1. ELL Students’ Performance in SocialSciences
Background
The ELL population has increased dramatically in the last eleven years.
From the 1993-1994 schoolyear to the 2004-2005 schoolyear, the ELL population
has increased by 68%. (Misco & Costaneda, 2009). According to the court case
Lau vs. Nichols (1974), all students are entitled to participate in a meaningful
education, regardless of their first language. Additionally, according to the court
case Plyer vs. Doe (1982), all students, regardless of their immigration status are
entitled to an education and all the protections of the 14th amendment. Therefore,
even though ELL students find social sciences difficult, educators are obligated to
offer these courses to ELL students in a meaningful manner.
Challengesof Social Sciences for ELLs
Social studies, otherwise known as social sciences, is difficult, even for non-
native speakers, because of the nature of the text (Brown, 2007). In order to
understand social studies, students must gain a conceptualunderstanding of
historical events, geographic positions, and the impact of events on society.
Although ELLs can rapidly pick up conversational or social language, it takes
between 5 and 7 years for ELLs to reach grade level in academic language. Also,
there are little cues such as facial features, intonation, or gestures to help ELLs
understand the text. Likewise, there is not a predictable sequence oftentimes in the

2. text used in social sciences. Equally important is the fact that many ELLs lack
background knowledge, and if there is background knowledge, it is often
mismatched with the topic of discussion. (Brown, 2007).
Other problems that could cause barriers in ELLs performance in social
sciences include the fact some ELLs may have had no formal schooling and the
fact that the background knowledge ELL students do have is oftentimes not valued
by their schools. Also, teachers may not be familiar with students’ cultures within
their rooms, so the y do not know how to incorporate ELL students’ culture into
the curriculum (Weisman & Hansen, 2007).
According to Brown, The text that is used in social sciences is often difficult
to read as well, especially for ELL learners. There is often unfamiliar vocabulary
embedded in the text. The sentence structure is also oftentimes confusing. There
are complex sentences, and sentences with dependent clauses. There are also series
of facts, ideas, and concepts within one sentence, which can be confusing as well
(2007).

3. Strategies to Increase ELL’sAchievement in Social Sciences
Although ELLs do have a difficult time comprehending information
presented in social sciences, there is research to supportstrategies that could help
ELLs better understand the subjects that fall in this category. Brown suggests the
use of content maps and having students outlining units. The author continues by
suggestion the use of guiding questions, simplifying text, and assisting with
reading complex text (2007).
Misco and Castaneda state that educators should respond to four main areas
of concern when teaching social sciences. These areas of concern are building
empathy for the difficulties associated with learning a new language,
understanding how a second language is acquired, adapting curricula to students’
language needs, and employing literacy skills in the discipline. A strategy the
authors advise using is the reverse chronological approach.
The reverse chronological approachtakes on a thematic approachto social
sciences. This approach towards teaching social sciences starts with what the
student is familiar with and works backwards. It naturally facilitates the use of
primary sources, supplementary reading and cooperative inquiry, avoiding many of
the problems that can arise from textbook based teaching. By starting with the

4. most current and working backwards, students can make connections within
themes within social sciences (2009).
Although these strategies seem to work with ELLs thus far, there is very
little research available in regards to ELLs' performance in the social sciences.
More research is needed to determine if these strategies do indeed increase an
ELL’s achievement in this area of academia.

5. References
Brown, C. (2007, September/October). Strategies for making social studies texts
more comprehensible for english language learners. TheSocial Studies, 185-
188.
Misco, T., & Castaneda, M. (2009, Spring). "Now, what should i do for english
language learners?" reconceptualizing social studies curriculum design for
ells. Educational Horizons, 182-189.
Weisman, E., & Hansen, L. (2007, December). Strategies for teaching social
studies to elementary level ells. TheEducation Digest, 61-65.
The Oyez Project, Plyler v. Doe , 457 U.S. 202 (1982) available at:
(http://oyez.org/cases/1980-1989/1981/1981_80_1538)
Intercultural Development Research Association, Lau v. Nichols, 414 U.S. 563
(1974) available at (http://www.idra.org/mendezbrown/lau_case.html)