Curriculum and Materials Session 5

Reading Current research suggests that second language learners acquire reading skills through four stages: Beginning Reading - At this stage the focus is on decoding for simple language. Elementary Reading - The reading of combinations of vocabulary and the development of predictions and conforming abilities are targeted. Intermediate Reading - Here the students develop skills to read advanced passages and read for a specific purpose. Advanced Reading - At this stage the student reads authentic material for a specific purpose.

For the student who is learning decoding for the first time, the use of reading readiness activities can help.   This technique means giving the students the foundation for recognizing and understanding printed materials.  The teacher must take each student, at his/her own level of development, and work from there.  Students develop skills such as visual discrimination, auditory discrimination, and memory training.   Reading materials at this stage should include groups of sentences, phrases, and words.  Although the main focus is on decoding at this stage, it should also be done with comprehension. 

Two common methods for selecting and adapting texts for the beginning readers are the Whole Word Method and the Linguistic Method.  The Whole Word Method focuses on the student's ability to process individual words in units, while the Linguistic Method focuses on the recognition of the spelling patterns in the text.   An example of a lesson plan at this level of proficiency instruction would include the following: The teacher reads the content while the student listens. Discussion of the content covered. The teacher reads while students listen and read along. Discussion of the content again. Students read aloud in small groups. Discussion. Student's read silently; or practice reading aloud individually.

At the Elementary Reading Stage the students' learning focus is on learning independence from grapho-phonic cues, and the students starts to build their comprehension skills.   When selecting materials that are appropriate for students at this level there are two methods that are commonly used.   The first is to have the students read the text out loud.  If 85% of the words are read correctly, the text is at the appropriate level for the student.   The second involves making a modified cloze test out of part of the passage.  The text is considered to be appropriate if the student gets a score of 50% accuracy. 

The third stage, Intermediate Reading, focuses on overall comprehension and reading with a purpose.  Students at this level have a specific reading goal.   The most important reading skills obtained at this level are: reading with incomplete information, organizing for careful reading, organizing information, reading critically, developing effective personal reading strategies, and setting effective reading speeds for different kinds of reading.

The last stage is the Advanced Reading level The last stage is the Advanced Reading level.  At this stage, the emphasis is on reading for special purposes.   The second language learner will read with a comprehension level equal to that of a native speaker.   The reader at this level should be able to evaluate the text, make judgments about its merits, and support the arguments made about the text.

Read the following articles from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education Preparing English Language Learners for Reading Comprehension Reading Comprehension Strategies for English Language Learners Assessing Reading Comprehension for English Language Learners

Writing Written communication is only acquired after oral communication is well established and is often considered to be the most demanding of the language skills.  Writing is a developmental process and can be viewed as four components: (1) mechanics (2) extended use of the language (3) writing with purpose, and (4) full expository prose. Often writing skills for ESL students are used as a tool for consolidating students' oral commands, and for practicing grammar.  

At the beginning level students learn to put thoughts into writing with emphasis on mechanics such as reading left-to-right, word sentence punctuation, and basic spelling patterns in English.  The basic skills include writing letters, numbers, words, phrases and sentences correctly.  Students who are not literate need to be guided through this process.

During the extended use level, the ESOL student usually has a vocabulary of fewer than one thousand words with a limited knowledge of sentence structure.   Writing is no longer used only at the survival stage, but is seen as an increasingly important skill

At the intermediate writing stage, the student has a vocabulary between 1,000 and 3,600 words.  At this level, the emphasis is on writing for a purpose.  The purpose can be either academic or professional. 

During the extended use level, the ESOL student usually has a vocabulary of fewer than one thousand words with a limited knowledge of sentence structure.   Writing is no longer used only at the survival stage, but is seen as an increasingly important skill.

At the intermediate writing stage, the student has a vocabulary between 1,000 and 3,600 words.  At this level, the emphasis is on writing for a purpose.  The purpose can be either academic or professional.

At the last and final stage, the emphasis is on full expository prose At the last and final stage, the emphasis is on full expository prose.  Writing courses at this stage are for specific purposes such as professional studies or post-graduate course work. Read the following article:   Improving ESL Students' Academic Writing Skills

Additional Information Reading PowerPoint Writing PowerPoint