Page 29 - ELG2402 Feb Issue 488

FEATURE

Caution is needed to ensure that These may come from interactions with • Embedding phonics instruction
recommendations from native speaker community and family members or from in meaningful content that is
studies are not uncritically extrapolated to other experiences, such as television, comprehensible. Comprehension
what works for students learning to read in peers or video games. is not a static system. Context and
English as an additional language. A recent familiarity also shape what we hear.
joint statement by the Reading League Understanding the influence of L1 The automaticity with which students
and NCEL underscores the importance of Communication, comprehension, and hear sounds and sound strings as units
explicitly addressing English learners (ELs) expression are deeply bound by the learners’ of meaning (words) and then associate
when considering implications for policy first language(s) as they enter the second those representations with print symbols
and practice. Educators and policy makers language for literacy/reading. Instructional is highly dependent upon the use of
must ask what we know about teaching practices that are pivotal for effective literacy materials/stimuli which equitably allow
reading to ELs based on studies that have development with ELs include: learners to access meaning. Literacy skill
been designed to specifically examine how • Using words that ELs comprehend practices that fail to prioritise meaning
ELs learn to read in English as an additional and know from their own experience. instead relegate decoding and fluency
language. We can then talk in an informed Students may perceive sounds to word calling. Such practices later
way about what practices work for ELs/ differently based upon the phonologic compel remedial measures that detract
EBs and to what extent these align with patterns in the first learned language. from students’ learning of content. When
and/or diverge from what we do for native For example, CVC words are very phonics is devoid of meaning and simply
English speakers. common in English, but rare in becomes memorisation and word calling,
Teaching phonics is one such area languages where more words end on it neither advances fluency nor builds
that warrants additional consideration. vowel sounds. Furthermore, those comprehension.
The question is not ‘should phonics be vowels carry significant morphological
taught or not?’ for ELs. Given English meaning related to gender, tense and so A prerequisite condition for the effective
orthography, there is no question that on. Final consonants factor less in many literacy practices described are teachers’
phonics is an important component of languages than they do in English where dispositions toward ELs and what they
reading for native English speakers and ELs the last bit of sound must be correctly bring to school. None of these strategies
alike. A better question is: What conditions perceived to distinguish words. When will matter if the teacher views ELs with a
are necessary for phonics instruction to be phonics instruction focuses on final mindset that says: this student cannot speak
effective for ELs? Processes that lead to consonant clusters, it is important to English fluently, has a vocabulary gap, does
fluent reading comprehension in a given use words chosen from learners’ own not have the right background knowledge
language rely upon: experience where the perception of the and so on. The strategies presented here
• The learner’s oral comprehension of the final consonant changes the meaning are premised on the understanding that
target language for multiple purposes. of a relevant message. Merely drilling ELs bring rich cultural and linguistic
• The learner’s exercise of literacy skills from prescribed lists of English words is experiences to the learning task, though
that allows for a seamless transition unlikely to facilitate understanding and, these experiences are likely different than
from decoding of print to making as a result, fails to achieve the intended those of mainstream English speakers. When
meaning. outcome. enacting effective instruction, teachers
• The teacher’s ability to contextualize • Recognising and respecting variation recognize these experiences as resources for
instruction. in oral language. Linguistically, vowel learning and begin there—valuing who the
and consonant sounds are influenced student is and what they bring.
Building a strong oral language by mouth shape and placements and
foundation vary by surrounding sounds. The
Native English speakers begin school with first sound in ‘door’ is usually spoken Ester is Professor and program
basic grammar, commonly used vocabulary, differently than the sounds represented leader in the Culturally
and receptive oral language skills. Phonics by ‘d’ in words like ‘drain’ and ‘walked’, and Linguistically Diverse
instruction designed for this group of with the latter sounding more like ‘t’. Education program at the
students rightly takes this foundational oral Socio-linguistically, native English
proficiency and uses it to make sound-letter speakers reflect tremendous variation University of Colorado
connections. When children come to school in their pronunciation of these same Denver. She has published
speaking a native language other than words. For ELs, their pronunciation is extensively on dual language education and
English, they also have these skills, but in also shaped by their home language(s). general education teacher preparation for
their home language and varying abilities in Given the variance for native English English language learners. Dr. de Jong was
English. They need to continually develop speakers, imagine the challenges President of TESOL International Association
an oral language base – including listening speakers of other languages encounter (2017-2018).
comprehension – in English while applying when ‘rules’ of spelling and mouth
the processes necessary for reading to formation do not match the language Socorro is a keynote speaker,
existing language assets. Research on second they see and hear spoken among native district consultant, and
language development has consistently English speakers. Our linguistic and trainer of trainers, as well as
emphasized the importance of oracy lived experiences influence sound a professor in the College of
development. Effective classroom strategies perception in ways that either promote Education and director of the
that promote oracy include: or hinder the synergy of literacy Centre for Intercultural and
• Promoting contextualized, language processes required to read. Multilingual Advocacy (CIMA) at Kansas
rich interaction opportunities. The State University. Her K–12 teaching experience
learner needs to be invited to use their Contextualized instruction includes an emphasis on literacy development,
full linguistic repertoire, such as through Phonics is part of the process that leads and her research focuses on literacy
instructional conversations. toward the real goal of reading; namely, opportunities with culturally and linguistically
• Incorporating students’ ability to hear comprehension. As we engage in phonics diverse students, reading strategies, and
and identify sounds in meaningful instruction, it is imperative not to lose the domestic and international teacher preparation
words. Phonics should be directly tied forest for the trees. A critical strategy to for diversity in the classroom.
to the words that children use daily. support the comprehension of ELs is:
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