Eliminating Low Expectations for ELLs

Abstract

English Language Learners have reported feeling uncomfortable and stigmatized in U.S. mainstream classrooms as their teachers feel ill-equipped to address ELLs’ linguistic, socio-cultural, and assessment challenges (Lucas, Villegas, & Freedson-Gonzales, 2008). The problem arises that teachers are not consistently creating and communicating high expectations for ELLs. The research suggests that this problem is related to teacher training inadequacy, misconceptions about ELLs' academic and linguistic development held by educators, and the lack of effective bilingual education. I designed a PD for middle and high school mainstream teachers. The PD will offer concrete ways for teachers to implement high expectations into their lessons such as creating language objectives sensitive to ELLs' linguistic and academic development. ELL education in mainstream classrooms can benefit from the information presented in this project as teachers can become more informed about and skilled in determining the best ways to support ELLs’ linguistic, socio-cultural, and evaluative developments.