{"id":1270,"date":"2012-05-16T09:55:13","date_gmt":"2012-05-16T13:55:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coreeducationllc.com\/blog2\/?p=1270"},"modified":"2012-05-16T09:55:13","modified_gmt":"2012-05-16T13:55:13","slug":"preparing-teachers-to-meet-the-needs-of-ells","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.coreeducationllc.com\/blog2\/preparing-teachers-to-meet-the-needs-of-ells\/","title":{"rendered":"Preparing Teachers to Meet the Needs of ELLs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>As states begin to implement the Common Core, there has been an increased focus on English Language Learners, or ELLs, in the classroom.\u00a0 An estimated 25% of children in America live in households where a language other than English is spoken.\u00a0 How can \u201cregular\u201d classroom teachers support the needs of these students?\u00a0 A new report by the Center for American Progress tries to answer this question.<\/p>\n

The report leaves aside the argument over pedagogical aspects of teaching ELLs (immersion versus native language instruction, etc.), and focuses on the \u201cfoundational knowledge about ELLs that might serve general education teachers\u2026these include the importance of attending to oral language development, supporting academic language, and encouraging teachers\u2019 cultural sensitivity to the backgrounds of their students.\u201d\u00a0 The authors argue that these areas should be \u201cpurposefully and explicitly integrated\u201d into teacher preparation, certification, evaluation, and development to improve ELL outcomes.<\/p>\n

The report also summarizes key findings drawn from other literature on promising practices that all teachers can use when working with ELLs, and examines gaps in policy and practice.\u00a0 They compare five key states (California, Florida, Massachusetts, New York, and Texas) to help identify essential knowledge and skills that can be used to address these gaps.\u00a0 Specifically, the authors recommend that consistent, specific guidelines on the oral language, academic language, and cultural needs of ELLs be addressed in:<\/p>\n