Book Format & Structure

Target audience (1 page):

 
  
Introduction of this project: 2-3 pages (Standard alignment: IRA)
  
 
  
Participants: candidates (background): 5 pages (name, picture, professional background)
  
 
  
Context: school profile, classroom, student background, reading level, challenge (5 to 10 pages)
  
 
  
Individual project description: procedure (contact with the teacher, selection of student, procedure to have students start project, conduct assessment): (15 to 25 pages)
  
 
  
Student project: (40 to 50 pages)
  
 
  
Reflection: interaction with the students and cooperating teacher, student's motivation, assessment result, self-reflection in this process (what have they learnt), challenge, partnership (20 to 25 pages)
  
 
  
Dr. Hsu: wrap up (3 to 5 pages)
  
 
  
Length: 90 pages to 112 pages

Response to Intervention Webinar Series on IRA

Hi all,

Click on the link to see a series of RTI webinars. There's one on Lintistic Diverstiy tomorrow. See the following information.

Linguistic Diversity, April 15, 2010, 6 p.m. EST. Learn effective ways to implement RTI to meet the challenges of linguistically diverse students. Register now.

Week 10 Transcribing Data & Lulu.com

Hi all,

So far you have been at least working with your ELL for at least 3-5 weeks already. It is time to transcribe your data for analysis.

• Accounts of your entire experience (including contacting school for partnership, field work, and guided collaboration with cooperating teacher, reflection upon the process)
• Accounts of your assessment procedures (including detailed descriptions on the student's oral language proficiency and writing abilities, based on the developmental rubric and the SOLOM Matrix)
• Accounts of your instructional decisions (including how you made your instructional decisions and based on what)
• Accounts of your instructional activities and how they worked for the ELL
• Accounts of your interactions with the ELL and how that change your perception of teaching ELL in culturally responsive ways
• Accounts of your strategies focusing on developing ELL's writing abiltities
• Accounts of your collaboration with cooperating teacher

Your data analysis should include original work samples as we discussed in class, not revealing names of the students. You can scan the artifacts or describe them in details.

We will discuss more on how to upload student writing to lulu.com in class. Another good news forAspiring Authors: If you're in grades K-8, Aspiring Authors will help you create your very own book. Have your teacher register your class on Lulu and start writing your original story. Each student that completes a book will receive their first printed copy for free.

Week 5 Guidelines for ELL Book Project

EDLI636 Book Project Guidelines

1. Evaluate student’s writing sample using SOLOM Matrix and Limited English Proficient/English Language Learners Observation Rubric. Also talk to the ESL teacher or cooperating teacher about student’s reading and writing levels.

2. Use “writing prompts” to encourage ELL’s writing. The prompts could be inspired by the authors and illustrators themselves — their distinctive genres, styles, themes, and influences. For example, if student is reading Calef Brown’s Polkabats and Octopus Slacks in class (k-2). After reading, you could ask the student, “If you could acquire one physical characteristic from an animal — any animal EXCEPT a dog or cat — what would it be and why? Think about an animal that you like or find interesting. Draw a self-portrait and write a vivid description of the new you — and be sure to let your readers know about any special powers you might now have.” Then as you mentor through student’s writing, you may want to teach the student descriptive words that help create strong visual imagery. (This project idea comes from the Exquisite Prompt Challenge: http://www.readingrockets.org/books/fun/exquisiteprompt/brown#calef).

Note: This is only one example. You could be doing something different writing prompts depending on what they are doing in ESL or regular classrooms. Consult cooperating teachers to assist develop ELL’s writing skills. The writing process needs to be well planned out according to the stages of writing process. The length of the story also depends upon student’s writing level and your timeline.

3. By the end of the field experience, student should have made a book of his or her finalized prompt writing.

**Link for Calef Brown’s illustrations: http://www.illustrationmundo.com/wp/85.

Week 4 Types of Assessment School Adopted

1. Interview with teachers, reading teachers or resource room teachers to find out what types of assessment schools use, especially on what is necessary to achieve each assessment purpose (i.e., screening, diagnostic, progress monitoring, outcome).
2. Transcribe your interview on your blog (undergraduate use Blackboard blog, graduate use eblogger)

Week 3 Challenges encountered in your field experience...

Document challenges you have encountered this week (e.g. from cooperating teacher, parent, student, or school administration...).

Week 2 Questions

• What is your experience in terms of working or friends with people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds?
• Do you have experience in working with ELLs?
• Do you have experience in teaching ELLs?
• What is your perception on ELLs in terms of their learning motivation and performance in general and in reading and writing specially?
• What learning difficulties do ELLs usually encounter in schools?
• In your observation, how do classroom teachers resolve ELLs’ learning difficulties and improve their learning motivation? What strategies do they often adopt? Are these strategies effective? Are you familiar with these strategies? Are family and community involved?
• What intervention strategies would you adopt if you have ELLs in your class? How do you go about teaching the child? How do you go about reaching out to the family and the community?

Project timeline

Week 2:
-Identify the target student
-Obtain cooperating teacher's consent form (the teacher keeps one copy).
-Obtain parental consent form (the parents keep one copy).
-Answer questions on the blog

Week 3 to 4:
-Interview with the cooperating teacher (using the guiding questions provided)
-Work closely with the cooperating teacher to align the writing activity with the curriculum.
-Work closely with the cooperating teacher to conduct evaluation using the rubrics (writing rubric, and SOLOM Matrix), and identify intervention strategies

-Document challenges you have encountered this week (e.g. from cooperating teacher, parent, student, or school administration...)

Week 5:
-Transcribe interview summary and post it unto your blog
-Start the observation and the writing activity
-Observe and document the target student's learning performance, learning motivation, and how they develop ideas in writing
-Document your observation and reflection on your blog

-Document challenges you have encountered this week (e.g. from cooperating teacher, parent, student, or school administration...)