Linguistics for Teachers of Emergent Bilinguals
Emergent Bilinguals are smart, capable, and motivated to succeed. They are multicultural and multilingual. They are tough. They can do it. So how do we do it? We need to get better at teaching language and literacy, and provide our students with evidence-based, culturally sustaining, and socio-emotionally sound instruction. This course – Linguistics for Teachers of Emergent Bilinguals – aims to teach teachers about the fundamentals of linguistic knowledge, how a speaker of another language acquires English as a new language, the science of reading and writing, and how to use this knowledge to improve outcomes for emergent bilinguals.
Course contents
Welcome to the Course!
Introduction Module: Our learners, our schools, and language acquisition
In this module, we will begin our journey in teaching English to emergent bilinguals by studying and discussing learner profiles, school requirements, oral and written language, and our underlying assumptions.
Module 1 The first stage of language acquisition: Listening comprehension
In this module, we will study the first stage of language acquisition and learn how to scaffold for students who are not yet able to speak, read or write.
Module 2 The second stage of language acquisition: Developing oral language
In this module, we will study the role of syntax in developing speaking, and strategies to develop our emergent bilinguals' skills.
Module 3 The third stage of language acquisition: Beginning to read and write (in a new language)
Module 4 The fourth stage of language acquisition: Gaining fluency
Module 5 The fifth stage of language acquisition: Gaining mastery
In our final module, I focus on learners with advanced proficiency. We want to target advanced linguistic skills in order to get them to full fluency in both oral and written language.