Uploaded byHelaine W. Marshall
Addressing the Cultural Dissonance of ELLs with Limited Formal Education
The document discusses the challenges and educational needs of students with limited or interrupted formal education, specifically those referred to as SLIFE. It highlights the cultural dissonance these students face in their learning environments and proposes a Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm (MALP) that integrates both their cultural learning styles and traditional U.S. educational practices. The MALP encourages project-based learning, fostering community, and personal accountability to improve student engagement and literacy skills.
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Addressing the Cultural Dissonance of ELLs with Limited Formal Education
- 1. Addressing the Cultural Dissonanceof ELLs with Limited Formal Education TESOL Convention BOSTON 2010 Andrea DeCapua The College of New Rochelle Helaine W. Marshall Long Island University
- 2. Students with Limited/InterruptedFormal Education • How do we refer to them? • LFS (Freeman & Freeman, 2002) • SIFE (NY State Department of Education) • SLIFE (DeCapua, Smathers, & Tang, 2008)
- 3. Needs of SLIFE •Learn basic and grade-level subject area concepts • Develop basic literacy skills • Develop academic ways of thinking • Adapt to cultural differences in learning and teaching
- 4. The Role ofCulture in Learning, Teaching, and Understanding Culture acts as a filter or set of lenses through which we view and interpret the world around us. (DeCapua & Wintergerst, 2004)
- 5. Culturally-Based Assumptions of Teachingand Learning Literacy The learner comes to school with age- appropriate preparation for literacy development
- 7. Literacy Issues • Littleprint material in home and/or community • Family members have low or no literacy • Language not codified or only recently • Lack of print material available in the native language
- 9. Two Important Dimensions of Culture Individualism and Collectivism
- 10. Individualism • Personal effortspraised, rewarded • Personal interests, desires, wants primary • Personal judgments • Personal responsibility • “self-actualization” (Hofstede, 2001; Oyserman & Lee, 2008; Triandis, 2000)
- 11. Culturally - Based Assumptionsof Teaching and Learning Individualism • One goal of K-12 instruction is to produce an independent learner • Students come to school with an urge to compete and excel as an individual (DeCapua & Marshall, 2009; Marshall 1998)
- 12. Collectivism • People seethemselves as part of an interconnected whole • “Web” of relationships • Group is more important than any single individual • “We” rather than “I.” (Hofstede, 2001; Oyserman & Lee, 2008; Triandis, 2000)
- 13. Collectivistic Individualistic Cultures
- 14. A Continuum – not a dichotomy Individualistic collectivistic
- 15. Culturally-Based Assumptions ofTeaching and Learning Academic Ways of Thinking Students come to school ready for age-appropriate classroom learning activities
- 17. Academic Ways ofThinking • Classification • Sorting • Sequencing / historical time • Compare/contrast • Defining
- 18. Pragmatic Ways ofThinking Daily Life • Cooking • Childcare • Farming • Crafts • Religious practices
- 19.
- 20. Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm - MALP • Instructional Model • Elements from students’ learning paradigm • Elements from U.S. learning paradigm • Transitional approach to close achievement gap (Marshall, 1998; DeCapua & Marshall, 2010)
- 21. Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm- MALP A. Accept Learning Conditions from SLIFE B. Combine Learning Processes from Both Perspectives C. Focus on Learning Activities of US Schooling
- 22. Mutually Adaptive LearningParadigm - MALP Instructional Model SLIFE U.S. Classrooms ACCEPT SLIFE Immediate Future CONDITIONS Relevance Relevance Interconnectedness Independence COMBINE Individual SLIFE & U.S. Shared Accountability PROCESSES Responsibility with Oral Transmission Written Word FOCUS on U.S. ACTIVITIES with familiar Pragmatic Academic language Tasks Tasks & content (DeCapua & Marshall, 2009 in press; Marshall 1994, 1998)
- 23. Bringing the twoworlds together MALP & Project-Based Learning
- 24. Project-Based Learning • Allowsfor differentiation • Promotes integration of literacy and content knowledge • Improves student engagement student-centered rather than teacher-centered
- 25. …and from aMALP perspective • Fosters community • Provides immediate relevance • Allows for shared responsibility & individual accountability • Accommodates oral transmission & print • Encourages academic ways of thinking
- 28. Examples of MALPProjects • Surveys and Polls • Collections • Newcomer Booklets • Timelines • Shared Events • Concept Posters • Class Newsletters
- 29. More about MALP? Our website: http://malp.pbworks.com Andrea DeCapua adecapua@cnr.edu Helaine W Marshall helaine.marshall@liu.edu