Mastering Math Language: Teaching English Language Learners

Pepper has just released 2 new ELL courses that make up a 2-course series on Mastering Language for College and Career Readiness, focusing on Elementary Mathematics. 

The first course in the series, Mastering Math Language: Reading and Speaking, is designed to help teachers teach students to read and speak the language of mathematics. In this course, participants will gather and analyze language samples that will show what students learn and what support they need in the elementary math classroom.

While part one of the series focused on reading and speaking the language of mathematics, the second course, Mastering Math Language: Conversations and Writing, builds on those concepts and places an emphasis on constructive conversations and writing in math. In this course, teachers will gain tools that will support formative assessment and instructional planning. Learners must complete the first course in the series before enrolling in this course.

These courses will enable teachers to collaborate with other educators and build professional relationships that result in an online community focused on improving students’ abilities to use rich academic language to learn and show learning of mathematical skills and concepts.

While the courses are intended specifically for those who teach English learners and students with disabilities, the content of the courses is equally applicable to teaching all students who are challenged by the academic uses of language in math instruction.

Click here to watch a video overview of the Mastering Math Language Courses.

These courses were developed by the Understanding Language Initiative at Stanford University.

Be sure to check out all our Pepper course offerings.

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Teaching English Language Learners

“The face of the country is changing dramatically,” says Aída Walqui, director of WestEd’s Teacher Professional Development Program. According to data from the Economic Policy Institute, for example, the percentage of Latinos in the U.S. will increase by more than 300 percent in the next 15 years. Our education system must be prepared to meet the needs of these students and families. Traditionally, many have believed that a main difficulty for English learners is that they must learn the language before they can master the content being taught. According to WestEd’s recent report, “English Language Learners Need New Pedagogy to Meet the Latest Standards”, that mode of thinking is outdated. ELL students should be learning language and content at the same time. Language lessons should be connected to the subject matter the student is receiving in the classroom. However, doing this can be challenging for teachers. Teachers need support in order to better serve the growing ELL population. Teachers will need to be able to embed language lessons into their content delivery to assist students learning the English language.

Pepper is releasing a series of 5 ELL courses focusing on teaching English Language Learners. These courses were developed by the Understanding Language Initiative at Stanford University. Our next blog will highlight them - check back later this week to learn more.

Be sure to check out all our Pepper course offerings.

Sign up to receive "The Big Idea" directly to your email each time it's updated. To do this, simply add your email under "Follow PepperPCG Posts by E-mail!" to the right.