When the world turned upside down with Covid-19 last year, a lot of educators were thrust (some more willingly than others) right into virtual learning with little time to prepare or adjust. This excerpt from The ESL/ELL Teacher’s Survival Guide, 2nd Edition was written by Larry Ferlazzo and Katie Hull Sypnieski with virtual learning during a pandemic in mind. This chapter on Distance Learning with English Language Learners has been made available, free of charge, by the authors and their producer Jossey-Bass. This chapter answers the questions:
- How can we best support English Language Learners who are in our own ELL classes during a distance learning situation?
- How can we best support English Language Learners when they are in “mainstream” classes during a distance learning situation?
- How can we best support English Language Learners and their families when they are at home during a distance learning situation?
- How can we best support and maximize the assets brought by English Language Learners and our own skills as ELL teachers so that they – and we – can improve school wide teaching and learning during a distance learning situation?
While this was written with K-12 ELLs in mind there are plenty of tips and activity ideas that could be easily adjusted to suit an adult ESL class. Give this chapter a read and let us know what you think?