Learning to read in a language you are learning is similar, but not identical, to learning to read in a language that is new to you. – Dr. Claude Goldenberg
One area of continued discussion is foundational skills. These are skills such as phoneme awareness, letter knowledge, phonics, phonic decoding, and encoding that must be developed to automaticity in order to support accurate and automatic word recognition and spelling.
An instructional practice that is frequently misunderstood in the EL/EB conversation is the use of context cues when teaching reading. Emily Hanford’s Sold a Story podcast explains the faulty logic and lack of research for relying on cues to decode words. An important distinction to understand is that cueing as a strategy to develop word recognition is not supported by research, but using cues to confirm the meaning of words once they have been read accurately can be beneficial for students, including ELs/EBs.
This article by Dr. Louise Spear-Swerling clarifies this distinction:
Dr. Linnea Ehri and Dr. Susan Brady discuss the role of meaning:
A readers’ brain stores words in three distinct representations—separate brain areas that together form a word’s lexical representation:
- A phonological representation of how the word is pronounced
- A semantic representation that encompasses the word’s meaning, including how it’s used in different contexts, and how it connects to other words with similar meanings
- An orthographic representation that maps the spelling of the word. The orthographic map results from code-based grapheme-phoneme mapping when a reader either encounters a word in print and decodes it or spells the word. Once an orthographic map for a word is well-established, the reader no longer needs to decode it but can automatically access the map when reading or spelling, and even when hearing the word.
The different kinds of representations become more strongly connected neurologically as the learner experiences the word in language and in print. Thus, when reading a known word, the semantic and phonological representations are activated, as well as the orthographic map. For words to fully exist in our sight word memory, they must have these other forms of representation well connected with the orthographic map. Research indicates that connections with the motor region of the brain that controls handwriting are also activated when a word is used. Educational practices that integrate all aspects of word knowledge strengthen the connections, supporting automaticity of word recognition and comprehension.
Research on both monolingual and bilingual students has documented that explicit and systematic instruction in phoneme awareness and decoding is essential for orthographic mapping; however, these skills alone are insufficient to develop skilled reading if the other forms of representation are not also established. If students are taught to decode the words, but do not know the meanings of the words they are reading, comprehension will not occur. In short, EL/EB students need rich instruction in English oral language to build their second-language expertise, supporting both their oral language use and providing the necessary phonological and semantic representations for the English words they encounter in print.
According to Dr. Linnea Ehri, in an interview for The Reading League Compass:
To be fully mapped and exist as a sight word in memory, the meaning must be connected to the spelling and pronunciation. Also, the syntactic identity of the word needs to become connected to the other identities, that is, its function in sentences—especially if its meaning is only activated in sentences (e.g., function words like was, from, if, and with, and irregular past tense verbs that sound like nonsense words when produced in isolation, like held, took, gave, and wrote). This would be especially important for EL students. These words need to be read in meaningful contexts in order for the connection-forming processes to become complete and to establish high-quality lexical representations of sight words in memory. A word isn’t a word without meaning.
Thus, it is essential to undergird lessons whenever possible with meaningful vocabulary and language, and to provide English language support for EL/EB students.
Resources for further understanding
The Reading League’s Curriculum Evaluation Guidelines (CEGs) include “red flags” (instructional practices that do not align with the science of reading) as well as aligned practices that support both word recognition and language comprehension. The CEGs also include specific, evidence-aligned components to support EL/EB students. Many of the evidence-aligned language comprehension components of the CEGs align directly with the WIDA English Language Development Standards (2020). Developing understanding of grammar, cohesive devices, syntax, and text structure is supported by the science of reading and advocated by those supporting EL/EBs. Understanding these connections and emphasizing these similarities will help us all move forward together to support all learners. Additionally, New Mexico’s Structured Literacy and English Learners page provides helpful information on instruction and resources, including walkthrough tools and lesson templates.
The following excerpts from California’s ELD Standards Publication are also helpful in thinking through the evidence-aligned needs of ELs/EBs.
English learners benefit from instruction in Foundational Reading Skills
Research Findings: Instruction in the components of reading foundational skills—such as phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and text comprehension (NICHD 2000)—benefits ELs.
Implications: Instruction in foundational literacy skills is essential for ELs. However, the instruction should be adjusted based on students’ spoken English proficiency (they may or may not be familiar with the English sound system) and native language or English literacy proficiency (they may or may not be familiar with any type of writing system or with the Latin alphabet writing system in particular). Note that some ELs at any age may not be literate in any language when they arrive in the U.S. school system; their native language may not have a written form, or they may not have had opportunities to develop literacy in their native language or in a local language of wider communication.
Oral English language proficiency is crucial for English literacy learning
Research Findings: Oral proficiency in English (including oral vocabulary, grammar, and listening comprehension) is critical for ELs to develop proficiency in text-level English reading comprehension. Word-identification skills are necessary, but not sufficient. Students who have learning disabilities (as diagnosed separately from their EL designation)—or whose literacy skills in either their native language or English remain below grade level after intensive and extensive instruction—may need specialized literacy intervention services.
Implications: Instruction for ELs in oral language knowledge, skills, and abilities must be explicit, intensive, and extensive. In order to be successful in reading English, ELs must develop proficiency in listening and speaking skills in English—depth and breadth of vocabulary, as well as grammatical structures—at the same time that they are developing foundational skills in reading and writing English.
Native language literacy skills facilitate English literacy learning
Research Findings: ELs’ native language literacy skills can help them learn English foundational literacy skills.
Implications: Instruction for ELs will need to vary based on variations among ELs’ native language writing systems, as well as ELs’ experiences with literacy in their native language. For example, students who are literate in a language that uses the Latin alphabet (such as Spanish) will be able to transfer decoding and writing skills more easily than a student who is literate in a language with a non-Latin alphabet (such as Arabic, Korean, or Russian) or a language with a symbol-based writing system (such as Chinese). Similarly, students who are literate in a language related to English (such as Spanish) will be able to use knowledge of cognates (words with similar meaning and spelling in both languages), whereas students who are literate in unrelated languages (such as Arabic, Chinese, or Korean) will not.