Artifact # 10
ESL Inquiry Project – This project is an in-depth study of ESL students and the ways in which teachers and students can help these students learn and adapt in today’s classrooms.
Context:
This project was completed as a part of
my Elementary School Curriculum and Instruction class during my Block experience
at ASU. I was placed in a group of my classmates and we were told
to research and present all that we could find out about ESL students in
today’s classroom.
Impact:
This project opened my eyes to the vast
amount of special learners that I will have in my future classrooms.
While working on this project, I came across a lot of valuable resources
that will help to make ESL students more comfortable and more productive
in the classroom. The resources also help teachers learn more about
the ESL student and what types of reinforcement they need from the teacher,
school, and community. The references that my group has located include
websites, books, and people in the community.
Alignment:
The information from the project provides
support and learning for teachers who want to know more about this special
student in their classroom. Our resource page includes many websites
that are easily accessible and include teacher tips and suggestions when
working with ESL students (Tech.
Comp. 13.2). Through this project, I have also located websites
that may help ESL students with their schoolwork and can translate words
from their language into English (Tech.
Comp. 13.3). While researching this project, my group and I created
a resource list of websites and books that can be helpful to teachers of
ESL students. We also attended a presentation done by a local ESL
teacher and we included her as a valuable resource on this list.
We found that there are many places to look for and find the services and
resources you need when dealing with a special learner (Tech.
Comp. 13.4). After completing this assignment, I became more
aware of the many ways in which I, as a teacher, can help students of all
learning levels succeed in school. The resources I discovered during
this project will help me deal with and accommodate my lessons for ESL
students (INTASC
#4). Before beginning this project, I realized that I did not
know a whole lot about ESL students and the resources required to help
them in school. I am glad that I have taken the time to research
the situation more fully and continue my learning by going to see the ESL
speaker. Her presentation helped me more fully understand what these
children are going through and how I, as a teacher, can help make their
transition into the school a bit easier and less intimidating (INTASC
#9).