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Misconceptions
   

We should focus our initial efforts with English Learners on just learning English so they can learn faster in all other areas.

The number of years required to acquire English may vary greatly from student to student and research has consistently shown that uninterrupted academic development in all content areas with proper home language support is  more significant than the amount of time spent in English Language development in predicting school success. Secondary English Learners in particular do not have time to make up for lost academic instruction while acquiring a second language.

English Learners should be taught good oral English skills before they are taught to read and write.

English Learners, particularly at the secondary level, need a variety of language experiences, including authentic experiences with print. Students with little formal schooling can especially benefit from encounters with content area reading and writing, and begin to fill in gaps in background knowledge and learning strategies.

Learning another Language is completely different from learning one's first language.

Extensive research has shown that there are many more parallels in first and second language acquisition than there are differences. Namely, second language acquisition occurs in authentic settings where students are involved in engaging or essential activities and where the target language (English) communication is firmly established. As in home language acquisition, target language acquisition is not a matter of aligning letters to sounds, sounds to words, and finally words to meanings, but rather constructing meaning within real contexts.

It is more difficult for an older student to learn English than a younger learner.

Younger English Learners may eventually be more successful with pronunciation in the long-term, but older learners have more complex metacognitive abilities, that is, the ability to reflect on their own language learning processes and to draw upon their previous language experiences. They are more cognitively mature and may be more efficient at target language acquisition.

Oral proficiency in English is a good predictor of academic success.

What is generally considered to be good English proficiency may instead be mastery of the personal and social oral language needed to communicate with peers and in other informal settings. It is not sufficient for academic settings where the rigors of reading content materials and producing written responses complete with appropriate academic content language is required.

Acquiring academic language is equally difficult for all English Learners.

Students who have had adequate formal schooling in their primary language including content classes are generally much better prepared to acquire academic English and may do so much quicker. Those with inadequate or sporadic schooling may need more time and support to acquire language and content.

English Learners can benefit from placement in programs designed for students with handicaps or in remedial programs.

Being an English Learner is not a learning disability. Most English Learners will not demonstrate sufficient progress when growth is measured on English language assessments. This, however, does not establish that a student has a handicapping condition. There is a vast difference between a student who has a learning disability and one who is struggling with language acquisition. In addition, extra caution should be taken when placing English Learners who have actual learning disabilities

Teachers of English Learners need to lower their expectations and "water-down" the content they teach.

Research has shown that teacher expectations play a tremendous role in shaping student achievement. Thus, while teachers may need to modify and scaffold their curriculum and instruction to meet the needs of English Learners, they need to keep high expectations for student achievement. As a matter of fact, the most effective. English Learners programs are those with high academic expectations.

Primary Language use by students is an English Language Development class delays their acquisition of English and should be forbidden.

While the focus of an English Learners  class is the use and acquisition of English, students at the beginning levels of language development in particular may use their primary language to ask for clarification and assistance from more fluent peers or from the teacher. Until enough language is acquired for complete oral and written responses, students may respond with some home language or a mixture of home language and English. As students acquire more English they should be encouraged to use it in most classroom responses. Use home language does not necessarily indicate that the students are off-task.

Students from certain countries and cultural backgrounds are better at learning English and do better academically than others.

Academic success and language acquisition are effected by  a member of social, emotional, economic, academic, and intellectual factors. A particular group may do well in one country or setting, but not another, so it is important not to stereotype the achievement of any cultural or language group.

English learners should be taught good oral English skills before they are taught to read and write.

English learners, particularly at the secondary level, need a variety of language experiences, including authentic experiences with print. Students with little formal schooling can especially benefit from encounters with content area reading and writing, and begin to fill in gaps in background knowledge and learning strategies.

Learning another language is completely different from learning than a younger learner.

Extensive research has shown that there are many more parallels in first and second language acquisition than there are differences. Namely, it occurs in authentic settings where students are envolved in engaging or essential activities and where the need for target language communication is firmly established. As in home language acquisition, target language acquisition is not a matter of aligning letters to sounds, sounds to words, and finally words to meanings, but rather constructing meaning within real contexts.

It is more difficult for an older student to learn English than a younger learner.

Younger English Learners may eventually be more successful with pronunciation in the long-term, but older learners have more complex metacognitive abilities, that is, the ability to reflect on their own language learning processes and to draw upon their previous language experiences. They are more cognitively mature and may be more efficient al target language acquisition.

Oral proficiency in English is a good predictor of academic success.

What is generally considered to be good English proficiency may instead be mastery of the personal and social oral language needed to communicate with peers and in other informal settings. It is not sufficient for academic settings where the rigors of reading content materials and producing written responses complete with appropriate academic content language is required.

Acquiring academic language is equally difficult for all English learners.

Students who have had adequate formal schooling in their primary language including content classes are generally much better prepared to acquire academic English and may do so much quicker. Those with inadequate or sporadic schooling may need more time and support to acquire language and content.

Many of our grandparents and other relatives learned English just by being placed in English-speaking classroom without special assistance.

Many immigrants have succeeded in the United States, but they did not necessarily have the high level of academic language proficiency that is required in today's world. In the past, simple oral communication skills were sufficient in many jobs. Today much higher levels of language proficiency and academic literacy are required for success. Specialized programs are required to meet those needs