English Language Learner

Collaboration: A Model for Success for Literacy

Valeria Silva • Director, ELL Programs • Saint Paul Public Schools

Valeria Silva ELL Director St. Paul Public Schools

2English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Who are our students?

3English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Who are our students?

4English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

District Overview

Diverse urban school district, largest in state 42,009 students; more than 100 schools and programs 17,997 with home language other than English: 43% of

students 103 home languages and dialects

Largest: Hmong, Spanish, Somali SPPS ELL population makes up 27% of state ELL

population SPPS ELL population makes up 42% of the district’s

total student population Since 1990, the ELL population in SPPS has increased

by more than 270% 1,700 Hmong refugee students from Wat Tham Krabok

enrolled in SPPS between 2004-2006

Saint Paul Public SchoolsSaint Paul, Minnesota

District Overview

5English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Which Students are considered English Language Learners in MN

Students: • Whose home language is other than English

• Who lack the English language skills as determined by appropriate measures and practices (developmentally appropriate assessment instruments, observations, teacher judgment, parent recommendations and/or state tests )

• Those who score lower than 4 in the Writing section of the Test of Emerging Academic English (TEAE), and 5 in the Reading section

6English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

SPPS Student Language Distribution 2005-2006

Language Approx. Count

English 24,000

Hmong 10,600

Spanish 4,100

Somali 700

Vietnamese 335

Amharic 235

Burmese/Karen 220

Oromo 170

Top 8 Languages in SPPS

7English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Closing the Gap

In the Council of the Great City Schools Beating the Odds VI report (2006), SPPS stands out as having made among the best gains of the Great City Schools districts in closing the achievement gap between ELL and non-ELL students.

8English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Special Education & ELL

SPPS Special Ed as a Percent of Each Language Group Spring 2006

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

Language

Pe

rce

nt

Pct ELL 4.44% 10.48% 5.94% 21.49% 10.52% 1.82% 4.76% 7.44% 15.11% 8.18% 10.37% 13.79%

Amharic

Cambodian

Chinese English Hmong KarenOromiff

aSomali Spanish

Tigrinya

Vietnamese

Others

9English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Special Education & ELL

SPPS ELL Special Education Distribution Spring 2006

Autism spectrum disorder3% Deaf–hard of hearing

7%DevCogDisMild-moderate (DCD1)

4%DevCogDisSevere-profound

(DCD2)3%

Developmental delay (DD)8%

Emotional/behavioral disorders (EBD)

3%

Specific learning disabilities (LD)44%

Speech/language impaired23%

Other health disabilities5%

10English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Special Education & ELL

SPPS NonELL and ELL Special Ed Distribution Spring 2006

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

Classification/Count

Co

un

t

TotNoELL 243 80 326 130 383 1145 1223 932 743 5205

ELLCount 54 135 86 59 164 69 885 447 136 2035

Autism spectrum disorder

Deaf–hard of hearing

DevcogdisMild-moderate

(DCD1)

DevcogdisSevere-

Profound (DCD2)

Developmental delay

(DD)

Emotional/behavioral disorders

(EBD)

Specific learning

disabilities (LD)

Speech/language

impaired

Other health disabilities

Total

11English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Factors in Managing Complex Change

Vision +

+

+

+

+

+Skills

+

+

+

+

+Incentive Resources Change+

+

+

+

=Action Plan

Vision

Vision

Vision

Vision

Skills

Skills

Skills

Skills

Incentive

Incentive

Incentive

Incentive

Resources

Resources

Resources

Resources

Action Plan

Action Plan

Action Plan

Action Plan

Anxiety

Resistance

Frustration

Treadmill

Confusion=

=

=

=

=+ ++

12English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

ELL Vision

Support staff to move from a pull-out model to a push-in model of ELL instruction by:

•Aligning district and state ELL standards

•Expecting all staff to use ELL and mainstream standards during instruction

•Raising expectations of ELL teachers on what ELL students can accomplish

•Provide professional development to ELL and mainstream staff on collaboration

•Provide professional development to ELL on collaboration in district-wide Writers and Readers Workshop models (SPPS literacy reform model)

•Provide materials and resources to embed ELL instruction during Writers and Readers Workshop

•Provide on-site coaching support and study groups for ELL teachers

13English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Why Collaboration?

14English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Moving from Pull-out to Collaboration

Collaboration is not just two or more individuals working together.

–It involves joint planning, delivery, and evaluation of instructional practices students results and performance.

–Teachers take risks and support each other in the process of ongoing learning and improvement of practice that is focused on student achievement.

15English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Overview of Clustering

• Developing consistent school-wide guidelines for student placement (according to language proficiency, home language, or academic needs) can strengthen instructional services.

• Clustering is not segregation. Students in clustered classrooms have equal access to all instructional resources and overall better support.

• All school staff must understand the rationale and system for student placement so that new students are placed appropriately.

• Academic needs of students, and NOT equality of class size or racial diversity should guide student placement decisions.

• The ELL cluster classroom(s) per grade level should not be the classes where the low academic performing students get placed. The English- speaking students that are in the ELL Cluster classroom should represent a range of academic abilities.

• Mainstream teacher and ELL teachers must have common prep times in order to work collaboratively.

In schools with a relatively low percentage of ELL students, no more than 38-40%, clustering is the best method for providing more ELL support

16English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Native language, culture and emotional support for students:• Clustering can be done by students' native language, to provide more bilingual

support during instruction time• More language learner role models• More opportunities to interact with other newcomer peers outside of school due

to the relationships developed in class• Social and emotional support from peers who look the same and share the same

languageStudents can:• Teachers provide more differentiation of the instruction to students (harder to

ignore a large group of students)• Access to additional materials that are appropriate for newcomers and ELLs• More opportunities to interact with more than one adult (ELL + Mainstream)• More opportunities to hear more than one adult language model (ELL +

Mainstream) More instructional support and professional development opportunities for staff• Mainstream teachers who have ELL licensure as well as elementary licensure

are the best candidates to be the teacher in this model• Instruction provided by a mainstream teacher that has more additional training

on working with newcomers and ELL students

Students benefit from this clustering model because:

Grade Level

Class A Non-

ELL/ELL

Class B Non-

ELL/ELL

Grade Total

ELL Teacher Working with 2-3 classes

Class A Class B Kindergarten 14/8 18/0 32/8 ELL T. #1

Class A Class B 1st Grade 17/7 24/0 38/7 ELL T. #1

Class A Class B 2nd Grade 16/5 23/0 39/5 ELL T. #1

Class A Class B 3rd Grade 17/7 23/1 40/8 ELL T. #2

Class A Class B 4th Grade 18/6 17/7 35/13 ELL T. #2

Class A Class B 5th Grade 18/8 22/2 40/10 ELL T. #3

Class A Class B 6th Grade 17/7 24/0 41/7 ELL T. #3

18English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

SPPS ELL Instructional Model

Philosophy:

•Language through content (collaboration with ELL & mainstream teachers)

•Supported by language acquisition strategies

•Grade-level content made comprehensible using scaffolding and sheltered English

19English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Old ELL Instructional Model

20English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

New ELL Instructional Model

22English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Collaboration

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Basics of Co-Teaching

• Professionals working together (ELL and mainstream staff)

• Delivering substantive instruction in reading and writing

• A diverse group of students• A single space• Reduced student-teacher ratio• Professional development during co-teaching

24English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

One teach, one observe

One teach, one support

Parallel teaching

Alternative teaching

Team teaching

Station teaching

Adapted from: Friend, M. & Barsack, W. (1990). Including students with special needs: A practical guide for classroom teachers. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Basics of Co-Teaching

25English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Co-Teaching Models Working Form

26English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Professional Development for All Staff

• ELL department provides professional development on collaboration for ELL and mainstream staff

• Since 2001, more than 500 mainstream and ELL teachers have received this professional development

•100% of ELL teachers have completed professional development on Writers Workshop.

•By fall 2006, 100% of ELL teachers will have completed professional development in Readers Workshop

• 100% of ELL bilingual paraprofessionals have received professional development in Readers and Writers Workshop

29English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Key

Language Academy

ELL

Non-ELL

Co-teaching Models

30English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

ELL

GE

mini-lesson 1

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

31English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

GE

ELL

mini-lesson 2

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

32English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

ELL

GE

mini-lesson 3

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

33English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006 ELL

GE

mini-lesson 4

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

34English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

GE

work time (first 10 minutes)

ELL

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

35English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006 ELL

GE

work time (remaining 30 minutes)

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

36English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

ELLGE

share time 1

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

37English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

ELL

GE

share time 2

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

38English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

ELL

GE

share time 3

During Writers Workshop Model ELL Instruction

39English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

They look fantastic!

Test scores

40English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

BST Reading—Closing the Gap

41English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

BST Math—Closing the Gap

42English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Test of Emerging Academic English (TEAE)

TEAE Reading SPPS vs. State F04

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Grade

Ave S

core

SPPSStateState w/o SPPS

43English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA)—State test

SPPS 2005 MCA Math & Reading 3 Year Trend

0.00

10.00

20.00

30.00

40.00

50.00

60.00

70.00

80.00

Subject

In

dex P

oin

ts

2003 Index Rate 70.67 63.97 69.67 56.70

2004 Index Rate 68.76 64.40 67.44 58.87

2005 Index Rate 75.93 73.28 73.61 67.72

All Students LEP All Students LEP

SPPS SPPS SPPS SPPS

2005 AYP Status: A 2005 AYP Status: A 2005 AYP Status: S 2005 AYP Status: S

Math Reading

44English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

SAT10 Total Reading by Student Group, 2003-2005

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Am.Indian

AsianAm.

Hisp.Am.

Afr-Am.Cauc. LowIncome

ELL SpecialEd

200320042005

Percent of students in average or above average range

45English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

0102030405060708090

100

Percent of students in average or above

average range

Am.Indian

AsianAm.

Hisp.Am.

Afr-Am.Cauc. LowIncome

ELL SpecialEd

200320042005

SAT10 Total Math by Student Group, 2003-2005

46English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Closed Graduation Rate Achievement Gap

47English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Adequate Yearly Progress — Title III

• 2004: SPPS as a district did not make AYP, and it did not meet AMAO requirements

• 2005: SPPS as a district did make AYP and met AMAO requirements

48English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

Resources for Collaboration

BOOKS• Friend, M. & Barsack, W. (1990). Including Students With

Special Needs: A Practical Guide For Classroom Teachers. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

• Garmston, R. & Wellman, B. (1999). The Adaptive School: A Sourcebook for Developing Collaborative Teams. Norwood, MA: Christopher-Gordon Publishers.

• Friend, M. & Cook, L. (2003). Interactions: Collaboration Skills for School Professionals, 4th Ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

• Risko, V.J. and Bromley, K., Editors. (2001). Collaboration for Diverse Learners: Viewpoints and Practices. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

VIDEO• Burrello, L.C., Burrello, Jotham M., & Friend, M.,

Producers. (1996). The Power of Two: Making a Difference Through Co-Teaching. Available from The Forum on Education: 812-855-5090 (phone) or 812-855-8545 (fax).

49English Language Learner Programs Saint Paul Public Schools 2006

• Information about ELL programs in SPPS• Data Center• Fact sheets• Professional development

For more information…

Visit our website at ell.spps.org

Contact• Phone: (651) 767-8320• Fax: (651) 293-5411• E-mail: valeria.silva@spps.org