Promotion of Literacy Development in English Language Learners
Introduction
The issue of development of literacy and learning of English language has received increased attention particularly at elementary and secondary school levels. This is where teachers of content area have a major responsibility of teaching content without consideration of every student’s level of literacy regarding English language. Promotion of literacy development have resulted to identification of several principles appearing in learners of English language including creation of responsive classrooms, connecting to lives of students and also improve interaction of students with text as well as their fellow students (Barone, 2005). In cases where teachers of content area utilize these principles, they will be assured of effective promotion of literacy development within all students involved in learning of English language.
Prior to consideration of the manner in which early literacy can be developed, it is necessary that the terminology of learning English language (ELLs) can be identified. ELLs identifies children who are not native speakers of English language and are now engaged in learning English language as their second language. The main cause of a situation where need for learning English language has increased is the consequent growth of immigrant population as well as shift of demographic trends (Barone, 2005). This significant increase of children from immigrant families results to creation of education programs as well as early care implications within US.
Promotion of Literacy Development in English Language Learners
Studies have found out that children from immigrant families represent the segment that grows very fast in comparison to the overall child population within US. The greatest percentage of this category of children use their native language when conversing at home making it necessary that they go through learning of English language in order to apply it in school as well as settings of child care. It is also of great necessity to consider challenges being encountered by ELLs which include delays in reading skills development that have long-term effects regarding their learning capacity in years to come.
Background of literacy development in learning of English language
Research studies have revealed that knowledge of alphabet as well as phonological awareness represent very tough predictors concerning significant literacy development within children (Hong, 2007). During processing of written as well as spoken English language, there is normally an employment of phonological code in human brain in order to suggest linguistic information. This is a very unique code for every language, whereby each of them has a different sounds’ set, with definite rules governing the combination of these sounds into words as well as syllables. Phonological awareness represents manipulation of language at the phonological level, which means that those involved in learning English as their second language are more focused on component sounds from spoken words but not their actual meanings.
Performance of phonological awareness as applied during learning of English language
Performance on phonological awareness procedures within kindergarten level has been revealed as a significant predictor to successful reading, more so, in elementary school. It has become very clear that children encountering considerably definite reading disability also suffer phonological awareness deficits. These have possible association to difficulties experienced during coding and processing of phonological information. The manner in which English learners represent their words phonologically is also put in great consideration during prediction of successful reading skills. It is perceived that phonological processing capability exhibits stability for considerably long period of time (Hong, 2007). However, further studies concerning this matter have revealed that skills associated with phonological awareness are also sometimes taught. Expansion of phonological awareness is normally connected to corresponding achievement in reading skills.
It has become significant that the major function of phonological awareness is accorded recognition in regard to its impact on children experiencing limited proficiency during English learning. It has been realized that these children normally benefit from phonological awareness whereby it enables them to read in their native languages as well as second language which in this particular case is English. Major characteristics of these children involved in development of literacy in instances where they are learning English include unique strengths as well as deficiencies.
Recent studies on the achievement English learners accrue from phonological awareness shows that in instances where English language is concerned, there is successful acquisition of literacy. This means that the skills of phonological awareness which are developed in the learners’ native languages are transferred in such a way that it facilitates literacy development while learning English language.
The pattern through which skills of phonological awareness develop
The skills of phonological awareness are found to portray a more or less predictable pattern that flows in a similar form throughout all languages being learnt. That similar pattern is experienced from larger sound units to the small ones. The same case occurs to the patterns formed by word all the way to syllable and phoneme (Hong, 2007). From this realization, it is learnt that the skills of phonological awareness whose development take place in a particular language can as well be transferred to a different language that in this case is English. This can happen even when the learning skills involved are still under development.
An extensive study of the existing association phonological skills applied during literacy development as well as learning English, found out that significant predictors of reading capability of English words included the native as well as second language phonological processing. In this particular case, it is the manner in which English learners comprehend proper pronunciation of their native language that will assist in instances where they are supposed to promote literacy development while learning English vocabularies.
The situation where skills associated with phonological awareness are simultaneously applied in different languages portrays the existing advantages in literacy development. However, this very same transfer is capable of producing significant disadvantages including instances where English learners tend to generalize pragmatics, syntax rules as well as phonology from their native languages during interpretations regarding English language that is most likely their second language.
This tendency to apply skills associated with phonological awareness wrongly is also termed as a negative interference which is likely to cause very undesirable effects on literacy acquisition where learning of English language is concerned (Kyle, 2008). With regard to pattern assumed by phonological awareness, it is presumed that the closer native as well as English language phonologies are, the higher the chances of positive skills transfer compared to instances where a negative transfer is encountered. This is normally because children have a greater possibility of manipulating patterns as well as sounds exiting within native languages. For instance, in cases where native languages as well as English languages exhibit alphabetic languages, there will be actual facilitation of transfer. However, very different results have been encountered in instances where the native and English language exhibit significantly distinct orthographies.
The main factor here could be phonological skill type applied during the transfer in order to gain the necessary literacy in English learning. This has brought forth the consideration of particular strategies as well as concepts utilized in literacy development which are universal in nature and also have their operation across a wide range of languages (Kyle, 2008). These skills require to be obtained only once with consequent application being experienced in practically all languages that learners engage themselves in, including English language. However, these strategies are not only general but also include also language-specific strategies like orthographic patterns with explicit to one language.
Instruction Implications
Consideration of instruction regarding literacy development while learning English language normally has its attention on the language used in giving the instructions. Significant evidence development needs confinement to native or English language (Shanahan, 2006).
The strong association in phonological awareness of native language as well as English language reading success implies that development of literacy skills within a learner’s native language will serve as an important facilitator during literacy development where learning of English is concerned.
In this particular case learners are found to gain from the understanding of native language in the process of learning English which is most likely their second language. Teachers have a considerably essential role in such an instance whereby they are involved in offering motivation to parents of students encountering limited efficiency in learning in order that the involved students practice literacy development at home. Studies have shown that a large number of learners of English language originate from families that do not commonly engage in reading of storybooks. This is the reason as to why these learners’ parents are not informed of the situation whereby literacy experiences associated with native language have a significant contribution to English literacy development (Shanahan, 2006).
Assessment of literacy development while learning English
Assessment forms a very essential of literacy development programs which makes it necessary to have special attention accorded to literacy as well as language skills possessed by learners of English language. The main purpose of the assessment is getting a good picture of the manner in which a child has developed in language; hence there is great need of assessing that particular child in native as well as English language (Kyle, 2008). During this assessment practice, it is necessary that one considers the situation whereby there is a constant change in language balancing implying that language dominance is likely to shift very quickly.
This shift of language dominance can be reflected in an instance where an increase in English proficiency may cause a decline in native language proficiency. This would in turn make both languages to portray considerable weakness in the two languages, hence leaving an allowance for educators to exercise flexibility while interpreting assessment for those children encountering problems in English proficiency. In such cases, educators can try to apply informal assessments using tools like interviews, portfolios as well as observations (Shanahan, 2006).
This assessment where native as well as English languages are used is particularly essential while the students engage in reading. In cases where, a student may experience difficulties in determining the main cause of English readability inefficiency which could either apply to all languages or specifically to English language. In instances where readability inefficiency is experienced in native language but not in the same student’s English language may indicate that the student is encountering a problem in English language proficiency but does not have readability disability. This ki9nd of assessment enables differentiation of students possessing special language learning requirements and those that basically need improving proficiency in English language.
As children obtain literacy, they advance through significant, development stages which are rather predictable reflecting the students’ increasing understanding of the manner in which written language operates (Morrow, 2009). Developmental assessments in spellings represent valuable tools that are applied in assessment of students’ advancement. Teachers of these students can utilize the developmental assessment of spellings in identifying instances where interference as well as well as negative transfer is capable of causing major English learning problems. Therefore, it is necessary that beginners’ instructors put into consideration students’ native language pronunciation styles in order to get a better understanding of nature of problems being encountered by the English learners.
Conclusion
It is clear that literacy development associated with learners of English language require opportunities through which English language learners accumulate background knowledge. Pre-reading activities are in most cases applied in the identification of gaps within student knowledge as well as introduction of new English learning strategies and vocabularies (Morrow, 2009). Hence, for promotion of literacy development to be achieved especially in instances where learning English language is concerned, it is necessary that students are encouraged to engage in reading narratives which they can do so with preferably 90% accuracy. However, anything below this 90% percent is regarded as a level of frustrations or that which portrays inadequacy in reading, word identification and/or understanding capacity.
References
Barone, D. (2005). Teaching early literacy: development, assessment, and instruction, Guilford Press
Hong, S. (2007).Literacy instruction for English language learners, Guilford Press
Kyle, D. (2008). Principles for Teaching English Language Learners in All Classrooms, Corwin Press
Morrow, L. (2009).Literacy development in the early years: helping children read and write, Pearson
Shanahan, T. (2006).Developing literacy in second-language learners, Routledge
