0.7 Gallegos, c., & Wise, d. (september 2011). leadership for  (Page 8/18)

Something significant about the quadrants for education is that if a subject or concept is unfamiliar and little context is provided to support comprehension, the learner will not be able to fully participate in the communication. The learner may simply not understand the communication or may misunderstand the intended message. All too often, classroom instruction emphasizes context-reduced cognitively demanding texts and methods. Not only does this result in decreased learning of the content for English learners, this instructional delivery often results in English learners not developing the academic skills they need to achieve language fluency (Cummins, 1981; Short&Echevarría, 2004/2005). This is both an argument for bilingual instruction that supports development of the concepts prior to instruction in the target language and for the use of sheltered instruction techniques that provide context in this cognitively demanding instructional situation (Short&Echevarría, 2004/2005; Krashen, 1981). While the emphasis of instruction is on the content, the additional context provided shifts the focus onto making meaning which supports both comprehension and language acquisition. Context alone is not enough. Research also supports communications-based instruction where the emphasis is on both comprehensible input and group activities that require learners to make connections and to use the content-related language to communicate ideas and opinions regarding relevant tasks (Carrigan, 2009; Dutro&Kinsella, 2010; Snow&Katz, 2010). This requires students to meaningfully use the language as well as to understand it. Participation needs to be well-structured in an environment that makes learners feel safe to participate (Carrigan, 2009; Krashen, 1981).

Language proficiency and assessment

Language assessments provide data that demonstrate growth in language proficiency. Assessments of academic achievement should provide data that demonstrate growth relative to the academic content of the standards. For English learners, the results of content assessments can be misleading due to language constraints (Abedi, 2004). The language complexity of items can affect both the validity and reliability of the results. This phenomenon was verified by researchers using linguistically modified items on released National Assessment of Educational Progress math items. The assessments of content using these slightly modified items consistently resulted in higher scores for English learners (Abedi&Lord, 2001).

While California does not allow linguistic modification of test items, the state does monitor language assessment and reclassification data. This practice has important implications for identification of schools that are successfully addressing the needs of their English learners. The data from content-related assessments alone may not give a complete picture since even students that demonstrate proficiency in English still struggle on standardized tests (Bielenberg&Wong-Fillmore, 2004/2005; Zwiers, 2004/2005). However, with the joint use of language acquisition assessments and reclassification data, leaders can have a more complete picture of how successful their districts are in meeting the demands of their English learners.