Skip to main content

Meaning-Centered Literacy for English Language Learners



When looking at how someone, anyone learns language, there are four areas to consider:  listening, speaking, reading and writing.  Teachers must recognize all of these areas equally, since communication must develop across all.  It makes sense that educators look at the “big picture” and provide instruction to English learners that promotes progress in all of the areas.

Today, let’s talk about how a teacher goes about teaching English learners better literacy/reading skills.  The two most popular methods are the meaning-centered (or top-down) approach and the word-decoding (or bottom-up) approach.  My research shows that most educators feel that a mix of these two approaches is the most effective means of helping any emergent reader.  

I would argue, though, that of these two approaches, the meaning-centered strategy should be the first step in helping an English learner acquire second language reading skills.   Doesn’t it make sense to help a student learn to read by creating an understanding based on what he or she already knows?  That’s what the meaning-based approach does.  It presents something of interest to the learner and asks the learner to use his or her background knowledge as well as context-cues to comprehend.  In my opinion, as the English learner hones his or her comprehension skills, it stands to reason that decoding strategies will follow.  In other words, teaching an English learner to read the word “spot” by focusing on phonemic awareness does not tell that student what a spot is.  (Or, in the case of early basal readers, that “Spot” can be the name of a dog.)  

Anecdotally, I have observed an English learner whose reading proficiency has vastly improved.  Her reading fluency is right at expected achievement levels for all students her age, but her comprehension skills are not as high as other readers at the same level.  I discovered this when I noticed that she was reading accurately but very quickly.  When queried, she could only speculate about the specifics of the story she read.   I am hoping to capitalize on her interest in the story to hone her comprehension skills.  I believe that if she becomes truly interested and invested in the story rather than just mastering individual words, this student will become the fluent, proficient reader that she just appears to be now.

Chapter 4

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Language Structure

There are currently over 7,000 languages spoken in our world today, and each of these languages can sound vastly different, but they all share some universal facts.   They all tend to be fluid or dynamic, meaning they change over time.   Word meaning changes; word spelling changes; phonology changes; morphology changes.   Language is vastly complex.   Languages all have structure.  Educators must be aware of the components of spoken language.   Phonemes are the sounds that make up a language.   Pitch is the actual vibration of the vocal chords that helps to impart meaning to a statement.   Stress is a component that gives a variety of meaning to words.   All of these parts of oral language make differences that teachers must be aware of. Written language is similarly complex.   Spelling alone is very difficult.   Morphology (the study of the units of meaning in a language) requires careful study and flexibility of though...
1 comment
Read more

SIOP

The Second Grade Classroom Science video shows how two teachers carefully implement the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) model of teaching.   This strategy is a specific method used to instruct English learners.   I talked about it a bit in an earlier post (Having a Plan:   SDAIE), but I very much enjoyed watching two veteran teachers actually putting it into action.   What stood out most for me was just how much careful planning must be used when using this teaching protocol.   Eight specific areas must be addressed:   lesson preparation, building background, comprehensible input, strategies, interaction, practice and application, lesson delivery and review and assessment. It is a time-consuming process and teachers are, if anything, always short on time. Still, I am someone who likes to have a plan, and I will definitely be mindful of all of these steps that should be used when instructing English learners.   Lesson plannin...
1 comment
Read more

Sensationnel!

I found the video “Chicken Pox” so fascinating on several levels.   For starters, I was very surprised that an immersive-French class for Kindergarteners in Ohio is even a thing.   For another, I was startled at how much French the kids had learned so quickly.   Lastly, I was taken aback at how many of the strategies used in any public, English-speaking classroom were the same in the French-immersive classroom. My biased opinion is that French is quite exceptionally difficult. (I tried to self-teach myself French as an adult and I failed miserably.)   Yet the kids in Mr. Scott’s classroom had learned a fair amount of French in only nine weeks.   While speaking almost solely in French, Mr. Scott integrated visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning techniques.  He carefully scaffolded and modeled the material.  My biggest take-away from this is that these strategies are the same that have been proven effective for English speaking students in an...
Post a Comment
Read more