Supporting English Language Learners in Grades 1 to 8

Section 2 Working together to support English language learners
Types of support
A variety of support models exists. The support model implemented in a school
will be dependent on many different factors, foremost being the number of
English language learners in the school, which varies significantly across the
province. Some schools have large numbers of ELLs; others have very few.
Some schools have ESL or ELD teachers who are on staff for a part or all of
every day, while others have itinerant teachers who visit the schools on a regular
basis. Some have neither.
Delivery models and support should be flexible and based on the needs of the
students. Schools often combine models to suit their populations. What is
important is that ELLs need to interact on a daily basis with proficient speakers
of English in regular classrooms.
Students’ levels of language proficiency determine the type of support required.
Though the type of support will change over time, ELLs require a planned
support program that endures and may extend to their high school experience.
In an Integrated Classroom Support model, the classroom teacher and the ESL
or ELD teacher, or the teacher responsible for ELLs collaborate in the planning,
instruction, and assessment of grade-level curriculum. The development of language
proficiency is tracked through ongoing assessment, which, in turn, determines
the scaffolds to instruction, classroom environment, and assessment that need
to be in place to support the ELL in classroom learning tasks. The classroom
teacher provides targeted instruction specific to the needs of the student through
differentiated instruction, either individually or in small groups, as needed.
Tutorial Support may be provided several times per week to small groups of
English language learners to provide opportunities for practice and reinforcement
of language skills studied in the classrooms. Tutorial work is based on the
curriculum units studied in the regular class. Students receive tutorial support,
as needed, and continue with further targeted instruction, as required.
Decisions about the way intensive support is delivered need to be made on a
child-by-child basis. For beginner ELLs (Stage 1 of Second-Language Acquisition),
intensive support will scaffold their learning. When providing intensive support,
the teacher works with an individual or a small group of ELLs for an uninterrupted
block of time. Students benefit from targeted instruction, integration with their
age peers, and literacy learning blocks that focus on both language learning and
curriculum. The teacher uses a variety of scaffolds all based on the curriculum
units studied in class. Essential critical skills are developed, using modified
expectations and accommodations and activities appropriate for individual
students. If intensive support is provided through a withdrawal program, these
students must be integrated for a portion of the day, and for activities that
they can successfully accomplish with their current language proficiency. It is
important to ensure that all curriculum areas are being addressed when an ELL is
receiving intensive support for English language acquisition.
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