Sociocultural Aspects of Schooling for ELs

An issue that one of my EL students has is her teachers tend to only provide directions one way (verbally) and the teachers often speak pretty quickly. The student has a hard time being able to process verbal directions especially when it is being spoken quickly. I am guilty of doing this as well. She came up to me the other day in class after I explained an activity and she felt really lost. She didn't know what to do. I realized that was my fault. The action I am going to take is providing more clear and concise instructions and demonstrations. After I explain the activity, I am going to demonstrate the activity. So, at that point even though she may not understand my verbal directions, she may get a better idea of what to do after the demonstration. After the demonstration, I am going to check for understanding. Once I have students start the activity, I can work with her and re-explain or demonstrate the activity again to help her. I think the verbal directions and demonstrations help the entire class as well as my EL student.