Standard 1B: Language Acquisition and Development.
The artifact I chose for Standard 1.b. is from of ESC 760: Second Language Teaching and Learning. This class pushed my thinking in a variety of ways. I learned the ins and outs of second language teaching, including the names of the different programs offered in New York City, e.g., two-way immersion, dual language, English as a New Language, etc. This is extremely useful information that made me feel competent as my schools’ only resource on all matters ENL. This paper demonstrates my application of theories and research in second language acquisition and development to support ELLs in social and academic English language learning.
This paper was a group assignment that I worked on with classmates Alice Jackson and Atesh Sidigh. The research required to write this paper familiarize me with the terminology that surrounds the various programs available for English learners in New York. Before writing this paper, I only knew of one model: English as a New Language (ENL). This is the model my school operates under, so I had no incentive to learn about the other programs. As a result of writing this paper, I am comfortable making a recommendation for any prospective students and their families.
The goal of this paper was to discover which model is most effective for ELLs. In going back to prepare this reflection, I noticed that the paper meandered in our terminology somewhat because we were not knowledgeable on the models provided in New York City. Instead of analyzing these three models – ENL, Transitional Bilingual Education, and Two-Way Immersion – we made a more general argument about dual language instruction versus English-only instruction.
This was still an extremely useful process for me. Most of the research we did applies to the three programs available in New York and we even touched on each program in our paper, but we could have made a stronger and more relevant argument had we stuck to the programs available in New York. This paper gave me a critical lens for my own school, which uses and English-only model, and was my first step in untangling the world of ENL in New York City.
