Journal articles on the topic 'English Language Arts (ELA) Instruction'
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Kane, Britnie Delinger, K. C. Keene, and Sarah Reynolds. "Collaborative literary reasoning as a support for preservice English language arts teachers' learning about disciplinary literacy." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 21, no. 1 (January 25, 2022): 84–97. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-06-2021-0065.
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Purpose The purpose of this study is to understand how preservice teachers (PTs) learn about disciplinary literacy in English language arts (ELA). In mathematics and writing, research has found that teachers’ participation in disciplinary work can support their understanding of domain-specific inquiry, problem-solving and argumentation. Design/methodology/approach This exploratory, qualitative case study of an English methods course extends that work into ELA, asking how PTs’ participation in collaborative literary reasoning (CLR) influences their understanding of ELA as a discipline and their instructional planning processes. Findings Findings indicate that CLR supported PTs to define ELA as a collaborative discipline in which multiple interpretations of literature are valued; to name specific disciplinary literacy practices; to identify a focus and purpose for teachers’ design and revision of lesson plans; and to inform their thinking about text selection and complexity. Originality/value This work highlights the potential of collaborative literary reasoning to support PTs’ learning about disciplinary literacy instruction.
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Master, Benjamin, Susanna Loeb, and James Wyckoff. "More Than Content: The Persistent Cross-Subject Effects of English Language Arts Teachers’ Instruction." Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 39, no. 3 (February 17, 2017): 429–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/0162373717691611.
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Evidence that teachers’ short-term instructional effects persist over time and predict substantial long-run impacts on students’ lives provides much of the impetus for a wide range of educational reforms focused on identifying and responding to differences in teachers’ value-added to student learning. However, relatively little research has examined how the particular types of knowledge or skills that teachers impart to students contribute to their longer-term success. In this article, we investigate the persistence of teachers’ value-added effects on student learning over multiple school years and across subject areas. We find that, in comparison with math teachers, English language arts (ELA) teachers’ impacts on same-subject standardized achievement scores are smaller in the year of instruction, but that teacher-induced gains to ELA achievement appear to reflect more broadly applicable skills that persist in supporting student learning in the long run across disciplines. Our results highlight important variation in the quality of teacher-induced learning for long-run success, distinct from the variation across teachers in more typically measured short-term learning effects.
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Lawson, Cody, and Faye LaDuke-Pelster. "CCSS Collaboration: How Librarians Can Collaborate with Teachers on Common Core." Children and Libraries 15, no. 3 (September 28, 2017): 14. http://dx.doi.org/10.5860/cal.15.3.14.
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Librarians play a crucial part in planning and implementing effective literacy instruction that serves the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for both ELA (English Language Arts) and social studies. The CCSS are a set of high-quality academic standards in mathematics and ELA, developed by a collaborative group of teachers, school chiefs, administrators, and other education experts.
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Alston, Chandra L., and Sarah Byrne Bausell. "Why is it so hard to reconcile disciplinary literacy and antiracism? Informational texts and middle grades English language arts." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 21, no. 1 (February 1, 2022): 16–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-06-2021-0062.
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Purpose This study aims to understand the supports and challenges to using disciplinary and antiracism lenses when teaching with informational texts in middle grades English Language Arts (ELA) classrooms. Design/methodology/approach This paper analyzes teacher talk in four virtual sessions with four middle grades ELA teachers in one school district. Teachers had recently completed a voluntary, school-based antiracism professional development. Researchers used thematic analysis of session transcripts and semi-structured interviews. Findings Teachers’ informational text use was nested in and directed by curriculum and contexts that limited disciplinary and antiracist teaching. The context and texts constrained instruction to basic reading skills. Equity was conceptualized as supporting students’ persistence. Discussions of race were avoided. Research limitations/implications This study has implications for ELA teacher preparation, and district and state resources to support merging disciplinarity and antiracism in informational text instruction in ELA. The study is limited by the small sample from one district and access to only teacher self-reports. Originality/value Secondary ELA disciplinary literacy has privileged literature, yet there is an increase of informational text use in middle grades ELA. Teachers need support teaching informational texts through disciplinary and antiracism lenses.
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Deane, Paul, John Sabatini, Gary Feng, Jesse Sparks, Yi Song, Mary Fowles, Tenaha O'Reilly, Katherine Jueds, Robert Krovetz, and Colleen Foley. "Key Practices in the English Language Arts (ELA): Linking Learning Theory, Assessment, and Instruction." ETS Research Report Series 2015, no. 2 (June 17, 2015): 1–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ets2.12063.
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Loretto, Adam. "The language of teacher agency in an eighth grade ELA classroom." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 18, no. 4 (November 11, 2019): 450–63. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-12-2018-0122.
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Purpose This paper aims to apply ecological models of agency to understand factors influencing how an eighth grade English language arts (ELA) teacher enacted agency in four moments in the classroom. It focuses on how his language in relation to his instructional choices reflected messaging to his students regarding the learning he intended from his ELA instruction. Design/methodology/approach The paper applies an existing framework (Biesta et al., 2015, 2017), adding Bakhtin (1981) understandings of language, to classroom discourse supplemented by teacher interviews and other data sources. In looking across these data sources, the paper traces the influence of past factors (i.e. the teacher’s personal and professional history) and future orientations (i.e. goals established in standards and the teacher’s goals for his students) on present instructional decisions. The teacher’s language in the classroom becomes a primary focus for this study, as it reveals the ways in which he drew on specific resources in the messages in his instruction. Findings In each moment, the teacher’s language could be shown to have motivation in a variety of factors. While influenced by external factors such as the common core standards and standardized assessments, the teacher often enacted agency out of his personal beliefs about making learning personally meaningful for students as grounded in his personal and professional history. Exceptions to this pattern, especially regarding preparing students for writing tests on state assessments, less frequently relied on the language of finding meaning in the learning. Originality/value This paper builds on studies of ELA teacher agency through the development of methodology related to an ecological model of agency and Bakhtinian concepts of language focused on the discourse of the classroom. It contributes to understanding the factors at study in an ELA teacher’s instructional agency, which can help teachers and researchers further develop frameworks for describing and assessing the practice of agency in the profession.
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Edgerton, Adam K., and Laura M. Desimone. "Teacher Implementation of College- and Career-Readiness Standards: Links Among Policy, Instruction, Challenges, and Resources." AERA Open 4, no. 4 (October 2018): 233285841880686. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2332858418806863.
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Using state-representative teacher surveys in three states—Texas, Ohio, and Kentucky—we examine teachers’ implementation of college- and career-readiness (CCR) standards. What do teachers report about the specificity, authority, consistency, power, and stability of their standards environment? How does their policy environment predict standards-emphasized instruction? Do these relationships differ for those who teach different subjects (math and English Language Arts [ELA]), different grades (elementary or high school), different populations (English Language Learners [ELLs], students with disabilities [SWDs]), and in different areas (rural, urban, or suburban)? We found elementary math teachers taught significantly more standards-emphasized content than elementary ELA teachers, whereas secondary ELA teachers taught significantly more standards-emphasized content than secondary math teachers. Teachers of SWDs and rural teachers taught significantly less of the emphasized content. In all three states, we found greater buy-in (authority) predicted increased emphasized content coverage among ELA teachers but not among math teachers.
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Kwok, Michelle. "Tensions between disciplinarity and generality within a professional development on writing instruction." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 21, no. 1 (January 27, 2022): 71–83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-06-2021-0059.
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Purpose Although English Language Arts (ELA) teachers have historically been expected to take the lead in literacy training, the domain of ELA has yet come to terms with what holds it together as a discipline. Within this conundrum, the author studied one group of ELA teacher leaders who led a professional development (PD) aimed at training teachers in disciplinary writing instruction. This study aims to explore the differences in perspectives between what constitutes disciplinarity for ELA teachers and teachers in other content areas. Design/methodology/approach Over the course of two years, the author observed the PD, taking extensive field notes, collecting artifacts and conducting interviews. The author engaged in constant comparative analysis of the data throughout this time, open coding within each data source and then triangulating the data to support the author’s finding. Findings Whereas the ELA teacher leaders seemed to focus on general aspects of writing, teachers from the other content areas shared discipline-specific understandings about writing. The teachers and teacher leaders, however, did not explicitly discuss these differences in how they conceptualized writing instruction; rather, this tension was revealed through the author’s analysis of the data. Originality/value The findings of this study illustrate how a vague definition of writing in English and of disciplinary literacy has come to bear on one PD of writing. This study recommends future research to continue to develop clear epistemologies, purposes and literate practices of the disciplines related to ELA.
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Morgan, Joseph John, and Tracy Spies. "Integrating Blended Learning in Middle School ELA Classrooms to Support Diverse Learners." Journal of School Administration Research and Development 5, no. 1 (March 20, 2020): 44–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.32674/jsard.v5i1.2112.
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The current focus of education is on preparing diverse student populations for college and career readiness. One critical aspect of this preparation is the development of 21st-century learning skills that integrate technology to support students in becoming active members of a globalized society. According to theNational Assessment of Educational Progress, however, English learners (ELs) and students with disabilities(SWDs) are underprepared to use technology to enhance their learning. Therefore, it is important for schools to find ways to integrate critical technology skills with academic instruction in the education of cognitively and linguistically diverse learners. School leaders are essential to the establishment of this instruction. This paper provides lessons learned from a professional development project focused on training middle school English language arts teachers in the integration of blended learning activities to support these diverse learners. These lessons, with supporting data, are discussed along with implications and recommendations for school leaders focused on providing access to critical 21st-century learning skills.
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Polikoff, Morgan S., and Kathryn S. Struthers. "Changes in the Cognitive Complexity of English Instruction: The Moderating Effects of School and Classroom Characteristics." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 115, no. 8 (August 2013): 1–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811311500802.
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Background/Context A central aim of standards-based reform is to close achievement gaps by raising academic standards for all students. Rigorous standards coupled with aligned assessments will purportedly improve student opportunity to learn through high-quality, aligned instruction. After 10 years of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), the impact of standards-based reform on student achievement in English Language Arts (ELA) remains questionable. Improving ELA achievement has been a central focus of NCLB, so this study examines changes in the cognitive demand coverage of teachers’ ELA instruction over time during the NCLB era. Research Question Three research questions guide the analyses: (a) How have the cognitive demand levels of ELA instruction changed over time? (b) To what extent have changes in the cognitive demand level of ELA instruction differed across settings based on school and classroom characteristics? (c) How have cognitive demand levels changed as school composition has changed? Subjects The sample consists of 2,064 ELA teachers in grades K-12. The teachers come from 344 schools in 15 states; the majority are K-3 educators. Research Design This study relies on secondary data analysis of teachers’ responses to the Surveys of Enacted Curriculum (SEC). First, we used a within-teacher fixed-effects regression model to determine how cognitive demand coverage changed over time. Second, we examined how these changes varied by school and classroom characteristics (e.g., Title 1 status). Finally, we investigated how changes in cognitive demand coverage varied based on within-school changes in school and classroom characteristics. Findings Findings demonstrate that cognitive demand coverage has changed considerably over the study period, moving from higher and lower levels toward the middle. There were, however, notable variations between schools serving different populations of students. Schools in urban areas serving predominantly students from historically marginalized groups (e.g., racial/ethnic minorities) saw more of a shift toward lower levels of cognitive demand than was seen at schools serving whiter and wealthier students. Conclusions/Recommendations There have been different instructional responses to standards and assessments in different settings, with decreased cognitive demand in urban/ high-needs schools relative to suburban/lower-needs schools. These shifts seem to run contrary to the idea that all students should be held to the same high standards. We recommend that future research consider longitudinal data regarding teachers’ instruction. It is also important that policymakers, particularly those working on the Common Core State Standards, consider these differential responses to standards-based reform.
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Reynolds, Todd, Leslie S. Rush, Jodi Patrick Holschuh, and Jodi P. Lampi. "Generating, weaving and curating: disciplinary processes for reading literary text." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 21, no. 1 (January 12, 2022): 29–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-06-2021-0070.
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Purpose The purposes of this study is to expand on previous work in English language arts (ELA) disciplinary literacy and to unpack literary text reading processes across three different participant groups. Design/methodology/approach The authors recruited literary scholars and first-year college students to read literary texts aloud and voice their thoughts. Transcripts were collaboratively coded and analyzed using a priori and emergent coding. Findings This study presents the findings in two ways. First, this study grouped the codes into four categories, namely, background knowledge, comprehension, disciplinary knowledge and building an interpretation. This described the differences in frequencies among the participants’ strategy use. Next, to more fully describe how participants read literary texts, this study presents the data using three processes, namely, generating, weaving and curating. These findings indicate a continuum of strategies and processes used by participants. Practical implications The study suggests using the ELA heuristic for instruction, which includes moving students beyond generating and weaving by asking them to do their own interpretive work of curation. This potential roadmap for instruction avoids a deficit mindset for students by recommending low-stakes opportunities that meet students where they are as they build their capacity for interpretive moves. Originality/value The findings help the field to gain an understanding of what novices and experts do when they read literary text, including both strategies and processes. This study also provide an ELA heuristic that has instructional implications. This study adds to the body of knowledge for disciplinary literacy in ELA in both theoretical and practical ways.
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Paugh, Patricia, and Kristen Wendell. "Disciplinary Literacy in STEM: A Functional Approach." Journal of Literacy Research 53, no. 1 (January 21, 2021): 122–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1086296x20986905.
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This study explores disciplinary literacy instruction integrated within an elementary engineering unit in an urban classroom. A multidisciplinary team of university literacy and engineering educators and classroom teachers served as the research team for this case study. A social semiotic language theory (systemic functional linguistics) and a framework of mechanistic reasoning informed the instruction and analysis of classroom discourse and student writing. The study illustrates how a flexible set of disciplinary language choices functioned to support students’ evolving reasoning as part of the engineering design process. These findings provide insights into synergy between language and reasoning as a habit of design. These findings also inform calls to align science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) literacy and core disciplinary practices within both Common Core State Standards for (English language arts) ELA and Next Generation Science Standards.
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Dávila, Denise, and Meghan E. Barnes. "Beyond censorship: politics, teens, and ELA teacher candidates." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 16, no. 3 (December 4, 2017): 303–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-05-2017-0082.
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Purpose Grounded in the scholarship addressing teacher self-censorship around controversial topics, this paper aims to investigate a three-part research question: How do secondary English language arts (ELA) teacher–candidates (TCs) in the penultimate semester of their undergraduate teacher education program position political texts/speeches, interpret high school teens’ political standpoints and view the prospects of discussing political texts/speeches with students? The study findings provide insights to the ways some TCs might position themselves as novice ELA teachers relative to political texts/speeches, students, colleagues and families in their future school communities. Design/methodology/approach Audio-recorded data from whole-class and small-group discussions were coded for TCs’ positioning of political texts/speeches, interpretations of teens’ political standpoints and viewpoints on discussing with students President Obama’s speech, “A More Perfect Union” (“A.M.P.U.”) The coded data set was further analyzed to identify themes across the TCs’ perspectives. Findings The data set tells the story of a group of TCs whose positionalities, background knowledge and practical experiences in navigating divergent perspectives would influence both their daily selection and censorship of political texts/speeches like “A.M.P.U.” and their subsequent willingness to guide equitable yet critical conversations about controversial issues in the secondary ELA classroom. Originality/value In advance of the 2018 midterm elections, this paper considers how the common core state standards’ (CCSS) recommendations to include more nonfiction documents in ELA instruction positions ELA teachers to provide interdisciplinary support in helping students think critically about political issues. It expands on the body of scholarship that, thus far, has been primarily grounded in the research on social studies instruction.
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Dunn, Mandie Bevels. "Teaching literature following loss: teachers’ adherence to emotional rules." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 20, no. 3 (August 12, 2021): 354–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-11-2020-0147.
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Purpose This study aims to explore how teachers changed literature instruction in English language arts (ELA) classrooms following personal loss, and identifies factors influencing those changes. The author argues teachers regulated their responses to literature according to emotional rules they perceived to be associated with the teaching profession. Understanding teachers’ responses helps educators, teacher educators and educational researchers consider what conditions and supports may be required for teachers and students to share emotions related to loss in authentic ways in ELA classrooms. Design/methodology/approach To examine changes teachers made in literature instruction following personal loss, the author conducted a thematic analysis of 80 questionnaire responses. Findings The author found teachers changed literature instruction related to three areas: teachers’ relationship to students, teachers’ instruction surrounding texts and teachers’ reader responses. Responses highlighted how teachers adhered to emotional rules, including a perception of teachers as authorities and caretakers of children. Teachers considered literature instruction to require maintaining focus on texts, and avoided emotional response unless it aided textual comprehension. Originality/value Scholars have argued for literature instruction inclusive of both loss experiences and also emotional response, with particular focus on students’ loss experiences. This study focuses on teachers’ experiences and responses to literature following loss, highlighting factors that influence, and at times inhibit, teachers’ authentic sharing of experiences and emotions. The author argues teachers require support to bring loss experiences into literature instruction as they navigate emotional response within the relational dynamics of the classroom.
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Higginbotham, Jo Ann, Laura Anderson, and Shane Brown. "Perspectives from Local Media Specialists and ELA Instructors on Graphic Novels in the Middle Grades Curriculum." Study & Scrutiny: Research on Young Adult Literature 5, no. 2 (July 1, 2022): 120–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.15763/issn.2376-5275.2022.5.2.120-137.
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Given the notion that graphic novels have the potential for instruction, this study examines the questions: In what ways do local media specialists and English Language Arts (ELA) instructors use them in their classrooms or other educational settings? If instructors use graphic novels, how do their students respond to them? Have they experienced criticisms concerning the use of graphic novels as texts worthy of analysis and exploration in the classroom? Finally, what is the connection between research and the use of graphic novels in the classroom? In this qualitative study, the authors examined 14 responses from media specialists and ELA instructors working in schools in southeastern Tennessee. Additionally, they reviewed literature related to each of these questions.
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Kavanagh, Sarah Schneider. "The Promise of Anonymity: An Investigation of the Practices of ELA Teachers Facilitating Discourse about LGBTq Topics." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 118, no. 12 (December 2016): 1–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811611801208.
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Background/Context As states and districts have begun adopting texts inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people, debates about how LGBTQ issues should be represented in the curricular canon have emerged. While existing research investigates curricular questions that are arising as a result of LGBTQ curricular inclusion, scholarship has been slow to address the instructional questions presented by the introduction of inclusive curricula. Purpose This study explored how seven secondary English Language Arts teachers facilitated student engagement with LGBTQ-related topics. Analysis of data on teachers’ instructional practice and related decision-making sought to (a) determine what instructional dilemmas arose for teachers as they taught LGBTQ-inclusive content and (b) analyze the instructional decisions that teachers made to address these dilemmas. Participants Participants in this study were seven secondary English Language Arts teachers who (a) held strong reputations in their professional communities for supporting LGBTQ students and (b) had strong intentions to support LGBTQ students through LGBTQ curricular inclusion, reducing student prejudice, and advocating for and with LGBTQ students. Research Design This comparative case study was embedded in a larger qualitative study that investigated the instructional practice of LGBTQ-supportive teachers. This article reports on findings from an analysis of all data from this project that pertained to how teachers engaged students when teaching LGBTQ content. Data was collected over a six-month period and includes 22 teacher interviews, 28 observations of classroom instruction, 70 teacher log entries, and 25 teacher questionnaires. Findings/Results Analysis showed that participants felt a tension between a desire to make LGBTQ identity visible and a desire to offer LGBTQ students privacy. Participants employed two different approaches to navigating the visibility–privacy tension. Some created parallel engagement strategies for students, some public and some private, while others simultaneously allowed for privacy and visibility through the use of anonymity. Conclusions/Recommendations As conceptions of diversity expand to include sexual diversity, this study has implications for teacher preparation and professional development aimed at supporting teachers to attend to the unique needs of LGBTQ students within instructional practice.
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Lawrence, Anne M., and Michael B. Sherry. "How Feedback From an Online Video Game Teaches Argument Writing for Environmental Action." Journal of Literacy Research 53, no. 1 (January 24, 2021): 29–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1086296x20986598.
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Literacy researchers have explored how video games might be used as supplementary texts in secondary English language arts (ELA) classrooms to support reading instruction. However, less attention has been focused on how video games, particularly online educational games designed to teach argumentation, might enhance secondary ELA students’ writing development. In this article, we describe how the pedagogical feedback provided by one such game, Quandary, influenced two seventh graders’ written arguments in advocacy letters addressed to the state governor regarding a local environmental disaster. We compare these two embedded cases to data from 10 focal students, as well as patterns from 114 seventh graders (in five ELA classes). Based on our analysis of screen-capture video of students’ gameplay, drafts of their advocacy letters, and video-stimulated recall interviews, we conclude that game feedback rewarding or penalizing predetermined right or wrong player moves may encourage students to develop argumentation strategies that are less effective in more complex rhetorical situations and may foster a false sense of competence.
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Alston, Chandra L., and Michelle T. Brown. "Differences in Intellectual Challenge of Writing Tasks among Higher and Lower Value-Added English Language Arts Teachers." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 117, no. 5 (May 2015): 1–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811511700504.
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Background Writing is an essential literacy skill; however, public school students often receive inadequate writing instruction, particularly as they move into middle and high school. However, research has shown that the nature of writing tasks assigned can impact writing development and student achievement measured by standardized assessments. With the need to assess teacher efficacy, districts are increasingly using some form of value-added modeling, although researchers warn of relying solely on value-added scores to distinguish between more and less effective teachers. Purpose This study investigated the intellectual challenge of typical writing tasks and the intellectual quality of student work in classrooms of higher and lower value-added middle school English language arts teachers to understand what value-added modeling might capture in terms of writing instruction. In particular, this article investigates how higher and lower value-added teachers differ in terms of (1) the intellectual challenge of typical tasks assigned, (2) the quality of supports surrounding the tasks, and (3) the quality of student work produced. Research Design Data for this study were collected as part of a larger study that identified pairs of middle school ELA teachers within the same school who were in their third through fifth years of teaching. Within each school, we identified at least one teacher in the fourth (top) quartile and one in the second (lower) quartile based on their measures of value-added to student achievement. We analyzed the typical and challenging writing tasks and corresponding student work for the intellectual quality, looking within and across the two groups of teachers to document patterns of instructional practices. Conclusions We found differences in the consistency of challenge and scaffolds between the two groups, with higher value-added teachers more consistently providing challenging and supportive tasks. Teachers whose typical writing tasks maintain a high degree of challenge are associated with higher student performance, as defined by a measure of teacher value-added. This implies the importance of educating teachers regarding the importance and nature of challenging assignments.
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Hodge, Emily M., Susanna L. Benko, and Serena J. Salloum. "Tracing States’ Messages About Common Core Instruction: An Analysis of English/ Language Arts and Close Reading Resources." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 122, no. 3 (March 2020): 1–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146812012200303.
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Background A common set of standards enables the sharing of curricular and professional development resources across state lines. In a previous study of state-provided standards resources for English/language arts, we identified the number of state educational agencies linking to different organizations’ resources. We then identified the 10 most influential organizations; in other words, the organizations to which the highest number of states had linked as resource sponsors. However, little is known about the content of the resources from the most influential organizations. Purpose The first goal of this study was to describe the state-provided resources sponsored by the 10 most influential organizations, including the standards and topics addressed. The second goal was to identify the instructional messages about close reading present in those resources, as well as how consistent those messages were across resources and across organizations. Research Design This study used qualitative coding and descriptive analyses to identify standards and topics included in 177 individual resources in the form of articles, curriculum guidelines, instructional aids, professional development, and student work. We utilized social network analysis to visualize the connections between topics the resources addressed and their organizational sponsors. Then, we used qualitative coding and social network analysis to identify and visualize messages about close reading from a smaller set of resources. Conclusions This study finds that resources emphasized standards focused on reading closely and academic vocabulary. Resources focused most heavily on the topics of reading informational text, complex text and academic language, and reading literature; topics that were less represented included special student populations, curricular design, and narrative writing. This study also finds that the resources’ positions on how teachers should enact close reading diverged around the extent to which historical or background knowledge ought to be allowed to inform students’ reading. This work adds to a small but growing body of research applying social network analysis to visualize the relationships between organizations and ideas. We recommend that teachers, as well as state and district leaders, who are searching for helpful resources turn to literacy organizations like the National Council of Teachers of English and the International Literacy Association as organizations that are concerned with the profession as a whole rather than with one particular standards policy and may therefore present a broader and more integrated view of ELA instruction.
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Dunn, Mandie B., Jennifer VanDerHeide, Samantha Caughlan, Laura Northrop, Yuan Zhang, and Sean Kelly. "Tensions in learning to teach English." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 17, no. 1 (April 9, 2018): 44–56. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-04-2017-0039.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report findings from a study of preservice teacher (PST) beliefs about teaching English language arts (ELA). Design/methodology/approach A survey was administered to 56 preservice secondary ELA teachers at three universities to measure their beliefs about curriculum, authority and competition in schools. This study explores the beliefs of 17 of these PSTs who participated in an additional interview following up on six of the survey responses. Findings Although the survey forced a choice between various levels of agreeing and disagreeing, interview responses revealed that PSTs wrestled with tensions in what they believed about instructional and curricular choices. When describing situations that influenced their beliefs, they referenced situations from field placements, coursework and their own experiences as students. These tensions reflected the PSTs’ internally conflicting beliefs across their perceived binaries of teaching English. Originality/value This study suggests that these beliefs are formed in part by experiences in teacher preparation programs, particularly in field placements. However, even though PSTs recognized their internally conflicting beliefs, they understood them and their subsequent actions as dichotomous, rather than on a continuum. This study has implications for teacher educators; by understanding PSTs’ tendencies to understand their beliefs in binaries, teacher educators can provide reflective opportunities for PSTs to problematize these dichotomies and look for teaching identities and practices that are more nuanced.
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Owens, David C., Gillian E. McCall, Kimi Jaikaran, Nedra Cossa, and Thomas R. Koballa. "Pre-service Elementary Science Teacher Preparation through Children’s Literature." American Biology Teacher 83, no. 7 (September 1, 2021): 441–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/abt.2021.83.7.441.
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We investigated pre-service elementary teachers’ engagement in science and English language arts (ELA) instruction integrated in the context of a children’s book. Teachers developed models and conducted a compare-and-contrast analysis after exposure to different accounts of the butterfly life cycle: a popular children’s book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and a scientific account from National Geographic called “Butterfly: A Life.” The mixed-methods research was guided by the following question: What are the affordances and limitations of children’s literature toward engendering an understanding of the butterfly life cycle for pre-service elementary teachers? Content analysis indicated that pre-service elementary teachers’ abilities to compare and contrast the two accounts were not exceptional, as they failed to discriminate between ideas offered in the accounts and missed details of the key aspect of the butterfly life-cycle phenomenon: metamorphosis. However, the quality of participants’ butterfly life-cycle models significantly increased after exposure to the scientific account. We suggest the potential for an additional ELA standard, asking and answering such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text, as a means for enhancing compare-and-contrast skills following these activities.
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Sartini, Emily, Victoria F. Knight, Amy D. Spriggs, and R. Allan Allday. "Generalization Strategies to Promote Text Comprehension Skills by Students With ASD in Core Content Areas." Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities 33, no. 3 (October 17, 2017): 150–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1088357617735815.
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As increasing literature emerges to address text comprehension deficits for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), educators often struggle to design interventions resulting in successful generalization of comprehension skills. This evaluative review of literature explored the inclusion of and methods used in generalization of text comprehension research for students with ASD. Authors examined 32 studies across content areas (e.g., English language arts [ELA], math, science) to investigate the following questions: (a) To what extent is generalization addressed across content areas for students with ASD? (b) How did the studies program for generalization? (c) What conclusions can be inferred about effective generalization methods? and (d) Can quality indicators be recommended for generalization methods for text comprehension? Recommendations for quality indicators for generalization measures and strategies are suggested based on the findings from the current review. Implications for future research and instructional practice are also discussed.
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Huck, Adam. "Hierarchical discourse in elementary social studies: a teacher's view of decision-making." Social Studies Research and Practice 15, no. 2 (June 24, 2020): 195–210. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ssrp-01-2020-0004.
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PurposeAs school districts continue to devalue social studies through a narrowed focus on English language arts (ELA) and mathematics, this study investigated elements of curricular control in a district lacking a formal, purchased curricular program in the elementary grades. Without prescribed and scripted lessons, it was hypothesized that teacher autonomy would allow greater opportunities to investigate social studies concepts and skills.Design/methodology/approachWithout prescribed and scripted lessons, it was hypothesized that teacher autonomy would allow greater opportunities to investigate social studies concepts and skills. Bernstein's theory of pedagogic discourse guided this study's analysis of power and control. This manuscript describes a micro-level discourse analysis that applies Gee's tools on interview data from two teachers.FindingsFindings demonstrate some opportunities for teacher autonomy, but hierarchical control from administration persists and influences teacher decision-making. As researchers continue to argue for the increased presence of elementary social studies, this study demonstrates that the lack of a formal scripted curricular program presents opportunities for teachers, but administrative control endures and hinders teacher autonomy and instructional decision-making.Research limitations/implicationsThe data size and number of participants in this study may present limitations that impact generalizability. However, the focus for this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the messaging from two teachers. Comparability and translatability were identified as factors for research design to establish legitimacy (LeCompte and Preissle, 1993).Practical implicationsWhen considering implications from this study, two elements are considered. First, the continued devaluation of social studies persists, despite the implementation of Common Core standards. As a result, other measures must be investigated and implemented to ensure the subject is elevated to a more prominent position representative of its importance to a democracy. To accomplish this goal, teacher input and autonomy must also be respected to ensure a quality curriculum is utilized in the classroom. While teachers may exert control, albeit limited, in their instructional decision-making, many others are reliant on purchased programs that do not allow even this narrow classroom influence.Originality/valueIn this study, teachers' language use demonstrated external administrative control as well as autonomous decision-making. Their assigned schedule privileged ELA and math through the allocation of time. Moreover, administrators stated that social studies is not a priority, a sentiment counter to participants' values. Therefore, while they recognized the inherent benefit of the subject to their students, hierarchical power controlled the classification and framing of instruction. A weakened classification and framing structure must be sought to allow more opportunities for purposeful integration of content through messaging systems that are more responsive to students' needs.
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Caswell, Linda, Alina Martinez, Okhee Lee, Barbara Brauner Berns, and Hilary Rhodes. "Analysis of the National Science Foundation's Discovery Research K–12 on Mathematics and Science Education for English Learners." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 118, no. 5 (May 2016): 1–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811611800502.
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Background/Context Educational and societal phenomena can converge to draw attention to a new focus, such as English Learners (ELs) and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and then trigger new research interests. A funding program can play a critical role in shaping these new research interests by prioritizing specific research topics and designs or by requiring particular specializations of researchers. Purpose of the Study The study examined whether funding provided through the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Discovery Research K-12 (DR K-12) program has made a unique contribution to the research in the fields of science and mathematics education for ELs. Research Design This study compared the portfolio of DR K–12 projects focusing on EL science and mathematics education to the literature of non DR K-12 projects in terms of research topics, design, methods, scale, samples, and outcomes. The study also examined the disciplinary expertise of the DR K-12 investigators. Data Collection and Analysis The primary method used in this study was content analyses of the portfolio of DR K-12 projects and the literature of non DR K-12 projects in the fields of EL science and mathematics education. To develop comprehensive lists of the literature in these fields, two separate literature searches were conducted. Finally, content analyses of the curricula vitae of the DR K–12 projects’ PIs and co-PIs were undertaken. Results The DR K–12 EL projects in both science and mathematics education have made contributions to their respective fields in three areas in particular: (1) their use of mixed methods and experimental designs; (2) their emphasis on instruction and teacher preparation; and (3) their focus on middle school students. In addition, DR K-12 investigators are making connections across the mathematics/science content and EL/English Language Arts (ELA) areas and are incorporating expertise from both areas, often through the addition of advisory group members. Conclusions The results from this comparative study suggest that funding programs can shape research agendas by providing deliberate and targeted funding for priority areas. Federal government agencies should continue providing this funding to support much-needed research that is a necessary step to improving the quality of science and mathematics education for ELs.
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Yim, Soobin, Mark Warschauer, and Binbin Zheng. "Google Docs in the Classroom: A District-wide Case Study." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 118, no. 9 (September 2016): 1–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811611800903.
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Background/Context Successful integration of educational technology is a complicated process that is influenced by multiple factors. Recently, both within and across schools, educators have been searching for cloud-based solutions to address the challenges of integrating educational technology into their school systems—assessing whether these programs are affordable, accessible, and well-suited to improve learning. While the popularity of cloud-based applications among educational institutions and students is rapidly increasing due to their enhanced sharing features, accessibility, and cost-efficiency, there have been few efforts to investigate the impacts of these cloud-based applications in educational settings, especially in K-12 settings. Purpose/Objective This paper examines how Google Docs, one of the most popular cloud-based software applications, is integrated into middle-school English Language Arts (ELA) classrooms in a school district with a laptop initiative. Specifically, this case study attempts to understand the contemporary challenges of implementing the collaborative web-based tool and its accompanying opportunities, as well as the contextual factors for its implementation within the district. Research Design This qualitative study followed a grounded approach to data analysis. Using primarily initial coding and thematic coding methods, we analyzed interviews, surveys (from 2,152 students and 25 teachers), classroom observations, and student documents collected over the course of the 2011–2012 academic year. Analysis revealed three key themes (access and workability, cost and practicality, and affordances for writing), as well as the contextual factors of Google Docs implementation (the district's focus on instructional goals and professional development). Conclusion/Recommendations Our case study suggests that the introduction of cloud-based tools was perceived by students, teachers, and district officials to make technology use more accessible and convenient, to enhance cost-efficiency and productivity, and, most importantly, to provide ample affordances for writing practice and instruction. The district-wide implementation of Google Docs provided broad, accessible, and affordable simultaneous access to students and teachers, while increasing their opportunities to improve writing skills through features such as feedback, revision history, and reader selection. We also identified key contextual factors that contributed to these favorable outcomes, such as the district's focus on curricular integration and professional development. As one of the few studies that explores cloud-based tools’ usability and benefits in K-12 settings, we hope to help school districts make informed decisions about adopting these applications for instruction. Though the particularities of context need to be taken into account, the case study nevertheless reveals a cloud-based environment's salient affordances for learning in a district-wide implementation context.
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Gravel, Jenna W. "Going Deep: Leveraging Universal Design for Learning to Engage All Learners in Rich Disciplinary Thinking in ELA." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 120, no. 3 (March 2018): 1–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811812000302.
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Background Educators and researchers have long emphasized the need to engage students in disciplinary thinking in order to develop rich, discipline-specific practices and habits of mind. Yet, these opportunities are often under-nurtured in today's classrooms and are especially limited for students with disabilities. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is one promising avenue for supporting all students to engage in disciplinary thinking (ways of knowing, reasoning, and doing specific to the discipline). This framework for teaching and learning suggests embedding options into curricula in order to expand learning opportunities for students with and without disabilities. Researchers have yet to investigate how UDL and disciplinary thinking can complement one another. Research Question This study explores the following question: How, if at all, do teachers working within a school that explicitly promotes the UDL framework use UDL to prompt students’ disciplinary thinking in English Language Arts (ELA)? Setting The study was conducted in a fifth grade classroom of an inclusive elementary school in an urban district in the northeast United States. Participants Participants included two fifth grade co-teachers and their class of 21 students with and without documented disabilities. Research Design This qualitative case study spanned a 10-week ELA unit. Data were gathered via videotaped observations, collection of instructional materials, interviews with the co-teachers, and collection of student work. CAST is a nonprofit education research and development organization that works to expand learning opportunities for all individuals through UDL. The analytic framework joined CAST's UDL Guidelines and common themes distilled from the literature that characterize disciplinary thinking in ELA. This framework was used as a starting place to code the co-teachers’ practice and students’ thinking. An open coding strategy was applied to capture emergent themes. Findings Data reveal that the co-teachers used specific strategies to create opportunities for all students to engage in disciplinary thinking. First, particular UDL guidelines/checkpoints were applied. For example, to support learners in “reading like writers,” the co-teachers applied strategies consistent with Guideline 6: “Provide options for executive functions,” encouraging students to develop the planning and organizational practices of expert readers and writers. Second, particular UDL guidelines/checkpoints were used in ways that are not explicitly suggested in the UDL Guidelines. For example, to support students in “reading for meaning” and “reading like writers,” the co-teachers’ strategies were generally consistent with Guideline 3: “Provide options for comprehension.” Yet, the co-teachers moved beyond “comprehension” by empowering students to construct their own sophisticated, disciplinary analyses. Conclusions The co-teachers’ instructional moves and the richness of students’ thinking offer important implications for future iterations of the UDL Guidelines and suggest that all learners can and should be challenged to engage in discipline-specific practices and habits of mind.
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Johnston, Kelly C. "Assemblaging communities." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 19, no. 1 (December 19, 2019): 121–35. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-05-2019-0070.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the ways assemblaging communities work to support, hinder or disrupt literacy pedagogy in one English Language Arts (ELA) classroom. Through an expanded understanding of community based on the concept of assemblage, this paper discusses the ways in which one teacher’s critical literacies instructional practices emerged, configured and ruptured through the assemblaging communities’ that affected her enactment of critical literacies pedagogy. A focus on assemblaging communities recognizes the de/re/territorializing power of the evolving groups of bodies that produce a classroom and pedagogy in particular ways. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on observational field notes and informal exchanges, this qualitative study uses post-structural and post-human theory to examine the assemblaging communities that produced the enactment of critical literacies pedagogy in a seventh grade ELA classroom. Assemblage theory is used to analyze data to examine the assemblaging communities that de/re/territorialized in Ms T’s teaching in relation to critical literacies pedagogy. This analytical orientation allowed for a nuanced look at communities as evolving, de/re/territorializing formations that, in this study, created tensions for enacting critical literacies pedagogy. Findings Assemblaging communities are always producing classrooms in particular ways, demonstrating the complexities and realities of enacting literacy pedagogy. Through analysis of the data, the rupture between the assemblaging communities that produced the enactment of critical literacies pedagogy and the assemblaging communities that produced test prep (and altered critical literacies) became apparent. Ruptures like this must be attended to because enacting critical literacies pedagogy is never done neutrally and without attention to the assemblaging communities that are always de/re/territorializing pedagogy, teachers may not be equipped to respond to the unexpected ruptures as well as material realities produced from these. Practical implications Educators can use the concept of assemblaging communities for recognizing the territories that shape their literacy pedagogy. By foregrounding assemblaging communities, researchers and educators may be more appropriately equipped to consider the real-time negotiations at play when enacting critical literacies pedagogy in the classroom. Enacting critical literacies pedagogy is never done neutrally, and attention to the assemblaging communities that are always de/re/territorializing pedagogy, teachers may be more equipped to respond to the material realities that are produced through their pedagogical actions. Originality/value This study suggests assemblaging communities as a way to productively move forward a perspective on communities that foregrounds the moving bodies that produce communities differently in evolving ways and their de/re/territorializing forces that create material realities for classrooMs Assemblaging communities moves the purpose from defining a community or interpreting what it means to looking at what it does, how it functions and for this study, how assemblaging communities produced critical literacies pedagogy in one classroom.
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Nguyen, Tuan D., and Laura Northrop. "Examining English Language Arts Teachers: Evidence from National Data." Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education 123, no. 10 (October 2021): 213–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/01614681211058994.
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Background: Much of the previous research in teacher attrition and retention focuses on teachers in general, without regard to specific types of teachers. We focus on English language arts (ELA) and English as a second language (ESL) teachers because the United States has stubbornly low achievement in reading, and reading is critical to the success of learning other subjects, and because these are the two groups of teachers most responsible for teaching both native and non-native English speakers to read. Purpose: Our goal is to understand how the demographics and qualifications of ELA and ESL teachers have changed over time, changes in the student characteristics and school conditions in which they teach, their attrition rate, and the factors that are associated with their attrition behaviors. We also pay close attention to teachers in economically disadvantaged schools. Research Design: We use nationally representative data from seven waves of the Schools and Staffing Survey from 1987–1988 to 2011–2012, as well as the 2015–2016 National Teacher and Principal Survey to examine ELA and ESL teachers and their turnover behaviors. We employ sampling weights to make the results nationally representative. We use both descriptive and regression analyses to examine these teachers. Data Analysis: We first describe how characteristics of ELA and ESL teachers and the schools in which they teach have changed from 1988 to 2016. We then examine how these characteristics vary systematically across high- and low-poverty schools and compare the attrition rate for ELA and ESL teachers relative to other teachers. We also examine the factors that are associated with various forms of turnover and how organizational supports may be leveraged to increase retention. Findings: We find the composition of ELA and ESL teachers has changed substantially over time, with more teachers attending selective schools, being certified to teach, and more likely to teach in high-poverty schools. Relatedly, teacher characteristics in high- and low-poverty schools are consistently different across time, and school working conditions play an enhanced role in high-poverty schools rather than in more affluent schools. Conclusions: Although we find ELA teachers turn over at similar rates compared to non-ELA teachers, we find ESL teachers are more likely to leave both their current school and the profession. This is particularly concerning given that the ESL population is increasing while at the same time there is a shortage of trained-ESL teachers.
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Lawrence, Salika A., Rosanne Rabinowitz, and Heather Perna. "Reading Instruction in Secondary English Language Arts Classrooms." Literacy Research and Instruction 48, no. 1 (December 12, 2008): 39–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19388070802226279.
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Muharikah, Afifah. "FACTORS INFLUENCING THE USE OF COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES BY ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE LEARNERS: A NARRATIVE REVIEW." EPIGRAM (e-journal) 19, no. 2 (October 30, 2022): 106–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.32722/epi.v19i2.4962.
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This review study identified factors that instructors of English as an additional language (EAL) could consider when designing peer interaction-based activities to promote learners' use of effective communication strategies (CSs). In addition, we investigated how the identified factors might benefit inclusive EAL classrooms where learners with special needs participate in peer interactions. This review study aimed to equip EAL instructors with information that could be considered to promote the use of effective CSs by learners in the classroom. To follow the guidelines of the narrative literature review method outlined by Green et al., (2006), articles were extracted from the ERIC, Linguistics, Education, and Arts and Humanities databases, and the information from the articles was reviewed to answer two research questions. Our review identified two factors that EAL instructors should consider: the personal factors of learners and the types of tasks. The first factor includes learners' levels of proficiency, level of anxiety, as well as self-efficacy, learning attitude, and gender, while the second factor suggested three types of tasks that could elicit the use of CSs in classrooms: information gap, reasoning gap, and opinion gap activities. Our discussion led to the conclusion that assigning peers to college/post-secondary learners with autism, based on their personal profiles and elaborating on the instructions for assigned tasks, would better prepare them to participate in peer interaction-based activities in the EAL classroom. In addition, it was suggested that future research investigate inclusive EAL classrooms that include learners with special needs.
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Storey, Meaghan. "Engaging minds and hearts: Social and emotional learning in English Language Arts." Language and Literacy 21, no. 1 (February 4, 2019): 122–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.20360/langandlit29355.
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This article explores English Language Arts (ELA) as the most appropriate venue for Social and Emotional Learning (SEL). Using the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) model of SEL, the author explores the evidence in the literature that there is a natural affinity between ELA content and SEL objectives and that an SEL lens would promote and improve student engagement and facilitate mutually beneficial impacts. The complimentary nature of methods and objectives in ELA and SEL facilitates adaption and minimal disruption to ELA curriculum. Reviewing existing ELA-based SEL programs and examples from the literature of successful integration of SEL concepts by teachers, the author makes a case for developing unscripted, versatile, and integrated approaches to SEL that builds on teacher expertise and student feedback. Additionally, the author outlines the opportunities for integrated learning presented in the BC ELA curriculum. A case is made for a truly integrated model being necessary for creating a fundamental and lasting culture shift towards embedded SEL. Future research directions are discussed.
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Dahlan, Dahlan. "Teaching the English language Arts with technology." Tamaddun 18, no. 1 (September 18, 2019): 10–13. http://dx.doi.org/10.33096/tamaddun.v18i1.22.
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Abstract
In order to cultivate the kind of technology literacy in our students called for by leaders in the field, it must simultaneously be cultivated in our teachers. While the literature in the field of English education demonstrates the efficacy of computer technology in writing instruction and addresses its impact on the evolving definition of literacy in the 21st century, it does not provide measured directions for how English teachers might develop technology literacy themselves or specific plans for how they might begin to critically assess the potential that technology might hold for them in enhancing instruction. This article presents a pedagogical framework encompassing the necessary critical mindset in which teachers of the English language arts can begin to conceive their own "best practices" with technology—a framework that is based upon their needs, goals, students, and classrooms, rather than the external pressure to fit random and often decontextualized technology applications into an already complex and full curriculum. To maximize technology's benefits, educators must develop a heightened, critical view of technology to determine its potential for the classroom.
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Cervetti, Gina N., and Elfrieda H. Hiebert. "Knowledge at the Center of English Language Arts Instruction." Reading Teacher 72, no. 4 (September 26, 2018): 499–507. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1758.
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Chisholm, James S., Jennifer Alford, Leah M. Halliday, and Fannie M. Cox. "Teacher agency in English language arts teaching: a scoping review of the literature." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 18, no. 2 (June 3, 2019): 124–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-05-2019-0080.
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Purpose This paper aims to examine ways in which English language arts (ELA) teachers have exercised agency in response to policy changes that have been shaped by neoliberal education agendas that seek to further advance standardization and the primacy of measurability of teaching and learning. Design/methodology/approach The authors posed the following research questions of related literature: Under what conditions, in what ways and to what ends do teachers exercise agency within ELA classroom teaching? Through five stages of systematized analysis, this scoping review of 21 studies maps the evidence base. Findings Structural, material, interpersonal and pedagogical issues both constrained and supported agency. Teachers covertly exercised agency to be responsive to students’ needs; in some instances, teachers’ agentive practices reinforced institutionally sanctioned methods. Teachers’ agentive action aimed to combat the deprofessionalization of the field, foster innovative curriculum approaches and challenge stereotypes about students. The authors also found a range of definitions of agency in the research, some of which are more generative than others. Originality/value This paper addresses a gap in the research literature by illuminating contexts, consequences and conundrums of ELA teacher agency. The authors documented the range of structural, cultural and material conditions within which teachers exercise agency; the subversive, collective and small- and large-scale ways in which teachers realize agency; and the potentially favorable or unfavorable consequences to which these efforts are directed. In doing so, the authors also problematize the range of definitions of agency in the literature and call for greater attention to conceptual clarity around agency in research. As literacy researchers illuminate work that disrupts the marginalization of teachers’ agency, this scoping review maps the field’s knowledge base of agency in ELA teaching and sets up a future research agenda to promote the professionalization of teaching and advocacy for English teachers.
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Wexler, Jade, Devin M. Kearns, Christopher J. Lemons, Marisa Mitchell, Erin Clancy, Kimberly A. Davidson, Anne C. Sinclair, and Yan Wei. "Reading Comprehension and Co-Teaching Practices in Middle School English Language Arts Classrooms." Exceptional Children 84, no. 4 (May 8, 2018): 384–402. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0014402918771543.
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This study reports practices implemented in over 2,000 minutes by 16 middle school special education and general education co-teaching pairs in English language arts classes. We report the extent to which teachers integrated literacy activities that support reading comprehension, the co-teaching models used, and the frequency with which each teacher led instruction. We also report the types of grouping structures teachers used and the extent to which teachers interacted with students with disabilities. Finally, we report the types of text used. Observations revealed that more than half of time spent on literacy activities involved reading aloud or silently with no co-occurring literacy instruction that supports reading comprehension. Students with disabilities spent a majority of their time in whole-class instruction or working independently with little teacher interaction. Special education teachers spent most of their time supporting whole-class instruction led by the content-area teacher. Implications and directions for future research are provided.
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Roberts, Scott L., and Betsy VanDeusen-MacLeod. "The Jigsaw Revisited: Common Core Social Studies and English Language Arts Integration." Social Studies Research and Practice 10, no. 2 (July 1, 2015): 56–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ssrp-02-2015-b0005.
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In order to comply with the new Common Core standards, it is imperative teachers, particularly those at the elementary levels, incorporate English/Language Arts (ELA) in their social studies classes. These reading, writing, speaking, and listening foci, through the use of informational texts, necessitate strategies to help students meet these standards. They also help students learn social studies content and gain historical understanding. Teachers can meet these standards through an adapted Jigsaw strategy using primary source materials. We review a modified Jigsaw strategy; we call a “Source-Focused Jigsaw.” An aspect of this type of Jigsaw is its allowance of students to focus on the similarities and differences between multiple documents, which is a specific emphasis of the Common Core Standards. This strategy allows young learners to think like a historian and to understand various sources often contain different information. They also learn multiple sources may be necessary to for decision-making. The authors provide lesson examples of its use with social studies informational texts and ELA.
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Fernandez, Vicente. "Teachers’ Compliance with the Use of English as Medium of Instruction in the Liberal Arts Department." JPAIR Multidisciplinary Research 37, no. 1 (July 8, 2019): 78–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.7719/jpair.v37i1.702.
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The use of English as a medium of instruction is growing so fast. This institutional research determined the teachers’ compliance with the use of English as a medium of instruction. The researcher made use of the questionnaires as the primary source and main data gathering instrument. The statistical tools used were the frequency count, percentage, weighted mean and average mean. The total population of the respondents was utilized. The findings revealed that the respondents failed to comply with the use of English as the medium of instruction due to several factors, such as, majority of the faculty members were not motivated to initiate the use of English, no cooperation among subject teachers that they used mother tongue in communication instead of English, did not create a friendly environment in learning English, and failed to explore ways to improve and enhance their teaching. As recommended, the compliance should be elevated at all times, the faculty should find ways to enhance their knowledge and skills about the English language, and the administration should spearhead to conduct seminars and workshops on language training, and create policies to oblige the faculty to use English as the medium of instruction and communication.
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Araujo, Juan J., and Carol D. Wickstrom. "Writing Instruction That Makes a Difference to English Learners." Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Librorum 1, no. 24 (June 30, 2017): 77–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.18778/0860-7435.24.06.
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This paper presents the actions of two high school English language arts teachers as they engage in writing instruction with adolescent English learners. Using a naturalistic, qualitative methodology we investigate the actions two high school English language arts teachers engage in to meet the needs of their students. Findings suggest that embracing the students’ resources, building on linguistic knowledge, taking time to choose the right books and activities, being explicit about writer’s workshop and accepting its frenetic pace because it meets the students’ needs, and using the act of writing as a thinking activity, were the actions that made a difference to promote student success.
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M, Senguttuvan, Gandhimathi S. N. S, Vijayalakshmi R, Calaivanane R, Anu Baisel, Subha S, and Vijayakumar M. "Memes to Foster L2 Speaking and Writing." Theory and Practice in Language Studies 12, no. 12 (December 1, 2022): 2543–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1212.09.
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Memes are the new social media language and they increasingly exercise their potency of effecting intense discourses among younger audience. In this dimension, they are seen as interesting resources of communication that can promote L2 learning. English Language Acquisition (ELA) has always been a challenge for vernacular-medium Indian students. The study took 177 student participants (with vernacular-medium background) pursuing UG programmes that had English as the medium of instruction. The research objective was to bring out the significance of employing memes to bridge the gap the learners find on their way to manage all their courses in English language. This empirical, questionnaire-based-survey addressed the research objectives: Explication of the notion of employing memes as informal materials; Demonstration of the use of memes for the development of L2 competencies; and Analysis of Learners’ perceptions/attitudes towards the use of memes in Second Language Acquisition (SLA). It revealed the areas that had seen significant improvement in speaking, writing, grammar, and vocabulary.
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Mullen, Casey, Sara E. Grineski, Timothy W. Collins, and Daniel L. Mendoza. "Effects of PM2.5 on Third Grade Students’ Proficiency in Math and English Language Arts." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17, no. 18 (September 22, 2020): 6931. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17186931.
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Fine particulate air pollution is harmful to children in myriad ways. While evidence is mounting that chronic exposures are associated with reduced academic proficiency, no research has examined the frequency of peak exposures. It is also unknown if pollution exposures influence academic proficiency to the same degree in all schools or if the level of children’s social disadvantage in schools modifies the effects, such that some schools’ academic proficiency levels are more sensitive to exposures. We address these gaps by examining the percentage of third grade students who tested below the grade level in math and English language arts (ELA) in Salt Lake County, Utah primary schools (n = 156), where fine particulate pollution is a serious health threat. More frequent peak exposures were associated with reduced math and ELA proficiency, as was greater school disadvantage. High frequency peak exposures were more strongly linked to lower math proficiency in more advantaged schools. Findings highlight the need for policies to reduce the number of days with peak air pollution.
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Macaluso, Kati, Cori McKenzie, Jennifer VanDerHeide, and Michael Macaluso. "Constructing English: pre-service ELA teachers navigating an unwieldy discipline." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 15, no. 2 (September 5, 2016): 174–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-02-2016-0035.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe a pedagogical innovation – a matrix construction exercise – intended to help pre-service teachers (PTs) navigate the multiple and oftentimes competing discourses that shape the school subject English Language Arts (ELA). Design/methodology/approach To explore the various ways the PTs drew on the discursively constructed paradigms of ELA throughout their teacher preparation program, researchers (themselves teacher educators) conducted an intertextual analysis (Prior, 1995) of PTs’ classroom texts and interview transcripts. Findings The intertextual analysis suggested that PTs possessed knowledge of and investment in a range of discourses, which they used to anchor their own pedagogical and curricular decision-making and to anticipate the leanings and ideologies of other stakeholders in ELA. Although the organizational schema of the matrix proved helpful from an orientation standpoint, it also may have disguised the productive tensions between particular discourses for some PTs. Originality/value Although scholars have long noted the plurality of the school subject English and some studies on innovations in teacher education allude to the difficulties that teachers encounter as they navigate the multiple purposes of ELA, there is little scholarship that considers how pre-service and beginning teachers might best navigate that incoherence and unwieldiness. This study, which contextualizes and explores a pedagogical innovation in an English methods class designed to help PTs navigate the many “Englishes”, attempts to fill this gap. The findings suggest that teacher preparation in ELA would do well to conceive of pedagogical innovations in teacher education that allow teachers to grapple with, rather than solve, the uncertainty and unfinalizability of the discipline.
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Tanner, Samuel Jaye, and Christina Berchini. "Seeking rhythm in white noise: working with whiteness in English education." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 16, no. 1 (May 2, 2017): 40–54. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/etpc-11-2016-0143.
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Purpose The authors of this paper are both white English education scholars with antiracist agendas. This conceptual manuscript aims – in part – to better understand the backlash both of them have faced in trying to contribute to antiracist teaching and research in English education. Design/methodology/approach This manuscript uses practices of narrative inquiry to tell and interpret stories about the authors’ work. Findings The authors hope to critique traditional notions of white resistance in favor of more careful theorizations of whiteness that can be helpful for teachers and scholars in English education and English Language Arts (ELA)with an interest in facilitation antiracist pedagogy. Originality/value Ultimately, with this work, the authors hope to provoke readers to consider how work with whiteness is processed by white people, especially in terms of teaching and learning in English education and ELA. They believe the field of English education should begin to discuss this issue.
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Ho, Stephanie. "Performing Society: Pursuing Creativity and Criticality in Secondary ELA." LEARNing Landscapes 13, no. 1 (June 13, 2020): 151–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.36510/learnland.v13i1.1011.
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As an English Language Arts teacher, I have experienced cost-effective approaches replacing the actual “arts” of ELA (Trend, 1992). This article explores how Surrealist-oriented pedagogies could restore imaginative freedom and deconstruct conceptual barriers (normative standards, curricular constraints, and status quo power relations) in secondary ELA. I will also examine how we can use Surrealism as a political and pedagogical model to treat societal problems mirrored in ELA classrooms. Surrealist-oriented pedagogies could enable students to experiment with social issues and develop senses of agency and voice that reflect awareness of contemporary society while simultaneously building their ELA skills.
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Haynes-Moore, Stacy. "CHALLENGE AND CHANGE IN SCHOLASTIC JOURNALISM AS RELATED TO THE TEACHING AND LEARNING OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS." Celt: A Journal of Culture, English Language Teaching & Literature 13, no. 2 (February 10, 2015): 133. http://dx.doi.org/10.24167/celt.v13i2.22.
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Changing notions of literacy impact and complicate ways in which English language arts educators adapt curriculum in meaningful ways for students. In this paper, I position scholastic journalism as authentic, 21st
It is a wintery Saturday morning and a small group of student writers and editors wait outside Publications Room 70 eager for me to unlock the school door. The group is ready to work. They
century ELA coursework. I provide an historical overview of scholastic journalism. I emphasize impacts of media law, emergent technologies, and redesigned school literacy goals to the ways in which scholastic journalism negotiates acceptance within ELA curriculum.
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Liu, Donghong, and Jing Huang. "Rhetoric Construction of Chinese Expository Essays: Implications for EFL Composition Instruction." SAGE Open 11, no. 1 (January 2021): 215824402098851. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2158244020988518.
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Recent scholarship on Chinese students’ English expository essays tends to blur or mitigate the differences between English and Chinese writings. This alleged convergence of English and Chinese rhetorical norms gives rise to a view that rhetorical aspects in second language writing instruction and research in China should be de-emphasized. Drawing on data from full-score Chinese compositions of College Entrance Examination, this study examines how Chinese expository paragraphs are developed. Results show great disparities between English and Chinese expository writing at paragraph level such as non-English rhetorical mode, reliance on authorities, rhetorical paragraph, and figurative language in topic sentence. We argue that Chinese rhetorical strategies are likely to be transferred to English writing if English rhetoric is not taught and reinforced in college.
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REYNOLDS, TODD, LESLIE S. RUSH, JODI P. LAMPI, and JODI PATRICK HOLSCHUH. "Moving Beyond Interpretive Monism: A Disciplinary Heuristic to Bridge Literary Theory and Literacy Theory." Harvard Educational Review 91, no. 3 (September 1, 2021): 382–401. http://dx.doi.org/10.17763/1943-5045-91.3.382.
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In this essay, authors Todd Reynolds, Leslie S. Rush, Jodi P. Lampi, and Jodi Patrick Holschuh provide a disciplinary heuristic that bridges literary and literacy theories. The secondary English language arts (ELA) classroom is situated at the intersection between literary theory and literacy theory, where too often literary theory does not include pedagogical practices and literacy theory does not take disciplinary differences into account. Reynolds and coauthors propose an English Language Arts heuristic for disciplinary literacy to guide teachers toward embracing student-led interpretations. They explore the connections among the Common Core State Standards, New Criticism, and the ELA classroom and focus on the prevalence of interpretive monism, which is the belief that only one interpretation is appropriate for students when reading a literary text. The essay explicates a heuristic for ELA literacy that centers on students actively creating interpretations of and transforming literary texts. By embracing this heuristic, the authors assert, teachers can focus on student-led interpretations of literary texts and thus empower their students.
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Pass, Charlotte, and Miguel Mantero. "(UN)COVERING THE IDEAL: INVESTIGATING EXEMPLARY LANGUAGE ARTS TEACHERS' BELIEFS AND INSTRUCTION OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS." Critical Inquiry in Language Studies 6, no. 4 (December 2, 2009): 269–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15427580903313520.
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Thomure, Hanada T., and Richard B. Speaker. "Arabic Language Arts Standards: Revolution or Disruption?" Research in Comparative and International Education 13, no. 4 (October 19, 2018): 551–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1745499918807032.
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Textbooks are major organizers of Arabic language instruction in most Arab countries (Faour, 2012). Textbooks approved by ministries of education have traditionally guided teaching of content knowledge, skills, and values to be taught at each grade level (Faour, 2012; Sabella, 2014; Taha-Thomure, 2008). This research is a foundation study into the use of Arabic Language Arts (ALA) standards in six schools in three countries in the Arabian Gulf region (Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates). Fifty-eight teachers used the ALA standards adapted from the Ohio English Language Arts standards (Taha, 2017a) for at least one year. Results of the online survey indicated that 83.5% of teachers found the standards had a positive effect on their teaching, while 94.9% of teachers found that the standards helped them collaborate with each other in planning and finding suitable resources to use. This suggests that well-supported innovations can lead to teachers being aware of and using ALA to improve student learning and instruction. Results also highlight some of the challenges teachers faced to find the necessary Arab language resources that will help them implement a standards-based approach, in addition to the amount of time they needed to put into preparing for the lessons.
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Wright, Stephanie H., Fernanda Vargas, and Tonya Huber. "Perceptions of English Language Learners—Teacher Beliefs, Professional Development and Student Outcomes: A Literature Review." Education, Language and Sociology Research 1, no. 1 (May 27, 2020): p101. http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/elsr.v1n1p101.
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Across America, linguistically disadvantaged youth are struggling through English language arts courses without proper support in scaffolding and/or differentiated instruction. Teachers’ beliefs affect their classroom instruction, classroom management, and classroom culture. Thus, the need for research is of utmost importance as students are being pushed through the educational system without the support or respect that they deserve. This literature review examines the connection between teachers’ attitudes and perceptions of English Language Learners (ELLs) and how these thought forms affect classroom instruction. We narrowed our focus to identify studies and analyze teachers’ perceptions while servicing ELL students, specifically Latino/a English language learners. We discerned data and various levels of teacher-student engagement based on studies centered around various levels of teacher experience, all in relation to ELLs. Further, we analyzed how professional development altered educators’ attitudes and perceptions of English language learners. The articles reviewed gave insight into teacher perceptions and how most educators felt inadequately prepared to teach those whose first language was not English. By studying teachers’ viewpoints—through qualitative and quantitative analyses—we confirmed a need for professional development that will improve not only how content is learned for an English language learner, but the relationships those students encounter as well.
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Fathi, Jalil, Ali Derakhshan, and Saeede Torabi. "The Effect of Listening Strategy Instruction on Second Language Listening Anxiety and Self-Efficacy of Iranian EFL Learners." SAGE Open 10, no. 2 (April 2020): 215824402093387. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2158244020933878.
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The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of listening strategy instruction on second language (L2) listening comprehension ability, listening anxiety, and listening self-efficacy of Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. To this end, a sample of 52 English major learners of two intact classes from a university in Iran was employed as the participants of the study. The intact groups were randomly assigned to an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group ( N = 27) received the listening strategy instruction based on the framework proposed by Yeldham and Gruba, whereas the participants in the control group ( N = 25) were instructed traditionally without receiving any strategy instruction. To collect the required data, the listening section of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), Foreign Language Listening Anxiety Scale (FLLAS), and Second Language Listening Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (SLLSQ) were administered to assess the listening comprehension, listening anxiety, and listening self-efficacy of the learners before and after the intervention. The findings of the study indicated that listening strategy instruction significantly improved learners’ listening comprehension ability and reduced learners’ L2 listening anxiety. However, it was revealed that listening strategy intervention failed to significantly improve L2 listening self-efficacy of the learners. In light of the gained results, the implications of this study are discussed with respect to L2 teachers, learners, and curriculum developers.