This week, I want to take some time to reflect about dual language learning programs and how they offer insight into second language acquisition. Dual language programs offer enriching linguistic opportunities for students. By supporting and promoting students’ L1 as part of a second language education program, we not only support second language acquisition, we also promote cultural identity, sense of self, and confidence for ELLs. Dual language programs offer strong evidence as being the most effective type of program to support ELLs in acquiring English, and they may also serve as a way for native English speakers to acquire a second language in a learning environment that is ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse. Additionally, dual language programs ultimately challenge our “norm” of English as academic language, and they provide an enriching intersection where language, culture, and identity can merge so that students lay a foundation where they are encouraged to...
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A Focus of Form(s)
This week I would like to explore the ways in which we approach grammar teaching within a dual language learning environment. I’m going to take a deeper look at how we teach grammar, what is effective, and how we can be more intentional in our teaching. The areas I consider, a focus on form vs. a focus on forms, helps us navigate the ways we integrate grammar teaching (or don’t) in an effort to assist ELLs. In understanding a focus on form and a focus on forms, I found it beneficial to consider the way...
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