Interview

    My 2nd VBlog submission is an interview of a former ESL student. I interviewed Victoria Romero. She is one of Lexi's, my daughter, best friends and is just like a daughter to me. We met Tori when she and Lexi were 11 years old and in middle school. This was more than 7 years ago and she has really become part of our family.

    Tori was born in the United States in 2001 and moved around a bit in her younger years. Her mom came to America from Mexico when she was pregnant with Tori. Growing up, her home language was Spanish until her mom began to learn English when Tori was 11 years old. Tori began her education in Chicago at a bilingual school. When she came to Texas, in second grade, she was put into an ESL program. She spent her third grade year in Mexico living with her grandmother. She spoke Spanish at school and at home and with friends. She doesn't recall speaking English in that year, at all. She did watch English television sometimes and she feels that really helped her retain her English language skills. When she returned to Texas, in fourth grade, she went back to her previous school. This time, she was given the option to not participate in the ESL program and was not given any help. At that point, her mom had not yet learned English and her home language remained Spanish exclusively until a few years later. She feels like Math was the only subject that she really struggled in and believes that it was just because of the difference in the standards. Tori attributes her ability to pick up English to her preschool and kindergarten years in the bilingual school. She became fluent in both Spanish and English by the time she was 6 years old. Like the textbook mentions, it seems as though her school intended to "aim to help the student develop both English and their home language, so that they become fully bilingual", (Wright, p. 104).

    The textbook states that students were found to be "much more active, engaged, and vocal during their ESL time. The ESL teacher created a safe environment that effectively lowered the affective filter of her ELLs", (Wright, p. 113-114). In fact, Tori looks back on her time with her ESL teacher and remembers the relationship that they teacher build with her and other students. She felt that this was a good time to ask questions about classwork they had trouble with. They were also given the ability to read in their small group of peers during this time. She talked very affectionately about her time with this teacher and has recently reconnected with her through social media. This teacher made a difference in her life and she feels lucky to have been able to be in her class. 

    Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teach English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2019. Print. Third Edition.

Vblog #1: Introduction

 My name is Brandy Winner. I will be graduating from the University of Houston in December, 2020 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Teaching and Learning. I will become certified to teach early childhood through sixth grade. I hope to teach in the younger grades of elementary school. I live and plan to work in Fort Bend County which is a very diverse county. Fort Bend County is home to families that speak many different languages. I know that I will be using what I learn in this class, Second Language Methodology, in my future classroom.

 

My future classroom will incorporate many strategies and tools that we are learning about. We will celebrate diversity in my class and learn from each other. I will provide visuals and labels in my lessons and around the classroom to help all of my students learn new vocabulary. I think that language is best learned when given lots of opportunities to use their new words. Cooperative learning is something I will promote in my classroom so that students can interact and learn from their peers. When using cooperative learning, “The students have to talk and listen to each other to get the job done. ELLs may feel more comfortable (ie., have a lower affective filter) speaking with their peers in the small group than being called on to speak in front of the whole class.”  (Wright, 2019, p.181). In my future classroom, I will also use Think, Pair, Share when we are working as a whole group during carpet time and this will provide an opportunity for students to have time to think about their answer and listen to another student before being their volunteer to answer. According to Wright, “Think-Pair-Share engages students in paired conversations and provides built-in wait time in a low-risk environment.” (p. 182). I will use technology and any tools that I can to help my students be successful. I want each of my students to be able to communicate and feel safe and valued.

 

 

Wright, W.E. (2019). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice (3^rd edition). Philadelphia, PA: Caslon Publishing. Print.