All children deserve the support and belief of someone else—the belief that they can do it, that they're worthy, that their dreams are important, that their culture is valued. When I look at my high school–level advanced English language learners (ELLs), I see young adults full of passion, dreams, angst, unspoken words, and journeys taken that I can't imagine and journeys yet to come. They matter—every one of them.
These students need support as they struggle to succeed. It isn't simply about getting the credits, knowing what a metaphor is, or finishing an assignment on time. It's also about developing a positive academic identity that will be a powerful force as they pursue college or a career; it's about how they will frame their conversations with the next generation about their own school experiences.
And Here the Story Begins…
I was teaching two advanced ELL classes with students in grades 9–12 at a comprehensive high school that serves approximately 1,600 students in a suburban area in Washington State. The student body was approximately 53 percent white, 15 percent Latino, 14 percent black, and 18 percent Asian. Thirty-eight percent of students qualified for free or reduced-price lunch; 5 percent qualified for English language learner services.
My curriculum was modeled after the school's language arts curriculum, a class most of the students were currently taking. For example, we read a novel together: Mawi Asgedom's Of Beetles and Angels: A Boy's Remarkable Journey from a Refugee Camp to Harvard (Little, Brown, 2002). Students annotated the text for comprehension, identified themes, and wrote responses to the different decisions characters made. Students also wrote essays in a writer's workshop using the writing process.
Students were compliant. What struck me when I conferred with them was they didn't ask about our class work, but rather about graduation and college requirements, vocational programs, and passing state exams, as well as for help understanding challenging texts and assignments from other classes. I could see that my class, and our school, wasn't meeting their needs. I grappled with what to do next.
First, I looked to existing models of services for English language learners at the secondary level: separating advanced students into different classes by grade and directly supporting a grade-level content course, teaching a sheltered advanced ELL language arts class, monitoring advanced students' academic language development in mainstream classes, and coteaching with another teacher in a content course.
Second, I asked the students what kind of support they thought would help them be academically successful. Many had been in two or more high schools and had a wealth of knowledge and experience to draw on. Rosa said she wanted more time and support for completing her writing assignments from language arts. Miguel needed time to complete homework because he had to work four nights a week to help support his family. Enrique needed more time to read because much of his time after school was taken up with babysitting his younger brother. Fatima needed to complete and submit a reading collection of evidence portfolio, an alternative state assessment, because she hadn't passed the state exam. Juan wasn't sure how to complete his culminating senior project, and Gurinder wanted to work on his grammar skills to improve his writing. Students wanted to be successful in school—and many of them had already determined how they could be successful, if given the time and space to do so.
A New Approach
After gathering information from my colleagues and listening to my students, I changed course midyear. I was scared but confident that trying something new would help students be more academically successful. I would meet students where they were and recognize their individual needs.
The First Year
I gave students time each week to independently work on assignments they brought to class. Christian needed to write an essay for his social studies class that compared Yanomamö and Inuit cultures. Fadumo brought in a passage from Shakespeare that she needed to annotate for comprehension. Students set daily academic work goals—such as "Read Chapters 1 and 2 of Washington State history and answer the questions at the end of the chapter"; they also reflected on their accomplishments and learning. Students were able to collaborate and help one another on assignments from science, language arts, and social studies.
When they weren't doing independent work, students used the writing process to complete persuasive and expository essays. Students chose from a selection of prompts that came from local university applications; from the state office of public instruction (for practice in writing for state assessments); and from instructional writing texts.
Prompts ranged in difficulty and reflected content knowledge taught in different disciplines. For example, one prompt asked students to write a letter to a family member who taught them something important; in the letter, they needed to explain how they used that lesson in their life. Another prompt asked students to write an essay to city lawmakers about whether it was lawful for a developer to take private property from a homeowner for a purpose that would serve the greater good.
Although this was a positive beginning, I didn't have a consistent routine or a cohesive theme to unify the class. I could hardly wait until the following year when I could start out fresh and when the advanced English language learners would be scheduled into three separate classes by grade level: 9, 10, and 11/12.
The Second Year
This next year brought another change. I was asked to become a full-time secondary ELL facilitator. Instead of starting the year in the classroom, I would support Julia, the incoming ELL teacher, in my new role as an instructional coach. Julia and I scheduled coaching cycles every two weeks. We created and modified materials for class and set a purpose for my role while I was in her classroom. I would often come to her class and confer with her and her students; I supported her in ways we agreed on. After class, we would debrief and reflect on the lesson she had just taught and plan next steps.
Julia and I recognized that we couldn't do everything in one year, so we decided to focus on the advanced 11/12 ELL class. Taking to heart the crucial lesson I had learned the previous year, we began by asking the 16 students what academic supports they needed to be successful in school.
As a result, we developed a more cohesive approach: What if the class focused on academic behaviors? What if students determined the content of class by bringing in academic work they identified as challenging?
The Target: Self-Direction
The overarching academic behavior we chose to unify the class was being self-directed. This involves many of the academic behaviors David Conley lists as necessary for college success in Redefining College Readiness (Educational Policy Improvement Center, 2007). These behaviors include how to set, prioritize, and balance scholastic and personal goals; practice self-discipline; self-advocate when you need help or have a great idea; reflect on what you have accomplished; and plan next steps. If high school students could learn to be self-directed, it would serve them in whatever endeavor they chose. We also wanted to nurture the growth of a positive academic identity—the belief that the students could flourish in a scholarly environment.
Questions to Spur Self-Direction
No matter the content, the same approach applied. Julia repeatedly asked students the following questions: What's your goal for today? What academic work do you need to complete this week? What are your academic priorities? What priorities outside school do you have? How will you manage your time to successfully accomplish your goals and meet deadlines? What resources do you need? If you don't know, whom will you ask? How will you know when something is complete? What did you learn? If you didn't meet your goals—why not? What can you do differently next time?
At the end of each day and week, students would grapple with these questions. They would reflect on their learning and on why they did or didn't meet their goals. By setting daily and weekly goals, students learned to anticipate the work and became more resourceful and less dependent on the teacher. By conferring regularly with students, Julia was able to monitor student progress toward their goals. Moreover, she learned what resources the students needed and made them available in her room when possible.
Students worked both individually and in small groups. For example, two students who attended the same physics class worked on several assignments together. When a group of students had to prepare for a similar test or assignment, Julia often led a small group minilesson.
It wasn't enough for Julia to simply ask students these questions. She had her own questions as well: How are the students making sense of the work? Do I notice patterns when students get stuck? Are all students engaged in their work? What resources does the student use outside the classroom? What are the student's plans after high school? What minilessons do I want to teach on the basis of what I'm learning about my students? Julia knew that learning what students needed was crucial to their success.
What It Looked Like in the Classroom
Julia and I collaborated on how to best support students. We developed graphic organizers, if/then charts, and minilessons, and both of us conferred with individual students to learn what kind of supports would be most effective.
Letting Students Fly
Some students were self-aware and knew exactly what they needed to do. Yuri brought readings in from her International Baccalaureate history course. She had chosen to take an academically rigorous course and knew she would need additional time and support to read and make sense of the complex texts. Dennis, who had recently moved from Mexico, became a strong self-advocate and took his transcript from Mexico to his counselor and asked her to review it again. The counselor found he had already completed physical education and health and only needed three more credits to graduate. Dennis then looked at his options for the following year and changed his plans: He decided to take computer science courses at a vocational high school part-time.
Helping Students Follow Through
Other students could answer the questions and set goals but needed guidance on how to follow through. Sovann had fire in his belly:For the first time, I feel like I want to do it. I want to graduate. [This class] helps me to remember the classes and to know what I have to do and when I'm supposed to do it because I have to write down those things.
In addition to excelling in his assignments, Sovann completed a Fit Portfolio (an alternative physical education credit); Washington State history (a required course in Washington State); reading collection of evidence; and his culminating senior project, which involved doing an internship with a local mechanic to investigate this as a career choice. His family inspired him to work harder, and the class gave him a place and the time to hone his skills and realize his goals.
Lois usually worked on writing and rewriting persuasive and expository essays from her language arts class. She struggled to write in a formal register. She noted,I used to be a person that didn't really care about writing. I just wrote whatever; it didn't have to make sense. But now I have to put them in order—first paragraph at the top, main idea, a topic and purpose of the writing.
Teaching Students to Prioritize
Some students needed help identifying and prioritizing their goals and needs so they could begin to move forward. For the first time, Maria began to envision herself going to community college. She consistently did her homework, and she set up a chalkboard in her bedroom on which she would write down her daily assignments and erase them when she finished them.
Pedro, who failed the first semester of U.S. history, was going to drop out even though he was going to pass this class second semester. He worked on his U.S. history assignments in our class. After we conferred with him about his options for graduating, he decided to return for his fifth year of high school, take three classes at the vocational high school to begin his career training, and complete U.S. history. Pedro would be the first in his family to graduate from high school.
It's About Listening to Students
These students accomplished more than they thought they could. They identified educational and personal goals and pushed themselves to attain them. In the process, they developed a sense of pride and a more robust and positive academic identity.
When we're curious about our students—about their experiences and knowledge, their goals, and how they make sense of what we're teaching—we become better teachers. Our assumptions about students are replaced by understanding. When we plan instruction to meet students where they are, students feel empowered—not only because we've listened to them, but also because they see evidence of these conversations in how we teach them.
