language. (SED)

Socialization to Academic Language in a Kindergarten Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gallagher, Colleen

2016-01-01

Recognizing the importance of academic language for students' success in schools, this article reports on an investigation of how narrative-focused literacy events in the classroom provide opportunities for academic language socialization. Data were collected from one public elementary school in a major metropolitan area in the Mid-Atlantic region…

Investigating Affordance of Opportunity for Young Children's Language Interactions in a Nursery Setting: How Can Small Group Talk Act as a Forum for Language Learning?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Sarah Elizabeth; Dockrell, Julie E.

2016-01-01

The importance of research on the unique nature of the communication supporting environment in nurseries has been heightened by growing evidence of the significance of early language skills for later academic and social development. This study focussed on children's language use during small group times. Opportunities to hear and practise language…

The Persistence and Functional Impact of English Language Difficulties Experienced by Children Learning English as an Additional Language and Monolingual Peers

PubMed Central

Whiteside, Katie E.

2017-01-01

Purpose This study explored whether a monolingual-normed English language battery could identify children with English as an additional language (EAL) who have persistent English language learning difficulties that affect functional academic attainment. Method Children with EAL (n = 43) and monolingual English-speaking children (n = 46) completed a comprehensive monolingual-normed English language battery in Year 1 (ages 5–6 years) and Year 3 (ages 7–8 years). Children with EAL and monolingual peers, who either met monolingual criteria for language impairment or typical development on the language battery in Year 1, were compared on language growth between Year 1 and Year 3 and on attainment in national curriculum assessments in Year 2 (ages 6–7 years). Results Children with EAL and monolingual peers who met monolingual criteria for language impairment in Year 1 continued to display comparably impaired overall language ability 2 years later in Year 3. Moreover, these groups displayed comparably low levels of academic attainment in Year 2, demonstrating comparable functional impact of their language difficulties. Conclusion Monolingual-normed language batteries in the majority language may have some practical value for identifying bilingual children who need support with language learning, regardless of the origin of their language difficulties. PMID:28617919

Academic Writing Development at the University Level: Phrasal and Clausal Complexity across Level of Study, Discipline, and Genre

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Staples, Shelley; Egbert, Jesse; Biber, Douglas; Gray, Bethany

2016-01-01

Using the British Academic Written English corpus, this study focuses on the use of grammatical complexity features in university level texts written by first language (L1) English writers to demonstrate knowledge and perform other specialized tasks required of advanced academic writers. While the primary focus of the analysis is on writing…

Development of a Survey Instrument to Measure TEFL Academics' Perceptions about, Individual and Workplace Characteristics for Conducting Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bai, Li; Hudson, Peter; Millwater, Jan; Tones, Megan

2013-01-01

A 30-item survey was devised to determine Chinese TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) academics' potential for conducting research. A five-part Likert scale was used to gather data from 182 academics on four factors: (1) perceptions on teaching-research nexus, (2) personal perspectives for conducting research, (3) predispositions for…

Inhibitory Control of Spanish-Speaking Language-Minority Preschool Children: Measurement and Association With Language, Literacy, and Math Skills.

PubMed

Lonigan, Christopher J; Allan, Darcey M; Goodrich, J Marc; Farrington, Amber L; Phillips, Beth M

Children's self-regulation, including components of executive function such as inhibitory control, is related concurrently and longitudinally with elementary school children's reading and math abilities. Although several recent studies have examined links between preschool children's self-regulation or executive function and their academic skill development, few included large numbers of Spanish-speaking language-minority children. Among the fastest growing segments of the U.S. school-age population, many of these children are at significant risk of academic difficulties. We examined the relations between inhibitory control and academic skills in a sample containing a large number of Spanish-speaking preschoolers. Overall, the children demonstrated substantial academic risk based on preschool-entry vocabulary scores in the below-average range. Children completed assessments of language, literacy, and math skills in English and Spanish, when appropriate, at the start and end of their preschool year, along with a measure of inhibitory control, the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders task, which was administered at the start of the preschool year in the child's dominant conversational language. Scores on this last measure were lower for children for whom it was administered in Spanish. For both English and Spanish outcomes, those scores were significantly and uniquely associated with higher scores on measures of phonological awareness and math skills but not vocabulary or print knowledge skills.

Underserved populations in science education: Enhancement through learning community participation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gray, Jennifer Emily

A positive relationship between college anatomy students' achievement and academic language proficiency in the context of a learning community was established. For many students the barrier to learning science is language. A relationship exists between low academic language proficiency and lack of success among students, in particular failure among at-risk minority and language-minority students. The sample consisted of Anatomy classes during the Fall semesters of the academic years, 2000, 2001, and 2002 at a community college in Central California having a high percentage of culturally and linguistically diverse students. Students from each semester participated in the academic language proficiency and science achievement studies. Twenty-two of the Fall 2002 students (n = 65) enrolled in the Learning Community (LC) that included instruction in academic language in the context of the anatomy course content. Fall 2002 students (n = 19) also participated in Peer-led Support (PLS) sessions. Fall 2001 students participated in a textbook use study (n = 44) and in a Cooperative-Learning (CL) (n = 35) study. Students in the LC and Non-LC groups took the academic language assessment; their results were correlated with course grades and attendance. Fall 2002 students were compared for: (1) differences regarding self-expectations, (2) program impressions, and (3) demographics. Fall 2001 student reading habits and CL participation were analyzed. Results identified: (1) selected academic language tasks as good predictors of science success, (2) a significant positive relationship between science success and participation in support interventions, (3) no differences in self expectations or demographic characteristics of participants and non-participants in the LC group, and (4) poor textbook reading habits. Results showed a significant positive relationship between academic language proficiency and science achievement in participatory instruction.

The impact of speech and language problems in kindergarten on academic learning and special education status in grade three.

PubMed

Janus, Magdalena; Labonté, Chantal; Kirkpatrick, Ryan; Davies, Scott; Duku, Eric

2017-11-24

This study addressed the implications of experiencing early speech-language pathologies (SLPs) in kindergarten on special education needs (SEN) and academic outcomes in grade three. Early Development Instrument (EDI) kindergarten data on development and the presence or absence of SLPs were matched with grade three school-system standardised tests of reading, writing and maths, and SEN classification in Ontario, Canada for 59 015 students. Children were classified as having a Persistent speech language pathology (SLP), Remittent SLP, Latent SEN or as a typically developing Control. Even though 72.3% of children's SLPs remitted by grade three, kindergarten SLPs conveyed higher likelihood of having an SEN, and of lower achievement levels in grade three. The degree of impact varied between Persistent and Remittent groups. Children in the Latent group had lower scores in kindergarten on all five EDI domains than Control children. These population level results provide strong evidence to indicate that all children who present with an SLP in kindergarten face further academic challenges, even if their SLP resolves over time. Findings have implications for early intervention and treatment for children with early SLPs.

Language Teaching for European Citizenship: Insights for Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hennebry, Mairin

2014-01-01

A drive for the development of European citizenship (EC) through Modern Foreign Language (MFL) teaching has existed for some time within the academic literature as well as policy institutions. Nevertheless, the views of MFL teachers on the role of MFL in developing EC have rarely been given a voice. This article presents the findings of a study…

Test Review: TestDaF

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Norris, John; Drackert, Anastasia

2018-01-01

The Test of German as a Foreign Language (TestDaF) plays a critical role as a standardized test of German language proficiency. Developed and administered by the Society for Academic Study Preparation and Test Development (g.a.s.t.), TestDaF was launched in 2001 and has experienced persistent annual growth, with more than 44,000 test takers in…

Organizational Change: Using Academic Accreditation in Transforming EFL Programs in the Saudi Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Almuhammadi, Anas

2017-01-01

This study details the procedure and results of developing a mission statement at a language institute for the purpose of obtaining a program accreditation from an international language commission. A serious self-study process results in the development of a solid, true and ambitious mission since the mission covers all areas related to achieving…

Improving Preschoolers' Language and Literacy Skills through Web-Mediated Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cabell, Sonia Q.; Downer, Jason T.

2011-01-01

MyTeachingPartner (MTP) is a Web-mediated approach that provides ongoing support for teachers to improve the quality of their interactions with children. This study examined the effects of MTP on the preschool language and literacy development of children who are at risk for later academic difficulties. Results of this randomized controlled trial…

34 CFR 300.10 - Core academic subjects.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... DISABILITIES General Definitions Used in This Part § 300.10 Core academic subjects. Core academic subjects means English, reading or language arts, mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government...

Cognitive Content Engagement in Content-Based Language Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kong, Stella; Hoare, Philip

2011-01-01

This article reports a study of aspects of pedagogy that can bring about students' cognitive engagement with academic content and, thus, use of the academic language in content-based language lessons in three middle schools in Xi'an, China. Two criteria--academic content level and depth of processing--were used to determine cognitive content…

Four Language Skills Performance, Academic Achievement, and Learning Strategy Use in Preservice Teacher Training Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shawer, Saad Fathy

2016-01-01

This article examines the differences in language learning strategies (LLS) use between preservice teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) and Arabic as a second language (ASL). It also examines the relationship between LLS use and language performance (academic achievement and four language skills) among ASL students. The study made use…

BAAL/CUP Seminars 2009

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cutting, Joan; Murphy, Brona

2010-01-01

The seminar, organised by Joan Cutting and Brona Murphy, aimed: (1) to bring together researchers involved in both emergent and established academic corpora (written and spoken) as well as linguists, lecturers and teachers researching in education, be it language teaching, language-teacher training or continuing professional development in…

Unlocking Academic Vocabulary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeLuca, Eileen

2010-01-01

How can we teach science to English language learners (ELLs) when even our native English speakers have trouble reading the textbook? To help science teachers meet this challenge, this article presents six text-comprehension strategies used by English for Speakers of other Languages (ESOL) teachers: metalinguistic awareness development,…

English Language Necessity: What It means for Korea and Non-English Speaking Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jambor, Paul Z.

2011-01-01

It has long been asserted that the English language is imperialist, however, the overwhelming effect it has on Education has long reaching consequences for people worldwide. That is to say, since English language teaching (ELT) is so fundamental for the financial and academic development of individuals on a global scale, it ought to be proposed…

The Effect of Supplementary Materials on Reading Comprehension Improvement of Iranian Female High School EFL Learners Based on Gaj and Khate Sefid Text Books

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abbasi, Zahra; Azizifar, Akbar; Gowhary, Habib; Heidari, Mina

2015-01-01

The Impact of using Supplementary books alongside the national academic text book has received great attention of the curriculum and material developers. Since the beginning of language studies, Second & Foreign Language Acquisition (SLA & FLA) researchers have been searching for effective ways of improving learners' language skills. This…

The Wide and Wild World of Words: Interview with Averil Coxhead

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mah, Adeline Shi Hui; Yeo, Marie

2016-01-01

Averil Coxhead is widely known for developing the Academic Word List, a list of 570 word families associated with great frequency in academic texts. This list has been particularly useful to teachers of English as a Second Language as well as independent learners in tertiary education. She has also developed a Science-based word list (Coxhead and…

Pleasure Reading Behavior and Attitude of Non-Academic ESL Students: A Replication Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ro, Eunseok; Chen, Cheng-Ling Alice

2014-01-01

The present study replicated the methods and data analysis of Crawford Camiciottoli's (2001) study on second language (L2) reading behavior of academic English-as-a-foreign-language students. Using the original study's questionnaire, we investigated 60 advanced non-academic English-as-a-second-language learners' L2 reading frequency and attitude.…

Gender Differences in the Relationship between Attention Problems and Expressive Language and Emerging Academic Skills in Preschool-Aged Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zevenbergen, Andrea A.; Ryan, Meghan M.

2010-01-01

This study examined the relationship between attention problems and expressive language and academic readiness skills in preschool-aged children from middle-class families. Forty-three children (44% female) were assessed individually for expressive language skills and knowledge of basic academic concepts (e.g. colours, letters and numbers). The…

Comparative-Descriptive Study of Academic Vocabulary Specific Instruction on 3rd Grade English Language Learner Reading Scores

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Shelley

2017-01-01

Language must be taught with academic vocabulary that is meaningful and that can be transferred between content and context. This comparative-descriptive research study examines how academic specific instruction increases students' learning of a second language acquisition (i.e., English). The conceptual framework of the study drew research…

Academic Language as a Predictor Of Reading Comprehension in Monolingual Spanish-Speaking Readers: Evidence from Chilean Early Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meneses, Alejandra; Uccelli, Paola; Santelices, María Verónica; Ruiz, Marcela; Acevedo, Daniela; Figueroa, Javiera

2018-01-01

Although literacy achievement has improved in Chile, adolescents' underperformance in reading comprehension is still a serious concern. In English, core academic-language skills (CALS) have been found to significantly predict reading comprehension, even controlling for academic vocabulary knowledge. CALS are high-utility language skills that…

Language and Academic Abilities in Children with Selective Mutism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nowakowski, Matilda E.; Cunningham, Charles E.; McHolm, Angela E.; Evans, Mary Ann; Edison, Shannon; St. Pierre, Jeff; Boyle, Michael H.; Schmidt, Louis A.

2009-01-01

We examined receptive language and academic abilities in children with selective mutism (SM; n = 30; M age = 8.8 years), anxiety disorders (n = 46; M age = 9.3 years), and community controls (n = 27; M age = 7.8 years). Receptive language and academic abilities were assessed using standardized tests completed in the laboratory. We found a…

A Proposed Pedagogical Approach for Preparing Teacher Candidates to Incorporate Academic Language in Mathematics Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lim, Woong; Stallings, Lynn; Kim, Dong Joong

2015-01-01

The purpose of this article is to present issues related to prioritizing academic language in teaching performance assessments and to propose a pedagogical approach that prepares middle grades mathematics teacher candidates to teach academic language. Based on our experience with teacher candidates and our knowledge of edTPA standards involving…

Relationships between Language Background, Secondary School Scores, Tutorial Group Processes, and Students' Academic Achievement in PBL: Testing a Causal Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Singaram, Veena S.; van der Vleuten, Cees P. M; Muijtjens, Arno M. M.; Dolmans, Diana H. J. M

2012-01-01

Little is known about the influence of language background in problem-based learning (PBL) tutorial groups on group processes and students' academic achievement. This study investigated the relationship between language background, secondary school score, tutorial group processes, and students' academic achievement in PBL. A validated tutorial…

Functional Anatomy of Listening and Reading Comprehension during Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berl, Madison M.; Duke, Elizabeth S.; Mayo, Jessica; Rosenberger, Lisa R.; Moore, Erin N.; VanMeter, John; Ratner, Nan Bernstein; Vaidya, Chandan J.; Gaillard, William Davis

2010-01-01

Listening and reading comprehension of paragraph-length material are considered higher-order language skills fundamental to social and academic functioning. Using ecologically relevant language stimuli that were matched for difficulty according to developmental level, we analyze the effects of task, age, neuropsychological skills, and post-task…

A Paper Tiger in an Academic Jungle.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paquette, F. Andre

This survey of profession-wide accomplishments and failures in foreign language instruction, characteristic of the last two decades, is complemented by suggestions intended to spur teachers and educational institutions into initiating improvements in curriculum development considered to be vital to the survival of the foreign language profession.…

An Academic Literacies Argument for Decentralizing EAP Provision

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murray, Neil

2016-01-01

English-medium universities have generally adopted centralized models of in-sessional English language provision, where expertise resides and is often delivered within language development units or as part of larger cognate departments, typically TESOL or Applied Linguistics departments. This arrangement might be seen as reflecting a…

Talking the Talk: Translating Research to Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grifenhagen, Jill F.; Barnes, Erica M.; Collins, Molly F.; Dickinson, David K.

2017-01-01

Decades of research have identified features of classrooms and teachers' talk that are associated with children's language growth. Unfortunately, much of this work has not yet translated to widespread practice in early childhood classrooms. Given the important contributions that early language development makes to later academic achievement,…

Using E-Books to Acquire Foundational Academic Vocabulary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Love, Matthew L.; Spies, Tracy G.; Morgan, Joseph J.

2017-01-01

Secondary students identified as English language learners or with learning disabilities present diverse vocabulary and academic challenges related to their exceptional language needs. Limited academic vocabulary may hinder students in accessing academic content and serve as a barrier to achievement. The literature has documented the use of…

Professional Development for Promoting 21st Century Skills and Common Core State Standards in Foreign Language and Social Studies Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beriswill, Joanne Elizabeth; Bracey, Pamela Scott; Sherman-Morris, Kathleen; Huang, Kun; Lee, Sang Joon

2016-01-01

To help satisfy the pressing need for technology-related professional development for in-service teachers, the Global Academic Essentials Teacher Institute (GAETI) was implemented to provide in-service foreign language and social studies teachers with content, pedagogy, and technology explorations centered on the teaching of the Common Core State…

Plasticity in the Developing Brain: Intellectual, Language and Academic Functions in Children with Ischaemic Perinatal Stroke

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ballantyne, Angela O.; Spilkin, Amy M.; Hesselink, John; Trauner, Doris A.

2008-01-01

The developing brain has the capacity for a great deal of plasticity. A number of investigators have demonstrated that intellectual and language skills may be in the normal range in children following unilateral perinatal stroke. Questions have been raised, however, about whether these skills can be maintained at the same level as the brain…

Participants' Perceptions of the Instructional Design of an Online Professional Development Module for Teaching English Language Learners: A Q Methodology Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Collins, Linda J.

2009-01-01

Using Q methodology, thirteen online instructors shared subjective opinions about the instructional design of an online professional development module intended to provide teachers with basic information for supporting English language learners academically. The researcher selected a set of thirty-six sort items comprised of screen shots taken…

Bilingual Resource Instruction for the Development of Gainful Employment Skills. Project BRIDGES 1988-89. OREA Evaluation Section Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berney, Tomi D.; Plotkin, Donna

Project BRIDGES, a 3-year program conducted for students of limited English proficiency (LEP) at three High Schools in Brooklyn (New York City) sought to develop the English language, academic, and vocational skills of a high-risk LEP population. The native languages of the participating students were Haitian Creole, Spanish, Chinese, Hebrew, and…

Sustaining Expertise through Collaborative/Peer-Mediated and Individual Reflections: The Experiences of Chinese English Language Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pawan, Faridah; Fan, Wenfang

2014-01-01

This exploratory investigation of the professional development of Chinese English Language teachers (ELTs) was part of a collaboration between two teacher educators, one from the U.S. and the other from China, during the 2011-2012 academic year. We were involved in the professional development in three schools (elementary, middle and high schools)…

Language Ability Predicts the Development of Behavior Problems in Children

PubMed Central

Petersen, Isaac T.; Bates, John E.; D’Onofrio, Brian M.; Coyne, Claire A.; Lansford, Jennifer E.; Dodge, Kenneth A.; Pettit, Gregory S.; Van Hulle, Carol A.

2013-01-01

Prior studies have suggested, but not fully established, that language ability is important for regulating attention and behavior. Language ability may have implications for understanding attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorders, as well as subclinical problems. This article reports findings from two longitudinal studies to test (a) whether language ability has an independent effect on behavior problems, and (b) the direction of effect between language ability and behavior problems. In Study 1 (N = 585), language ability was measured annually from ages 7 to 13 years by language subtests of standardized academic achievement tests administered at the children’s schools. Inattentive-hyperactive (I-H) and externalizing (EXT) problems were reported annually by teachers and mothers. In Study 2 (N = 11,506), language ability (receptive vocabulary) and mother-rated I-H and EXT problems were measured biannually from ages 4 to 12 years. Analyses in both studies showed that language ability predicted within-individual variability in the development of I-H and EXT problems over and above the effects of sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), and performance in other academic and intellectual domains (e.g., math, reading comprehension, reading recognition, and short-term memory [STM]). Even after controls for prior levels of behavior problems, language ability predicted later behavior problems more strongly than behavior problems predicted later language ability, suggesting that the direction of effect may be from language ability to behavior problems. The findings suggest that language ability may be a useful target for the prevention or even treatment of attention deficits and EXT problems in children. PMID:23713507

Deflating the "Confucian Heritage Culture" Thesis in Intercultural and Academic English Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Dwyer, Shaun

2017-01-01

This paper develops an interdisciplinary critical perspective on the concept of "Confucian Heritage Cultures" (CHC), used in intercultural and English language teaching theory to explain the supposed culturally distinct learning habits, expectations and schemas many Asian students bring to academic classrooms in English-speaking…

34 CFR 200.1 - State responsibilities for developing challenging academic standards.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... year, science, and may include other subjects determined by the State. (b) Academic content standards... at least reading/language arts, mathematics, and, beginning in the 2005-06 school year, science... standards in science, a State must develop— (i) Achievement levels and descriptions no later than the 2005...

34 CFR 200.1 - State responsibilities for developing challenging academic standards.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... year, science, and may include other subjects determined by the State. (b) Academic content standards... at least reading/language arts, mathematics, and, beginning in the 2005-06 school year, science... standards in science, a State must develop— (i) Achievement levels and descriptions no later than the 2005...

34 CFR 200.1 - State responsibilities for developing challenging academic standards.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... year, science, and may include other subjects determined by the State. (b) Academic content standards... at least reading/language arts, mathematics, and, beginning in the 2005-06 school year, science... standards in science, a State must develop— (i) Achievement levels and descriptions no later than the 2005...

Identifying Gaps in Academic Writing of ESL Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giridharan, Beena

2012-01-01

There is growing evidence that the lack of competence of university ESL (English as a second language) students in academic writing affects their overall academic performance. Olivas and Li (2006) connected low second-language proficiency levels in English to poor academic performance of international students studying at both university and…

Latina/o Academics' Resilient Qualities in Their Linguistically Diverse Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cavazos, Alyssa G.

2016-01-01

Emphasis placed on academic writing in English may create challenges for multilingual academics as they negotiate diverse languages. Based on personal interviews with bilingual Latina/o academics in rhetoric and composition, this study reveals that their language practices reflect diverse resilient qualities at various stages in their academic…

The Association between Preschool Children's Social Functioning and Their Emergent Academic Skills.

PubMed

Arnold, David H; Kupersmidt, Janis B; Voegler-Lee, Mary Ellen; Marshall, Nastassja

2012-01-01

This study examined the relationship between social functioning and emergent academic development in a sample of 467 preschool children (M = 55.9 months old, SD = 3.8). Teachers reported on children's aggression, attention problems, and prosocial skills. Preliteracy, language, and early mathematics skills were assessed with standardized tests. Better social functioning was associated with stronger academic development. Attention problems were related to poorer academic development controlling for aggression and social skills, pointing to the importance of attention in these relations. Children's social skills were related to academic development controlling for attention and aggression problems, consistent with models suggesting that children's social strengths and difficulties are independently related to their academic development. Support was not found for the hypothesis that these relationships would be stronger in boys than in girls. Some relationships were stronger in African American than Caucasian children. Children's self-reported feelings about school moderated several relationships, consistent with the idea that positive feelings about school may be a protective factor against co-occurring academic and social problems.

Research and Teaching: The Pairing of a Science Communications and a Language Course to Enrich First-Year English Language Learners' Writing and Argumentation Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welsh, Ashley J.; Shaw, Amber; Fox, Joanne A.

2017-01-01

This article explores how English-language learners' writing evolved during a first-year seminar in science course aimed at developing students' argumentation skills. We highlight how a science communications course was paired with a weekly academic English course in the context of a highly coordinated and enriched first-year experience program…

Examining the Neurocognitive Profile of Dysnomia: A Comparison of School-Aged Children with and without Dyslexia across the Domains of Expressive Language, Attention/Memory, and Academic Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howarth, Robyn Ann

2010-01-01

Word-retrieval and rapid naming abilities play an important role in language processing and cognitive development. Researchers have demonstrated that early language difficulties may lead to later reading impairments and several decades of research has convincingly demonstrated that rapid automatized naming is a powerful predictor of concurrent and…

Meeting the Needs of Students, In-Service Workers and Enterprises in a Multilingual and Multicultural Europe: A Challenge for Language Centres

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Argondizzo, Carmen; Jimenez, Jean

2013-01-01

As the number of university students taking part in exchange programs abroad increases, students are becoming more aware of the importance not only of improving their general language skills, but also of developing academic language skills that will prepare them for their stay and study in transnational higher education contexts. Concurrently, the…

The Certification of Teachers' Language Competence in Quebec in French and English: Two Different Perspectives?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Laurier, Michel; Baker, Beverly

2015-01-01

Language tools are reflections of the academic traditions of assessment developers, as well as the perceptions of language quality as held by a society. The certification of Quebec's teachers offers an interesting case in point: the Québec Government's "ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport" (MELS) requires that all students in…

Enhancing Young Hispanic Dual Language Learners' Achievement: Exploring Strategies and Addressing Challenges. Policy Information Report. ETS RR-15-01

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ackerman, Debra J.; Tazi, Zoila

2015-01-01

Dual language learners, or DLLs, may have greater school readiness needs due to the key role English oral language skills play in the development of emerging literacy skills in English and their overall academic achievement. This especially can be the case if children's capacity to benefit from classroom instruction and interact with teachers and…

Factors Predicting Academic Success in Second and Third Language among Russian-Speaking Immigrant Students Studying in Israeli Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haim, Orly

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors predicting academic proficiency (AP), the specialised domains required for performing academic tasks, among Russian speaking (L1) immigrants currently studying Hebrew as a second language (L2) and English as a third language (L3) in Israeli schools. Specifically, the study examined the…

The Relationship of Head Start Teachers' Academic Language Use and Children's Receptive Vocabulary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnes, Erica M.; Dickinson, David K.

2017-01-01

Research Findings: This study examines lexical- and sentence-level dimensions of academic language to describe teachers' natural use of academic language and its association with vocabulary growth in 489 at-risk 4-year-olds enrolled in Head Start preschool classrooms. Using transcripts derived from video recordings of book-reading sessions in 52…

Global Trends and Research Aims for English Academic Oral Presentations: Changes, Challenges, and Opportunities for Learning Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barrett, Neil E.; Liu, Gi-Zen

2016-01-01

English has become the de facto language for communication in academia in many parts of the world, but English language learners often lack the language resources to make effective oral academic presentations. However, English for academic purposes (EAP) research is beginning to provide valuable insights into this emerging field. This literature…

The Cognitive Coaching-Supported Reflective Teaching Approach in English Language Teaching: Academic and Permanence Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akyildiz, Seçil Tümen; Semerci, Çetin

2016-01-01

This study aimed at investigating the effect of the cognitive coaching-supported reflective teaching approach in English language teaching on the academic success of students and on the permanence of success. It was conducted during the spring semester of 2013/2014 academic year at the School of Foreign Languages, Firat University, Elazig, Turkey.…

Research Collaboration across Higher Education Systems: Maturity, Language Use, and Regional Differences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shin, Jung Cheol; Lee, Soo Jeung; Kim, Yangson

2013-01-01

This study analyzed whether research collaboration patterns differ across higher education systems based on maturity of the systems, their language, and their geographical region. This study found that collaboration patterns differ across higher education systems: academics in developed systems are more collaborative than their colleagues in…

Dueling Complexities: Experiences of Dual-Lang Immersion Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sun, Valerie

2017-01-01

Dual-language immersion is an educational practice in which "literacy and content instruction" is provided in two languages at school (Howard et al., 2007, p.1). The students in these programs have been the center of many studies including student literacy development (Genesee & Jared, 2008), academic achievement (Lindholm-Leary,…

Neighborhood Community Risk Influences on Preschool Children's Development and School Readiness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Marci J.; Miller, Angela D.; Diamond, Karen; Odom, Samuel; Lieber, Joan; Butera, Gretchen; Horn, Eva; Palmer, Susan; Fleming, Kandace

2011-01-01

The effects of economic hardship and language isolation in children's neighborhood communities were examined to determine their influence on young children's developmental outcomes on measures of academic and social skills above and beyond child and family characteristics that included home language, disability, gender, and mother's education…

Exposing Gaps in/between Discourses of Linguistic Deficits

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Eric J.; Avineri, Netta; Johnson, David Cassels

2017-01-01

Hart and Risley's (1995) concept of a "word gap" (aka "language gap") is widely used to describe inferior cognitive development and lower academic achievement as by-products of the language patterns of families from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. In recent decades, this line of deficit research has proliferated and…

Preparing Early Childhood Teachers to Work With Young Dual Language Learners

PubMed Central

Zepeda, Marlene; Castro, Dina C.; Cronin, Sharon

2015-01-01

Teacher preparation is clearly linked to the quality of early childhood programs. In order for young dual language learners (DLLs) to be academically successful, teacher preparation should focus on those skills and abilities relevant to students’ particular needs. This article reviews the content of professional preparation for early educators working with young DLLs and briefly discusses the importance of developing the cultural and linguistic diversity of the early childhood workforce. It identifies 6 content areas: (a) understanding language development, (b) understanding the relationship between language and culture, (c) developing skills and abilities to effectively teach DLLs, (d) developing abilities to use assessment in meaningful ways for DLLs, (e) developing a sense of professionalism, and (f) understanding how to work with families. PMID:26500692

Preparing Early Childhood Teachers to Work With Young Dual Language Learners.

PubMed

Zepeda, Marlene; Castro, Dina C; Cronin, Sharon

2011-03-01

Teacher preparation is clearly linked to the quality of early childhood programs. In order for young dual language learners (DLLs) to be academically successful, teacher preparation should focus on those skills and abilities relevant to students' particular needs. This article reviews the content of professional preparation for early educators working with young DLLs and briefly discusses the importance of developing the cultural and linguistic diversity of the early childhood workforce. It identifies 6 content areas: (a) understanding language development, (b) understanding the relationship between language and culture, (c) developing skills and abilities to effectively teach DLLs, (d) developing abilities to use assessment in meaningful ways for DLLs, (e) developing a sense of professionalism, and (f) understanding how to work with families.

Lost in Translation? Comparative Education Research and the Production of Academic Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mazenod, Anna

2018-01-01

The worth of academic knowledge tends to be tested against global metrics of citations and articles published in high-ranking English language academic journals. This paper examines academic knowledge production in three local fields of research with different national languages (English, Finnish and French). It focuses on knowledge production on…

The impact of science notebook writing on ELL and low-SES students' science language development and conceptual understanding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huerta, Margarita

This quantitative study explored the impact of literacy integration in a science inquiry classroom involving the use of science notebooks on the academic language development and conceptual understanding of students from diverse (i.e., English Language Learners, or ELLs) and low socio-economic status (low-SES) backgrounds. The study derived from a randomized, longitudinal, field-based NSF funded research project (NSF Award No. DRL - 0822343) targeting ELL and non-ELL students from low-SES backgrounds in a large urban school district in Southeast Texas. The study used a scoring rubric (modified and tested for validity and reliability) to analyze fifth-grade school students' science notebook entries. Scores for academic language quality (or, for brevity, language ) were used to compare language growth over time across three time points (i.e., beginning, middle, and end of the school year) and to compare students across categories (ELL, former ELL, non-ELL, and gender) using descriptive statistics and mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance (ANOVA). Scores for conceptual understanding (or, for brevity, concept) were used to compare students across categories (ELL, former ELL, non-ELL, and gender) in three domains using descriptive statistics and ANOVA. A correlational analysis was conducted to explore the relationship, if any, between language scores and concept scores for each group. Students demonstrated statistically significant growth over time in their academic language as reflected by science notebook scores. While ELL students scored lower than former ELL and non-ELL students at the first two time points, they caught up to their peers by the third time point. Similarly, females outperformed males in language scores in the first two time points, but males caught up to females in the third time point. In analyzing conceptual scores, ELLs had statistically significant lower scores than former-ELL and non-ELL students, and females outperformed males in the first two domains. These differences, however, were not statistically significant in the last domain. Last, correlations between language and concept scores were overall, positive, large, and significant across domains and groups. The study presents a rubric useful for quantifying diverse students' science notebook entries, and findings add to the sparse research on the impact of writing in diverse students' language development and conceptual understanding in science.

The Academic English Language Needs of Industrial Design Students in UiTM Kedah, Malaysia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adzmi, Nor Aslah; Bidin, Samsiah; Ibrahim, Syazliyati; Jusoff, Kamaruzaman

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyse the academic English language lacks and needs of Industrial Design students in Universiti Teknologi MARA Kedah (UiTM). It highlights the lacks and needs for English for Academic Purposes in helping the students to succeed in the program through the usage of English language. The research tools used were in…

The Academic and Functional Academic Skills of Youth Who Are at Risk for Language Impairment in Residential Care

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hagaman, Jessica L.; Trout, Alexandra L.; DeSalvo, Cathy; Gehringer, Robert; Epstein, Michael H.

2010-01-01

Purpose: Undiagnosed language impairment (LI) for youth in residential care is a concern as similar populations have shown elevated levels of language delays. Therefore, the purposes of this study were to identify the percentage of youth in residential care who are at risk for LI and to compare the demographic, academic achievement, and functional…

The Role of Motivation and Learner Variables in L1 and L2 Vocabulary Development in Japanese Heritage Language Speakers in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mori, Yoshiko; Calder, Toshiko M.

2015-01-01

This study investigates the role of motivation and learner variables in bilingual vocabulary development among first language (L1) Japanese students attending hoshuukoo (i.e., supplementary academic schools for Japanese-speaking children) in the United States. One hundred sixteen high school students ages 15-18 from eight hoshuukoo completed…

Embedding international benchmarks of proficiency in English in undergraduate nursing programmes: challenges and strategies in equipping culturally and linguistically diverse students with English as an additional language for nursing in Australia.

PubMed

Glew, Paul J

2013-01-01

To meet the expected shortfalls in the number of registered nurses throughout the coming decade Australian universities have been recruiting an increasing number of students from culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) backgrounds. Given that international and domestic students who use English as an additional language (EAL) complement the number of native English speaking nursing students, they represent a valuable nurse education investment. Although university programmes are in a position to meet the education and learning needs of native English speaking nursing students, they can experience considerable challenges in effectively equipping EAL students with the English and academic language skills for nursing studies and registration in Australia. However, success in a nursing programme and in preparing for nurse registration can require EAL students to achieve substantial literacy skills in English and academic language through their engagement with these tertiary learning contexts. This paper discusses the education implications for nursing programmes and EAL students of developing literacy skills through pre-registration nursing studies to meet the English language skills standard for nurse registration and presents intervention strategies for nursing programmes that aim to build EAL student capacity in using academic English.

Goal Orientations in an EFL Advanced Academic Writing Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dehghan, Farzaneh; Razmjoo, Seyyed Ayatollah

2015-01-01

Academic writing at advanced levels is the most important way of demonstrating one's expertise in a discipline. Developing this kind of competence is especially a challenging effort for students in foreign language contexts. Many factors may be involved in determining why some students are more and some are less motivated in writing successful,…

The Association between Preschool Children's Social Functioning and Their Emergent Academic Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arnold, David H.; Kupersmidt, Janis B.; Voegler-Lee, Mary Ellen; Marshall, Nastassja A.

2012-01-01

This study examined the relationship between social functioning and emergent academic development in a sample of 467 preschool children (M=55.9 months old, SD=3.8). Teachers reported on children's aggression, attention problems, and prosocial skills. Preliteracy, language, and early mathematics skills were assessed with standardized tests. Better…

Cocoa High School's Academic Courses as Viewed by Their Consumers: A Field Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Louwerse, F. H.

A 16-item self-report instrument (included in an appendix) was developed to determine the views held by students (N=1,004) concerning aspects of courses in 5 academic areas: English, foreign languages, mathematics, science, and social studies. Individual items reflected views concerning: understanding course requirments (2 items), teacher/student…

Academic English Socialization through Individual Networks of Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zappa-Hollman, Sandra; Duff, Patricia A.

2015-01-01

This article introduces the notion of individual network of practice (INoP) as a viable construct for analyzing academic (discourse) socialization in second language (L2) contexts. The authors provide an overview of social practice theories that have informed the development of INoP--community of practice (CoP; Lave & Wenger, 1991; Wenger,…

Mentor Texts and the Coding of Academic Writing Structures: A Functional Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Escobar Alméciga, Wilder Yesid; Evans, Reid

2014-01-01

The purpose of the present pedagogical experience was to address the English language writing needs of university-level students pursuing a degree in bilingual education with an emphasis in the teaching of English. Using mentor texts and coding academic writing structures, an instructional design was developed to directly address the shortcomings…

Test Review: Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malone, Margaret E.

2010-01-01

This article presents a review of the Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) Assessment, a high stakes standardized test of the English language. It is a topic-based test that integrates listening, reading, writing and speaking. The test is designed to describe the level of English language proficiency of test takers planning to study at…

Mastering Academic Language: Organization and Stance in the Persuasive Writing of High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uccelli, Paola; Dobbs, Christina L.; Scott, Jessica

2013-01-01

Beyond mechanics and spelling conventions, academic writing requires progressive mastery of advanced language forms and functions. Pedagogically useful tools to assess such language features in adolescents' writing, however, are not yet available. This study examines language predictors of writing quality in 51 persuasive essays produced by high…

Principes de la conception de tests destines a l'evaluation prealable d'etudiants etrangers venant etudier en Grande-Bretagne (Criteria for the Development of English Proficiency Tests for Foreign Students Enrolling in British Universities).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seaton, Ian

1981-01-01

Describes the criteria behind the development of the English Language Testing Service system, a new language proficiency evaluation instrument developed by the British Council. This system is based on an analysis of foreign students' communication needs in the context of their professional training and academic life. Societe Nouvelle Didier…

34 CFR 427.30 - What are the evaluation requirements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... English-language competencies and academic and vocational competencies demonstrated and the academic and... project in promoting key elements for participants' job readiness, including— (i) Coordination of services; and (ii) Improved English-language, academic, and vocational skills competencies. (Approved by the...

34 CFR 427.30 - What are the evaluation requirements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... English-language competencies and academic and vocational competencies demonstrated and the academic and... project in promoting key elements for participants' job readiness, including— (i) Coordination of services; and (ii) Improved English-language, academic, and vocational skills competencies. (Approved by the...

34 CFR 427.30 - What are the evaluation requirements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... English-language competencies and academic and vocational competencies demonstrated and the academic and... project in promoting key elements for participants' job readiness, including— (i) Coordination of services; and (ii) Improved English-language, academic, and vocational skills competencies. (Approved by the...

34 CFR 427.30 - What are the evaluation requirements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... English-language competencies and academic and vocational competencies demonstrated and the academic and... project in promoting key elements for participants' job readiness, including— (i) Coordination of services; and (ii) Improved English-language, academic, and vocational skills competencies. (Approved by the...

Researching the Uses of the English Language in the Law Job Market in the Sultanate of Oman: Implications for Policy-Practice Improvement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Issa, Ali S. M.

2014-01-01

The Sultanate of Oman is a developing country that has accepted the English language as a significant tool for modernization. This was best interpreted in the opening of Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in 1986, which has delivered its different academic programmes totally or partially through the English language. One of the colleges of SQU has…

A Randomised Controlled Trial to Test the Effect of Promoting Caregiver Contingent Talk on Language Development in Infants from Diverse Socioeconomic Status Backgrounds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGillion, Michelle; Pine, Julian M.; Herbert, Jane S.; Matthews, Danielle

2017-01-01

Background: Early language skills are critical for later academic success. Lower socioeconomic status (SES) children tend to start school with limited language skills compared to advantaged peers. We test the hypothesis that this is due in part to differences in caregiver contingent talk during infancy (how often the caregiver talks about what is…

Challenges Facing Chinese Academic Staff in a UK University in Terms of Language, Relationships and Culture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsieh, Hui-hua

2012-01-01

The recruitment of international academic staff is viewed as one of the strategies to internationalise the universities. International academic staff, however, usually encounter many challenges when in a foreign context. This study aims to investigate the challenges of Chinese academic staff teaching in the UK in terms of language, relationships…

Corpus of High School Academic Texts (COHAT): Data-Driven, Computer Assisted Discovery in Learning Academic English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bohát, Róbert; Rödlingová, Beata; Horáková, Nina

2015-01-01

Corpus of High School Academic Texts (COHAT), currently of 150,000+ words, aims to make academic language instruction a more data-driven and student-centered discovery learning as a special type of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), emphasizing students' critical thinking and metacognition. Since 2013, high school English as an additional…

Explaining the Academic Achievement at School Leaving for Pupils with a History of Language Impairment: Previous Academic Achievement and Literacy Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dockrell, Julie E.; Lindsay, Geoff; Palikara, Olympia

2011-01-01

The relationships are explored between language and literacy and academic success at 16 years in an English sample of 62 young people with a history of specific language impairment identified at 8 years. Data were available from national assessments at 16 and 14; in addition the pupils had completed a range of standardized tests to examine…

Foreign Language Faculty's Appropriation of an Academic Publishing Policy at a US University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuentes, Ronald; Gómez Soler, Inmaculada

2018-01-01

As a result of internationalisation, many universities have developed policies that encourage publications in English. This study explores this issue by examining multilingual scholars' experiences of publishing policies in an Anglophone context and more specifically within the discipline of foreign languages--an inherently plurilingual discipline…

Is Literacy Enough? Pathways to Academic Success for Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snow, Catherine E.; Porche, Michelle V.; Tabors, Patton O.; Harris, Stephanie R.

2007-01-01

Four literacy experts lay out the evidence in this compelling book, based on the well-known Home-School Study of Language and Literacy Development that inspired the landmark resource "Beginning Literacy with Language." Following a group of children living in low-income families from preschool through high school, the authors charted the students'…

Programming-Languages as a Conceptual Framework for Teaching Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Feurzeig, Wallace; Papert, Seymour A.

2011-01-01

Formal mathematical methods remain, for most high school students, mysterious, artificial and not a part of their regular intuitive thinking. The authors develop some themes that could lead to a radically new approach. According to this thesis, the teaching of programming languages as a regular part of academic progress can contribute effectively…

A Sourcebook for Integrating ESL and Content Instruction Using the Foresee Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kidd, Richard; Marquardson, Brenda

This sourcebook presents an approach to teaching students of English as a Second Language (ESL) that integrates communicative competence, cognitive and academic language development, and content instruction. It is intended for use by elementary school teachers of ESL and regular classroom teachers whose classes contain ESL students. An…

Merging a Metalinguistic Grammar Approach with L2 Academic Process Writing: ELLs in Community College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Camhi, Paul J.; Ebsworth, Miriam Eisenstein

2008-01-01

This action research study evaluates a classroom approach incorporating a reflective, metacognitive component within a second language process-oriented writing environment. Inspired by the literature and developed by the first author, this approach seeks to provide English language learners (ELLs) with a command of metalinguistic principles…

The Influence of Topics on Listening Strategy Use for English for Academic Purposes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chou, Mu-hsuan

2015-01-01

Listening is an essential skill for English as a Foreign Language learners studying in English-speaking universities to succeed in various fields of study. To comprehend subject material and improve listening effectiveness, learners are generally advised to develop strategies which help them process the target language in specific contexts.…

Dialogs for Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Sissy S.; Ortega, Irasema

2015-01-01

Teachers often start their careers in schools with large populations of English language learners (ELLs), whose enrollment in U.S. public schools reached some 4.4 million in 2012 (Kena et al. 2014). To serve these ELLs, new science teachers must develop skills to not only teach the content and language of science but also academic English. Proper…

The Effectiveness of Language! in Raising Reading Scores in One Middle School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carmichel-Hall, Cathy

2010-01-01

This study sought to determine the effectiveness of the "Language!" reading curriculum and a school district-developed grade-level reading curriculum in raising student reading scores on Tennessee state-mandated tests and to determine if student attitudes toward academic and recreational reading differ based on reading curriculum. The…

Nine- to Twelve-Year Olds' Metalinguistic Awareness of Homonymy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Corthals, Paul

2010-01-01

Background: The metalinguistic ability to cope with homonyms, that is, words having multiple unrelated meanings, emerges rather late in the course child language development. It is associated with specific neural activity and related to academic achievement and second language learning. This study is about homonyms that are at the same time…

Relationship of Preschool Academic Skill Deficits to Subsequent Acquisition of Reading and Mathematic Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrow, Robert D.; McBride, Hugh J.

This article discusses the assessment of language and cognitive development as reflected in preschool activities and describes the Preschool Language-Cognitive Assessment for Curriculum Entry (PLACE). Five task-skill areas associated with common preschool activities (building with blocks, completing puzzles, pounding pegs, etc) are identified. How…

Second Language Vocabulary Assessment: Current Practices and New Directions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Read, John

2007-01-01

This paper surveys some current developments in second language vocabulary assessment, with particular attention to the ways in which computer corpora can provide better quality information about the frequency of words and how they are used in specific contexts. The relative merits of different word lists are discussed, including the Academic Word…

Kichwa or Quichua? Competing Alphabets, Political Histories, and Complicated Reading in Indigenous Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Limerick, Nicholas

2018-01-01

Over the past century, missionary educators, nation-state and academic planners, and literacy development workers have used alphabets for political ends for traditionally marginalized languages, and Native peoples have contested such planning with other alphabet proposals. Yet literacy work now often overlooks that there are multiple alphabets…

English as a Problem Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moss, Peter

2010-01-01

At a time when English has emerged as the dominant language of academic communication, there is a disturbing silence about the risks and problems attendant on this development and a failure to ask critical questions about its consequences. Who gains and who loses? What is lost in translation? What are the consequences of one way linguistic…

EMH Curriculum Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gwinnett County Schools, GA.

The guide consists of behaviorally stated, developmentally sequenced curriculum objectives for mentally retarded students from preprimary through high school levels. Five major sections present detailed skill objectives in the following areas: (1) basic academic skills (motor development, perceptual development, language development, reading,…

Effect of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety on Turkish University Students' Academic Achievement in Foreign Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tuncer, Murat; Dogan, Yunus

2015-01-01

This study was carried out in order to identify to what extent the Turkish students' English classroom anxiety affects their academic achievement in English language. In this quantitative descriptive study, a correlational survey model was employed, and the convenience sampling was done. In order to collect data, the Foreign Language Classroom…

The Influence of Classroom Drama on English Learners' Academic Language Use during English Language Arts Lessons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Alida; Loughlin, Sandra M.

2014-01-01

Teacher and student academic discourse was examined in an urban arts-integrated school to better understand facilitation of students' English language learning. Participants' discourse was compared across English language arts (ELA) lessons with and without classroom drama in a third-grade classroom of English learning (EL) students (N = 18) with…

Enhancing Academic Instruction for Adolescent English Language Learners with or at Risk for Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haager, Diane; Osipova, Anna V.

2017-01-01

An increasing number of children worldwide attend schools where the language of instruction does not match their native language, presenting significant challenges with learning the content and vocabulary of academic content areas (e.g., social studies, science). In the U.S., these students are designated as English language learners…

Unravelling the differences in attrition and academic performance of international and domestic nursing students with English as an additional language.

PubMed

Zheng, Roy Xun; Everett, Bronwyn; Glew, Paul; Salamonson, Yenna

2014-12-01

High attrition and academic underperformance have been highlighted among students who speak English as an additional language (EAL) in higher education, and a lack of language skills is often cited as a key explanatory factor. Although the relationship between English-language skills and academic performance among EAL students has been established, group differences between international and domestic EAL nursing students is not known. The aim of this study was to compare attrition rates and academic performance of international and domestic EAL nursing students, taking into consideration levels of English-language usage and socio-demographic characteristics of these groups. A prospective correlational study. From 2010 to 2012, nursing students at a large Australian university, who attended an orientation session before course commencement, were invited to complete a survey to assess their English-language usage. Data collected included students' enrolment status and GPA at 12months. Compared with their domestic counterparts, the attrition rate of international EAL students was significantly lower (7.9% versus 13.3%, p=0.018). Similarly, international students also had higher GPAs (4.1 versus 4.0, p=0.011). Although the levels of English-language usage were not related to academic performance, recent arrivals in both international (p=0.047) and domestic (p=0.001) student groups had higher GPAs. This study suggests that language acculturation, indicated by English-language usage and the length of stay in the host country, was not sufficient to ensure successful transition into the academic environment for either international or domestic EAL nursing students. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Astigmatism and early academic readiness in preschool children.

PubMed

Orlansky, Gale; Wilmer, Jeremy; Taub, Marc B; Rutner, Daniella; Ciner, Elise; Gryczynski, Jan

2015-03-01

This study investigated the relationship between uncorrected astigmatism and early academic readiness in at-risk preschool-aged children. A vision screening and academic records review were performed on 122 three- to five-year-old children enrolled in the Philadelphia Head Start program. Vision screening results were related to two measures of early academic readiness, the teacher-reported Work Sampling System (WSS) and the parent-reported Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ). Both measures assess multiple developmental and skill domains thought to be related to academic readiness. Children with astigmatism (defined as >|-0.25| in either eye) were compared with children who had no astigmatism. Associations between astigmatism and specific subscales of the WSS and ASQ were examined using parametric and nonparametric bivariate statistics and regression analyses controlling for age and spherical refractive error. Presence of astigmatism was negatively associated with multiple domains of academic readiness. Children with astigmatism had significantly lower mean scores on Personal and Social Development, Language and Literacy, and Physical Development domains of the WSS, and on Personal/Social, Communication, and Fine Motor domains of the ASQ. These differences between children with astigmatism and children with no astigmatism persisted after statistically adjusting for age and magnitude of spherical refractive error. Nonparametric tests corroborated these findings for the Language and Literacy and Physical Health and Development domains of the WSS and the Communication domain of the ASQ. The presence of astigmatism detected in a screening setting was associated with a pattern of reduced academic readiness in multiple developmental and educational domains among at-risk preschool-aged children. This study may help to establish the role of early vision screenings, comprehensive vision examinations, and the need for refractive correction to improve academic success in preschool children.

Personal and Academic Aspects That Contributed to the Development of the English Language Competence of Students from a Language Teacher Education Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herrera-Mosquera, Leonardo; Tovar-Perdomo, Alejandra

2017-01-01

Students from the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Program targeted in the present study are expected to achieve a C1 level of English proficiency according to the Common European Framework (CEF). However, only a five per cent of the students has evidenced this level on the institutional English exam (Ileusco Test, henceforth IT) for the past…

Embedding Academic Literacies in University Programme Curricula: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murray, Neil; Nallaya, Shashi

2016-01-01

As the number of students entering higher education continues to increase, many English-medium universities have been looking carefully at how to more effectively ensure that those for whom English is not a first language have the opportunity to develop the academic literacies they require to successfully engage with and complete their studies as…

Academic Writing for Graduate-Level English as a Second Language Students: Experiences in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sidman-Taveau, Rebekah; Karathanos-Aguilar, Katya

2015-01-01

Graduate-level ESL students in Education are future multicultural educators and promising role models for our diverse K-12 students. However, many of these students struggle with academic English and, in particular, writing. Yet little research or program development addresses the specific writing-support needs of this group. This article shares…

ISAAC: An Introduction to IBM's Information System for Advanced Academic Computing at the University of Washington-Seattle.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hernandez, Nicolas, Jr.

1988-01-01

Traces the origin of ISAAC (Information System for Advanced Academic Computing) and the development of a languages and linguistics "room" at the University of Washington-Seattle. ISAAC, a free, valuable resource, consists of two databases and an electronic bulletin board spanning broad areas of pedagogical and research fields. (Author/CB)

Uneven Commercialization: Contradiction and Conflict in the Identity and Practices of American Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kleinman, Daniel Lee; Osley-Thomas, Robert

2014-01-01

In this paper, drawing on magazines read by US academic leaders, we explore the spread of commercial language into the world of higher education. We ask whether commercial codes are taken for granted, considered routine, and common sense in academic settings. We develop a multidimensional approach, considering two practices, strategic planning and…

The Bilingual Academic Services and Integrated Career Systems Program, BASICS 1988-1989. OREA Evaluation Section Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berney, Tomi D.; Barrera, Marbella

In its second year, the Bilingual Academic Services and Integrated Career Systems (BASICS) Program served 104 limited-English-proficient students at Bayside High School in Queens (New York City). Project goals were to develop English literacy skills, produce an organizing framework of thinking and language skills across the curriculum, generate a…

Bilingual Education and Academic/Career Outreach for Newcomers: Project BEACON, 1988-89. Evaluation Section Report. OREA Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berney, Tomi D.; Gritzer, Glenn

The Bilingual Education Academic/Career Outreach for Newcomers Program (Project BEACON) completed its fourth year. The goals of Project BEACON are to facilitate acquisition of English proficiency, develop native language literacy skills, and provide instruction in bilingual and English content area/vocational classes. The project served 753…

The Poor Get Richer: Heterogeneity in the Efficacy of a School-Level Intervention for Academic Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawrence, Joshua F.; Francis, David; Paré-Blagoev, Juliana; Snow, Catherine E.

2017-01-01

We investigate the impact of a relatively brief cross-curricular intervention, Word Generation, on middle school students' development of taught academic vocabulary. Students (n = 8382) in forty-four middle schools in three urban districts were randomly assigned to treatment or control conditions. Treatment teachers implemented the program with…

Understanding Translanguaging Practices through a Biliteracy Continua Framework: Adult Biliterates Reading Academic Texts in Their Two Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kwon, Hyun Joo; Schallert, Diane L.

2016-01-01

Ten adult readers, advanced in their control of two languages, Korean and English, were recruited for a study of academic literacy practices to examine the various linguistic repertoires on which they drew. Analysis of their language use revealed many instances of "translanguaging," that is, a flexible reliance on two languages to serve…

The Influence of Teacher Power on English Language Learners' Self-Perceptions of Learner Empowerment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diaz, Abel; Cochran, Kathryn; Karlin, Nancy

2016-01-01

English language learners (ELL) are students with a primary language spoken other than English enrolled in U.S. educational settings. As ELL students take on the challenges of learning English and U.S. culture, they must also learn academic content. The expectation to succeed academically in a foreign culture and language, while learning to speak…

Bilingual Pre-Service Teachers Grapple with the Academic and Social Role of Language in Mathematics Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

del Rosario Zavala, Maria

2017-01-01

Effectively engaging students in mathematics discourse is challenging, especially in a language other than the one in which you learned mathematics. Teachers must manage the academic as well as social function of language. In Spanish-English bilingual classrooms in the U.S., changing the language of instruction to Spanish may not be enough to…

Measuring Opportunity to Learn and Academic Language Exposure for English Language Learners in Elementary Science Classrooms. CRESST Report 767

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martinez, Jose Felipe; Bailey, Alison L.; Kerr, Deirdre; Huang, Becky H.; Beauregard, Stacey

2010-01-01

The present study piloted a survey-based measure of Opportunity to Learn (OTL) and Academic Language Exposure (ALE) in fourth grade science classrooms that sought to distinguish teacher practices with ELL (English language learner) and non-ELL students. In the survey, participant teachers reported on their instructional practices and the context…

Assessing Second Language Writing in Academic Contexts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamp-Lyons, Liz, Ed.

The articles contained in this volume on second language writing evaluation focus on the evaluation of academic English learned as a second language (ESL). Essays include: "Assessment by Misconception: Cultural Influences and Intellectual Traditions" (Brigid Ballard, John Clanchy); "Reading the World Differently: A Cross-Cultural Approach to…

The Language-Related Academic Self-Confidence of Noncitizen Students in US Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodnight, Melissa Rae

2017-01-01

For this multivariate regression study I utilized data from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) surveys of freshman and senior undergraduates to examine the language-related academic self-confidence (LRASC) of noncitizen students in relationship to college environmental factors like academic disengagement and assertiveness.…

Cross-Disciplinary Dialogue about the Nature of Oral and Written Language Problems in the Context of Developmental, Academic, and Phenotypic Profiles

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Silliman, Elaine R.; Berninger, Virginia W.

2011-01-01

Professionals across disciplines who assess and teach students with language problems should develop their own standards for best professional practices to improve the diagnostic and treatment (instructional) services in schools and nonschool settings rather than assessing only for eligibility for categories of special education services according…

A Study of the Relationship of English Comprehension Level and Academic Performance of Foreign Students in the Naval Postgraduate School

DTIC Science & Technology

1974-12-01

TOEFL ), the University of Michigan Tests (the Lado Test) developed At the English Language Institute at Michigan, and the Pennsylvania State...Indiana University Monograph. Their data were from 526 foreign students [Ref. 7]. They found that the TOEFL and the Pennsylvania State English Language

Language Curriculum Analysis of French Literature in Iranian Universities at BA

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rahmatian, Rouhollah; Cheraghi, Haleh; Letafati, Roya; Safa, Parivash

2017-01-01

This article attempts to realize the dominant approach in developing the academic curriculum of language degree and French literature in Iran. It concentrates on analyzing the content of the curriculum approved by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology in Iran and the University of Tehran. It was concluded that the first curriculum opts…

Using Graphic Organizers as a Tool for the Development of Scientific Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mercuri, Sandra P.

2010-01-01

This observational study examines the effectiveness of graphic organizers two elementary teachers in California, United States use to teach the content and the academic language of science. The study was done during the 2006-2007 school year. The data was collected through field-notes and the audio recording of instructional activities, and they…

Oral Academic Language by Design: Bilingual Pre-Service Teachers' Purposeful Infusion of Paired Strategies during Science Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arreguín-Anderson, María G.; Alanis, Iliana

2017-01-01

This study explores ways in which university science courses can be infused with opportunities for pre-service teachers to design student student interactions that promote language development and content mastery. Participants included bilingual pre-service teachers enrolled in an elementary science approaches course and its school-based fieldwork…

Characteristics of Effective Pedagogy of Third Grade English Learners in Language Arts: An Exploratory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Merwin, Gregory J.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify pedagogical and non-pedagogical factors that affect the academic achievement of English Learner (EL) students in the area of language arts at Dr. Albert Schweitzer Elementary School in Anaheim, California. The researcher conducted an exploratory multiple case study to develop a comprehensive, contextual…

Politeness Strategies in Thai Graduate Research Paper Discussions: Implications for Second/Foreign Language Academic Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Getkham, Kunyarut

2014-01-01

This paper investigates the use of politeness strategies in 32 discussion sections of research papers produced by Thai graduate students at Graduate School of Language and Communication, National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA), Bangkok, Thailand. The study reported in this paper adopts Brown and Levinson's (1978, 1987) and Myers'…

The Perilous Legitimacy of the Foreign-Born Spanish Instructor in the U.S.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barahona, Byron A.

2014-01-01

This article discusses the perilous legitimacy and professional vulnerability of the foreign-born Spanish instructor in the U.S. First, it examines the academic goals of language and in particular Spanish departments regarding the development of language proficiency, the study of cultural values of the Spanish-speaking world, and the place of…

Internet-Based French as a Foreign Language Vocabulary Learning: Academic Success and Opinions on FFL Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erkan, Senem Seda Sahenk

2017-01-01

In the 21st century, globalization and technological developments in different domains of life have accentuated the importance of multilingualism and multiculturalism in studying English and French as foreign languages in different countries of the world, including Turkey. This research is aimed at determining the effects of learning vocabulary in…

Developmental trajectories in siblings of children with autism: cognition and language from 4 months to 7 years.

PubMed

Gamliel, Ifat; Yirmiya, Nurit; Jaffe, Dena H; Manor, Orly; Sigman, Marian

2009-08-01

We compared the cognitive and language development at 4, 14, 24, 36, 54 months, and 7 years of siblings of children with autism (SIBS-A) to that of siblings of children with typical development (SIBS-TD) using growth curve analyses. At 7 years, 40% of the SIBS-A, compared to 16% of SIBS-TD, were identified with cognitive, language and/or academic difficulties, identified using direct tests and/or parental reports. This sub-group was identified as SIBS-A-broad phenotype (BP). Results indicated that early language scores (14-54 months), but not cognitive scores of SIBS-A-BP and SIBS-A-nonBP were significantly lower compared to the language scores of SIBS-TD, and that the rate of development was also significantly different, thus pinpointing language as a major area of difficulty for SIBS-A during the preschool years.

The relationship between executive functioning and language: Examining vocabulary, syntax, and language learning in preschoolers attending Head Start.

PubMed

White, Lisa J; Alexander, Alexandra; Greenfield, Daryl B

2017-12-01

Early childhood marks a time of dynamic development within language and cognitive domains. Specifically, a body of research focuses on the development of language as related to executive functions, which are foundational cognitive skills that relate to both academic achievement and social-emotional development during early childhood and beyond. Although there is evidence to support the relationship between language and executive functions, existing studies focus mostly on vocabulary and fail to examine other components of language such as syntax and language learning skills. To address this gap, this study examined the relationship between executive functioning (EF) and three aspects of language: syntax, vocabulary, and language learning. A diverse sample of 182 children (67% Latino and 33% African American) attending Head Start were assessed on both EF and language ability. Findings demonstrated that EF related to a comprehensive latent construct of language composed of vocabulary, syntax, and language learning. EF also related to each individual component of language. This study furthers our understanding of the complex relationship between language and cognitive development by measuring EF as it relates to various components of language in a sample of preschoolers from low-income backgrounds. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fairness in Assessment of English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abedi, Jamal; Levine, Harold G.

2013-01-01

English language learners (ELLs) face a challenging academic future in learning a new language while simultaneously mastering content in the language they may be struggling to learn. Assessment plays an extremely important role in the academic careers of ELL students, perhaps more so than for native speakers of English. Major changes and…

Laboratory automation in a functional programming language.

PubMed

Runciman, Colin; Clare, Amanda; Harkness, Rob

2014-12-01

After some years of use in academic and research settings, functional languages are starting to enter the mainstream as an alternative to more conventional programming languages. This article explores one way to use Haskell, a functional programming language, in the development of control programs for laboratory automation systems. We give code for an example system, discuss some programming concepts that we need for this example, and demonstrate how the use of functional programming allows us to express and verify properties of the resulting code. © 2014 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening.

The Effect of Blended Learning Approach on Fifth Grade Students' Academic Achievement in My Beautiful Language Textbook and the Development of Their Verbal Creative Thinking in Saudi Arabia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Madani, Feras Mohammed

2015-01-01

This study aims at investigating the effect of Blended Learning approach compared to the traditional learning approach on fifth grade students' achievement in My Beautiful Language Textbook and the development of their verbal creative thinking. The study consisted of 49 students among which 25 are males in the Experimental Group and 24 females in…

Mother-adolescent language proficiency and adolescent academic and emotional adjustment among Chinese American families.

PubMed

Liu, Lisa L; Benner, Aprile D; Lau, Anna S; Kim, Su Yeong

2009-04-01

This study examined the role of adolescents' and mothers' self-reports of English and heritage language proficiency in youth's academic and emotional adjustment among 444 Chinese American families. Adolescents who were proficient in English tended to exhibit higher reading achievement scores, math achievement scores, and overall GPA. Mothers who were English proficient tended to have children with higher academic achievement and fewer depressive symptoms. Results also indicated that adolescents' heritage language maintenance was associated with positive adjustment, particularly amongst foreign-born youth and for youth whose parents were highly proficient in the heritage language. Mother-adolescent match in heritage language proficiency was related to higher math achievement scores and overall GPA. Additionally, higher heritage language proficiency was associated with fewer depressive symptoms for foreign-born but not U.S.-born youth. Overall, the findings suggest that proficiency in both the English and heritage language may confer advantages to Chinese American youth.

Los retos de la educación bilingüe en inglés y español en las escuelas públicas de Nueva York: objetivos, modelos y currículos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velasco, Patricia; Cancino, Herlinda

2012-10-01

The challenges of bilingual education in English and Spanish in public schools of New York: Objectives, models and curricula - The first section of this article describes the conceptual differences between educational objectives, educational model (context and structures) and curriculum (units of study or sequential study guides). The second section analyses how these three concepts were put into practice in five bilingual elementary schools serving immigrant students in New York City. The educational objectives reflect the leadership and work expectations which the principal establishes within the school and with the community. The educational model is translated into a clear language allocation policy that is reached by consensus between the principal and the teachers. The curriculum adaptations reflect the context and culture of the students, but without neglecting the educational objectives. The development of academic language (the language based on academic texts) is an element that attracts vast interest in American schools, but is ignored in many bilingual ones. The development of academic language occupies a central role in the curriculum of these five schools. This is, to a great extent, the result of the limited exposure to literacy that many students have had outside of the school environment. The final section of this article describes how these schools disregard the antagonism towards immigrants and bilingual education that is currently characteristic of the United States and focus on the quality of their programmes.

Towards the Development of an Academic Word List for Applied Linguistics Research Articles

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khani, Reza; Tazik, Khalil

2013-01-01

Academic vocabulary, as the most challenging aspect of language learning in EAP and ESP contexts, has received much attention in the last few decades (e.g. Laufer, 1988; Sutarsyah, et al., 1994; Laufer and Nation, 1999; Coxhead, 2000; Nation, 2001a, 2001b; Wang et al., 2008; Martinez et al., 2009). The major attainments of these studies were…

Consumer's Choice. A Manual of Supplemental Consumer Education Teaching Strategies. Developed for Grades K-4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allegheny Intermediate Unit, Pittsburgh, PA.

Designed for grades K-4, this manual contains suggested teaching strategies for infusing consumer education into the academic areas of art, language arts, mathematics, science/health, and social studies. Each of the twenty to thirty learning activities provided for each of the academic areas is based on competencies related to one of four…

Arguing as an Academic Purpose: The Role of Asynchronous Conferencing in Supporting Argumentative Dialogue in School and University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coffin, Caroline; Hewings, Ann; North, Sarah

2012-01-01

Learning to argue is a key academic purpose for both first and second language students. It has been claimed that computer mediated asynchronous text-based conferencing is a useful medium for developing argumentation skills (Andriessen, Baker, & Suthers, 2003). This paper reports on two research studies which explore this claim. One study focused…

"We Know What to Say, We Know What to Write, but We Don't Know How": The Challenges of Becoming Academically Literate in a New Linguistic and Socio-Cultural Space

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sibomana, Emmanuel

2016-01-01

Historically, some languages and discourses which were initially localised subsequently became regionally or even globally dominant. Currently, English is the dominant global language in all domains, including the academic. Thus academics and scholars from non-English backgrounds are at a disadvantage: they have to adhere to academic literacy…

English Language and Literature Academic Group at the National Institute of Education, Singapore

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Benny P. H.

2010-01-01

The National Institute of Education in Singapore (which is part of the Nanyang Technological University) is the leading national pre-service and in-service teacher training tertiary institution. It offers diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. The academic departments are called Academic Groups (AGs). The English Language and…

Publishing Strategies of Young, Highly Mobile Academics: The Question of Language in the European Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Laurie

2013-01-01

This paper examines links between publishing strategies and the academic mobility of multilingual entry-level scholars in the European context against the backdrop of European Union (EU) policies and research on academic labor market characteristics, skilled migration and scholarly publishing. An analysis of language of publication, patterns of…

Designing ICT-Enhanced Language Programmes: Academic Writing for Postgraduate Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stepanek, Libor; Hradilova, Alena

2013-01-01

This paper presents a case study of a course on academic writing for postgraduate studies within a collaborative and interactive information and communication technologies (ICT) based language-learning setting. It describes the structure of an academic writing course for PhD students, focusing on three ICT-enhanced course activities: collaborative…

On Developing Academic Literacy in the Mother Tongue for Epistemological Access: The Role of isiZulu as the LoLT in a South African University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mgqwashu, Emmanuel Mfanafuthi

2014-01-01

This paper reports on a study that examined the extent to which the development of academic literacy in isiZulu, an indigenous language spoken across all the nine provinces in South Africa, enhances opportunities for epistemological access. The focus is in relation to a pilot study of a Bachelor of Education Honours module that uses isiZulu as the…

Teacher Learning across Boundaries: A Challenge to the Legitimacy of Language Teachers' Disciplinary Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Chunyan; Wu, Zongjie

2015-01-01

The legitimate forms of knowledge recognised for language teachers in Chinese universities are differentiated by strong academic boundaries, subject only to disciplinary authority and fashion. Classroom practice on the whole tends not to be informed by research. For many language teachers, a disconnect exists between the academic discipline in…

The Relationship between Language Literacy and ELL Student Academic Performance in Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawon, Molly A.

2017-01-01

This quantitative study used regression analysis to investigate the correlation of limited language proficiency and the performance of English Language Learner (ELL) students on two commonly used math assessments, namely the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP). Scores were analyzed for eighth…

Using Visual Literacy to Teach Science Academic Language: Experiences from Three Preservice Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly-Jackson, Charlease; Delacruz, Stacy

2014-01-01

This original pedagogical study captured three preservice teachers' experiences using visual literacy strategies as an approach to teaching English language learners (ELLs) science academic language. The following research questions guided this study: (1) What are the experiences of preservice teachers' use of visual literacy to teach science…

Bilingual Academic Computer and Technology Oriented Program: Project COM-TECH. Evaluation Section Report. OREA Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berney, Tomi D.; Plotkin, Donna

Project COM-TECH offered bilingual individualized instruction, using an enrichment approach, to Spanish- and Haitian Creole-speaking students with varying levels of English and native language proficiency and academic preparation. The program provided supplementary instruction in English as a Second Language (ESL); Native Language Arts (NLA); and…

Knowledge foundations for beginning reading teachers in EFL.

PubMed

Goldfus, Carol

2012-10-01

This study examined the knowledge that teachers need in order to become successful early reading teachers in English as a foreign language. The findings showed that in-service teachers had better content knowledge than pre-service teachers, although the results indicated overall low performance and insufficiently developed concepts about the structure of language, spelling rules, and academic terminology in both groups.

Class and Categories: What Role Does Socioeconomic Status Play in Children's Lexical and Conceptual Development?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bloomquist, Jennifer

2009-01-01

At one time, academic inquiries into the relationship between socioeconomic class and language acquisition were commonplace, but the past 20 years have seen a decrease in work that focuses on the intersection between class and early language learning. Recently, however, against the backdrop of the No Child Left Behind legislation in the United…

Programa Academico de Dominio de Ingles Como Lengua Extranjera (Academic Program in English as a Foreign Language).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flores Revilla, Maria Teresa; Zoreda, Margaret Lee; Vivaldo Lima, Javier; Blanco Lopez, Guadalupe; Caballero Robles, Teresita del Rosario; Mercau Appiani, Virginia

The guide presents the newly-developed curriculum of the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana at Iztapalapa (Mexico) for its program in English as a foreign language. An introductory section provides background information on the initiative to design a new curriculum. The second section presents the principles on which the curriculum and its methods…

Competency-Based English Teaching and Learning: Investigating Pre-Service Teachers of Chinese's Learning Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Ruth M. H.

2008-01-01

English competency is known as one of the crucial skills in various social contexts in Hong Kong. In tertiary educational setting, English courses do not focus solely on the development of the four language skills. Rather, they put emphasis on the application of English Language for academic use or instrumental use. This paper will investigate the…

Cooperative Learning in the Secondary School: Maximizing Language Acquisition, Academic Achievement, and Social Development. NCBE Program Information Guide Series 12.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holt, Daniel D.; And Others

Cooperative learning is a valuable strategy for teaching secondary school students, especially useful with students from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds who are learning English as a Second Language. It offers a method for managing diversity, channeling peer influence into a positive force for improving school performance, and…

Beyond Linguistic Proficiency: Early Language Learning as a Lever for Building Students' Global Competence, Self-Esteem, and Academic Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Livaccari, Chris

2013-01-01

It is no exaggeration to say that language learning is the very foundation of global competence and the most deeply effective way for students to be able to "investigate the world, recognize perspectives, communicate ideas, and take action," which is the definition of global competence developed by Asia Society Vice President for…

A Review of Technology Choice for Teaching Language Skills and Areas in the CALL Literature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stockwell, Glenn

2007-01-01

The use of technology in language teaching and learning has been the focus of a number of recent research review studies, including developments in technology and CALL research (Zhao, 2003), CALL as an academic discipline (Debski, 2003), ICT effectiveness (Felix, 2005), and subject characteristics in CALL research (Hubbard, 2005), to name a few.…

Examining the Impact of Art-Based Anchor Charts on Academic Achievement in Language Arts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fontanez, Kimberly

2017-01-01

The students at 2 middle schools in County SD, NHMS and WMS are not scoring on or above grade level on the information text portion of the English Language Arts (ELA) standardized SC Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (SCPASS) test given annually in South Carolina. The teachers developed and implemented art-based anchor charts to help close…

The Language of Request: Annual Giftgiving to the University. ASHE 1983 Annual Meeting Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tobin, Katherine

The organization of culture and the language of gift-giving used by a university development office were studied using an ethnographic approach. Attention was directed to the way that an academic institution selects, designs, and expresses its written and oral fund-raising messages, as well as the variety of factors that precede, structure, and…

Interactive Read-Alouds--An Avenue for Enhancing Children's Language for Thinking and Understanding: A Review of Recent Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lennox, Sandra

2013-01-01

Enhancing young children's early literacy achievement is a top priority in many countries. There is a considerable body of research demonstrating young children's language development as a critical factor in reading and later academic success. Implementation of high quality literacy instruction has the potential to improve literacy…

Diction and Expression in Error Analysis Can Enhance Academic Writing of L2 University Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sajid, Muhammad

2016-01-01

Without proper linguistic competence in English language, academic writing is one of the most challenging tasks, especially, in various genre specific disciplines by L2 novice writers. This paper examines the role of diction and expression through error analysis in English language of L2 novice writers' academic writing in interdisciplinary texts…

The Effects of Differentiated Foreign Language Instruction on Academic Achievement and Creativity of Gifted Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aysin, Sayi K.; Serap, Emir

2017-01-01

The main aim of this study is to investigate the effects of an English language education program that addresses the academic and cognitive needs of gifted children on their academic achievement and creative thinking levels. To this end, through an experimental research design, the unit "Health Problems" in English course book was…

Exploring the Relationship among International Students' English Self-Efficacy, Using English to Learn Self-Efficacy, and Academic Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Chih-hsuan; Harrison, Jamie; Cardullo, Victoria; Lin, Xi

2018-01-01

One of the major challenges for international students to pursue academic goals in the United States is English language proficiency, which often negatively affects academic success. Even students with confidence in their English language proficiency encounter challenges using English in class. Previous research indicates self-efficacy positively…

Identifying Methods for Implementing Differentiated Instruction in Middle School Language Arts/Reading Classes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pierre, Linda

2014-01-01

Students enter school with a range of abilities and learning styles. Many of these diverse learners are in need of academic support and assistance from educators in reaching grade-level competency within the academic area of language arts/reading. Differentiation addresses the possibility of assisting each of these students academically. The…

Achievement, Language, and Technology Use Among College-Bound Deaf Learners.

PubMed

Crowe, Kathryn; Marschark, Marc; Dammeyer, Jesper; Lehane, Christine

2017-10-01

Deaf learners are a highly heterogeneous group who demonstrate varied levels of academic achievement and attainment. Most prior research involving this population has focused on factors facilitating academic success in young deaf children, with less attention paid to older learners. Recent studies, however, have suggested that while factors such as early cochlear implantation and early sign language fluency are positively associated with academic achievement in younger deaf children, they no longer predict achievement once children reach high school age. This study, involving data from 980 college-bound high school students with hearing loss, examined relations between academic achievement, communication variables (audiological, language), and use of assistive technologies (e.g., cochlear implants [CIs], FM systems) and other support services (e.g., interpreting, real-time text) in the classroom. Spoken language skills were positively related to achievement in some domains, while better sign language skills were related to poorer achievement in others. Among these college-bound students, use of CIs and academic support services in high school accounted for little variability in their college entrance examination scores. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

How to incorporate academic writing pedagogy in undergraduate and postgraduate medical education.

PubMed

Kostenko, Viktoriia G; Solohor, Iryna M

2018-01-01

Introduction: Medical researchers, who are non-native English speakers, are facing now the growing need to publish their research results in international journals switching to an English-only policy, to apply for grants and scholarship, but at the same time this puts many authors whose native language is not English at a disadvantage compared to their English-speaking counterparts. The aim: This paper aims at analysing the existing parameters of academic writing proficiency of medical undergraduate and postgraduate students; elucidating current approaches to develop academic writing competency and to promote academic multi-literacy of junior researchers, and outlining the general recommendations to improve the quality and sophistication of their writing by incorporating the principles and achievements of academic writing pedagogy into the system of medical training. Materials and methods: This study is an empirical applied research of a qualitative type mainly based on data elicited from informants (n=120) of the Ukrainian Medical Stomatological Academy aged from 20 - 35. Results and conclusions: All participants were able to identify personal problem areas, and virtually all they note dissatisfaction with the use of English in their scholarly writing. They stated the obvious difficulties in sentence patterns and keeping tone of scientific narrative format. Writing in genres other than original research articles seems to be quite demanding and is often associated with the lack of self-confidence and language anxiety. Attention to developing academic writing skills should focus on the basic elements of academic writing, characteristics of written genres across the disciplines, providing a framework in which expert and practical knowledge is internally organized.

Towards the Characterization of Academic Language in Upper Elementary Science Classrooms. CSE Report 621

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailey, Alison, L.; Butler, Frances A.; LaFramenta, Charmien; Ong, Christine

2004-01-01

This report details an exploratory study that employs qualitative methods to characterize the academic language used by teachers and students in 4th and 5th grade mainstream science classrooms. Teacher oral language, and to some degree student talk, was observed during content instruction. This type of data allows for a broad descriptive…

Long-Term English Language Learners' Perceptions of Their Language and Academic Learning Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Won Gyoung; García, Shernaz B.

2014-01-01

Long-term, adolescent English language learners (ELLs) experience persistent academic underachievement in spite of several years of schooling; yet, the research on this topic is scant. To increase our understanding of these students' educational experiences, we explored perceptions of 13 long-term ELLs about their schooling in the context of their…

Washback to Learning Outcomes: A Comparative Study of IELTS Preparation and University Pre-Sessional Language Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Anthony

2007-01-01

This study investigated whether dedicated test preparation classes gave learners an advantage in improving their writing test scores. Score gains following instruction on a measure of academic writing skills--the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) academic writing test--were compared across language courses of three types; all…

Improving the Academic Performance of Non-Native English-Speaking Students: The Contribution of Pre-Sessional English Language Programmes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thorpe, Andy; Snell, Martin; Davey-Evans, Sue; Talman, Richard

2017-01-01

There is an established, if weak, inverse relationship between levels of English language proficiency and academic performance in higher education. In response, higher education institutions (HEIs) insist upon minimum entry requirements concerning language for international applicants. Many HEIs now also offer pre-sessional English courses to…

A Study of English Language Learning Beliefs, Strategies, and English Academic Achievement of the ESP Students of STIENAS Samarinda

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayati, Noor

2015-01-01

This research aimed to investigate; students' English academic achievement, beliefs about English language learning, English language learning strategies, and the relationship of them. Descriptive and correlational design, quantitative methods were applied in this research. The students' final English scores of the first year, BALLI, and SILL were…

She Is My Language Broker: How Does Cultural Capital Benefit Asian Immigrant Children in the United States?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Md-Yunus, Sham'ah

2011-01-01

Cultural capital benefits Asian immigrant children when they become language brokers. This skill can also benefit their parents and families in the United States. Language brokering may shape and possibly enhance students' academic performance and can further children's linguistic and academic achievement. (Contains 2 figures and 1 table.)

Academic Vocabulary, Writing and English for Academic Purposes: Perspectives from Second Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coxhead, Averil

2012-01-01

This article focuses on vocabulary and writing at university level from the perspectives of 14 English as an additional language students studying at a New Zealand university. The students individually carried out an integrated reading and writing task and then participated in an interview which focused on their language learning background and…

Recurrent Word Combinations in EAP Test-Taker Writing: Differences between High- and Low-Proficiency Levels

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Appel, Randy; Wood, David

2016-01-01

The correct use of frequently occurring word combinations represents an important part of language proficiency in spoken and written discourse. This study investigates the use of English-language recurrent word combinations in low-level and high-level L2 English academic essays sourced from the Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) assessment.…

English Language Learners and Their Academic Progress: 2010-2011

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shneyderman, Aleksandr

2012-01-01

This is the 2010-11 annual report on the academic progress of English language learners in the Miami-Dade County Public Schools. The purpose of the report is to: (1) Describe the demographic characteristics of students classified as English Language Learners (ELL) in the Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS); (2) Provide data regarding ELL…

Writing Strategy Instruction: Its Impact on Writing in a Second Language for Academic Purposes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

De Silva, Radhika

2015-01-01

Writing for academic purposes in a second/foreign language is a major challenge faced by many students at both secondary and tertiary levels. This suggests that displaying content knowledge and understanding of a subject through a second language is a very complex process. This article discusses the findings of a longitudinal intervention study…

Fathers' and Mothers' Language Acculturation and Parenting Practices: Links to Mexican American Children's Academic Readiness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Claire E.

2018-01-01

This study used a family-centered ecological lens to examine predictive relations among fathers' and mothers' language acculturation, parenting practices, and academic readiness in a large sample of Mexican American children in preschool (N = 880). In line with prior early childhood research, parent language acculturation was operationalized as…

Comparing the Effects of Working Memory-Based Interventions for Children with Language Impairment. EBP Briefs. Volume 9, Issue 1

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farquharson, Kelly; Franzluebbers, Chelsea E.

2014-01-01

Clinical Question: Do working memory-based interventions improve language, reading, and/or working memory skills in school-aged children with language impairment? Method: Literature review of evidence-based practice (EBP) intervention comparisons. Sources: Google Scholar, ASHA journals database, Academic OneFile, Academic Search Complete, and…

Social Positioning, Participation, and Second Language Learning: Talkative Students in an Academic ESL Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kayi-Aydar, Hayriye

2014-01-01

Guided by positioning theory and poststructural views of second language learning, the two descriptive case studies presented in this article explored the links between social positioning and the language learning experiences of two talkative students in an academic ESL classroom. Focusing on the macro- and micro-level contexts of communication,…

Pathologizing the Language and Culture of Poor Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dudley-Marling, Curt; Lucas, Krista

2009-01-01

There has been a resurgence of deficit discourses that implicate deficiencies in the language and culture of poor students as the cause of their academic failures. An influential study by Betty Hart and Todd Risley concludes that high levels of academic failure among poor children can be linked to the quantity and quality of language interactions…

Adult English as a Second Language Students in the United States: Learner Characteristics, Goals, and Academic Writing Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lambert, Olga Demin

2009-01-01

Adult English as a second language (ESL) students learning English outside of traditional academic settings are an understudied population of second language learners. The purpose of the research reported here is to contribute to meeting the instructional needs of these students more effectively by investigating the relationships between their…

The Relationship between the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Scores and Academic Success of International Master's Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arcuino, Cathy Lee T.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine if the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) are related to academic success defined by final cumulative grade point average (GPA). The data sample, from three Midwestern universities, was comprised of international graduate students who…

Curriculum considerations for enhancing baccalaureate learning for international students.

PubMed

Pardue, Karen T; Haas, Barbara

2003-01-01

International students studying nursing in the United States present unique teaching opportunities and challenges. Student language, culture, and academic expectations are major factors for faculty to consider in delivering international education. An RN to BSN program provides baccalaureate completion study for registered nurses residing in Israel. Students can choose to complete the final semester in the United States. Israeli nursing students demonstrate a strong collectivistic orientation to their academic work. Issues related to English language fluency and academic paper preparation were identified. Success in international teaching endeavors is facilitated when faculty carefully evaluate course materials and assignments. Clarity of language, cultural expectations, and availability of academic resources are important considerations for promoting student success.

A Card-Sorting Activity to Engage Students in the Academic Language of Biology

PubMed Central

WALLON, ROBERT C.; JASTI, CHANDANA; HUG, BARBARA

2017-01-01

The activity described in this article is designed to provide biology students with opportunities to engage in a range of academic language as they learn the discipline-specific meanings of the terms “drug,” “poison,” “toxicant,” and “toxin.” Although intended as part of an introductory lesson in a comprehensive unit for the high school level, this approach to teaching academic language can be adapted for use with older or younger students and can be modified to teach other terms. PMID:29307894

A Model of Research Paper Writing Instructional Materials for Academic Writing Course: "Needs & Documents Analysis and Model Design"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ghufron, M. Ali; Saleh, Mursid; Warsono; Sofwan, Ahmad

2016-01-01

This study aimed at designing a model of instructional materials for Academic Writing Course focusing on research paper writing. The model was designed based on the Curriculum at the English Education Study Program, Faculty of Language and Art Education of IKIP PGRI Bojonegoro, East Java, Indonesia. This model was developed in order to improve…

Teaching and Assessing Academic Writing via the Portfolio: Benefits for Learners of English as an Additional Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romova, Zina; Andrew, Martin

2011-01-01

This paper examines the use of portfolios as pedagogical tools for developing academic writing. In particular, it considers the value of multi-drafting, where learners reflect on the learning of a text type as well as focusing on micro and macro aspects. The paper outlines a situated pedagogical approach, where students come to understand their…

Using a Systemic Functional Genre-Based Approach to Promote a Situated View of Academic Writing among EFL Pre-Service Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Correa, Doris; Echeverri, Sandra

2017-01-01

This article reports partial results of a qualitative study which explored the gains and challenges encountered by two groups of English as a foreign language pre-service teachers from a public university in Medellin, Colombia, in developing a situated view of academic writing through a systemic functional genre-based instructional unit. The unit…

Mother-Adolescent Language Proficiency and Adolescent Academic and Emotional Adjustment Among Chinese American Families

PubMed Central

Benner, Aprile D.; Lau, Anna S.; Kim, Su Yeong

2009-01-01

This study examined the role of adolescents’ and mothers’ self-reports of English and heritage language proficiency in youth’s academic and emotional adjustment among 444 Chinese American families. Adolescents who were proficient in English tended to exhibit higher reading achievement scores, math achievement scores, and overall GPA. Mothers who were English proficient tended to have children with higher academic achievement and fewer depressive symptoms. Results also indicated that adolescents’ heritage language maintenance was associated with positive adjustment, particularly amongst foreign-born youth and for youth whose parents were highly proficient in the heritage language. Mother-adolescent match in heritage language proficiency was related to higher math achievement scores and overall GPA. Additionally, higher heritage language proficiency was associated with fewer depressive symptoms for foreign-born but not U.S.-born youth. Overall, the findings suggest that proficiency in both the English and heritage language may confer advantages to Chinese American youth. PMID:19636729

Cross-Language Associations in the Development of Preschoolers’ Receptive and Expressive Vocabulary

PubMed Central

Maier, Michelle F.; Bohlmann, Natalie L.; Palacios, Natalia A.

2016-01-01

The increasing population of dual language learners (DLLs) entering preschool classrooms highlights a continued need for research on the development of dual language acquisition, and specifically vocabulary skills, in this age group. This study describes young DLL children's (N = 177) vocabulary development in both English and Spanish simultaneously, and how vocabulary skills in each language relate to one another, during a contextual shift that places greater emphasis on the acquisition of academic English language skills. Findings demonstrated that DLL preschoolers made gains in vocabulary in both languages with more change evidenced in receptive, in comparison to expressive, vocabulary as well as in English in comparison to Spanish. When examining whether children's vocabulary scores in one language at the beginning of preschool interact with their vocabulary scores in the other language to predict vocabulary growth, no significant associations were found for receptive vocabulary. In contrast, the interaction between initial English and Spanish expressive vocabulary scores was negatively related to growth in English expressive vocabulary. This cross-language association suggests that children who have low expressive vocabulary skills in both languages tend to grow faster in their English expressive vocabulary. The study extends previous work on dual language development by examining growth in expressive and receptive vocabulary in both English and Spanish. It also provides suggestions for future work to inform a more comprehensive understanding of DLL children's development in both languages. PMID:26807002

Cross-Language Associations in the Development of Preschoolers' Receptive and Expressive Vocabulary.

PubMed

Maier, Michelle F; Bohlmann, Natalie L; Palacios, Natalia A

The increasing population of dual language learners (DLLs) entering preschool classrooms highlights a continued need for research on the development of dual language acquisition, and specifically vocabulary skills, in this age group. This study describes young DLL children's ( N = 177) vocabulary development in both English and Spanish simultaneously, and how vocabulary skills in each language relate to one another, during a contextual shift that places greater emphasis on the acquisition of academic English language skills. Findings demonstrated that DLL preschoolers made gains in vocabulary in both languages with more change evidenced in receptive, in comparison to expressive, vocabulary as well as in English in comparison to Spanish. When examining whether children's vocabulary scores in one language at the beginning of preschool interact with their vocabulary scores in the other language to predict vocabulary growth, no significant associations were found for receptive vocabulary. In contrast, the interaction between initial English and Spanish expressive vocabulary scores was negatively related to growth in English expressive vocabulary. This cross-language association suggests that children who have low expressive vocabulary skills in both languages tend to grow faster in their English expressive vocabulary. The study extends previous work on dual language development by examining growth in expressive and receptive vocabulary in both English and Spanish. It also provides suggestions for future work to inform a more comprehensive understanding of DLL children's development in both languages.

Language plus for international graduate students in nursing.

PubMed

Julian, M A; Keane, A; Davidson, K

1999-01-01

To provide information about an English-language support program that focuses on the needs of international graduate nursing students. The growing presence of these students coincides with the increasing numbers of universities committed to world health. Crucial social and language competence affect the success and progress of international students in graduate nursing programs. Reviewed literature was 1980 to 1998, in nursing and applied linguistic research including second-language acquisition, phonology, discourse analysis, and language pragmatics to identify social and language phenomena. Investigators suggest essential elements such as conventions of academic writing, reading comprehension, vocabulary, and pronunciation skills be included in the supportive Language Plus program. Ongoing development of the Language Plus program can promote collaboration between nurses and linguists and increase the success of international graduate nursing students.

Cultural Socialization and School Readiness of African American and Latino Preschoolers

PubMed Central

Caughy, Margaret O’Brien; Owen, Margaret Tresch

2014-01-01

Cultural socialization practices are common among ethnic minority parents and important for ethnic minority child development. However, little research has examined these practices among parents of very young children. In this study, we report on cultural socialization practices among a sample of parents of low income, African American (n = 179) and Latino (n = 220) preschool-age children in relation to children’s school readiness. Cultural socialization was assessed when children were 2½ years old, and child outcomes assessed one year later included pre-academic skills, receptive language, and child behavior. Children who experienced more frequent cultural socialization displayed greater pre-academic skills, better receptive language, and fewer behavior problems. This association did not differ by child gender or ethnicity. The implications of these findings for the development of parent interventions to support school readiness are discussed. PMID:25364832

Achieving Developmental Synchrony in Young Children With Hearing Loss

PubMed Central

Mellon, Nancy K.; Ouellette, Meredith; Greer, Tracy; Gates-Ulanet, Patricia

2009-01-01

Children with hearing loss, with early and appropriate amplification and intervention, demonstrate gains in speech, language, and literacy skills. Despite these improvements many children continue to exhibit disturbances in cognitive, behavioral, and emotional control, self-regulation, and aspects of executive function. Given the complexity of developmental learning, educational settings should provide services that foster the growth of skills across multiple dimensions. Transdisciplinary intervention services that target the domains of language, communication, psychosocial functioning, motor, and cognitive development can promote academic and social success. Educational programs must provide children with access to the full range of basic skills necessary for academic and social achievement. In addition to an integrated curriculum that nurtures speech, language, and literacy development, innovations in the areas of auditory perception, social emotional learning, motor development, and vestibular function can enhance student outcomes. Through ongoing evaluation and modification, clearly articulated curricular approaches can serve as a model for early intervention and special education programs. The purpose of this article is to propose an intervention model that combines best practices from a variety of disciplines that affect developmental outcomes for young children with hearing loss, along with specific strategies and approaches that may help to promote optimal development across domains. Access to typically developing peers who model age-appropriate skills in language and behavior, small class sizes, a co-teaching model, and a social constructivist perspective of teaching and learning, are among the key elements of the model. PMID:20150187

Academic Language and the Quality of Written Arguments and Explanations of Chilean 8th Graders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Figueroa, Javiera; Meneses, Alejandra; Chandia, Eugenio

2018-01-01

Writing is a task that entails high cognitive and linguistic efforts, especially when producing academic texts. Academic language might be one of the factors influencing the quality of written texts, given that prior research has shown its impact on reading comprehension. The purpose of this study is to examine the contribution of Spanish Core…

Making Sense of Power Relations in a Malaysian English-as-a-Second-Language Academic Writing Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abraham, Alison

2014-01-01

The role of power in an English-as-a-second-language classroom has yet to be fully explored by an action research practitioner, especially in a Malaysian higher education setting. This study aims to contribute to this gap by working within an academic literacies perspective to teaching academic writing, which propagates the understanding of…

The Relationship between Language Proficiency and Student Performance on a Locally Developed Mathematics Placement Exam at a Community College in Southern California

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kasouha, Abeir

2011-01-01

With the open door enrollment polices that community colleges have, diversity is increasingly present in community colleges. This diversity includes ability levels, ethnicity, and English as a Second Language learners (ESL). This raises a big issue of having a big gap in academic preparation among students within the same classroom. To solve this…

Enhanced Academic Performance Using a Novel Classroom Physical Activity Intervention to Increase Awareness, Attention and Self-Control: Putting Embodied Cognition into Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McClelland, Elizabeth; Pitt, Anna; Stein, John

2015-01-01

When language is processed, brain activity occurs not only in the classic "language areas" such as Broca's area, but also in areas which control movement. Our systems of understanding, including higher level cognition, are rooted in bodily awareness which needs to be developed as a precursor to intellectual reasoning. Cognition is…

Schooling in American Sign Language: A Paradigm Shift from a Deficit Model to a Bilingual Model in Deaf Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Humphries, Tom

2013-01-01

Deaf people have long held the belief that American Sign Language (ASL) plays a significant role in the academic development of deaf children. Despite this, the education of deaf children has historically been exclusive of ASL and constructed as an English-only, deficit-based pedagogy. Newer research, however, finds a strong correlation between…

Adult Student Retention and Achievement with Language-Based Modular Materials. POR FIN: Program Organizing Related Family Instruction in the Neighborhood.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bexar County School Board, San Antonio, TX.

The goal of the POR FIN research design was to develop a language-based curriculum emphasizing the audiolingual approach and integrating academic and social-functioning subject matter. The modular curriculum is designed so that each lesson is independent and complete in itself, and provides a high degree of motivation, retention, and achievement…

Early Science Instruction and Academic Language Development Can Go Hand in Hand. The Promising Effects of a Low-Intensity Teacher-Focused Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henrichs, Lotte F.; Leseman, Paul P. M.

2014-01-01

Early science instruction is important in order to lay a firm basis for learning scientific concepts and scientific thinking. In addition, young children enjoy science. However, science plays only a minor role in the kindergarten curriculum. It has been reported that teachers feel they need to prioritize language and literacy practices over…

Language and Literacy Curriculum Supplement for Preschoolers Who Are Academically At Risk: A Feasibility Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Justice, Laura M.; McGinty, Anita S.; Cabell, Sonia Q.; Kilday, Carolyn R.; Knighton, Kathy; Huffman, Ginger

2010-01-01

Purpose: The potential benefit that a low-cost scripted language and literacy supplemental curriculum titled "Read It Again!" (RIA; L. M. Justice, A. S. McGinty, A. R. Beckman, & C. R. Kilday, 2006) may have on preschool-age children's skills was explored. RIA was developed to meet the needs of preschool educators who may not have access to…

The relationship between mathematics and language: academic implications for children with specific language impairment and English language learners.

PubMed

Alt, Mary; Arizmendi, Genesis D; Beal, Carole R

2014-07-01

The present study examined the relationship between mathematics and language to better understand the nature of the deficit and the academic implications associated with specific language impairment (SLI) and academic implications for English language learners (ELLs). School-age children (N = 61; 20 SLI, 20 ELL, 21 native monolingual English [NE]) were assessed using a norm-referenced mathematics instrument and 3 experimental computer-based mathematics games that varied in language demands. Group means were compared with analyses of variance. The ELL group was less accurate than the NE group only when tasks were language heavy. In contrast, the group with SLI was less accurate than the groups with NE and ELLs on language-heavy tasks and some language-light tasks. Specifically, the group with SLI was less accurate on tasks that involved comparing numerical symbols and using visual working memory for patterns. However, there were no group differences between children with SLI and peers without SLI on language-light mathematics tasks that involved visual working memory for numerical symbols. Mathematical difficulties of children who are ELLs appear to be related to the language demands of mathematics tasks. In contrast, children with SLI appear to have difficulty with mathematics tasks because of linguistic as well as nonlinguistic processing constraints.

Social Justice and English Language Learners in the Borderland: A Personal Narrative of a Committed Principal Determined to Take the Steps Necessary for English Language Learners to Achieve and Succeed in Academic Content

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lechuga, Mary Helen

2009-01-01

This study embraces the pedagogy that this school's educators believed in and utilized to enhance and expand the academic knowledge of those students who posses a language different from the English language. This research study, represented in a personal narrative, attempts to question the widespread thinking that places all validity on using…

A European Languages Virtual Network Proposal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

García-Peñalvo, Francisco José; González-González, Juan Carlos; Murray, Maria

ELVIN (European Languages Virtual Network) is a European Union (EU) Lifelong Learning Programme Project aimed at creating an informal social network to support and facilitate language learning. The ELVIN project aims to research and develop the connection between social networks, professional profiles and language learning in an informal educational context. At the core of the ELVIN project, there will be a web 2.0 social networking platform that connects employees/students for language practice based on their own professional/academic needs and abilities, using all relevant technologies. The ELVIN remit involves the examination of both methodological and technological issues inherent in achieving a social-based learning platform that provides the user with their own customized Personal Learning Environment for EU language acquisition. ELVIN started in November 2009 and this paper presents the project aims and objectives as well as the development and implementation of the web platform.

Language Profile in Congenital Hypothyroid Children Receiving Replacement Therapy.

PubMed

Soliman, Hend; Abdel Hady, Aisha Fawzy; Abdel Hamid, Asmaa; Mahmoud, Heba

2016-01-01

The aim of this work was to evaluate receptive and expressive language skills in children with congenital hypothyroidism receiving early hormonal replacement treatment before the age of 3 months and to identify any subtle areas of weaknesses in their language development to check the necessity for future language intervention. The study was conducted on 30 hypothyroid children receiving hormonal replacement. They were subdivided into group I (5-8 years 11 months; 12 cases) and group II (9-12 years 11 months; 18 cases). All patients were subjected to a protocol of assessment applied in the Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolism Pediatric Unit (DEMPU) and evaluation of language skills by the REAL scale. The younger group reached average Arabic language scores, while the older group showed moderate language delay. Early replacement therapy supports language development in young children. However, longitudinal and follow-up studies are required to identify difficulties presenting at older ages that may affect children in the academic settings. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Gender Differences in Achievement Goals and Performances in English Language and Mathematics of Senior Secondary Schools Students in Borno State, Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Musa, Alice K. J.; Dauda, Bala; Umar, Mohammad A.

2016-01-01

The paper investigated gender difference in achievement goals and performance in English Language and Mathematics of senior secondary schools students in Borno State, Nigeria. The study specifically sought to determine gender differences in students' academic performances in English Language, Mathematics and overall academic performance as well as…

Online CLIL Scaffolding at University Level: Building Learners' Academic Language and Content-Specific Vocabulary across Disciplines through Online Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carloni, Giovanna

2012-01-01

Over the last two years, the University of Urbino, Italy, has been implementing Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) courses in English across all disciplines. This study focuses on the online self-study CLIL scaffolding designed to help students involve in an Internationalization Project to build academic language and content-specific…

Peterson's Summer Study Abroad: A Guide to Summer Academic and Language Programs. First Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson's Guides, Inc., Princeton, NJ.

This guide provides descriptions of over 900 summer academic and language study-abroad programs in 80 countries that range from 1-week language study courses to full-summer university programs. An introductory section provides general information on study abroad programs and the use of the guide. The bulk of the guide consists of individual…

Task-Based Language Teaching and English for Academic Purposes: An Investigation into Instructor Perceptions and Practice in the Canadian Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Douglas, Scott Roy; Kim, Marcia

2014-01-01

English for Academic Purposes (EAP) programs designed to meet postsecondary English language proficiency requirements are a common pathway to higher education for students from non-English-speaking backgrounds. Grounded in a Canadian context, this study seeks to examine the prevalence of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) in EAP, common examples…

Impacts of a Discussion-Based Academic Language Program on Classroom Interactions in 4th through 7th Grades

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LaRusso, Maria; Jones, Stephanie M.; Kim, Ha Yeon; Kim, James; Donovan, Suzanne; Snow, Catherine

2016-01-01

This paper presents an exploratory analysis of treatment-control differences in the quality of classroom interactions in 4th through 7th grade urban classrooms. Word Generation (WG) is a research-based academic language program for middle school students designed to teach novel vocabulary and literacy through language arts, math, science, and…

Science as a second language: Analysis of Emergent Bilinguals performance and the impact of English language proficiency and first language characteristics on the Colorado measures of academic success for science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bruno, Joanna K.

In an age when communication is highly important and states across the nation, including Colorado, have adopted Common Core State Standards, the need for academic language is even more important than ever. The language of science has been compared to a second language in that it uses specific discourse patterns, semantic rules, and a very specific vocabulary. There is a need for educators to better understand how language impacts academic achievement, specifically concerning Emergent Bilinguals (EBs). Research has identified the need to study the role language plays in content assessments and the impact they have on EBs performance (Abedi, 2008b; Abedi, Hofestter & Lord, 2004; Abedi & Lord, 2001). Since language is the means through which content knowledge is assessed, it is important to analyze this aspect of learning. A review of literature identified the need to create more reliable and valid content assessments for EBs (Abedi, 2008b) and to further study the impact of English proficiency on EBs performance on standardized assessments (Solorzano, 2008; Wolf, & Leon, 2009). This study contributes to the literature by analyzing EBs performance on a state-level science content assessment, taking into consideration English language proficiency, receptive versus productive elements of language, and students' home language. This study further contributes by discussing the relationship between language proficiency, and the different strands of science (physical, life, and earth) on the state science assessment. Finally, this study demonstrates that home language, English language proficiency, and receptive and productive elements of language are predictive of EBs' achievement on the CMAS for science, overall and by strand. It is the blending of the social (listening and speaking) with the academic (reading and writing) that is also important and possibly more important.

The effects of academic literacy instruction on engagement and conceptual understanding of biology of ninth-grade students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larson, Susan C.

Academic language, discourse, vocabulary, motivation, and comprehension of complex texts and concepts are keys to learning subject-area content. The need for a disciplinary literacy approach in high school classrooms accelerates as students become increasing disengaged in school and as content complexity increases. In the present quasi-experimental mixed-method study, a ninth-grade biology unit was designed with an emphasis on promoting academic literacy skills, discourse, meaningful constructivist learning, interest development, and positive learning experiences in order to learn science content. Quantitative and qualitative analyses on a variety of measures completed by 222 students in two high schools revealed that those who received academic literacy instruction in science class performed at significantly higher levels of conceptual understanding of biology content, academic language and vocabulary use, reasoned thought, engagement, and quality of learning experience than control-group students receiving traditionally-organized instruction. Academic literacy was embedded into biology instruction to engage students in meaning-making discourses of science to promote learning. Academic literacy activities were organized according the phases of interest development to trigger and sustain interest and goal-oriented engagement throughout the unit. Specific methods included the Generative Vocabulary Matrix (GVM), scenario-based writing, and involvement in a variety of strategically-placed discourse activities to sustain or "boost" engagement for learning. Traditional instruction for the control group included teacher lecture, whole-group discussion, a conceptual organizer, and textbook reading. Theoretical foundations include flow theory, sociocultural learning theory, and interest theory. Qualitative data were obtained from field notes and participants' journals. Quantitative survey data were collected and analyzed using the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) to measure cognitive and emotional states, revealing patterns of engagement, quality of experience, and flow over the course of the instructional unit. Conceptual understanding was measured using the state persuasive writing rubric to analyze science essays in which students supported a claim with scientific evidence. The study contributes an Engagement Model of Academic Literacy for Learning (EngageALL), a Rubric for Academic Persuasive Writing (RAPW), a unique classification system for analyzing academic vocabulary, and suggestions for situated professional development around a research-based planning framework. A discussion addresses a new direction for future research that explores academic identity development.

The Effectiveness of Electronic Mind Maps in Developing Academic Achievement and the Attitude towards Learning English among Primary School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aljaser, Afaf M.

2017-01-01

The present study aimed to identify the effect of using electronic Mind Maps on the academic achievement of the fifth-grade primary female students in the English language curriculum compared to the traditional teaching method adopted in the teacher's guide. It also aimed to indicate the attitudes of the fifth-grade female students towards the use…

Predictors of Academic Success in Language Arts Literacy and Math on State Assessments in New Jersey Charter Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jerue, Gary A.

2013-01-01

There are a limited number of studies that examine the predictors of academic success in charter schools (Lawton, 2009). This study utilized a multiple regression analysis to identify the best predictors of academic success in language arts literacy (LAL) and math on state assessments in New Jersey charter schools. This study included four student…

The Habitat Factor in ELF(A)--English as a Lingua Franca (In Academic Settings)--And English for Plurilingual Academic Purposes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schaller-Schwaner, Iris

2015-01-01

This article considers a case of local language socialization and accommodation in a multilingual community of practice: the use of English as an additional academic language for specific purposes at a bilingual Swiss university and its implications for teaching. The acronym ELF(A) is used throughout as short for English as a Lingua Franca (in…

A Multilevel Model of Child- and Classroom-Level Psychosocial Factors that Support Language and Literacy Resilience of Children in Head Start

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maier, Michelle F.; Vitiello, Virginia E.; Greenfield, Daryl B.

2012-01-01

Early exposure to the multiple risk factors associated with poverty is related to an elevated risk for academic difficulty. Therefore, it is important to promote academic resilience as early as possible and to identify factors that support resilience. Given the positive relation between early language skills and later academic outcomes, examining…

Younger Children Experience Lower Levels of Language Competence and Academic Progress in the First Year of School: Evidence from a Population Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Norbury, Courtenay Frazier; Gooch, Debbie; Baird, Gillian; Charman, Tony; Simonoff, Emily; Pickles, Andrew

2016-01-01

Background: The youngest children in an academic year are reported to be educationally disadvantaged and overrepresented in referrals to clinical services. In this study we investigate for the first time whether these disadvantages are indicative of a mismatch between language competence at school entry and the academic demands of the classroom.…

Narrative skills in children with selective mutism: an exploratory study.

PubMed

McInnes, Alison; Fung, Daniel; Manassis, Katharina; Fiksenbaum, Lisa; Tannock, Rosemary

2004-11-01

Selective mutism (SM) is a rare and complex disorder associated with anxiety symptoms and speech-language deficits; however, the nature of these language deficits has not been studied systematically. A novel cross-disciplinary assessment protocol was used to assess anxiety and nonverbal cognitive, receptive language, and expressive narrative abilities in 7 children with SM and a comparison group of 7 children with social phobia (SP). The children with SM produced significantly shorter narratives than children with SP, despite showing normal nonverbal cognitive and receptive language abilities. The findings suggest that SM may involve subtle expressive language deficits that may influence academic performance and raise additional questions for further research. The assessment procedure developed for this study may be potentially useful for language clinicians.

22 CFR 62.32 - Summer work travel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... studies at accredited post-secondary, classroom-based, academic institutions physically located outside of the United States and have successfully completed at least one semester, or equivalent, of post... comprehension through either recognized language tests administered by academic institutions or English language...

22 CFR 62.32 - Summer work travel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... studies at accredited post-secondary, classroom-based, academic institutions physically located outside of the United States and have successfully completed at least one semester, or equivalent, of post... comprehension through either recognized language tests administered by academic institutions or English language...

Talking about science: An interpretation of the effects of teacher talk in a high school science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moje, Elizabeth B.

This paper builds on research in science education, secondary education, and sociolinguistics by arguing that high school classrooms can be considered speech communities in which language may be selectively used and imposed on students as a means of fostering academic speech community identification. To demonstrate the ways in which a high school teacher's language use may encourage subject area identification, the results of an interactionist analysis of data from a 2-year ethnographic study of one high school chemistry classroom are presented. Findings indicate that this teacher's uses of language fell into three related categories. These uses of language served to foster identification with the academic speech community of science. As a result of the teacher's talk about science according to these three patterns, students developed or reinforced particular views of science. In addition, talking about science in ways that fostered identity with the discipline promoted the teacher as expert and built classroom solidarity or community. These results are discussed in light of sociolinguistic research on classroom competence and of the assertions of science educators regarding social and ideologic implications of language use in science instruction.Received: 23 September 1993; Revised: 15 September 1994;

ESL for Non-Academic Adults: Parallels in L1 and L2. CATESOL Occasional Papers, Number 5.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bassano, Sharron

English as a second language for the non-academically oriented adult can be facilitated bY structuring their early linguistic input in a way similar to the way a parent structures input for a child learning a first language. The four components through which children learn their native language and which also concern adult learning are: (1)…

Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (Project CALLA), Community School District 2 Special Alternative Instruction Program. Final Evaluation Report, 1992-93. OREA Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lynch, Joanne

Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (Project CALLA) was a federally funded program serving 960 limited-English-proficient students in 10 Manhattan (New York) elementary schools in 1992-93 its third year of operation. The project provided instruction in English as a Second Language (ESL), mathematics, science, and social studies in…

Developing a Conceptual Framework: The Case of MAGICC

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Natri, Teija; Räsänen, Anne

2015-01-01

This paper reports the steps taken to develop the conceptual framework of the MAGICC project (2013), which aimed to provide action-oriented descriptions of multilingual and multicultural academic and professional communication competence, instructional designs to promote these in higher education language teaching, and multidimensional forms of…

Latinas' heritage language as a source of resiliency: impact on academic achievement in STEM fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stevenson, Alma D.; Gallard Martínez, Alejandro José; Brkich, Katie Lynn; Flores, Belinda Bustos; Claeys, Lorena; Pitts, Wesley

2017-03-01

This article highlights how the preservation of heritage languages is essential in the construction of three Georgia Latina participants' cultural identities and the creation of support networks that allow them to develop resiliency and achieve academically. We conceptualize resiliency as a strategy developed by the Latina participants using contextually mitigating factors during their STEM education. The findings presented in this manuscript are part of a larger, ongoing study of Latina resiliency and their paths to success in STEM fields in two states: Georgia and Texas. Following James Spradley's guidelines, data were collected via three separate semi-structured interviews with each participant. Intrinsic, multiple case studies were used to find both commonalities and differences, as well as to deepen our understanding of the role of the participants' heritage language in their development of resiliency in each particular case. The findings presented here were not part of a preconceived research hypothesis, but rather a theme that emerged while analyzing data collected in the state of Georgia. Georgia is not home to a long-established Hispanic/Latino population, but rather is part of the New Latino Diaspora (Wortham, Murillo and Hamann in Education in the new Latino diaspora: policy and the politics of identity. Ablex Publishing, New York, 2002), and therefore local natives do not necessarily perceive Latino immigrants and the Spanish language either as long-standing or permanent features of the state. In fact, in response to the growing diversity of the state during the past generation, Georgia has implemented multiple educational policies hostile toward immigrants and linguistic diversity (Beck and Allexsaht-Snider in Education in the new Latino diaspora: policy and the politics of identity. Ablex Press, Westport, 2002). Our findings suggest that the Latina participants' heritage languages allow them to engage in cultural traditions, encouraged by their families, that are central to their heritage and identity and, thereby provide a medium for the development of the resiliency they need for academic success. The Spanish language allows them to maintain communication with their families and communities, enabling them to participate in a set of interactions and relationships. These, in turn, form the support networks needed to enact resilience in overcoming obstacles to pursuing their interest in STEM—an interest seen by society as incongruous with their gender and ethnicity.

To what extent are Canadian second language policies evidence-based? Reflections on the intersections of research and policy

PubMed Central

Cummins, Jim

2014-01-01

The paper addresses the intersections between research findings and Canadian educational policies focusing on four major areas: (a) core and immersion programs for the teaching of French to Anglophone students, (b) policies concerning the learning of English and French by students from immigrant backgrounds, (c) heritage language teaching, and (d) the education of Deaf and hard-of hearing students. With respect to the teaching of French, policy-makers have largely ignored the fact that most core French programs produce meager results for the vast majority of students. Only a small proportion of students (<10%) attend more effective alternatives (e.g., French immersion and Intensive French programs). With respect to immigrant-background students, a large majority of teachers and administrators have not had opportunities to access the knowledge base regarding effective instruction for these students nor have they had opportunities for pre-service or in-service professional development regarding effective instructional practices. Educational policies in most jurisdictions have also treated the linguistic resources that children bring to school with, at best, benign neglect. In some cases (e.g., Ontario) school systems have been explicitly prohibited from instituting enrichment bilingual programs that would promote students’ bilingualism and biliteracy. Finally, with respect to Deaf students, policy-makers have ignored overwhelming research on the positive relationship between academic success and the development of proficiency in natural sign languages, preferring instead to leave uncorrected the proposition that acquisition of languages such as American Sign Language by young children (with or without cochlear implants) will impede children’s language and academic development. The paper reviews the kinds of policies, programs, and practices that could be implemented (at no additional cost) if policy-makers and educators pursued evidence-based educational policies. PMID:24847289

English Learner Students' Readiness for Academic Success: The Predictive Potential of English Language Proficiency Assessment Scores in Arizona and Nevada. REL 2017-172

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haas, Eric; Tran, Loan; Huang, Min

2016-01-01

When is the right moment to transition an English learner student from part-time participation in English language development classes into full-time participation in mainstream English-only classes? English learner students should be moved into full-time mainstream English-only classes when they are sufficiently fluent in English to be able to…

Academic achievement and course taking among language minority youth in U.S. schools: Effects of ESL placement

PubMed Central

Callahan, Rebecca; Wilkinson, Lindsey; Muller, Chandra

2014-01-01

The 1974 Lau decision requires that U.S. public schools ensure a meaningful education for students learning English. English as a Second Language (ESL) placement is an institutional response to the linguistic needs of these students; however, its academic implications remain largely unexplored. Using nationally representative data from the Educational Longitudinal Study (ELS), the effects of ESL placement on college preparatory course enrollment and academic achievement of language minority students are estimated, first with fixed effects regression models and then with multi-level propensity score matching techniques. While numerous school and individual level factors beyond language proficiency predict ESL placement, a significant negative estimated effect of ESL placement on science enrollment and cumulative GPA is consistently found. Perhaps more important, however, no positive effects of ESL placement on the achievement of language minority youth are found when accounting for English proficiency and other potential covariates. PMID:25431506

Academic achievement and course taking among language minority youth in U.S. schools: Effects of ESL placement.

PubMed

Callahan, Rebecca; Wilkinson, Lindsey; Muller, Chandra

2010-03-01

The 1974 Lau decision requires that U.S. public schools ensure a meaningful education for students learning English. English as a Second Language (ESL) placement is an institutional response to the linguistic needs of these students; however, its academic implications remain largely unexplored. Using nationally representative data from the Educational Longitudinal Study (ELS), the effects of ESL placement on college preparatory course enrollment and academic achievement of language minority students are estimated, first with fixed effects regression models and then with multi-level propensity score matching techniques. While numerous school and individual level factors beyond language proficiency predict ESL placement, a significant negative estimated effect of ESL placement on science enrollment and cumulative GPA is consistently found. Perhaps more important, however, no positive effects of ESL placement on the achievement of language minority youth are found when accounting for English proficiency and other potential covariates.

Teacher Self-Efficacy and Cultural Proficiency: Program Evaluation for EL MAR Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Catherine Hofius

2014-01-01

Many classroom teachers across the United States struggle to teach English language learners (ELLs) effectively, despite professional development in ELL strategies. This national problem is reflected in a rural middle school, the focus of this study. To address the academic needs of low-performing ELLs, the professional development model,…

Four to Get Ready--Five to Go: Parent Guide for Preschool Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waukesha Public Schools, WI.

Suggested ways in which parents can prepare their children for academic success before formal schooling begins are listed in this guide. Part 1 contains ideas for language development in the areas of speaking, listening, vocabulary development, and recall. Part 2 contains suggestions for activities that will promote social development and…

Why Should I Read to My Baby? The Importance of Early Literacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

High, Pamela C.

2013-01-01

"Early Brain and Child Development" as a strategic priority of the American Academy of Pediatrics recognizes that early literacy and language skills build a strong foundation for healthy development and academic success. Promoting early literacy in the context of pediatric primary care supports early brain development and positive,…

Redesigning nursing tutorials for ESL students: a pilot study.

PubMed

San Miguel, Caroline; Townsend, Lisa; Waters, Cheryl

2013-04-01

Increased enrolments of Bachelor of Nursing (BN) students who speak English as a second language (ESL) can help create a multilingual and culturally diverse workforce that is better prepared to meet the needs of increasingly diverse health populations. However, although ESL enrolments are increasing, attrition rates for ESL students tend to be higher than those of native speakers of English, partly due to academic failure. At the same time, concerns have been expressed in some quarters about the low levels of English language of entering students. As it is unlikely that language entry levels to university will be raised, sustainable programmes that help ESL students better meet the academic challenges they may face need to be developed. So far, models of ESL support have been mostly an adjunct to their degree, voluntary and not well attended. This paper discusses a model using tutorials integrated into the first year nursing curriculum that were specifically designed for ESL students with low levels of English language proficiency. The paper also examines students' perceptions of such tutorials, which they found beneficial to their learning.

Gendered Fields: Sports and Advanced Course Taking in High School

PubMed Central

Pearson, Jennifer; Crissey, Sarah R.; Riegle-Crumb, Catherine

2010-01-01

This study explores the association between sports participation and course taking in high school, specifically comparing subjects with varied gendered legacies—science and foreign language. Analyses of a nationally representative longitudinal sample (N=5,447) of U.S. adolescents from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and the linked Adolescent Health and Academic Achievement transcript study show that male and female athletes are more likely than non-athletes to take both advanced foreign language and Physics, largely because of their higher academic orientation. However, the association between sports participation and course taking was strongest for girls’ Physics coursework, suggesting that sports may provide girls with a unique opportunity to develop the skills and confidence to persevere in the masculine domain of science. PMID:20221304

Dual Language Development of Latino Children: Effect of Instructional Program Type and the Home and School Language Environment

PubMed Central

Collins, Brian A.

2014-01-01

Latino dual language children typically enter school with a wide range of proficiencies in Spanish and English, many with low proficiency in both languages, yet do make gains in one or both languages during their first school years. Dual language development is associated with how language is used at home and school, as well as the type of instructional program children receive at school. The present study investigates how changes in both Spanish and English proficiencies of Latino, second-generation immigrant children (n =163) from kindergarten to second grade relate to instructional program type as well as language use at home and school. A series of MANCOVAs demonstrated significant dual language gains in children who were in bilingual classrooms and schools where Spanish was used among the teachers, students, and staff. Furthermore, only in classrooms where both Spanish and English were used did children reach age-appropriate levels of academic proficiency in both languages. Home language use was also significantly associated with dual language gains as was maternal Spanish vocabulary knowledge before controlling for maternal education. Educational implications and potential benefits associated with bilingualism are discussed. PMID:25264401

Defense Intelligence: Foreign Area/Language Needs and Academe.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

SRI International, Menlo Park, CA.

The Department of Defense's (DOD) need for foreign language/area expertise was assessed, along with opportunities for the academic community to supplement government training. In addition to interviewing intelligence managers, questionnaires were administered to defense analysts to determine their background, training, and use of external…

Cognitive assessment of refugee children: Effects of trauma and new language acquisition.

PubMed

Kaplan, Ida; Stolk, Yvonne; Valibhoy, Madeleine; Tucker, Alan; Baker, Judy

2016-02-01

Each year, approximately 60,000 children of refugee background are resettled in Western countries. This paper reviews the effects of the refugee experience on cognitive functioning. The distinctive influences for these children include exposure to traumatic events and the need to acquire a new language, factors that need to be considered to avoid overdiagnosis of learning disorders and inappropriate educational placements. Prearrival trauma, psychological sequelae of traumatic events, developmental impact of trauma, and the quality of family functioning have been found to influence cognitive functioning, learning, and academic performance. In addition, the refugee child may be semiproficient in several languages, but proficient in none, whilst also trying to learn a new language. The influence that the child's limited English proficiency, literacy, and school experience may have on academic and test performance is demonstrated by drawing on the research on refugees' English language acquisition, as well as the more extensive literature on bilingual English language learners. Implications for interventions are drawn at the level of government policy, schools, and the individual. The paper concludes with the observation that there is a major need for longitudinal research on refugee children's learning and academic performance and on interventions that will close the academic gap, thereby enabling refugee children to reach their educational potential. © The Author(s) 2015.

Developing Multiple Literacies in Academic English through Service-Learning and Community Engagement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Askildson, Lance R.; Kelly, Annie Cahill; Mick, Connie Snyder

2013-01-01

Research on service-learning offers compelling evidence of the advances student learners make in moral development, orientation to prosocial behavior, and curricular content retention. But who are those student learners? Most studies focus on native, dominant-culture, dominant-language students serving marginalized populations. Studies of the…

Discrepancies between Students' and Teachers' Perceptions of Homework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hong, Eunsook; Wan, Min; Peng, Yun

2011-01-01

For homework to help students improve school achievement and develop responsibility and autonomy in academic endeavors in and out of school, the development of teachers' understanding of students' views about homework and their homework behaviors is critical. Whether the subject of the homework is mathematics, reading, or a second language,…

Making Music Mine: The Development of Rhythmic Literacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burton, Suzanne L.

2017-01-01

In this study, I explored children's development of rhythmic music literacy using a language acquisition paradigm. An emergent, constructivist curriculum was implemented over one academic year with 39 children, 5-8 years old. Children were involved in audiation-based active listening, singing, moving, chanting, and playing instruments and engaged…

An Approach to the Teaching of Academic Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnston, Sue Ann

1985-01-01

Discusses solutions to problems in teaching research paper writing skills to English as a second language students in developing countries where library resources are inadequate. Suggests the use of interviews as an alternative research source and shows how an oral report on research results can help to develop synthesizing skills. (SED)

A Professional Learning Community's Impact on Academic Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ransom, Minnie

2016-01-01

English language learners (ELL students) were not attaining and maintaining sufficient proficiency at public schools in Northern California, as measured by students' achievement scores on state and district assessments. The purpose of this quasi-experimental research was to determine whether there were differences in academic language arts…

School Science and the Language Arts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ediger, Marlow

2014-01-01

An integrated science curriculum assists pupils to retain learnings better than to separate academic disciplines. Too frequently, science teachers teach each academic discipline as separate entities. However, there is much correlating of science with language, for example which might well be implemented in teaching and learning situations. Thus,…

A Neuroscientific Perspective on Second Language Learning and Academic Achievement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hawson, Anne

It is proposed that research on neurological organization, cognitive psychology, and artificial intelligence can contribute to understanding the relationship between second language learning processes and academic achievement. Relevant research in these areas and in the field of neurolinguistics is reviewed, with several themes or topics…

Causal language and strength of inference in academic and media articles shared in social media (CLAIMS): A systematic review.

PubMed

Haber, Noah; Smith, Emily R; Moscoe, Ellen; Andrews, Kathryn; Audy, Robin; Bell, Winnie; Brennan, Alana T; Breskin, Alexander; Kane, Jeremy C; Karra, Mahesh; McClure, Elizabeth S; Suarez, Elizabeth A

2018-01-01

The pathway from evidence generation to consumption contains many steps which can lead to overstatement or misinformation. The proliferation of internet-based health news may encourage selection of media and academic research articles that overstate strength of causal inference. We investigated the state of causal inference in health research as it appears at the end of the pathway, at the point of social media consumption. We screened the NewsWhip Insights database for the most shared media articles on Facebook and Twitter reporting about peer-reviewed academic studies associating an exposure with a health outcome in 2015, extracting the 50 most-shared academic articles and media articles covering them. We designed and utilized a review tool to systematically assess and summarize studies' strength of causal inference, including generalizability, potential confounders, and methods used. These were then compared with the strength of causal language used to describe results in both academic and media articles. Two randomly assigned independent reviewers and one arbitrating reviewer from a pool of 21 reviewers assessed each article. We accepted the most shared 64 media articles pertaining to 50 academic articles for review, representing 68% of Facebook and 45% of Twitter shares in 2015. Thirty-four percent of academic studies and 48% of media articles used language that reviewers considered too strong for their strength of causal inference. Seventy percent of academic studies were considered low or very low strength of inference, with only 6% considered high or very high strength of causal inference. The most severe issues with academic studies' causal inference were reported to be omitted confounding variables and generalizability. Fifty-eight percent of media articles were found to have inaccurately reported the question, results, intervention, or population of the academic study. We find a large disparity between the strength of language as presented to the research consumer and the underlying strength of causal inference among the studies most widely shared on social media. However, because this sample was designed to be representative of the articles selected and shared on social media, it is unlikely to be representative of all academic and media work. More research is needed to determine how academic institutions, media organizations, and social network sharing patterns impact causal inference and language as received by the research consumer.

Causal language and strength of inference in academic and media articles shared in social media (CLAIMS): A systematic review

PubMed Central

Smith, Emily R.; Moscoe, Ellen; Audy, Robin; Bell, Winnie; Brennan, Alana T.; Breskin, Alexander; Kane, Jeremy C.; Suarez, Elizabeth A.

2018-01-01

Background The pathway from evidence generation to consumption contains many steps which can lead to overstatement or misinformation. The proliferation of internet-based health news may encourage selection of media and academic research articles that overstate strength of causal inference. We investigated the state of causal inference in health research as it appears at the end of the pathway, at the point of social media consumption. Methods We screened the NewsWhip Insights database for the most shared media articles on Facebook and Twitter reporting about peer-reviewed academic studies associating an exposure with a health outcome in 2015, extracting the 50 most-shared academic articles and media articles covering them. We designed and utilized a review tool to systematically assess and summarize studies’ strength of causal inference, including generalizability, potential confounders, and methods used. These were then compared with the strength of causal language used to describe results in both academic and media articles. Two randomly assigned independent reviewers and one arbitrating reviewer from a pool of 21 reviewers assessed each article. Results We accepted the most shared 64 media articles pertaining to 50 academic articles for review, representing 68% of Facebook and 45% of Twitter shares in 2015. Thirty-four percent of academic studies and 48% of media articles used language that reviewers considered too strong for their strength of causal inference. Seventy percent of academic studies were considered low or very low strength of inference, with only 6% considered high or very high strength of causal inference. The most severe issues with academic studies’ causal inference were reported to be omitted confounding variables and generalizability. Fifty-eight percent of media articles were found to have inaccurately reported the question, results, intervention, or population of the academic study. Conclusions We find a large disparity between the strength of language as presented to the research consumer and the underlying strength of causal inference among the studies most widely shared on social media. However, because this sample was designed to be representative of the articles selected and shared on social media, it is unlikely to be representative of all academic and media work. More research is needed to determine how academic institutions, media organizations, and social network sharing patterns impact causal inference and language as received by the research consumer. PMID:29847549

New Research on Securing Educational Excellence & Equity for English Language Learners in Texas Secondary Schools. IDRA Jose A. Cardenas School Finance Fellows Program 2015 Symposium Proceedings (San Antonio, Texas, February 2, 2015)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Intercultural Development Research Association, 2015

2015-01-01

English language learners make up the fastest growing segment of the student population, but they are one of the lowest academically performing groups of students and the achievement gap widens as students progress through school. Dr. Oscar Jimenez-Castellanos, the Intercultural Development Research Association's (IDRA's) inaugural Jose A.…

The Use of Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Language Skills (DIBELS) and Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) to Compare Reading Proficiency in Native English Speakers and English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellett, Ryan

2014-01-01

This study compares native English, Spanish, Lao, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Arabic, and all other ELL students over one, two, three, and four-year spans to determine if certain groups appear to face more difficulties in developing early reading mastery by third grade. This study also examines whether socio-economic status impacts the…

American Sign Language and Academic English: Factors Influencing the Reading of Bilingual Secondary School Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students.

PubMed

Scott, Jessica A; Hoffmeister, Robert J

2017-01-01

For many years, researchers have sought to understand the reading development of deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students. Guided by prior research on DHH and hearing students, in this study we investigate the hypothesis that for secondary school DHH students enrolled in American Sign Language (ASL)/English bilingual schools for the deaf, academic English proficiency would be a significant predictor of reading comprehension alongside ASL proficiency. Using linear regression, we found statistically significant interaction effects between academic English knowledge and word reading fluency in predicting the reading comprehension scores of the participants. However, ASL remained the strongest and most consistent predictor of reading comprehension within the sample. Findings support a model in which socio-demographic factors, ASL proficiency, and word reading fluency are primary predictors of reading comprehension for secondary DHH students. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@.com.

Self-Efficacy and Academic Performance in English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meera, K. P.; Jumana, M. K.

2015-01-01

This study reviews the relevant self-efficacy related literature, a central point of social cognitive theory, in the area of language learning. Role of self-efficacy in academic performance of learners is also considered. In the global world, English language has become the fundamental means of international affairs and communication. As a…

University Academic Excellence and Language Policy: A Case of Russia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Atabekova, Anastasia A.; Gorbatenko, Rimma G.; Shoustikova, Tatyana V.

2016-01-01

The paper focuses on the university academic excellence projects worldwide and tries to explore the higher education institutions experience and trends regarding their language policies within the international landscape and increasing globalisation. The article agrees that English goes as a major medium of instruction at universities that strive…

The Second Language Component of Primary French Immersion Programs in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schauber, Holli; And Others

1995-01-01

Describes a long-standing Montreal bilingual program that completely immerses Anglophone students in a French academic context. Support from the target-language culture and environmental reinforcements contribute to students' academic success and steady program enrollment. Such immersion education has produced functionally bilingual Anglophone…

Recreational Reading of International Students in Academic Libraries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bordonaro, Karen

2011-01-01

Recreational reading as a method of language learning has been a focus of investigation in second language education. This article considers recreational reading through the additional perspective of academic librarianship. Its purpose is to discover if recreational reading is a topic that lends itself to research through both perspectives. This…

A Bourdieuian Analysis: Teachers' Beliefs about English Language Learners' Academic Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shim, Jenna Min

2014-01-01

Using Pierre Bourdieu's concept of "habitus," this work analyzes five teachers' beliefs about English language learners' academic challenges. In reference to reproductive and inventive qualities of "habitus," this article argues that teachers' beliefs that are linked to their socio-cultural backgrounds can delimit or enhance…

Academic Alliances: School/College Faculty Collaboratives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Silber, Ellen; Moore, Terre

1989-01-01

Reports the results of a survey of high school and college foreign language teachers participating in 24 collaboratives around the country. Information about the effects of the alliances on the teachers' attitudes and instructional effectiveness are reported, and an update about current programs in academic alliances in foreign languages is…

Addressing Language Variety in Educational Settings: Toward a Policy and Research Agenda

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miciak, Jeremy; Wilkinson, Cheryl; Alexander, Celeste; Reyes, Pedro

2016-01-01

Improving minority academic achievement is a primary goal for education policy makers. Despite resource allocations, gaps in minority accomplishments persist. Emerging research suggests language variety may hinder minority students, thereby slowing academic progress. This article synthesizes suggestions from a panel composed of experts in the…

Another Look at the Language Difficulties of International Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Yanyin; Mi, Yinan

2010-01-01

International students encounter language-related problems in their academic studies. Specific problem areas have been identified and possible underlying causes have been explored. The present study investigates the impact of two variables--length of study and academic disciplines--in relation to the problems. The findings from a survey and…

The Power of Stories: Facilitating Social Communication in Children with Limited Language Abilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brinton, Bonnie; Fujiki, Martin

2017-01-01

Children with limited language expression and comprehension abilities are at risk for academic failure, particularly in literacy acquisition. In addition, these children often have poor social outcomes, including difficulty forming friendships, social exclusion, withdrawal, and victimization. The academic and social difficulties that these…

76 FR 3120 - Native American and Alaska Native Children in School Program; Office of English Language...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-19

... English Language Acquisition, Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement for Limited English.... Barrera, Assistant Deputy Secretary and Director, Office of English Language Acquisition, Language... learners (ELs) \\1\\, and to promote parental and community participation in language instruction educational...

Peer effects in preschool classrooms: is children's language growth associated with their classmates' skills?

PubMed

Justice, Laura M; Petscher, Yaacov; Schatschneider, Christopher; Mashburn, Andrew

2011-01-01

With an increasing number of young children participating in preschool education, this study determined whether peer effects are present in this earliest sector of schooling. Specifically, this work examined whether peer effects were influential to preschoolers' growth in language skills over an academic year and whether peer effects manifest differently based on children's status in reference to their peers. Peer effects were assessed for 338 children in 49 classrooms. A significant interaction between the language skills of children's classmates and children's fall language skills indicated that peer effects were strongest for children with low language skills who were in classrooms that served children with relatively low skill levels, on average. Findings further showed that reference status, or children's relative standing to their peers, has the greater consequence for children with very low language skills in relation to their peers. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Case Studies of Multilingual/Multicultural Asian Deaf Adults: Strategies for Success.

PubMed

Wang, Qiuying; Andrews, Jean; Liu, Hsiu Tan; Liu, Chun Jung

2016-01-01

Case studies of adult d/Deaf or Hard of Hearing Multilingual Learners (DMLs) are few, especially studies of DMLs who learn more than one sign language and read logographic and alphabetic scripts. To reduce this paucity, two descriptive case studies are presented. Written questionnaires, face-to-face interviews, and self-appraisals of language-use rubrics were used to explore (a) the language and literacy histories of two adult Asian DMLs who had learned multiple languages: Chinese (spoken/written), English (written), Chinese Sign Language, and American Sign Language; and (b) how each language was used in different cultural communities with diverse conversational partners. Home literacy environment, family support, visual access to languages, peer and sibling support, role models, encouragement, perseverance, and Deaf identity all played vital roles in the participants' academic success. The findings provide insights into the acquisition of multiple languages and bi-literacy through social communication and academic content.

English 291, 292, and 293--Advance Program: Man's Power with Words.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jefferson County Board of Education, Louisville, KY.

For those students who qualify, the Advance Program offers an opportunity to follow a stimulating curriculum designed for the academically talented. This guide for ninth grade English was developed to broaden the student's skill and understanding of the history of the English language, composition, grammar, vocabulary development, and literature.…

Use of Graphic Organizers in a Language Teachers' Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chien, Chin-Wen

2012-01-01

Starting from 2009 academic year, the instructional coaches in a school district in a northwest American city began to provide Workshop II (pseudonym) to elementary school English teachers. This study aims to discuss the use of graphic organizers in English teachers' professional development. Different types of graphic organizers such as…

Developing Cultural Understanding: The Culture Triangle Paradigm in FCS

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sullivan, Deborah A.; Schmidt-Rinehart, Barbara C.; Morris, Nancy A.

2011-01-01

Academic institutions as well as professional organizations are faced with providing their constituents with the knowledge and tools that will enable them to interact with people of other cultures--to be global citizens in both their personal and professional lives. The foreign language profession developed a paradigm that has been effectively…

Variations in the Recruitment of Syntactic Knowledge Contribute to SES Differences in Syntactic Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leech, Kathryn A.; Rowe, Meredith L.; Huang, Yi Ting

2017-01-01

Average differences in children's language abilities by socioeconomic status (SES) emerge early in development and predict academic achievement. Previous research has focused on coarse-grained outcome measures such as vocabulary size, but less is known about the extent to which SES differences exist in children's strategies for comprehension and…

Inattentiveness and Language Abilities in Preschoolers: A Latent Profile Analysis.

PubMed

Tambyraja, Sherine R; Rhoad-Drogalis, A; Khan, K S; Justice, L M; Sawyer, B E

2018-06-23

Growing evidence suggests that early symptoms of inattentiveness may affect the language development and academic success of young children. In the present study, we examined the extent to which profiles of inattentiveness and language could be discerned within a heterogeneous group of preschoolers attending early childhood special education programs (n = 461). Based on parent-reported observations of children's symptoms of inattentiveness and direct assessments of children's language skills (grammar, vocabulary, and narrative ability), three distinct profiles were identified. The three groups, representing levels of severity (at risk, almost average, above average), differed not only by their end of year performance, but also with respect to which their abilities changed over the course of the academic year. Children in the poorest performing profile had poorer mean scores in the spring of their preschool year on all measures, but exhibited patterns of gain that exceeded or equaled their peers in higher-performing groups, in the domains of vocabulary and grammar. Examination of subsequent kindergarten reading skills suggested that profile differences remained consistent. Findings underscore the associations between early symptoms of inattentiveness and language difficulties, and further indicate that these relations extend to the acquisition of early reading skills. Future research is needed to corroborate these findings with more robust measures of attention, and to understand the long-term associations between inattentiveness, language and literacy, and potential effects on these associations from early intervention.

Is editing the roadblock to the internationalization of Chinese academic journals?

PubMed

Lu, Jian-ping

2011-06-01

"China's internationalization" is in part realized through the dissemination of Chinese publications, such as academic journals. Therefore, editorial proficiency in the English language is of vital importance to the quality of the journals. This article analyzes the results of the two projects sponsored by the General Administration of Press and Publication of the People's Republic of China in 2007 and 2010 respectively, namely the "Analytical Evaluation of Language and Editing Quality of Chinese Academic Journals in English Language Issued in 2006", and the "Evaluation of Publication Quality of the China-Grown English Periodicals Issued in 2009, Sanctioned from 2005 to 2009", and proposes solutions to the problems presented therein.

Building a Mien-American house: A case study in school-community relations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hammond, Lorie A.

2000-10-01

Researchers and policymakers agree that schools and parents must work together if they are to provide the sustenance, services, and support which children need to be successful in our increasingly complex society. (Clark, 1983; Comer, 1980, 1996; Clinton, 1995; Epstein, 1995, 1996). Unfortunately, the social and academic success of language minority students is often adversely affected by the alienation of parents from school culture and by the "deficit" view which teachers hold of language minority parents' academic and parenting skills (Boggs, 1985; Delgado-Gaitan, 1990; Heath, 1983; Lareau, 1987, 1989; Philips, 1983). This case study describes the attempts of one school site to build academic and social bridges between immigrant families from a Southeast Asian Hill Tribe, the Iu Mien, and a mainstream elementary school. This effort is facilitated by a constructivist approach to curriculum in which parents, teachers, and children create an intercultural space---a school community garden---as a context in which academic dialogue can occur. Various strategies which enable inter-cultural learning are described, including the use of students as ethnographers, of parents as expert teachers, and of teachers as cultural brokers. The study also considers the cultural conflicts and understandings which occurred when American teachers and Mien parents built a Mien field-house together: a structure which became symbolic of their blended lives. Through both a descriptive narration and interviews with various participants, the study analyzes (a) community-based curriculum development, led by practitioner reformers, as a way to enable language minority students to be academically successful within their own life worlds, as well as (b) the political and bureaucratic forces which make community-based reforms difficult to sustain. This study employs qualitative research strategies within an action-research context in which the author plays the dual role of practitioner reformer and researcher.

Teachers' language practices and academic outcomes of preschool children.

PubMed

Dickinson, David K

2011-08-19

Early childhood programs have long been known to be beneficial to children from low-income backgrounds, but recent studies have cast doubt on their ability to substantially increase the rate of children's academic achievement. This Review examines research on the role of language in later reading, describes home and classroom factors that foster early language growth, and reviews research on preschool interventions. It argues that one reason interventions are not having as great an impact as desired is because they fail to substantially change the capacity of teachers to support children's language and associated conceptual knowledge.

Language experience narratives and the role of autobiographical reasoning in becoming an urban science teacher

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rivera Maulucci, Maria S.

2011-06-01

One of the central challenges globalization and immigration present to education is how to construct school language policies, procedures, and curricula to support academic success of immigrant youth. This case-study compares and contrasts language experience narratives along Elena's developmental trajectory of becoming an urban science teacher. Elena reflects upon her early language experiences and her more recent experiences as a preservice science teacher in elementary dual language classrooms. The findings from Elena's early schooling experiences provide an analysis of the linkages between Elena's developing English proficiency, her Spanish proficiency, and her autobiographical reasoning. Elena's experiences as a preservice teacher in two elementary dual language classrooms indicates ways in which those experiences helped to reframe her views about the intersections between language learning and science learning. I propose the language experience narrative, as a subset of the life story, as a way to understand how preservice teachers reconstruct past language experiences, connect to the present, and anticipate future language practices.

American Sign Language/English bilingual model: a longitudinal study of academic growth.

PubMed

Lange, Cheryl M; Lane-Outlaw, Susan; Lange, William E; Sherwood, Dyan L

2013-10-01

This study examines reading and mathematics academic growth of deaf and hard-of-hearing students instructed through an American Sign Language (ASL)/English bilingual model. The study participants were exposed to the model for a minimum of 4 years. The study participants' academic growth rates were measured using the Northwest Evaluation Association's Measure of Academic Progress assessment and compared with a national-normed group of grade-level peers that consisted primarily of hearing students. The study also compared academic growth for participants by various characteristics such as gender, parents' hearing status, and secondary disability status and examined the academic outcomes for students after a minimum of 4 years of instruction in an ASL/English bilingual model. The findings support the efficacy of the ASL/English bilingual model.

EAP Study Recommendations and Score Gains on the IELTS Academic Writing Test

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Anthony

2005-01-01

The IELTS test is widely accepted by university admissions offices as evidence of English language ability. The test is also used to guide decisions about the amount of language study required for students to satisfy admissions requirements. Guidelines currently published by the British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes…

A Current Events Approach to Academic Reading.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hirsch, Sharon F.; Gabbay, Anita

1995-01-01

Presents a current events course designed to teach students in Israel both English language skills as well as the advanced reading and study skills they need to comprehend university level texts and journal articles. A current events approach to academic reading enlivens the foreign language classroom and motivates and broadens the horizons of…

Academic Language, Power and the Impact of Western Knowledge Production on Indigenous Student Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Brien, Karen

2008-01-01

This paper explores the prescriptive, distancing and separating qualities that exist in Western systems of knowledge production. It examines scientific language and how discrimination takes place in the university setting and explores the ways in which academic knowledge production affects the learning experiences, participation and completion…

Collaborative Work and Language Learners' Identities When Editing Academic Texts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caviedes, Lorena; Meza, Angélica; Rodriguez, Ingrid

2016-01-01

This paper presents a qualitative case study that involved three groups of English as a foreign language pre-service teachers at a Colombian private university. Each group attended tutoring sessions during an academic semester. Along these sessions, students were asked to work collaboratively in the editing process of some chapters of their thesis…

Indiana Reading Diagnostic Assessment: Resource & Intervention Guide, Kindergarten. Additional Activities and Assessments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Indiana Department of Education, 2006

2006-01-01

The materials included in this manual are organized according to the Indiana's Kindergarten Academic Standards for English/Language Arts. In each section teachers will find: (1) Indiana's Kindergarten Academic Standards for English/Language Arts Assessments: Black Line Masters of diagnostic/practice pages for skill areas, checklists, and rubrics;…

75 FR 69095 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Revision of an Existing Information Collection; Comment...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-10

... necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency's, including whether the information... Status--For Academic and Language Students/ICE Form I- 20 (Students). 90,000 Certificate of 0.5 Eligibility for Nonimmigrant (M-1) Student Status--For Academic and Language Students/ICE Form I- 20 (Spouse...

CLIL in Galicia: Repercussions on Academic Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

González Gándara, David

2015-01-01

There is a concern in Galicia (Spain) about possible negative effects on academic performance caused by the introduction of CLIL (content and language integrated learning) in schools. It has been said that when three languages coexist in the same context as vehicles of education, it is too much for the students, especially in primary education. In…

Corporate Versus Academic Perceptions of the Need for Language Fluency.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vande Berg, Camille Kennedy

1997-01-01

Discusses the academic emphasis on students acquiring fluency in a second language to foster their advancement in the business world of international commerce. Notes that human resource experts in U.S.-based international corporations often give a low priority to linguistic fluency and emphasize the need for cultural expertise. (Seven references)…

Differences in Errors between Students with Language and Reading Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avitia, Maria; Pagirsky, Matthew; Courville, Troy; DeBiase, Emily; Knupp, Tawnya; Ottone-Cross, Karen

2017-01-01

Children with a specific learning disability in reading/writing (LDRW) and/or language impairment (LI) are likely to have difficulties across all areas of academic achievement, as a great deal of teaching and learning depends on intact reading skill and linguistic communication. Despite a large number of studies examining academic difficulties…

Translanguaging in English Academic Writing Preparation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adamson, John; Coulson, David

2015-01-01

We investigate translanguaging (i.e. the co-use of first and second languages) in a Content and Language Integrated Learning course, as a pragmatic means to promote the skill of young university students in extended critical academic writing. We aimed to prepare new undergraduate students (n = 180) for courses where partial English-medium…

Academic Performance of Language-Minority Students and All-Day Kindergarten: A Longitudinal Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Mido

2012-01-01

This longitudinal study examined the effect of all-day kindergarten programs on the academic achievement of students from racial language minority and low socioeconomic class. The study employed a series of 3-level longitudinal multilevel analyses using a nationally representative database, the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS). The study…

Precursors of Language Ability and Academic Performance: An Intergenerational, Longitudinal Study of At-Risk Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campisi, Lisa; Serbin, Lisa A.; Stack, Dale M.; Schwartzman, Alex E.; Ledingham, Jane E.

2009-01-01

The current investigation examined whether inter-generational transfer of risk could be revealed through mothers' and preschool-aged children's expressive language, and whether continuity of risk persisted in these children's academic abilities, 3 years later. Participating families were drawn from the Concordia Longitudinal Risk Project, a…

Academic and Language Outcomes in Children after Traumatic Brain Injury: A Meta-Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vu, Jennifer A.; Babikian, Talin; Asarnow, Robert F .

2011-01-01

Expanding on Babikian and Asarnow's (2009) meta-analytic study examining neurocognitive domains, this current meta-analysis examined academic and language outcomes at different time points post-traumatic brain injury (TBI) in children and adolescents. Although children with mild TBI exhibited no significant deficits, studies indicate that children…

Pedagogy and Related Criteria: The Selection of Software for Computer Assisted Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Samuels, Jeffrey D.

2013-01-01

Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) is an established field of academic inquiry with distinct applications for second language teaching and learning. Many CALL professionals direct language labs or language resource centers (LRCs) in which CALL software applications and generic software applications support language learning programs and…

Meaning Negotiated Through Independently-Written Summaries and Oral Academic Conversations: Enhancing Comprehension of Science Text by Ninth-Grade, English Learners

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burke, Edward Charles

English Learners experience challenges related to comprehension of science text particularly at the high school level. The language of science differs significantly from that of conversation and expository text. Students benefit from collaborative interpretation of readings. Additionally, there appears to be a need to train adolescents in the oral language skills requisite for academic discourse. This study employed a sample of high school physical science students (N = 75) whose first language was Spanish and who were currently developing English language proficiency. It used quasi-experimental methodology with treatment and comparison groups, during the normal operations of the public school classroom. It tested the effect of training with a textbook summarization method and with an academic conversation strategy on the comprehension of state-adopted science textbook readings. Posttest scores of both groups were analyzed using an ANOVA. Posttest scores of treatment group members were analyzed in relation to prior science knowledge, reading level, gender, and level of English proficiency using a factorial ANOVA. Findings suggest that the treatment had a positive impact on the achievement of students who had a low level of English language proficiency. In light of the at-risk nature of this population, given low socioeconomic status and that a high percentage of families are migrant workers, this in encouraging. The basic premise of the treatment appears promising. Evidence collected pertaining to its effect relative to students' general ESOL level, science background knowledge, literacy skills, and gender neither confirmed nor denied the viability of the strategy. The further significance of this study is that it adds to the body of research on strategies to support English Learners.

Teaching Listening.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mendelsohn, David J.

1998-01-01

Review of research on trends in teaching second-language listening focuses primarily on strategy instruction and a strategy-based approach but also refers to developments in terms of listening and "high-tech contexts," interactive listening, and academic listening. Classroom listening textbooks are discussed, with attention to the mismatch between…

Academic Hospitality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phipps, Alison; Barnett, Ronald

2007-01-01

Academic hospitality is a feature of academic life. It takes many forms. It takes material form in the hosting of academics giving papers. It takes epistemological form in the welcome of new ideas. It takes linguistic form in the translation of academic work into other languages, and it takes touristic form through the welcome and generosity with…

Improving the provision of language services at an academic medical center: ensuring high-quality health communication for limited-English-proficient patients.

PubMed

Standiford, Connie J; Nolan, Elizabeth; Harris, Michelle; Bernstein, Steven J

2009-12-01

To evaluate and improve the provision of language services at an academic medicine center caring for a diverse population including many limited-English-proficient (LEP) patients. The authors performed a prospective observational study between November 2006 and December 2008 evaluating the provision of language services at the University of Michigan Health System. The primary performance measures were (1) screening patients for their preferred language for health care, (2) assessing the proportion of LEP patients receiving language services from a qualified language services provider, and (3) assessing whether there were any disparities in diabetes care for LEP patients compared with English-speaking patients. The proportion of patients screened for preferred language increased from 59% to 96% with targeted inventions, such as training staff to capture preferred language for health care and correcting prior inaccurate primary language data entry. The proportion of LEP outpatients with a qualified language services provider increased from 19% to 83% through the use of staff and contract interpreters, over-the-phone interpreting and bilingual providers. There were no systematic differences in diabetes quality performance measures between LEP and English-proficient patients. Academic medical centers should measure their provision of language services and compare quality and safety data (e.g., performance measures and adverse events) between LEP and English-speaking patients to identify disparities in care. Leadership support and ongoing training are needed to ensure language-specific services are embedded into clinical care to meet the needs of our diverse patient populations.

Developing Academic Literacy and Voice: Challenges Faced by a Mature ESL Student and Her Instructors (Desarrollo del discurso académico y la voz: retos de una estudiante de inglés como segunda lengua y sus profesores)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Correa, Doris

2010-01-01

Drawing on critical, socio-cultural and sociolinguistic theories of writing, text and voice, this ethnographic study examines the challenges that a mature ESL student and her instructors in a university course on Spanish Language Media face as they co-construct a common understanding of academic literacy and voice in an undergraduate General…

Chief Dull Knife Community Is Strengthening the Northern Cheyenne Language and Culture.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Littlebear, Richard E.

2003-01-01

Language revitalization programs should focus on whether they want to teach the language, teach about the language, teach with the language, or teach the language for academic credit. A program at Chief Dull Knife College (Montana) teaches the Cheyenne language using the Total Physical Response method, which replicates the manner in which first…

Researching English in the Philippines: Bibliographical Resources

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bautista, Ma. Lourdes S.

2004-01-01

The academic literature on issues related to the Philippine English language and literature is substantial. This bibliography surveys relevant work on such related fields as the sociology of language and language planning, Bilingualism, bilingual education, and languages in education, language attitudes, code-switching and code-mixing, Philippine…

Language Anxiety among Gifted Learners in Malaysia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kamarulzaman, Mohd Hasrul; Ibrahim, Noraniza; Yunus, Melor Md; Ishak, Noriah Mohd

2013-01-01

Language anxiety has significantly sparked great concern in the second and foreign language learning world. Researches have found negative correlation between language anxiety and academic achievement of English language learners; and, most of the studies focus on average school students and tertiary level students. This paper, however, explores…

Processing Academic Language through Four Corners Vocabulary Chart Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Sarah; Sanchez, Claudia; Betty, Sharon; Davis, Shiloh

2016-01-01

4 Corners Vocabulary Charts (FCVCs) are explored as a multipurpose vehicle for processing academic language in a 5th-grade classroom. FCVCs typically display a vocabulary word, an illustration of the word, synonyms associated with the word, a sentence using a given vocabulary word, and a definition of the term in students' words. The use of…

Identifying Academically Gifted English-Language Learners Using Nonverbal Tests: A Comparison of the Raven, NNAT, and CogAT

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lohman, David F.; Korb, Katrina A.; Lakin, Joni M.

2008-01-01

In this study, the authors compare the validity of three nonverbal tests for the purpose of identifying academically gifted English-language learners (ELLs). Participants were 1,198 elementary children (approximately 40% ELLs). All were administered the Raven Standard Progressive Matrices (Raven), the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT), and…

Impact of Integrated Science and English Language Arts Literacy Supplemental Instructional Intervention on Science Academic Achievement of Elementary Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marks, Jamar Terry

2017-01-01

The purpose of this quasi-experimental, nonequivalent pretest-posttest control group design study was to determine if any differences existed in upper elementary school students' science academic achievement when instructed using an 8-week integrated science and English language arts literacy supplemental instructional intervention in conjunction…

Academic Effects of Peer-Mediated Interventions with English Language Learners: A Research Synthesis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pyle, Daniel; Pyle, Nicole; Lignugaris/Kraft, Benjamin; Duran, Lillian; Akers, Jessica

2017-01-01

The purpose of this article is to synthesize the extant research on peer-mediated interventions (PMIs) with English language learners (ELLs) in kindergarten through Grade 12. Fourteen studies that were published in peer-reviewed journals from 1983 to 2013 were examined in terms of study characteristics, the effects on academic outcomes, study…

Internationalisation in Higher Education and Its Impact in Multilingual Contexts: Redefining Identities of Basque-Speaking Academics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larrinaga, Ane; Amurrio, Mila

2015-01-01

This article analyses aspects of the impact of internationalisation in higher education in multilingual contexts where both a state language and a minority language are present and where English is gradually being introduced. The analysis focuses primarily on the consequences for the professional identities of academics who work in a minority…

Teacher Scaffolding of Academic Language in an Advanced Placement U.S. History Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gritter, Kristine; Beers, Scott; Knaus, Robert W.

2013-01-01

This article examines teacher scaffolding of academic language in an Advanced Placement United States History (APUSH) course throughout a school year for one student who received a perfect score on the end of year APUSH exam. Data includes four months of observation of teacher instructional strategies to scaffold student writing and vignettes of…

Chinese International Students' Social Connectedness, Social and Academic Adaptation: The Mediating Role of Global Competence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meng, Qian; Zhu, Chang; Cao, Chun

2018-01-01

This study examined global competence of Chinese international students sojourning in a non-Anglophone European country as a mediator between foreign language proficiency (i.e., English and local language) and social and academic adaptation, and social connectedness in international community. A sample of 206 Chinese students in Belgium responded…

Higher Education Students' Reflections on Learning in Times of Academic Language Shift

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kagwesage, Anne Marie

2012-01-01

This article deals with the current debate on the use of English as the only medium of instruction in contexts where it is a second or foreign language. More specifically, it investigates Rwandan students' reflections on using English as the sole medium of instruction in their everyday higher education academic activities. The study is mainly…

An Analysis of the Language of Attribution in University Students' Academic Essays

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jabulani, Sibanda

2014-01-01

The study reports on challenges related to the use of the language of attribution in academic essay writing by Post-Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) students at Rhodes University, as a microcosm of similar challenges faced by university students elsewhere. The study content-analysed 150 essays written by 50 PGCE students taking the course…

Investigating the Role of Identity in L2 Writing Using Electronic Bulletin Boards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spiliotopoulos, Valia; Carey, Steven

2005-01-01

Recent research has focused on the relationship between language and identity (Ivanic, 1998; Kanno & Norton, 2003). International students who come to Canada to learn English as a second language realize that to succeed in the academic community, they must be particularly adept at writing in English for academic purposes. This article…

Effects of Goal-Setting Skills on Students'academic Performance in English Language in Enugu Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abe, Iyabo Idowu; Ilogu, Guy Chibuzoh; Madueke, Ify Louisa

2014-01-01

The study investigated the effectiveness of goal-setting skills among Senior Secondary II students' academic performance in English language in Enugu Metropolis, Enugu state, Nigeria. Quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test control group design was adopted for the study. The initial sample was 147 participants (male and female) Senior Secondary…

Language, Academic, Socio-Cultural and Financial Adjustments of Mainland Chinese Students Studying in Hong Kong

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheung, Alan C. K.

2013-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine language, academic, social-cultural and financial adjustments facing mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach: The current study employed both quantitative and qualitative methods and included over 300 mainland Chinese students from seven major universities in Hong Kong.…

Putting Resources into Practice: A Nexus Analysis of Knowledge Mobilisation Activities in Language Research and Multilingual Communities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pietikäinen, Sari; Compton, Sarah E.; Dlaske, Kati

2015-01-01

Recent demand within the academy for language research that bridges different stakeholders renders the social relevance of research a factor in the academic competition for research funds [Curry, M. J., & Lillis, T. (2013). "Introduction to the thematic issue: Participating in academic publishing--consequences of linguistic policies and…

The Relationship between English Language Proficiency, Academic Achievement and Self-Esteem of Non-Native-English-Speaking Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dev, Smitha; Qiqieh, Sura

2016-01-01

The present study aims to find out the relationship between English Language proficiency, self-esteem, and academic achievement of the students in Abu Dhabi University (ADU). The variables were analyzed using "t" test, chi-squire and Pearson's product moment correlation. In addition, Self-rating scale, Self-esteem inventory and Language…

Anything Can Happen out There: A Holistic Approach to Field Trips

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plutino, Alessia

2016-01-01

This paper looks back at an academic-led language field trip project, now in its third year, involving ab-initio students of Italian at the University of Southampton. It considers the role of academic-led field trips in Modern Languages (ML) and it explores the underlying pedagogical approaches that were adopted to enhance students' engagement,…

"English Is the Vehicle to Communicate!" International Graduate Students' Perceptions of the Connection between Language Proficiency and Academic Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rawjee, Roopa

2010-01-01

This case study was conducted at a large four year institution of higher education located in southern California. The purpose was to answer the question, "What are international graduate students' perceptions of the connection between English language proficiency and academic success?" The participants were six international graduate…

Academic English in Fifth-Grade Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies Textbooks. CSE Report 642

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butler, Frances A.; Bailey, Alison L.; Stevens, Robin; Huang, Becky; Lord, Carol

2004-01-01

This study expands on previous National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) work that has undertaken the articulation of the academic language construct for broad educational purposes. The primary goal was to describe the language of textbook selections in terms of vocabulary, grammar, and organization of…

Understanding the Academic Procrastination Attitude of Language Learners in Turkish Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bekleyen, Nilüfer

2017-01-01

The prevalence of academic procrastination has long been the subject of attention among researchers. However, there is still a paucity of studies examining language learners since most of the studies focus on similar participants such as psychology students. The present study was conducted among students trying to learn English in the first year…

The Impact of Academic Self-Efficacy, Acculturation Difficulties, and Language Abilities on Procrastination Behavior in Chinese International Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lowinger, Robert Jay; He, Zhaomin; Lin, Miranda; Chang, Mei

2014-01-01

This study examined the role of academic self-efficacy, acculturation difficulties, and language abilities on procrastination behavior using a convenience sample of 264 Chinese international students studying at three public universities in the United States. While there were no significant mean gender differences on any of the measures, results…

Is editing the roadblock to the internationalization of Chinese academic journals?*

PubMed Central

Lu, Jian-ping

2011-01-01

“China’s internationalization” is in part realized through the dissemination of Chinese publications, such as academic journals. Therefore, editorial proficiency in the English language is of vital importance to the quality of the journals. This article analyzes the results of the two projects sponsored by the General Administration of Press and Publication of the People’s Republic of China in 2007 and 2010 respectively, namely the “Analytical Evaluation of Language and Editing Quality of Chinese Academic Journals in English Language Issued in 2006”, and the “Evaluation of Publication Quality of the China-Grown English Periodicals Issued in 2009, Sanctioned from 2005 to 2009”, and proposes solutions to the problems presented therein. PMID:21634045

Residential Schools: Impact on Aboriginal Students' Academic and Cognitive Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnes, Rosemary; Josefowitz, Nina; Cole, Ester

2006-01-01

Government commissions have demonstrated that residential schools' ability to educate aboriginal students was compromised by widespread problems including (a) inadequate curriculum, staffing, instruction time, and parental involvement; (b) racism; (c) prohibition against the use of aboriginal language; and (d) maltreatment. This article uses…

Methods and Strategies: Talk Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shea, Lauren M.; Shanahan, Therese B.

2011-01-01

This article discusses how to promote oral language development through science. The authors describe how they incorporate academic "talk strategies" into science lessons in a nonintrusive and meaningful manner. These talk strategies are adapted from the "Avenues" (2007) curriculum for English learners (ELs), which gives examples of cooperative…