Interinational students and English language

What can teachers do to help international students

with English language as a second language in the academic field

Any competent teacher must aim to use English as a bridge toward reaching his /her international students . Teachers always need to adapt lessons to fit their context and their orientation (Freeman and Freeman , 1998 . Moreover , developing academic language involves more than acquiring content-specific vocabulary it includes learning a wide range of general utility words , figurative expressions , grammatical conventions , and discussion strategies (Zwiers , 2008 ) that teachers should also incorporate in class activities . According

to Carroll (2002 , One suggestion - welcomed by international students and treated warily by academics - is the idea of encouraging first-language discussion of concepts , ideas and theories . If you say something like `I want you to make sure you have understood what I just covered in the last five minutes . explain it to the person next to you in whatever language you both feel most comfortable using ' then all students do an equally difficult task (p .1 . Educator Heining-Boynton says , Teachers must differentiate tasks , taking into consideration what educational philosopher John Dewey suggested long ago : that we begin where the students are , not where we would like them to be Heining-Boynton suggests tips teachers to : (a ) Speak clearly and in standard English (b ) Position yourself so that the ESL [English as Secondary Language] student can see your face when yo u are speaking (c ) Assign a 'buddy ' to your ESL student (d ) Learn and use the student 's name (e ) For middle school and high school students , ask the student what he or she would like to be called (f ) Be as visual as possible (g ) Comprehension precedes production (h ) It students can say it , they can write it (i ) Speaking louder does not aid in comprehension (j ) Create certain predictable routines in your class (k ) Learn as much as you can about the countries represented in your class (l ) Keep a student 's linguistic ability in mind when selecting reading assignments and (m ) A smile is international

At the end of the day , teachers should always assess themselves how far they went in teaching before they try to assess the progress of each international student in the class

References

Carroll , J (2002 , June 27 . Suggestions for teaching international student more effectively . Retrieved May 6 , 2008 , from

Freeman , D Freeman , Y (1998 . ESL /EFL teaching : Principles for success . Portsmouth , NH : Heinemann

Heining-Boynton , A .L (n .d . Keys to success for English language learners . Retrieved May 7 , 2008 , from

Zwiers , J (2008 . Building Academic Language : Essential Practices for Content Classrooms . San Francisco , CA : Jossey-Bass...