Interview with Ms. Barbosa
Here is the link of the Interview: >> click me !! <<
Here is the link of the Interview: >> click me !! <<
Hello! For
this Vblog, Ms. Barbosa has agreed to share out her personal experiences as a Science
Teacher with English Language Learners. Ms. Barbosa has been teaching for four
years and is also a Spanish speaker. Throughout the video, she shared out some
of her experiences and suggestions to create the positive learning
environment for both her non-ELL students and ELL students.
Ms.
Barbosa mentions that she has had ELL students who were immigrants and spoke
Spanish. In order to accommodate to these students who struggled, she allowed
students to use dictionaries and write some of their responses in Spanish. In
regards to assessments, an alternative way to assess students for Science would
to give them the opportunity to arrange pictures in a sequence (Wright, 2015,
292). Although Ms. Barbosa does not have struggling ELL students this year, we already
differentiate our assessments by adhering to different type of learners and student-choices.
For example, we allowed students to showcase their product in two different
ways either as: creating a comic or writing a story. This appealed to both
different types of learners as creating an illustration is a universal
language. In addition, giving students these choices create a welcoming
learning environment where they can relate to their peers through motivation
and interests.
Another
interesting point I would like to discuss is the opportunity for students to
assist each other. Ms. Barbosa previously had supportive bilingual students who
helped their ELL peers with both the instructions and activities. In regards to
pairing students, teachers could arrange the seats to where lower-level ELLs
are seated near a bilingual student who can provide quick clarifications and
assistance when needed (Wright, 2015, p. 306). In the interview, Ms. Barbosa
mentioned that these students may struggle socializing with other students,
therefore having a seating arrangement in mind may build a social pathway for
the students not just through cultural similarities, but also through proximity.
After interviewing my mentor teacher, I now have a better understanding of the
importance to be as mindful as possible with my ESL students in ways to assist
not just through content, but as well as being involved with my students’
cultural differences by establishing a welcoming environment.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English
Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia,
PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition
