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##  Programs That Prepare Teachers To Work Effectively with Students                Learning English. ERIC Digest.                                               

Schools and teacher education programs have begun to rethink                    pre-service and in-service professional development to take into                account the need for teachers to work effectively with students                 learning English. New approaches to teacher education are based on              the belief that English language learners' access to challenging                content can be enhanced through teaching strategies that provide                multiple pathways to the understanding of language and content.                 Because students must use language to acquire academic content in               mainstream classes, second language teaching must be integrated with            the social, cultural, and political contexts of language use. 
This            digest provides a summary of some of the problems associated with               traditional teacher education and describes pre-service and                     in-service programs that prepare teachers to work effectively with              English language learners. TRADITIONAL TEACHER EDUCATION                      PROGRAMSA number of problems have traditionally plagued second              language teacher education programs, including those described                  below. 
"Failure to see the interconnectedness between first and               second languages and cultures" 
Schools and teacher education                  programs often focus on pushing students to work rapidly and                    unrealistically to acquire fluent English without attention to                  continued first language development. This approach minimizes the               connections between first and second language development and                   reduces the potential for advancement in both languages. Inattention            to the first language development of non-English speakers is also               detrimental to their academic achievement. Teacher preparation                  programs should help future teachers to integrate second language               development with first language development and to recognize the                uniqueness and value of specific languages and                                  cultures. 
"Fragmentation and isolation of language teaching and               learning" 
In many schools and teacher education programs, English             as a second language (ESL), bilingual, foreign language, and                    language arts programs are the responsibility of distinctly separate            administrative departments. This fragmentation isolates teachers and            makes it difficult for them to communicate across programs and to               benefit from communication across disciplines. 
"View of                       language" 
Teacher education programs often focus on the components            of language, such as phonology, morphology, syntax, and lexicon.                This narrow view overlooks the social nature of language as a tool              for communication and a mechanism through which content can be                  explored and examined. Language study is generally decontextualized             and unrelated to the lives of students, their school, or the                    community, and much of language instruction is grammar                          driven. 
"Paralyzing focus on methodology" 
Historically,                     preparation programs for foreign language and ESL teachers have                 placed emphasis on instructional methods rather than on the what,               why, and who of second language instruction. Tedick and                         Walker (1994) argue that this concentration on methodology has made             second language instruction teacher centered, because it focuses on             the ways in which the teacher best organizes, presents, and assesses            success with lessons. Such a narrow focus has insulated second                  language teachers from the growing knowledge about language in the              fields of adult education, literacy development, and early childhood            education. This knowledge supports a view of language development               as "an integrated, generative process in which the learner is an                active agent" (p. 306). 
"Disjuncture between language and                     culture" 
Prospective second language teachers need to have                    knowledge about language development, but they also need a clear                understanding of themselves and their students as cultural beings.              They should be aware of the variety of world views espoused by                  participants in the target culture and the native culture, and of               the need to view both cultures from a number of perspectives. Such              insights cannot be achieved by simply adding more culture courses to            the teacher education curriculum. Instead, just as culture must be              an integral part of second language pedagogy, it must also be an                integral part of teacher education programs, including attention to             school culture and classroom ecology (Tedick & Walker, 1994, p.                 309). PRESERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMSTwo pre-service                programs designed specifically to prepare teachers to work                      effectively with immigrant students are the Second Languages and                Cultures Education Program at the University of Minnesota and the               Cross-Cultural Language and Academic Development Program at San                 Diego State University. 
"Second Languages and Cultures (SLC)                  Education Program, University of Minnesota" 
This                              post-baccalaureate program encompasses both foreign language and ESL            teacher preparation. The combination seeks to lessen fragmentation              in the field of language learning and isolation of language                     teachers. 
The SLC program is based on the philosophical tenets                that "teachers and students both act as knowers and learners in an              active, experiential, and integrative process; that teaching is                 context sensitive; and that reflection is a cornerstone in teacher              development" (Tedick & Walker, 1995, p. 503). Students begin their              field experiences in classrooms while continuing to take courses on             campus. Students explore issues and questions in 10 areas: language             and culture; the language learner; integration of curriculum,                   instruction, and learner characteristics; theory and research bases             for second language teaching and learning; school culture and second            languages; personal development as a teacher; assessment; language              and cultural diversity; research; and intensive classroom experience            at both the elementary and secondary levels. 
Students in the SLC              program are organized into cohort groups, referred to as "a                     community of developing teachers," where they work together and                 share experiences. These cohort groups are further divided                      into "base groups" and "feedback session groups." A graduate                    assistant usually facilitates the base group and keeps close contact            with teaching candidates through conferences, journals, and on-site             visits and observations. Through base groups, students are able to              share their experiences with one another and get feedback on their              work. In the feedback sessions, developing teachers view                        micro-teaching videos (focused on one element of their own or                   others' classroom practice) and more globally oriented videos of                their actual teaching in the schools. In addition, students                     participate in work days set aside for group projects. Graduates                continue to be members of cohort groups for their first year of                 teaching, participate together in monthly seminars at the                       university, and engage in action research projects leading to their             Master's degree in education. 
"The Cross-Cultural Language and                Academic Development Program (CLAD), San Diego State                            University" 
This pre-service teacher education program seeks to               prepare teachers to work with English language learners where                   bilingual programs are not available or to work in the English                  component of a bilingual program. Pedagogical strategies include                Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English (SDAIE), also                called sheltered instruction. Instruction in a subject area is                  delivered in English by a content-area-certified teacher using                  techniques designed to provide English learners access to the                   curriculum. This is increasingly important at the secondary school              level, where students may otherwise be denied access to core                    academic instruction. 
Content courses in mathematics, social                  studies, science, reading, and language arts include attention to               culture and pedagogical methods for new English language learners.              Other requirements include a course on the psychological foundations            of education, with an emphasis on culture, language, and language               acquisition, and student teaching experiences and seminars. Students            are placed in a school for at least one semester with a master                  teacher who has obtained a Language Development Specialist                      certificate or credential and has a significant number of new                   English learners in class. 
The CLAD program aims to develop future            teachers' knowledge in the following areas: 
* Cultural awareness.             This component focuses on issues of cultural diversity;                         assimilation; and relationships among cultural diversity,                       educational equity, academic achievement, and socioeconomic                     status. 
* Theoretical knowledge. Students learn about language                phonology, morphology and syntax, first and second language                     acquisition, the structure and role of language in social settings,             philosophy and theory of bilingual and bicultural education,                    techniques and materials in ESL instruction, and the effects of                 attitudes and motivation in learning. 
* Content knowledge.                    Students complete an undergraduate major in an academic content area            before being admitted to the pre-service program. 
* Knowledge of              pedagogical methods. This includes learning about Total Physical                Response, the Natural Approach, content-based instruction,                      cooperative learning, and whole language teaching strategies. 
*               Fieldwork. This includes practice teaching, classroom observations,             and community ethnographies. INSERVICE TEACHER DEVELOPMENT"The            International High School, New York City" 
This school serves                  recent immigrants to the United States and accepts only students who            have been in the country for 4 years or less and who score in the               lowest 21% on the English Language Battery Exam. The school is                  small, with approximately 460 students from over 50 countries,                  speaking over 35 languages. The program emphasizes interdisciplinary            team teaching, small-group student collaboration, and English and               native language learning through study of academic content. Four                fundamental building blocks make up the school's philosophy: (1) a              linguistic methodology that assumes that language skills are best               learned through the use of content material in context; (2) a                   commitment to both English and native language development; (3)                 heterogeneous small-group student collaboration on experiential,                activity-based projects; and (4) small-group faculty collaboration              on both instructional planning and school-wide governance. 
The                last building block--institutionalized collaboration among teachers             and administrators--led to the faculty's willingness to take                    collective responsibility for their own professional development.               Staff committees oversee a process of planning school-wide                      colloquia, seminars, and peer review. Teachers write their own                  self-evaluations periodically, which are added to peer and                      administrator assessments. 
Exchanges such as faculty                          presentations, summer staff development institutes, and informal                visits among classrooms have benefited from the varied experience of            the faculty. Teachers with backgrounds in ESL, bilingual education,             and other content areas complement each others' strengths. The                  school has an explicit policy to document its practices and                     approaches in writing. Proposals, handbooks, curriculum guides, and             a school journal provide other means of sharing ideas about teaching            and learning among the staff. 
The staff development process                   follows a few rules of thumb to guide teachers in their                         instructional planning and delivery. 
* Start at the beginning.                This suggests that assignments not assume student familiarity with              matters that would be obvious to U.S. students, such as how to use a            book to find information. 
* Break down the task. This implies that            longer (e.g., 2- or 3-week) projects be broken down into smaller                segments, each of which is demonstrated with an example before                  students themselves carry out the task. 
* Use models. This                    includes modeling examples of finished assignments as well as the               process that leads to the finished product. CONCLUSIONThe                 programs described in this digest illustrate several principles for             the professional development of teachers working with English                   language learners. They need occasions to connect theory and                    practice in tightly integrated ways; support in learning how to                 understand what students bring to the classroom; concrete strategies            that shape collaborative learning environments and build on                     students' language, culture, and experience; ongoing opportunities              for collaboration and collective problem solving; and experiences               that allow them to learn and work professionally in the same ways               that they hope to teach. Building teacher preparation programs and              school learning communities that provide these kinds of                         opportunities for language teachers is one of the most important                investments that society can make in the education of immigrant                 youth. REFERENCESTedick, D.J., & Walker, C.L. (1994). Second              language teacher education: The problems that plague us. "Modern                Language Journal, 78," 300-311. 
Tedick, D.J., & Walker,                       C.L. (1995). From theory to practice: How do we prepare teachers for            second language classrooms? "Foreign Language Annals, 28,"                      499-517. 
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For a more detailed discussion of the issues and             a more in-depth description of these and other pre-service and                  in-service programs, see New Concepts and New Challenges:                       Professional Development for Teachers of Immigrant Youth, by Josue              M. Gonzalez and Linda Darling-Hammond. The book (ISBN 1887744045) is            available from Delta Systems Co., Inc., 1400 Miller Pkwy, McHenry IL            60050-7030, 1-800-323-8270, www.delta-systems.com. 
This digest was            prepared with funding from the U.S. Dept. of Education, Office of               Educational Research and Improvement, National Library of Education,            under contract no. ED-99-CO-0008. The opinions expressed do not                 necessarily reflect the positions or policies of ED, OERI, or NLE.           **Title:** Programs That Prepare Teachers To Work Effectively with Students                Learning English. ERIC Digest.                                               **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics, 4646 40th Street               NW, Washington, DC 20016. For full text:                                        http://www.cal.org/ericcll/DIGEST.                                           **Descriptors:** Cultural Awareness, Elementary Secondary Education,  English (Second            Language),  Faculty Development, Higher Education,  Inservice                   Teacher Education, Language Minorities,  Preservice Teacher                     Education,  Program Descriptions, Second Language Instruction,                  Second Language Learning, Teaching Methods                                   **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests                                                                 
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