Hello colleagues, For a number of years, Helaine Marshall and Andrea DeCapua have been at the forefront of promoting innovative instructional strategies to support language learners who have had limited formal schooling. The most recent issue of TESOL's secondary school interest section newsletter features an article by these experts that will be quite relevant to adult ESL teachers who work with adults who have had limited or interrupted schooling, too.
The article highlights five recommendations: 1) Provide Immediate Relevance; 2) Establish and Maintain Interconnectedness; 3) Transition from Oral Modes to Print Through Scaffolds; 4) Transition from Shared Responsibility to Individual Accountability; 5) Introduce and Focus on Decontextualized Tasks That are Based on Academic Ways of Thinking.
Please share your reaction to Marshall and DeCapua's recommendations and how these strategies resonate for you. What questions, if any, arise for you? It would be great to hear from members about what is working well with the special group of adult learners.
Cheers, Susan Finn Miller
Moderator, English Language Acqusition