Final Inquiry Project

Running head: WORKING WITH ELLS IN THE CLASSROOM
Working with ELLs in the Classroom
Meghan Tomasi
James Madison University
ELED 632
Michelle Hughes
February 5, 2018
WORKING WITH ELLS IN THE CLASSROOM
Abstract
The purpose of this paper was to learn more about how to accommodate the unique needs of
ELL students within an elementary school classroom. My goal was to use what I learned from
this project to help me in my future classroom teaching English as a second language
internationally. I was placed in a school located on the outskirts of a rural town. The school has
a population majority of students from low income families and is a Title 1 school. I collected
ELL student data from two separate classrooms on the third grade hallway with a combined
total of eight ELL students in attendance. I collected my data through interviews with classroom
teachers, ELL support teachers, and Literacy Aids within my school placement. Surveys were
sent out to teachers and staff throughout the school. Artifact collection was completed in many
areas around the school, such as classrooms, the school library, and the ELL support room. I
also taught my own lessons with the eight ELL students, as well as regularly taking field notes
and consistently updating a professional journal. Based off of the information I found from these
sources, I plan on implementing visuals and manipulatives in my lessons, as well as using
various differentiation strategies when lesson planning in my future classroom. I realized the
importance of experience in feeling prepared to meet the needs of ELL students, and plan on
continuing my understanding of their needs through research, workshops, and input from more
experienced teachers.
Many school classrooms throughout the United States are seeing an increase in the
amount of students who speak English as a second language. The percent of ELL students in the
classroom within the U.S. has risen 47% between 1990 and 2011, and comprise nearly 21% of
the population (Bohon, McKelvey, Rhodes, & Robnolt, 2017, pg. 609). This becomes an added
challenge for the teachers of these students because they are then required to differentiate their
lessons to match the needs of these students, as well as trying to help them grow in their use and
comprehension of the English language. Native speaking students are affected by having ELL
students in their class because more time may be taken from them to be given to the ELLs, which
a teacher also needs to stay aware of. ELL students, finally, are affected by being in the
classroom because they are expected to learn the same material as native speaking students in a
language that they are not fluent in and have difficulty with. These students, therefore, are facing
the same tasks in learning that a native speaking student faces, while having the added
difficulties that come along with learning a new language.
Because of the recent increase in ELL students within the classroom, teachers may not be
fully prepared or equipped to take on the added responsibility these students bring. In one of my
first practicum placements, my cooperating teacher had two ELL students in her classroom and
was unsure of how to best help them in their learning. She had little to no differentiation in her
lesson planning and would expect these students to complete the same work as the rest of her
native speaking class. These students would go with a teacher’s aide for multiple times during
the day to receive extra tutoring in their studies, and because of this aide, my C.T. did not find
adjusting her teaching strategies necessary. Having her lessons more accommodating towards
these students’ needs, however, would have greatly improved their understanding of the material
and the English language as a whole. Becoming informed through research and observation of
the resources available and the strategies or techniques used to differentiate or accommodate for
ELL students can help provide better learning and inclusion for the student, and hopefully
increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the ELL students’ learning and growth alongside
their native speaking peers. If my cooperating teacher had been given opportunity or taken
initiative to research and learn more about teaching ELL students within the classroom, she may
have learned new ways to help these two students feel more of a sense of belonging in her
classroom and see an increased success rate in student understanding. She may have also been
made aware of tools available to her and her classroom that she could have incorporated into her
future lesson plans.
I specifically chose this topic for my project because of my plans to teach English as a
foreign language internationally. By studying ways teachers work with students learning the
English language in full English immersion classrooms, which is the setting I will be in for my
future career, I was able to observe and practice a variety of strategies or tools that help to
improve the comprehension of English for these students in a way that shows their growth in
understanding the content material within the classroom curriculum. My job goals influenced my
project because I focused on ways I can become a better teacher in my own classroom using the
literature and data I collected throughout the next few months in my practicum placement and
JMU courses. While the topic I chose is very broad, I focused on how to plan differentiated
lessons towards ELL students, taught these lessons in a way that assisted ELL comprehension of
the material, and found teaching tools and resources I was able to use in the classroom to
accommodate these students during instruction.

Literature Review
Differentiation in the classroom is used to match the needs of each individual student in a
way that best helps that student to grow, learn, and retain important curriculum. In addition to
differentiating for native English speaking students, teachers with English Language Learners in
their classrooms must also take these students’ unique needs into account when planning for and
teaching the material. There are many tools, strategies, techniques, and resources available to and
used by all teachers, and learning about as well as reflecting on these will help give vital
information on ways to manage all students from all backgrounds and levels of understanding,
including their varying English language abilities.
Background
Accommodating the needs of students can take many forms and can be implemented in
many different ways depending on the students themselves, as well as the teaching styles and
biases of the teacher. Because of the continual increase of ELL students in the classroom, the
focus on differentiation of lesson plans and curriculum material has also steadily increased,
making teacher understanding, practice, and experience with this particular group of students of
even more importance and value. Many teachers have not been given adequate teachings, tools,
or resources on how best to meet the needs of their ELL students. Just as teachers are always
reflecting on their lessons and teaching abilities, learning specifically about this group of
students can benefit and help improve all areas of their classroom teaching and management.
Professional development for teachers should allow teachers significant time to reflect on
their own teaching…[reflecting] on how effective teaching techniques support ELL
learning, how culture affects the classroom experience, and how academic language must
be carefully taught...because of the limited amount of time allowed for teacher PD,
reflection often receives low priority. Yet, reflective observation is required for learning
to occur, (Bohon, McKelvey, Rhodes, & Robnolt, 2017).
After learning more about what resources and tools are available, as well as hearing about
ways others have successfully worked with the ELL student population, teachers are able to see
benefits and noticeable positive differences in their own teaching plans and abilities. Their
testimonies prove that having teachers learn new teaching methods for ELL students end up
helping all students in the long run. It helps to inform them on how to more effectively deliver
their instruction and modify and assess content to meet the needs of their ELL students, as shown
in Bohon et al. (2017). Teachers and researchers, also according to Bohon et al. (2017), have
seen benefits that can include better relationships with parents/guardians of ELL students, highly
developed lesson planning, and technological resources that can be used in the classroom to
improve both ELL and native English speaking student understanding. Tools such as models,
graphic organizers, charting/mapping strategies, and other visual representations can also
encourage learning for all students, as well as increase engagement or participation from students
with planned lessons.
Another aspect teachers can gain is a way to incorporate better understanding of the
English language across all subject area. Because vocabulary, reading, writing, and
comprehension are so vital to all students in the classroom, putting an emphasis on these areas
throughout every aspect of student learning can also dramatically increase native English
speaking student understanding of the language. An example of this would be Manyak’s (2010)
study on a Multi-faceted, Comprehensive Vocabulary Instructional Program (MCVIP). While
this program is specifically designed for EL students to improve their English language level
abilities, all of the tools and strategies included can effortlessly be linked to the learning of native
English speaking students, as well, and help them improve on their comprehension of their native
language, while also being related to use in all content areas during a normal school day.
Importance of Vocabulary Growth
A key theme throughout many studies is the importance of increasing ELL student
vocabularies to better their understanding of the English language. This can be done through a
variety of avenues, one of which is the study of sight words. Teachers’ goals for their students
are to become proficient readers that have the ability to decode words, but also comprehend what
they are reading. This becomes an especially challenging goal for ELL students, and a sight word
vocabulary, useful in fluent reading, becomes an invaluable component of this proficiency
according to Helman and Burns (2008). To become capable readers, students need to have the
ability of automatically decoding words so as to save the majority of their efforts for
comprehending the text. If students can instinctively recognize a large amount of words, their
reading becomes more fluent and they are better able to comprehend what they are reading. By
teaching students to memorize and automatically recognize an extensive bank of sight words,
they are going to be more engaged with their reading and gain confidence in their abilities to
learn English as a second language. Sight words, or high-frequency words, make up fifty to sixty
percent of the words students encounter in their reading, and, to be on grade level with their
vocabularies, students are expected to read ninety-five percent of all of the words written on their
grade level (Broz, Blust, and Bertelsen, 2016). Because sight words make up so much of the
vocabulary when reading, without adequate sight word vocabulary banks, student reading
fluency is negatively affected. When learning a new language, vocabulary can become one of the
largest concerns and focuses of the student, which means that sight word vocabularies become
that much more important to being able to read and comprehend text.
Using the native language to learn English can be one of the best ways to help students
learn, understand, and retain their vocabulary. One way of using the native language in the
classroom is through cognates, or words that are spelled identically or similarly in both
languages and have the same meaning. An example of this would be the words decision and
decisión or democracy and democracia, with the Spanish and English languages. If students
come to an unfamiliar word while reading, they are taught to use the context clues surrounding
the word to find its meaning, such as synonyms, antonyms, definitions, examples, and/or other
descriptive language. “Context clues can be used to guess at the meaning of an unknown word.
Teaching students this useful strategy in tandem with their knowledge of cognates can enhance
their meaning-making capabilities,” (Montelongo, Hernández, Herter, & Cuello, 2011). Being
able to adeptly use the context clue skills, while also having the word spelled identically or
similarly to the word in their own language can help drastically improve student comprehension
of text, as they are able to connect unknown information to the knowledge they already possess.
ELL students are not incapable of learning a language, as proven by the fact that they are
able to speak their native tongue fluently. Speech sounds, grammatical structures, and
meaningful vocabulary all follow ELL students along with their first language, which, according
to Dee Nichols, Rupley, Blair, and Wood (2008), helps to prove that these ideas are not foreign
to ELL students, even though they may have to learn them in new a new context with their
second language. Using their first language to increase their knowledge of a second can be a
great tool teachers use with their ELL students. Most vocabulary is cross-cultural, just given a
different name. This means that using the first language’s equivalent to an English word in the
classroom and making that a base for learning new vocabulary can make connections between
the two languages much easier for the ELL students involved. This, of course, means extra work
put in by the teacher to find these connecting words and use them to their advantage, but the
benefits to the students’ learning can prove to be invaluable.
A variety of strategies exist to aid teachers in helping ELL students expand their
vocabulary. These can include, but are not limited to, the use of hands on learning, exploration
both inside and outside of the classroom, and visual aids.
We acquire meanings for words through direct experiences with people, places, objects,
and events that create and refine meaning vocabulary. We also acquire vocabulary
through vicarious experiences, including interactive technology, pictures, virtual tours,
Websites, reading, and writing (Blachowicz & Fisher, 1996),” (Dee Nichols et al., 2008).
Creating memories and experiences associated with the words being taught help students to
retain the information rather than using short term memory, and this can be done as
extravagantly as creating trips to community locations for learning, or as simply as allowing
students to explore websites or picture books that portray the words they are expected to know
and learn.
Importance of Reading Comprehension
While in many cases vocabulary and reading comprehension go hand in hand, there are
aspects of reading comprehension that go outside of students possessing extensive vocabularies.
Understanding the words in a text does not necessarily mean that the student is understanding the
text’s deeper meaning. If the student is unable to comprehend the context of the words, they will
most likely have a difficult time answering questions about the text. Text-based questioning is
when students are taking the text they are reading and are then creating questions about it that
interest them, but also increase their reading comprehension (Taboada, Bianco, & Bowerman,
2012). The student is then put in charge of his or her own learning; they are the ones deciding
exactly what from the text should be questioned, and using their reading abilities to find answers
and reach conclusions. When students are given more choice and free reign in their own
learning, with the right amount of motivation and student interest, students will learn and retain
more skill than they would from teacher lectures and strict guidelines.
While reading does relate to vocabulary, it also has a strong connection to the practice of
writing. Writing brings together listening, speaking, reading, and writing, which are all areas
ELLs need to master for academic success and preparation for adulthood and future careers, as
stated by Adams (2009). Adams’ teacher success story describes her experience implementing a
new strategy in her classroom with a main focus on using writing to increase reading
comprehension, rather than only having students practice their reading comprehension through
reading a variety of texts and material. By having students create their own texts, they were
better able to grow in their comprehension. They were the ones that needed to put the words
together and increase their vocabularies so that they were able to put down on paper what they
were imagining in their minds. The teacher scaffolded these projects, of course, and gradually
increased the difficulty and expectations of the students’ writings. By the end of the projects, the
students had increased more in their understanding of the English language than any of her
previous students and were gaining confidence in themselves as learners and English speakers.
They were engaged, and students who would previously refuse to work on assignments were
turning in work that had taken them hours to accomplish. Using writing to increase reading
comprehension proved to be exponentially important practice and the push these ELL students
needed to grow in their learning.
Because of the technological advances people have available in today’s society, teachers
also reap the advantages of new technological capabilities within the classroom. Students now
are growing up with screens practically glued to their fingertips having phones, tablets, laptops,
and televisions available almost anywhere they go, which means that much of what they are
seeing, hearing, and experiencing has to do with this technology, as well. Technology can be
beneficial to all students in the classroom, but new advancements also create opportunity for
teachers to better assist their ELL student population’s growth and success. Teachers have begun
incorporating technology into their classrooms and their curriculum, and are continually growing
and advancing in this regard. One way this is being done is through having students read texts on
a screen rather than in a book. “Reading computer-based texts is different from reading on
paper...It requires readers to adapt their text-based reading strategies, and it brings both
challenges and opportunities, (Ho-Ryong & Deoksoon, 2016). One such opportunity internet or
computer-based activities can bring into the classroom could include, in many cases, furthering
engagement between students and their learning, as well as making their comprehension studies
more enjoyable rather than tedious or difficult (Ho-Ryong and Deoksoon, 2016). Activities on a
computer also encourage critical reading skills and help to improve fluency by incorporating
student familiarity with new tools, resources, and even communities. While there are many
benefits to reading computer-based texts, one of the biggest is the reader’s comprehension of the
material. This, again, goes back to using a student’s prior knowledge to positively affect their
growth with new and unknown material. Students are sometimes better able to understand what
they are reading depending on the source they are reading it from, and technology also presents
other benefits to comprehension such as copying and pasting, accessibility, and increased
variety. Because reading comprehension plays such a vital role in the English language
capabilities of ELL students, having a variety of sources they can read from may prove to be the
accommodation they need to grow in their learning. Having the tools mentioned above to go
along with their reading of the text is also a way these students can dissect their reading and
increase comprehension.
Tools and Strategies
When working with ELL students, there are many available resources to teachers and
classrooms. Some have already been previously mentioned, such as focusing on sight words or
writing, adding visual aid or exploration, using cognates, having student driven learning, and
implementing technology and its many tools. Another strategy that has been researched and
tested when tutoring ELL students is the QUICK method, which stands for Questioning,
Understanding new words, Imaging, Connecting, and Keeping it all together. This method was
designed to give students extra practice in their reading comprehension before, during and after
they have read (LaGue & Wilson, 2010). In many ways, this method brings together many of the
strategies listed above and gives them structure as well as research based support. While QUICK
was created for peer tutoring, it can easily be adjusted to fit the setting of a daily classroom
curriculum, such as through the use of QUICK task cards. These can be a simple addition to any
classroom and can help to engage students in their learning by having them reflect on the
questions they may have (either before or after they have been taught certain material), what they
already understand, creating a visual representation of what they are learning, connecting the
material to previous knowledge, and summarizing what they have seen and heard. In this way,
students are not just memorizing material and moving onto the next subject or topic. They are
actively engrossing themselves in their learning and analyzing their own thought and
understanding behind what they have been taught. This is beneficial towards ELL students
especially because much of learning a new language can seem like memorization rather than
learning they can interact with. The QUICK method is also useful during tutoring sessions,
which help ELL students get the one-on-one attention many need for success. Tutors, and even
classroom or school-wide peers, can assist ELL students by bringing the QUICK method into
their studies and helping them to truly analyze the material they are expected to understand,
according to LaGue & Wilson (2010).
Another tool easily accessible to teachers is a graphic organizer. Graphic organizers come
in many different forms, which is also a part of their appeal. The teacher is able to fit the graphic
organizer to any specific needs of the students, and help to provide them with an organized,
visual aid that they can refer to especially when learning complex terminology or concepts across
subject areas. One such graphic organizer is “the structured overview” graphic organizer, which
is described by Baron (1969) as “a “diagrammic representation of the basic vocabulary of a unit
so as to show relationships among the concepts represented by those words,” (Minaabad, 2017).
ELL students, as mentioned previously, can greatly benefit from visual aids and representations
of what they are learning, and a graphic organizer is a simple and easily understandable way to
accomplish this. As mentioned in the quote above, diagramming the new vocabulary ELL
students are expected to learn is a great tool for teachers to implement in their classrooms. These
tree diagrams provide a visual aid to students that presents the information clearly and in a way
that is easily broken down for students new to the language. Pulling from my prior experiences
in the classroom, I personally realized the benefits of visual aids during lessons, especially when
presenting new and unfamiliar information. Giving students something to look back on and
follow along with when information is complex or has many pieces to a whole helps students
organize their thoughts and retain information through guided steps or connections. ELL students
benefit from this accommodation because they are able to see how the words of a new language
fit together. Teachers also have the opportunity to use these graphic organizers to connect an
ELL student’s native language to the English language, such as using cognates.
Much thought needs to go into lesson planning and accommodating for ELL students in
the classroom. This includes teacher understanding and willingness to work with this particular
group of students to find out specifics on what they need and how to help them reach success in
the classroom. Through various researchers, teachers, and others experienced in the needs of
these students, some of the ways mentioned to improve the learning of ELL students include
increasing their vocabulary, using cognates to form bridges between their native language and
English, increasing reading comprehension, and incorporating writing into their comprehension
rather than only reading. The use of various tools, resources, and forms of technology in the
classroom can help to assist in teaching, and can help to make sure students are engaged in
interactive and interesting lessons. By increasing teacher knowledge on the needs of ELL
students and ways to combat misunderstandings or lack of student growth, students and teachers
can both benefit and make the classroom a more student centered learning environment. All of
these aspects lead into teacher planning. Differentiation within lesson planning can be one of the
biggest challenges a teacher faces, especially if they are expected to accommodate an ELL
student in their classroom for the first time and have no prior knowledge or experience on how to
work with ELL students, Bohon et al. (2017). As teachers lesson plan, much thought needs to go
into meeting the needs of all of their students, which includes meeting the needs of ELLs. As
such, differentiation plays a key role in the success of a teacher’s lesson and the success of the
student’s understanding.
Methods
Context and Participants
My project was conducted in an area of small cities, with the land surrounding the school
mainly open countryside with homes and neighborhoods scattered around. Within the area of all
four elementary schools included in this particular city district are many historically cultural sites
and destinations. Most of the rural communities surrounding X Elementary School consist of
lower-income families, making the school predominantly free (56.7%) or reduced (7.4%) lunch.
As mentioned, the school has a 61.4% Caucasian majority, with African Americans holding the
second highest percentage at 15.8%. Following in percentage are 11.3% of students being of two
races, 10.1% being Hispanic, 1.2% being Asian, and 0.2% being American Indian out of a total
number of 487 students in the school. As far as gender, the school is almost evenly split at 52%
female and 48% male. There is a 73.3% SOL passing rate, which is average amongst all four
schools in the district. Four percent of the student population is gifted and talented, 5% are
labeled as having limited English proficiency, and 7% have a learning disability.
This project was held within two third grade classrooms at the school. Classroom A
consisted of 21 students (thirteen female and eight male) with one of these students having the
label of being ELL. Classroom B consisted of 19 students (seven female and twelve male) with
seven of these students having the label of being ELL. These ELL students were all from a
Hispanic background and spoke Spanish as their first language. They were chosen specifically
because of their ELL label as I was learning how to best accommodate for this particular group
of students. The main classroom teacher of Classroom A was Ms. A, and the main classroom
teacher of Classroom B was Ms. S. There were reading specialists and the school ELL aide who
would come in and out of both of the classrooms at differently scheduled times. I was the sole
project investigator, and was both an active participant observer and passive observer. I was an
active participant observer because I was planning and teaching my own lessons with these
students as well as experimenting with tools and resources available to teachers of ELL students
within the school. I was also a passive observer because I was observing the teacher as she
planned and taught lessons to her ELL students, and was taking notes on what
tools/resources/strategies she used to accommodate them. Ms. A, Ms. S, and myself are all white
females. Age-wise, I am college aged, with Ms. A and Ms. S being middle aged. One of the
reading specialists is a woman of African American descent, the other is a woman of Hispanic
descent, and the ELL aide is a white women. One of the reading specialists and the ELL teacher
are young adults in their 20’s, and the other reading specialist is middle aged.
Data Collection
I used a variety of data collection methods based off of the triangulation method
described and supported by Falk & Blumenreich (2005), meaning I validated my data through
the use of multiple sources and collection methods. Within this triangulation method, I used
interviews, surveys, kept a professional journal, collected artifacts, and analyzed artifacts.
According to Mills (2007), having such a range of data helped to legitimize my data by having
these different methods cover each other’s weaknesses or ways in which they were lacking, as
well as helping to decrease biases.
Surveys can provide quick answers from large amounts of sources, as stated by Minnaar
and Heystek (2013). They are less time consuming than interviews because I could have all of
the teachers at the school answer a survey and give it back to me within a matter of days,
whereas with interviews I would need to sit down with each teacher and write down what they
say to each question. Surveys are easy to sort and organize, especially if they include close-
ended questions. These are the reasons I decided to include surveys in my data collection over
the past few months.
I also decided to include document analysis, which takes form in other teachers’ lesson
plans, as well as my own. Lesson plans are a good way to analyze what teachers have done
previously with their students. I was able to compare and contrast different lesson plans and
weigh the pros and cons to each one. While one teacher may make the decision in his or her
lesson plan to use a technological tool to aid ELL students during a particular lesson, another
teacher may choose to partner their ELL students with native English speaking students to
accommodate their needs for the same lesson. These differences in lesson plans, for example,
provide varied strategies by these teachers and helped me to learn different ways ELL students
could be accommodated in the classroom. I was also able to see which areas teachers tend to
focus on in their lesson plans, and which areas have less of an emphasis. Analyzing my own
lesson plans and learning what aspects went smoothly or what areas created difficulty or
misunderstandings helped me improve on my own styles of teaching as well. Expanding on my
gathering of lesson plans, artifact collection is yet another data collection method I used, and is
proven to be a reliable and beneficial way of collecting accurate and relatable data (Merriam,
2016). Collecting the tools and resources available to me at the school was a good way to see
what may be available to me as a future teacher. I was able to compare what this school had
available to other schools and their resources. I could also reflect on the pros and cons of each
resource and comment on which may be more useful than another. As discussed earlier about
lesson plan documentation, I was able to see the different uses each resource had available, and
also see which resources were used the most often and in what way.
Another data collection tool I used was that of a professional journal. Professional
journals allowed me to keep detailed notes of everything I saw, heard, and felt, as well as any
connections I made at the time. This meant that, according to Bogdan and Biklen (2007), I had a
detailed diary of everything I experienced and learned that I could look back on and reference at
any time. It also helped me keep chronological track of all of the information I collected, and,
therefore, helped me to establish an audit trail for validity.
Along with these three types of data collection, I also included a fourth, that being
interviews. Interviews were a good way to get detailed answers to my questions from my sources
(Merriam, 2016). They were more varied than a survey and I was also able to probe for more
information or ask for clarification to questions I asked, whereas on a survey I simply received
answers and needed to interpret them at face value. Having both surveys and interviews provided
a way to cover each’s weaknesses, thereby giving me ample data to analyze.
In order to use all four of these methods, there were some considerations I needed to be
aware of and account for. In order to use my survey method, I needed permission from
administration to send out a survey to all of the teachers in the school. I decided to have surveys
sent to everyone, rather than only those with ELL students currently in their classrooms, because
even if they did not have ELL students at the time, many still had input to give on past
experiences with ELL students. For interviews, I needed to decide whether I wanted to record
my interviews (either video or just audio), and gain permission from the people I planned to
interview. After beginning the project, however, and conducting my first interview, I decided not
to record them in any way. They were not as comfortable with the idea of being recorded, and,
therefore, I typed up their responses to my questions and then had them read over what I had
written at the conclusion of my interviews so as to check for accuracy. I also needed access to
the resources the school had available and needed to know who to ask to find these resources in
order to accommodate for my artifact collection method. This was much easier than I had
anticipated as I began my search because everyone in the school was very helpful and willing to
aid me in my collection. By the end of the project, I had talked to the librarian about resources in
the library, the computer teacher about resources in the computer labs, and the ELL teacher
about resources in her classroom that she had available to herself and that were available for use
by anyone in the school. To incorporate documentation analysis, finally, I needed access to
previous lesson plans from teachers, which depended entirely on availability and permission.
Rather than review lesson plans from teachers around the school, I stayed within Classrooms A
and B to collect information from Ms. A and Ms. S’s lesson plans.
I planned on collecting this data, using the varied methods described above, during
specials to see how these teachers accommodate the ELL students. I also used these methods in
the classroom to observe the classroom teacher as well as while planning and teaching my own
lessons, and in the library to see what books/tools were available to ELL students. I was also able
to observe during teacher breaks during the school day and after school hours to meet with
teachers and other school aide to gather information. The majority of my data collection occurred
during classroom teaching hours, which was during all subject areas including math, specials,
word study, whole group reading, writing, science, social studies, panther period (which was an
extra study/tutoring period), read aloud, and small group reading.
Over the course of the semester, up until a week before the project was due, I was able to
keep up with my professional journal and collect artifacts, as well as plan and teach my own
lessons. Surveys I conducted at the beginning of the project, and received responses up until a
month after sending them out. Interviews were done after school at the availability of the person
I was interviewing. Lesson plans I collected and analyzed throughout the semester as I created
and taught my own lessons. In many cases I used these lesson plans as a reference, beginning
stage, and/or model for my own.
Validity, Reliability, Generalizability
Qualitative validity was ensured by my ability to say that I have taken such steps so that
people can trust the interpretations I made based on the data I collected. In order to do this, I
referenced Lincoln and Guba’s (1986) model that includes credibility, transferability,
dependability, and confirmability. I made sure my project was credible, or believable and
convincing, by having the people I collected data from review and verify what I had written
through members’ checks, as well as through sending my work in for feedback through peer
reviews. I made sure it was transferable, or relateable to others in a similar or the same situation,
by keeping a detailed account of everything that I did in a professional journal that included
detailed descriptions of data and context. I made sure it was dependable, or trustworthy, by
keeping the data I collected organized and in chronological order, so as to establish an audit trail.
Finally, I made sure it had confirmability, or was accurately corroborated, by reflecting on the
data I collected, and working to remove bias through memoing, or reviewing and analyzing my
own work, and having multiple sources to gather my information through the triangulation
method.
Qualitative reliability can be defined by my ability to repeat the same thing and receive
the same results/conclusions each time, as stated by Mills (2007). I accomplished this many
different ways, such as by planning and teaching multiple lessons. I also evaluated and analyzed
multiples of each type of data I collected, i.e. by looking at many surveys rather than only one,
and conducted multiple interviews rather than going off of the information gathered from only
one source. Ensuring reliability can also be through finding patterns as I collected information
and showing how the data helped to prove itself through repetition and consistent results, which
is shown through my audit trail.
Qualitative generalizability can be ensured by my ability to so richly describe data and
context that someone else will be able to make a determination on whether it applies to their
situation/setting as well. Keeping a professional journal addressed this because I was able to put
into detail everything that I am experienced. Gathering specific and accurate data about the
school, classroom, and students I worked with was also purposeful so as to help others relate
their own situations to my own from this project.
On my action plan located in the appendices of this paper, I had planned to record some,
if not all, of my own lessons as I taught them to later look back and reflect on. Due to parent
permission and confidentiality restrictions, I was unable to do this throughout the semester and
instead used feedback I gained from Ms. A and Ms. S as they observed my lessons for my lesson
plan reflection data. Through this project, my goal was to improve my teaching skills so as to
better accommodate and best meet the needs of the ELL student population. I also hoped to grow
my experience with this particular group of students to aid in my future career as an international
English teacher.
Data Analysis
As described above while discussing validity, reliability, and generalizability, I chose to
analyze my data through memoing, peer reviews, members’ checks, and establishing an audit
trail.
I also decided to use color coding and indexing throughout my data analysis. Indexing
can be a good way to organize a large amount of data so that it becomes more manageable and
easier to follow, Mills (2007). I did this with my surveys. Because my survey had twenty-seven
questions, most of which had additional commentary by teachers throughout the school, and I
received twenty-one responses, I had a lot of information to sift through. Other than
organizational reasons for this project, I was also asked by the principal of the school to send her
the results of the surveys for her to view, which prompted me to make the large amount of
information more easily understood. I re-organized the data using indexing by condensing the
information I received from all teachers question by question and putting responses in order.
Color-coding became necessary when finding themes throughout my data and also when
separating different sources. Using a variety of colors to help label different aspects of my data
added a visual aid for myself, and was a good way to help me stay organized and keep track of
the many parts to my project that made up the whole, (Bogdan and Biklen, 2007).
Findings
Throughout my data collection at my school placement I learned many aspects of
teaching ELL students within a native speaking classroom through the teachers in the school,
through learning about the resources available within the school specifically for ELL students,
and when working with the students themselves. Four major themes emerged from analyzing my
data. These included how well the classroom teacher and/or other students understood the ELL
student(s) first language, the use of visual aids and manipulatives during lessons, differentiation
strategies or techniques while lesson planning, and how prepared the teachers felt when an ELL
student was placed in their classroom.
Difficulties of Not Understanding First Languages
While I understood from my prior knowledge and my article readings that understanding
an ELL student’s first language is beneficial to the student’s growth in their second language, I
did not realize how difficult this can be for classroom teachers who do not have any experience
with a language other than English. Because I was observing and collecting data within two
separate classrooms, I had the advantage of learning from Ms. A, who speaks no Spanish, as well
as Ms. S, who is bilingual in both English and Spanish. After speaking to some of the ELL
students informally during small group reading lessons many of them made comments about
having a teacher who spoke their native language. “Ms. S. is the best teacher because she knows
what I am saying when I am not saying words in English,” (ELL Student A, personal
communication, April 2, 2018). “Sometimes it’s hard to talk to other teachers and my friends and
other third graders because I don’t know enough words,” (ELL Student B, personal
communication, April 2, 2018). The students felt more comfortable having a teacher who
understood their native language, and this helped them feel more confident as they learned new
material. They knew that they would be understood by their teacher whether or not they could
express their knowledge in English.
While Ms. S. has experience with her students’ first language, Ms. A. only speaks
English. When interviewing Ms. A I asked her the question, “Do you think there is enough ELL
support provided to you by the school in general?”, which she responded to by saying, “I don’t
think there are enough resources. Having one ELL teacher in the building is fine, but having a k-
2 and 3-5 would be good. There is only one person at central office to provide translations which
makes it hard to find translations for conferences,” (Ms. A, interview, February 22, 2018). Not
having experience with the language herself, she found that supporting her ELL students
sometimes proved to be difficult. Working with parents and families of ELL students also
became a challenge because of the lack of support provided through translators.
I was also able to hear from the ELL teacher through both a survey and an interview to
learn more about her perspective on both the students and the homeroom teachers when working
with the ELL population in this school. When asked, “Is there anything else you would like to
share or add about your knowledge or experience with ELL students? If so, please explain:”, on
the survey, she answered,
I also always tell my kids, "I mess up when I try to speak Spanish ALL THE TIME. You
hear me mess up and sometimes it's funny. But I'm trying my best. All you have to do is
try to speak in English the best you can. I surely won't make fun of you, I'll just be happy
that you're trying..and we'll learn to speak to each other together! (ELL Teacher, survey,
February 13, 2018).
Her understanding that learning a new language can be difficult, and her willingness to try to
connect to their first language and incorporate it into her lessons helped her to engage with her
students and improve their learning experience. In my interview with her, when she was asked,
“Do you ever interact with your students’ parents/families?,” she responded,
I have phone calls with parents, and luckily some of them speak english pretty well. We
have a translator here that is awesome and I write her down what I want to say or discuss
with parents and she calls to talk to them and relays what they say back to me. I go to
TLC meetings, which are meetings about kids that are struggling that you want to keep
on your radar. Parents are allowed to come to these meetings so I’ve met a few there, but
it is hard to talk to them if they do not speak English. (ELL Teacher, interview, April 5,
2018).
Even though the ELL teacher attempts to learn about her students’ native languages, working
with parents and families who have no English capabilities at all can become problematic
without a translator. She came to the same obstacle as Ms. A with her ELL student, and realized
the importance of assistance from others who understand the ELL students’ first languages. I
also asked her, “What is the most challenging part of being an ELL teacher?”, during the
interview, and one of the biggest challenges she listed was about the language barrier. “I know
some Spanish but no Chinese or Russian. It is very hard to communicate with them when I do
not know any of their native language. The language barrier can be difficult,” (ELL Teacher,
interview, April 5, 2018). She made a point that if she were able to speak even some of their first
language, working with these students would become much easier. Finally, I asked “What is the
best advice you could give to a homeroom teacher that does not work exclusively with ELL
students?”, to which she responded,
Being culturally aware. Understanding cultural differences and working with that to help
them adjust. Sending things home in the native language for parents. Getting to know the
kids and understanding home environments. Making lessons more about where students
are from if possible, rather than only relating everything to the US. Relating to them and
what they know, (ELL Teacher, interview, April 5, 2018).
She wanted to drive home the argument that teachers need to put in effort to understanding the
prior knowledge ELL students come into the classroom with. Connecting their first language, as
well as their culture, made a positive difference for her in working with her students, and became
one of the most important suggestions she chose to share with other teachers.
Visual Aids and Manipulatives
A second theme I came across when looking at my data is that it did not matter the type
of visual aid or manipulative that was provided during a lesson, but simply the fact that it was
included. Whether it was something as quick as showing a picture representation of the material,
or as complicated as implementing a hands on activity with realia, the students’ understanding of
the information improved dramatically when they were given a visual aid. After sending out my
survey to the teachers within my school placement I received twenty-one responses. On this
survey I asked for feedback on the resources or strategies they use in their classrooms with ELL
students. Multiple questions were used to collect this data.
The first question I asked was, “If you have had or currently have an ELL student: Did/do
you differentiate your lesson plans to meet their needs?”. Some of the responses to this were,
“Discuss vocabulary, try to use pictures to build background knowledge,” (2nd grade teacher,
survey, February 21, 2018), “Somewhat. Vocabulary, picture prompts,” (Art K-5 teacher, survey,
February 13, 2018), “Yes. As much as possible. More emphasis on content vocabulary and
providing visuals,” (1st grade teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “Yes, they need to be worked
with in small group settings with lots of pictures to help them understand directions,”
(kindergarten teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “Yes I had one student who knew no English
so I tried to incorporate more pictures for her,” (1st grade teacher, survey, February 27, 2018). I
include an extensive supply of quotes from these teachers to drive home the argument that the
use of visuals is not only theorized to improve student learning, but is proven on multiple
occasions within a large pool of teachers. The vast majority of these responses included the use
of visuals, mostly picture representations, to improve student understanding and engagement.
Vocabulary became a common word throughout teacher responses. Having a small English
vocabulary is one of the biggest challenges ELL students face, as discussed in various scholarly
articles within my literature review, and the teachers answered to using visual aid to combat this
obstacle.
The second question I asked along the lines of teaching strategies and/or tools was, “If
you have had or currently have an ELL student: When teaching a lesson, what did/do you do
differently to combat any difficulties your ELL student may have?”. Again, my responses were
numerous, and continually mentioned the use of visuals in lessons when teaching ELL students.
“I use a lot of visuals with my students,” (SPED teacher, survey, February 14, 2018), “Visuals is
the number one method. Printed vocabulary with image. Partnering them with a language
buddy,” (Art K-5 teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “Vocabulary is especially hard for them so
I try to define and show them pictures/visuals to help them understand,” (Math Specialist K-5
teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “Realia, repetition,” (TAG teacher, survey, February 13,
2018), “Use more graphic organizers, pictures, less text--besides categories and headings,” (3rd
grade teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “Provide picture representation,” (kindergarten
teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “I make sure to repeat stuff, show visuals or give real world
examples to help them connect,” (3rd grade teacher, survey, February 26, 2018), “Used visuals
to support concepts of difficult words. Build background knowledge for cultural differences,”
(2nd grade teacher, survey, February 27, 2018), “Added pictures, would use a translator,” (1st
grade teacher, survey, February 27, 2018). Connecting to the students’ cultures and using realia,
or hands on materials, were also stated in these quotes. Accessing and including prior knowledge
and experiences of the students through visual aid, I found, was a common tactic amongst these
teachers.
On top of the questions listed above I also asked, “If you have had or currently have an
ELL student: Have you used resources specifically for use with ELL students in your
classroom?”, “If you have had or currently have an ELL student: Have you used teaching
strategies created specifically for ELL students in your classroom?”, and “Pulling from your
knowledge or experience with ELL students: Have you personally used different forms of
technology when working with ELL students?”. Each of these questions had answer choices that
I provided of tools/strategies I was aware of teachers using, along with an option for teachers to
add any others that may not have been listed. In response to the first question listed, fourteen out
of the twenty-one teachers answered that they used visual aids within their classrooms as a
resource for differentiation. One teacher added “manipulatives and things that students can use
their hands to move and touch, pictures, movies, dictionaries,” (ELL K-5 teacher, survey,
February 13, 2018). In response to the second question listed, nine out of twenty-one teachers
answered that they use Project Based Learning (PBL) in their classrooms as a strategy when
working with ELL students. Two teachers also gave further responses, “visuals and vocabulary
help,” (Math Specialist K-5 teacher, survey, February 13, 2018) and “Pictures,” (kindergarten
teacher, survey, February 13, 2018). In response to the third and final question listed above,
seven out of twenty-one teachers answered that they use videos when using technology to
differentiate in the classroom. Other responses to this question included “iPad” (3-5 Exceptional
Learners teacher, survey, February 13, 2018), “Pictures,” (TAG teacher, survey, February 13,
2018), and “Apps,” (5th grade teacher, survey, February 13, 2018). Overwhelmingly, these
teachers answered yet again the importance of visuals and manipulatives in their lessons to help
students grasp the meanings of new words and information.
When interviewing Ms. A, two questions stood out to me where she responded about the
importance of her use of visual aids and/or manipulatives when differentiating her lessons for
ELL students in her classroom. The first question was “Do you feel prepared enough, or as if you
have enough experience, to meet the needs of your ELL student(s)?”, and she responded by
saying, “Yes when I have them. Sometimes I feel a little rusty. It is good having visuals and help
with vocabulary...Pace this year is super fast, but in the past I have had word walls and word
boards to help my students,” (Ms. A, interview, February 22, 2018). The second question was
“What resources or strategies do you use in your teaching that you find to be the most helpful
when working with ELL students?”, and she responded by saying, “Google translate, google
images. Visuals and vocab,” (Ms. A, interview, February 22, 2018). As with the teachers in the
survey, Ms. A also saw the benefits to using visual aids and manipulatives in her classroom. As
mentioned previously, I found that the type of visual aid provided to students did not matter
nearly as much as the fact that some visual aid was incorporated into the lesson. Ms. A stated
that in previous years she was able to do a lot more around the classroom to provide visual aid
for her students. Even though going to that extent proved to be too difficult this year, she still
made sure to include visual aid in her lessons through pictures.
After interviewing the ELL teacher about her perspective on visual aids and
manipulatives, these are the questions I asked and the answers I received. “What is the best
advice you could give to a homeroom teacher that does not work exclusively with ELL
students?”, with part of her response being, “Have a lot of manipulatives available and visuals
that kids can move and see...If you have a new kid that doesn’t know any english, label objects in
the classroom to help them learn vocab and better understand their surroundings,” (ELL Teacher,
interview, April 5, 2018). While labels may seem simple, the ELL teacher argued that these were
very beneficial to the ELL students and helped them to become better acquainted with not only
the English language, but also their surroundings. Another question asked was, “What are the
first steps you take with a student that has no English abilities at all?”, and her response included,
“Showing pictures and seeing what they call it (ex. If a glass of water is pictured and they call it
water they know some; if they call it agua they know it in spanish and now need to learn the
english words for the spanish words they already know)...Lots of manipulations,” (ELL Teacher,
interview, April 5, 2018). Assessing prior knowledge and the level of English capability the
student has when entering the classroom was shown to also be an added benefit of using visual
aid in the classroom.
Differentiation in Planning
Through looking at lesson plans belonging to Ms. A and Ms. S, as well as planning my
own, I saw and produced a few different ways to differentiate a lesson plan to fit the needs of
ELL students in the classroom. My lessons began to vary in my methods of differentiation the
longer I spent with the students. The more I became familiarized with the students’ needs, the
curriculum, and the ways the two classroom teachers planned their lessons, the more I
experimented with meeting the needs of the students through various differentiation techniques
and strategies. As I got to know the students better, differentiation became easier and came more
naturally.
On the survey sent throughout the school, sixteen of the twenty-one teachers said that
they differentiate their lesson plans to fit the needs of their ELL students. One response was,
“Yes in most cases. My few who were very close to exiting the program who were missing
leaving due to writing scores, which is often the thing that holds them back, I stopped
accommodating for in other areas and focused more on writing to support them,” (2nd grade
Teacher, survey, February 27, 2018). This teacher at the beginning used differentiation in other
areas with the ELL students, but as the year progressed and this teacher became more aware of
the students’ needs, strategies changed and the focus of differentiation was put on writing. This
subject was what the students needed the most and, as the teacher got to know the ELL students
better, realized and accommodated for this.
When interviewing Ms. A, I asked her the question “What do you think is the most
difficult part when planning lessons to accommodate your ELL students?”, to which she
responded, “Making sure language support is there. Making sure you go over language you
believe is the most difficult for them to grasp. Make sure you explain expectations, goals, and
learning outcomes; making it clear to them as well,” (Ms. A, interview, February 22, 2018).
Knowing and understanding students better is what helped Ms. A determine which vocabulary
was the hardest for her ELL students to comprehend, and, therefore, became the vocabulary she
went over in detail the most. Setting expectations, goals, and learning outcomes is another area in
which knowing where students are, what they need, and where they are going next becomes
important. Ms. A explained that these are good strategies to use to keep students motivated and
to best scaffold their learning, but to help them become successful, the teacher needs to
understand them well enough to choose expectations, goals, and learning outcomes wisely for
each individual student.

Differentiation also played a large role in my interview with the ELL teacher. One of the
questions I asked was, “Do you primarily create your own lessons for these students, or help
them with the work they have in their homeroom classrooms?”, to which she responded by
saying,
At the beginning of the year I made my own lessons on what I thought they would be
doing and needing. Communication with homeroom teachers is key so that I can borrow
whatever they are working on in their classrooms. If students are struggling on different
areas in their own classroom, I create my own lessons for extra practice in my room
during pull out. Spending time on writing since that isn’t a huge focus in homeroom
classrooms. Talk more without distraction in pullout,” (ELL Teacher, interview, April 5,
2018).
Everything stated in this quote pushes for better understanding of each individual student’s needs
when differentiating their lessons. Creating lessons based on their needs could only be done, the
ELL teacher mentioned, by knowing their needs and understanding where they needed to focus
the most of their time and effort. Depending on where students were struggling, which meant
observing them over a period of time to gain knowledge of their learning, she would create
lessons to help combat difficulties they were having with the material.
Preparedness of the Teacher
The final big theme I noticed throughout my data collection was how prepared teachers
felt they were to have an ELL student placed in their classroom, and how the more experienced
the teacher was with ELL students, the more comfortable they felt with one on their roster. Many
teachers solidly and emphatically disagreed when talking about whether they believed most
teachers come into the classroom prepared to fit the needs of an ELL student. When talking
about how prepared they felt now to accept an ELL student in their class, many agreed that they
did feel prepared, but in comments they provided they explained that because of all of the years
of experience they have now they mostly feel like they could handle ELL students in their
classroom.
On the survey, when asked “Do you believe most teachers are prepared to have ELL
students in their classrooms?”, thirteen of the twenty-one teachers said no, and five said
sometimes they are or that it depends on the teacher; only three teachers said yes. One comment
from a teacher stated,
No. I have seen where teachers are lacking in experience with ELL students. Some
teachers accept ELL students with open arms and are willing to learn how to adapt and
differentiate for ELL students, others are scared of teaching them or do not want to deal
with them since it's an extra step in planning. If a teacher has a background, even of just
doing student teaching with ELL students, it helps them be more comfortable teaching
ELLs later, (ELL Teacher, survey, February 13, 2018),
Having knowledge of the unique needs associated with ELL students makes a huge difference,
according to this teacher, on whether or not the teacher feels ready to have an ELL student
placed in their classroom. Learning more about these students once they have them placed in
their classrooms was another point made in order for the student and teacher to be successful.
Another comment on the survey was, “Not always but you can gain more knowledge and
teaching strategies by working with your school's ELL teacher and attending workshops,” (Math
Specialist K-5 Teacher, survey, February 13, 2018). This showed, again, how learning new
information from the resources available can help teachers build a solid foundation in managing
a classroom that included an ELL student. The teacher is then more prepared to meet the needs
of the ELL student and to be more successful in their teaching of the material.
When teachers were asked on the survey the same questions, but turned on themselves as
teachers, “If you have had or currently have an ELL student: Did/do you feel prepared to have an
ELL student in your classroom?”, these were a couple responses: “At this point yes, but I've
received training and had an ELL certification,” (2nd Grade Teacher, survey, February 27,
2018), “At first no, but we didn't have any course work because there was not many ELL
students when I was in college but my student teaching was in a school that was 50% Spanish
speakers so I got a lot of hands-on training,” (Math Specialist K-5 Teacher, survey, February 13,
2018). Both of these teachers talked about experience playing a large role in how confident they
felt in meeting the needs of an ELL student in their classroom. Receiving training and having
hands-on experience with ELL students helped them to feel more prepared and better equipped
to help their ELL students learn successfully.
A third question on the survey asking about the preparedness of a teacher to have an ELL
student placed in their classroom was, “Do you believe teachers should be expected to attend a
workshop or a class on accommodating ELL students before an ELL student is included in their
classroom?”. Eighteen of the twenty-one teachers answered yes, and a nineteenth teacher said, “I
think that depends on the college courses they took, years of experience, their comfort level, and
current success as a classroom teacher. If they need it, yes. If they show proficiency and have
enough training and experience from the field, then no,” (Math Specialist K-5 Teacher, survey,
February 13, 2018). Another teacher stated, “absolutely! My first year of teaching I had 2 ELL
students in my class, one who had just arrived from Mexico. I was handed a book entitled "So
They Don't Speak English! Now What?" (TAG Teacher, survey, February 13, 2018). Finally,
another statement from a teacher read, “Yes, nothing can prepare a teacher 100%. But, having
some tools could help ease some of the stress,” (5th Grade Teacher, survey, February 13, 2018).
All of these comments showed that, yes, attending workshops and gaining information on what
to do differently in your teaching when working with ELL students was seen as extremely
necessary, if not a requirement, by the majority of the teachers. When the teacher received
information about working with ELL students, or had hands-on experience with these students,
they felt more prepared.
When reading through the survey submitted by the ELL teacher, she had a lot of input on
this matter. When asked about how she felt about her preparedness to work with ELL students
she stated,
I felt prepared because I went to school to become an ELL teacher. Each school is
different, but I feel like a training would be good for each teacher in the school to have so
they will be prepared when they have an ELL student at some point in their classroom. I
feel like most teachers just do not understand what ELL students go through each day.
They translate every single word in their head to Spanish and then English. Imagine
doing that every day...for every word...every time a word is read or spoken. And then to
be tossed into an all English taught school for 7 hours each day…, (ELL K-5 teacher,
survey, February 13, 2018).
Coming from a professional who went through school specifically learning about ELL students,
experience or training for teachers who are gaining an ELL student in their classroom is crucial
to helping them meet the needs of that student. She felt prepared to meet their needs because of
her training, but not all teachers have her level of knowledge on this topic and do not feel as
prepared as she did coming into the job.
During the interview with Ms. A, I asked, “When you had your first ELL student placed
in your classroom, did you feel prepared?”, and her response to this was,
No, I don’t think JMU prepared us well enough. I was a practicum student in one
classroom that had like 8 different languages in it. The main teacher was new and had
students who didn’t speak any English. Especially when you don’t have those language
backgrounds yourself. Completely overwhelmed. We used to not have an ELL teacher for
support and did not have a person in the building that was readily available. Wasn’t even
really a thing, (Ms. A, interview, February 22, 2018).
Ms. A was put into an environment that was not prepared to accommodate for the large ELL
population it contained. She was still a teacher in training and her cooperating teacher did not
have the experience, foundational knowledge, or resources/aid to meet the needs of her ELL
students. Ms. A felt completely unprepared to handle this situation because she did not have the
training necessary to combat the difficulties or obstacles she, and the students, faced during
lessons. Wishing for better preparation on accommodating ELL students at school was the first
comment she made when asked this question, and was, to Ms. A, something she thought would
have been valuable during her training to become a teacher.

Discussion
Difficulties of Not Understanding First Language
Having the opportunity to observe one teacher who speaks little to no Spanish and one
teacher who speaks Spanish fluently brought me to a question I had not planned on learning
answers to, which was how having a teacher with the ability to speak an ELL student’s first
language affected the learning of the ELL student. This helped me to see both sides to having an
ELL student in the classroom, one side in having a teacher that needs to fit her lessons to her
ELL student with no knowledge of their first language, and the other side in having a teacher that
has the ability to communicate in both languages and, therefore, can plan lessons that include the
ELL student(s)’s first language if necessary. I learned that teachers who have more experience
with their ELL students’ first languages have an easier time working with their students. Making
deeper connections with these students and helping them to become more engaged and feel more
included in the classroom were the biggest benefits I saw to these students’ learning.
The first information I learned was that because Ms. S speaks Spanish, the majority of the
ELL students on her grade level (whose first language is Spanish) are put into her classroom
each year. This gave me insight into how the school system chooses to place students each year
in their homeroom classrooms, and also explained why Ms. S’ classroom roster had such a large
portion dedicated to ELL students. After hearing comments from her students, I came to realize
how encouraging it is to ELL students to have a teacher that knows their language. I know
through one of the first lessons I had with Ms. S’ ELL students that they can get quiet or act
nervous if they do not know how to respond to a question, or if they speak Spanish and are
noticed.
Today during my reading lesson with two of the ELL students in Ms. S’ room I heard one
of the boys speaking Spanish to the other one after I had asked a question. When I asked
him what he said he looked at me with a very nervous expression as if he thought he was
in trouble with me for not speaking English. Once I reassured him that I was very
interested in what he had said, and after I had also included the other boy in our
conversation to see if he would tell me what he had been told in Spanish, I found out that
they were correct in their answer to my question. The first student had just not known
how to respond in English, or maybe had simply instinctively answered to his friend in
their native tongue as this seemed more comfortable for him. (Meghan, professional
journal, February 22, 2018).
After this experience, I started to put more of an effort into allowing them to incorporate Spanish
in the conversations they had with me throughout the lesson as long as one or both of them could
translate what was said to me. This seemed to get them more actively engaged in the lesson and
they were more at ease with me after this. They were more active in their participation to the
lesson and more willing to share their thoughts, whether those thoughts were in English or
Spanish did not seem to matter anymore. Even though I have very little understanding of the
Spanish language, I found that the moment I was willing to incorporate it into my lessons with
these students and put in effort to learn more about what they had to share in their first language,
the students’ personalities changed entirely. They were willing to learn and participate, whereas
before they were shy, unconfident, and disengaged.
While I know that the one ELL student in Ms. A’s classroom loves having Ms. A as a
teacher, as proven by how many hugs she is willing to give, I wonder how differently this
student would do in a classroom with a teacher that speaks vietnamese as well as English. This
student is very bright, however, and does well in her studies. Her English language capabilities
are on a higher level and she rarely struggles with English. This I am sure also has to do with
how successful this student is in her school work because she has a decent grasp of her second
language and is on par with her classroom peers. After hearing Ms. A’s answer to my interview
question, I was also made aware of how teachers and families of ELL students are affected when
there is a language barrier between them. This showed me difficulties I may face when becoming
an ELL teacher if I do not understand much or any of my students’ native language, as was the
case with Ms. A.
After reading and hearing the ELL teacher’s response to my questions, however, I
became more encouraged in becoming an ELL teacher. Her responses gave me hope that even if
the teacher only understands a small amount of the student’s first language, this is still beneficial
to both the teacher and the student. They also gave me a drive to learn as much about the
student’s native language as possible so that I am able to overcome the difficulties associated
with a language barrier. This will also aid me when interacting with families of students and help
me to improve the connection I hope to have between home and school. The importance of using
translators and other resources available to me when I become an ELL teacher was also made
apparent and I believe this will also help me grow and improve for myself and my future
students.
Visual Aids and Manipulatives
Due to the overwhelming number of responses from teachers on the survey I sent
throughout the school saying that they use visuals and/or manipulatives in their lessons, I found
this to be an extremely important factor of not only ELL differentiation, but also teaching in
general. Many of the responses also stated that they used pictures or visual aid especially when it
came to new vocabulary. As I learned from my article collection discussed under the literature
review, vocabulary is a key component to the success of ELL students. I have also found how
beneficial pictures are to learning new vocabulary while leading small reading groups, and
pictures became a solid addition to each lesson plan. Again, the type of visual aid, I learned,
mattered a lot less than the fact that something was used during each lesson. I had not prepared
for this during my first lesson, but luckily had my laptop with me to google pictures when I saw
the ELL students were struggling to understand the words being introduced. This was a simple
and quick fix to my problem and proved to be very successful even though it was nothing
extensive or extravagant.
I thought that the words I was introducing were pretty straightforward and were words
that the students would already know, but they seemed to be having a really hard time
understanding as I gave the definitions and tried to explain them. I started to pull up the
words on google images to show them a picture of each word and they really enjoyed
this. They all leaned over to get a closer look at my computer and started talking about
the new words and using them in sentences. They also thought of other examples of the
words to share with me. This reminded me of what I had read in a few of the articles at
the beginning of the semester about using visuals to help build an ELL student’s
vocabulary, (Meghan, professional journal, February 20, 2018).
Manipulatives were also mentioned frequently by many of the teachers, both in the
survey and during interviews. Manipulatives work in the same way as pictures to give students a
visual of how something works or what something means. I used this during a reading group
lesson, as well as many of my lessons in other subject areas when teaching in Ms. A’s room. “I
used a triangle cut out of a piece of paper and made a dot on another sheet of paper to help them
understand rotation because I did not think that any of the pictures I found on google were
sufficient in showing how rotation was different from spinning,” (Meghan, professional journal,
March 15, 2018). Yet again, my manipulative, or visual aid, for this lesson was nothing extreme
or special. It was just a piece of paper in the shape of a triangle and another piece of paper with a
dot on it. Showing students through a simple manipulative improved their understanding of a
new vocabulary word, and helped them to realize the differences between this word and others in
the lesson.
I used this same strategy in a science lesson I taught in Ms. A’s classroom. This visual
aid was a little more complicated and planned out, but still effective in helping students
understand the material. “The kids loved making the cardboard cars and I think it helped them
really understand the importance of an axel. They already easily understood the wheels, but the
axel was still a little hard to grasp until they began rolling around the cars they made, (Meghan,
professional journal, April 5, 2018). This was a hands-on activity the students worked on in
groups to better learn the information. Another hands-on lesson I planned, again when learning
about simple machines in science, also proved to help students not only learn the information,
but retain it. “It was so much fun taking the kids outside to push the box of dictionaries up the
slide. I also think they loved the items I brought in to weigh with pennies and marbles. One
group finished early and even got to change the angle of the dictionary making it steeper. They
realized that the weight of their object changed when they had to pull it up a steeper slope and
they had to use more pennies,” (Meghan, professional journal, April 12, 2018). I asked these
same students a few days later about inclined planes and the students used their memories of the
slide and the penny experiment to remember the name of the simple machine they learned about.
In yet another lesson with Ms. A’s students, this time during math, students used various
measuring tools to learn about the metric system and the U.S. customary system. “Letting the
kids use rulers, meter sticks, and yardsticks during the activity was a good idea. I think just
talking about the lengths didn’t help them visualize as much as actually using and practicing with
the real tools,” (Meghan, professional journal, March 15, 2018). The use of manipulatives in this
lesson helped make the information more engaging and interactive for the students. They
enjoyed using their hands to learn the information instead of only being lectured at or learning
through worksheet practice.
During the interviews, Ms. A brought word walls and word boards to my attention. Those
are fantastic visuals to help students throughout the year and over the course of many lessons. I
always think of visuals as pictures or videos, but decorations around the room are also great
ways to help students remember and understand new material. These may involve more work
from the teacher but can help give students a consistent visual throughout the entire year as they
learn. This also connected to the ELL teacher’s comments about labeling objects around the
classroom when discussing teacher understanding of first languages. Especially for students who
know little to no English when first entering the classroom, labeling the room can help them not
only become better acquainted with their surroundings, but also helps them practice their English
vocabularies. I also learned from her interview that using pictures can be used as assessments to
understand both what students already know and whether students have learned the new
information after a lesson. While these vary in how complicated they are to implement, all of
them provide benefits to the learning and growth of ELL students.
Differentiation in Planning
When talking to Ms. A on multiple occasions during lesson planning of my own lessons,
she would give me advice, show me her plans, and give me resources I could use. One big
difference I noticed between the lesson plans I was writing and the lesson plans she had already
written was that I was a lot more detailed in my plans on how I wanted to differentiate. While
she would cover differentiation in her plans, and would certainly differentiate her lessons as she
taught them, she did not explicitly plan out everything she wanted to modify or do differently for
her ELL students. She seemed to already know and understand what she had to do differently for
these students without needing to think everything through and write it in detail in her plans. She
had the experience and ability to differentiate when necessary during her lessons without
following a guide. This brought to my attention the difference between an experienced teacher,
like Ms. A, and a novice teacher, like myself. I did not have the same years of experience that
she had gathered through teaching and, while I would have to plan detailed lessons in order to fit
the needs of the students, she had already been modifying her lessons for years and did not need
the extra planning.
Research in learning to teach has made clear, that “expertise and experience are not
identical, but . . . experience is a necessary component of expertise” (Rich & Almozlino,
1999)...When watching expert teachers, their actions and interactions in the classroom
seem to be remarkably intuitive, they just know what to do or what to say. Larkin et al.
(1980) similarly describe physics experts as those who, “can often solve difficult
problems rapidly and without much conscious deliberation about a plan of attack” (p.
1335), (Meyer, 2004, p. 972).
As stated in the quote above, explains perfectly how I saw Ms. A’s teaching. She could change
her lessons in an instant right in the middle of the subject if it were necessary for her students
because she had the knowledge and resources available to do so. If I did not plan specifically for
differentiation and make notes on changes that may occur mid-lesson as well as how I would
combat those changes, then I would have a much more difficult time running my lessons
smoothly. By having these years of teaching to back up her knowledge on ELL students, she was
able to better understand her students’ needs quicker than myself and make changes mid-lesson
depending on what they needed at the time. Not only did she have a better understanding of her
students and what accommodations were required by them for success, but she had the
knowledge and resources available to meet these needs.
In response to the comments I received from teachers on my survey, I was not surprised
that the majority of teachers in the school do differentiate or are willing to differentiate their
lessons to fit the needs of their students. Through comments, the fact that teachers need to get to
know their students and the ways they learn as much as possible became apparent, and showed to
be a necessary step in helping them grow in their understanding of the English language. Putting
emphasis on the areas that need attention rather than using differentiation strategies in all areas,
including those that the student does not need the extra help, became something I learned from
the teachers of this school. I learned having these extra accommodations became a waste of time
if the students did not need them, and took away from the time students really did need lessons
that were differentiated. This, again, comes from knowing the students, what they do need, and
also what they do not.
The interviews I conducted were beneficial as well in helping me better understand where
teachers tend to focus as they differentiate their lesson plans. Ms. A continued the support for
vocabulary growth, but also added in the importance of setting clear goals and expectations for
students. I have learned through my experience with students that lessons always run smoother
the more organized both the teacher and the students are prior to the beginning of the lesson. If
students understand what they are expected to learn and how they are expected to behave, there
are fewer mishaps that arise during the lesson because students know what they are supposed to
do. This would easily translate to ELL students because if they can understand at the beginning
of the lesson what they are going to be focusing on and learning about, they will have an easier
time staying on task and following along with the teacher’s instruction. Their expectations would
also be at a reasonable level according to their needs and where they are in their learning.
I found from the ELL teacher’s process in lesson planning to be very interesting because
she is almost expected to do the differentiation of the lessons for the ELL students’ classroom
teachers. She takes their lessons and the material the students are learning in their classroom and
modifies them to fit the needs of the student for extra practice and tutoring. This reminds me of
co-teaching because the ELL teacher and the classroom teachers are sharing the responsibility of
teaching the material to the ELL students in order for them to succeed. She observes the students
as they are learning material in their own classrooms, listens to information homeroom teachers
can provide about the students’ learning, and takes this knowledge into planning lessons
specifically based on what the ELL students need the most.
Preparedness of the Teacher
After reading the responses I got from teachers on the survey, I realized just how
closely related experience is to how prepared a teacher feels to handle ELL students in their
classroom. This follows closely behind my discussion of an experienced versus a novice teacher
when I talked about my data on differentiation in lesson planning for ELL students. The vast
majority of the teachers’ comments had, at least in part, to do with the amount of experience they
had had in working with or learning about ELL students and their unique needs prior to having
one placed in their classroom. A few stated that they did not feel prepared at first, but after
working with these students and learning more about resources, techniques, and strategies to help
accommodate them, they now feel more confident in their teaching abilities. Even having said
this, however, most of the teachers also energetically agreed with the inclusion of workshops to
help inform teachers about ELL students and ways to combat difficulties they may face when
planning for and teaching lessons to these students. Understanding where these students come
from, their cultural differences, more about their first language, and prior knowledge these
students may have were also key components to the responses I received. When teachers felt as
if they knew their students better and understood more of the knowledge the students were
coming into the classroom with, they felt safer in caring for and teaching these ELL students.
Drawing from my own experiences in working with ELL students at this school, I also
found training from the more experienced teachers in the classroom as well as hands-on
experience to be invaluable. The more lessons I taught, the more comfortable I felt with the ELL
students, and the more confident I became in knowing how best to meet their needs. When I first
started teaching them, I was solely going off of what I had read in articles was successful in
working with these students. I had very little training and was very inexperienced. By the end of
my placement, I was able to send lesson plans fit to the needs of the students to the classroom
teacher in as little time as the night before I was supposed to teach, which much of the time was
the case because she would not always know what curriculum she should have them focus on
next until the day prior to my lesson. My lessons in the beginning were very scripted and stiff,
with little flexibility or wiggle room depending on the students’ needs during the lesson. My
lessons nearing the end of my placement were almost a maze of planning. There were many
different directions the lesson could go in as students were learning depending on whether they
hit a dead end or made it all the way to the exit. I felt better prepared to switch up my lessons if
necessary and had the knowledge to do so after gaining more experience. I feel much more
prepared for my own classroom of ELL students now that I have had training from classroom
teachers and have taught my own lessons with this group of students.
My interview with Ms. A was also very eye opening. With how amazing of a teacher I
found her to be, it surprised me when she said that her experiences prior to becoming a teacher
were lacking and that she did not feel prepared to handle her own classroom, especially when
ELL students were included. Experience working with students seems to be the most important
part in feeling prepared to handle your own classroom and meet the many unique needs of all
students you are placed with. I have learned that practicum and student teaching placements have
a huge impact on whether or not a new teacher has the confidence to successfully manage a
classroom and have the knowledge necessary to help ELL students succeed. When put with
teachers who are not prepared to handle a practicum student or student teacher, as was the case
with Ms. A, these new teachers are put at even more of a disadvantage because they are not
gaining valuable teaching experience or successful guidance from the classroom teacher.
Because I was placed with more experienced teachers that could train me to meet the needs of
their ELL students, I gained much more knowledge on this topic than Ms. A was able to acquire
during her practicum experience. Overall within my data, the success of ELL students has proven
to be linked to the knowledge the classroom teacher has on meeting their specific needs. This
knowledge, I have learned, comes from both experience of the teacher and the willingness of the
teacher to learn more about their students.

Conclusion
The experience of working on this project has been beneficial in helping me better
understand the ways teachers accommodate ELL students in their classrooms, and the resources
schools may have available to help these teachers with their ELL students. The four main themes
I came across when analyzing my data were understanding an ELL student’s first language,
using visual aids and manipulatives during lessons, various methods of differentiation when
lesson planning, and the preparedness of the teacher to successfully meet the needs of ELL
students. My biggest takeaways from what I have learned would be that knowing my students is
exponentially important to their success. If I am able to get to know them, their prior knowledge,
and their experiences at home and outside of school, I am better able to create a plan to fit their
needs in a way that is effective and efficient to their learning. Using pictures, videos, games,
hands-on learning activities, and technology are all great ways to help ELL students connect the
material to themselves and to real-life. These help ELL students become more engaged and
interested in what they are learning and can help them retain the information better and longer.
There are many ways teachers differentiate their lesson plans to meet the needs of ELL
students. This can be good because it means the teachers are taking into account what their
students need rather than following only one method of differentiation that may or may not work
for their class. Teachers are better able to differentiate their lessons when they have had more
experience in doing so. With more experience comes less planning, because teachers have the
knowledge and resources they need to be successful in meeting the needs of their students.
Experience also plays a large role in how prepared a teacher is to accommodate for an ELL
student. Having workshops or other opportunities available to teachers to aid them in their
learning about ELL students is beneficial and wanted. I plan on using the information I have
learned from this project to help me in my own classroom with ELL students. I have been able to
gain many suggestions and resources from teachers within the school to help me feel more
prepared when I am on my own.

References
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Appendices
Summary for Cooperating Teacher
Throughout the rest of the semester in my ELED 622 course, I will be conducting an
inquiry project. My project’s topic is on planning differentiated lessons for ELL students,
teaching these lessons in a way that accommodates ELL student need, and collecting information
on tools and resources around the school that are available for teacher use to help assist ELL
students in their learning and understanding of both the English language and the standard
curriculum. To collect my data for my project, I will be conducting interviews, sending out
surveys, collecting documents (lesson plans) and artifacts (tools and resources), and keeping a
professional journal. My goal is to plan for and teach at least one lesson a week with ELL
students (either whole or small group in any subject area) over the next few weeks. I will ask
express permission for any interviews, surveys, or artifacts I collect from teachers and staff
around the school. I am hoping that by learning more about how to meet the needs of ELL
students, through both observation and interaction, I will be better prepared to take on my own
classroom after graduation. Because this is not research and is only a project for my class, I will
not be required to send out a consent form to parents. While I will be teaching my lessons, the
students will not be a part of my data collection; my focus will be on the school and teachers.
Any information I collect will be kept confidential, and names or other forms of identification
will not be used or included.
Triangulation Matrix
Research Questions Data source #1 Data source #2 Data source #3
1. How can I better Survey teachers (how Documented Professional Journal -

differentiate my they approach lesson differentiation in diary as I
lesson plans to fit the planning for ELLs) lesson plans (mine plan/differentiate
needs of ELL and my CT’s)

students?
2. How can I learn Video lesson Observations: Survey Professional Journal -

more about teaching CT teacher feedback) diary as I teach my
my lessons to meet lesson plans
the needs of ELL
students?
3. What resources or Survey teachers Artifact Collection Interview Resources

tools do I have (tools/resources they (what the school has (aides, ELL teachers,
available to me in the use and their available and uses etc…)
classroom to effectiveness) through various
accommodate for sources)
ELL students?
Interview Questions
● Ms. A Interview:
1. How many years have you been teaching?
2. How many years have you taught at this school?
3. How many ELL students do you currently have in your classroom?
4. Have you had ELL students in your class during previous years of teaching?
5. What is your definition of an ELL student?
6. Do you think there are various levels of ELL students?
7. Do you believe all of your current ELL students should be labeled as ELL?
8. Do you feel prepared enough, or as if you have enough experience, to meet the
needs of your ELL student(s)?
9. When you had your first ELL student placed in your classroom, did you feel
prepared?
10. What has been your experience working with ELL students?
11. What do you think is the most difficult part when planning lessons to
accommodate your ELL students?
12. What do you believe is the best part in having an ELL student in your classroom?
13. What resources or strategies do you use in your teaching that you find to be the
most helpful when working with ELL students?
14. Do you think there is enough ELL support provided to you by the school in
general?
15. If ELL students were a color, what color would they be?
● ELL Teacher Interview:
1. Since this is your first year teaching, is anything very different than you thought it
would be when working with your ELL students?
2. You work with a lot of ELL students, are they very different in their English
capabilities?
3. Do you have any students that speak no English at all (or didn’t at the beginning
of the year)?
4. What are the first steps you take with a student that has no English abilities at
all?
5. What do you do differently with the lower students vs. the higher students?
6. Is it difficult to work with home room teachers of these students?
7. Do you ever interact with your students’ parents/families?
8. What is the WIDA ACCESS test you mentioned on the online survey?
9. Do you primarily create your own lessons for these students, or help them with
the work they have in their homeroom classrooms?
10. What are your favorite or most often used resources for these students?
11. What are the big differences between push in and pull out instruction?
12. What is the best advice you could give to a new first-year ELL teacher?
13. Does your advice change if you are giving it to a homeroom teacher that does
not specifically work with ELL students?
14. What is your favorite part about being an ELL teacher?
15. What is the most challenging part?
16. If ELL students were a color, what color would they be?
Survey Questions:
● Name
● Grade Level
● How many years have you been a teacher?
● How many years have you taught at this school?
● Do you have any experience with ELL (English Language Learner) students?
● Have you ever had an ELL student in your classroom?
● Do you currently have ELL students in your classroom?
● Do you believe most teachers are prepared to have ELL students in their classrooms?
● Do you believe teachers should be expected to attend a workshop or a class on
accommodating ELL students before an ELL student is included in their classroom?
● Do you agree with ELL inclusion in a native speaking classroom?
● If you have had or currently have an ELL student:
○ Did/do you feel prepared to have an ELL student in your classroom?
○ Were/are your ELL student(s) at an English speaking level where they need(ed)
a decent amount of accommodation in the classroom?
○ Did/do you differentiate your lesson plans to meet their needs?
○ If so, did/do you find differentiating your lessons to be difficult and time-
consuming, or simple and quick?
○ Which part(s) of your lesson planning do you primarily focus on and put the most
effort into?
○ When teaching a lesson, what did/do you do differently to combat any difficulties
your ELL student may have?
○ Did/do you modify your assessments for ELL students?
○ Have you used resources specifically for use with ELL students in your
classroom? (ex. School aides, bilingual texts, online pre-made lesson plans,
English practice tools or activities, visual aids, google translate, etc…)
○ Have you used teaching strategies created specifically for ELL students in your
classroom? (ex. pairing students to complete work, peer reviews, Project Based
Learning (PBL), drills, lengthening or shortening individual practice/work, etc…)
● Pulling from your knowledge or experience with ELL students:
○ What do you think of the use of technology to meet ELL students needs?
○ Have you personally used different forms of technology when working with ELL
students? (ex. ESL short stories, ELL practice websites, videos, SmartBoard
games/activities, etc…)
○ What areas, specifically with reading and writing, do you believe ELL students
struggle with the most?
○ What subject areas, such as math, science, social studies, reading, etc…, do you
believe ELL students struggle with the most?
○ Are other students affected by having ELL peers in their class?
○ What challenges do teachers face with ELL students in their classrooms?
● If you have experience with schoolwide provided ELL support, do you find pull-out ELL
instruction to be more beneficial or ELL support within the classroom?

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Running head: WORKING WITH ELLS IN THE CLASSROOM

Working with ELLs in the Classroom

James Madison University

this project to help me in my future classroom teaching English as a second language

sources, I plan on implementing visuals and manipulatives in my lessons, as well as using

difficulties that come along with learning a new language.

future lesson plans.

accommodate these students during instruction.

including their varying English language abilities.

their own teaching…[reflecting] on how effective teaching techniques support ELL

to occur, (Bohon, McKelvey, Rhodes, & Robnolt, 2017).

with planned lessons.

study on a Multi-faceted, Comprehensive Vocabulary Instructional Program (MCVIP). While

Importance of Vocabulary Growth

vocabulary, useful in fluent reading, becomes an invaluable component of this proficiency

benefits to the students’ learning can prove to be invaluable.

both inside and outside of the classroom, and visual aids.

through vicarious experiences, including interactive technology, pictures, virtual tours,

extravagantly as creating trips to community locations for learning, or as simply as allowing

Importance of Reading Comprehension

aspects of reading comprehension that go outside of students possessing extensive vocabularies.

needed to grow in their learning.

Tools and Strategies

according to LaGue & Wilson (2010).

is described by Baron (1969) as “a “diagrammic representation of the basic vocabulary of a unit

Context and Participants

labeled as having limited English proficiency, and 7% have a learning disability.

well as helping to decrease biases.

the past few months.

misunderstandings helped me improve on my own styles of teaching as well. Expanding on my

therefore, helped me to establish an audit trail for validity.

a way to cover each’s weaknesses, thereby giving me ample data to analyze.

by anyone in the school. To incorporate documentation analysis, finally, I needed access to

extra study/tutoring period), read aloud, and small group reading.

stage, and/or model for my own.

Validity, Reliability, Generalizability

is shown through my audit trail.

Qualitative generalizability can be ensured by my ability to so richly describe data and

their own situations to my own from this project.

As described above while discussing validity, reliability, and generalizability, I chose to

Throughout my data collection at my school placement I learned many aspects of

student was placed in their classroom.

Difficulties of Not Understanding First Languages

express their knowledge in English.

became a challenge because of the lack of support provided through translators.

the survey, she answered,

February 13, 2018).

students?”, to which she responded,

what they know, (ELL Teacher, interview, April 5, 2018).

Visual Aids and Manipulatives

or as complicated as implementing a hands on activity with realia, the students’ understanding of

students. Multiple questions were used to collect this data.

of visuals, mostly picture representations, to improve student understanding and engagement.

students grasp the meanings of new words and information.

made sure to include visual aid in her lessons through pictures.

aid in the classroom.

better, realized and accommodated for this.

each individual student.

Preparedness of the Teacher

from a teacher stated,

ELLs later, (ELL Teacher, survey, February 13, 2018),

to help their ELL students learn successfully.

they felt more prepared.