Re: also fighting push-in

massesl

Posted on 12/16/09

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Thankfully, the state where I teach (MA) requires that
each district develop an English language dvelopment
curriculum, and that this be used to teach ELLs. You can
still go into classrooms and help students out ("subject
support"), but you still must teach them English, inc.
reading and writing, through this curriculum, and I don't
see how you can do it without pulling them out. So, yes, I
pull them out and I also go into classrooms when I can.

On 11/01/09, Our state guidelines indicate: wrote:
>
> our ESL students should have 50 minutes per day of pull
> out, with the rest of the day spent in the regular
> classroom, mainstreamed.
>
>
>
>
>
> On 10/30/09, Jenny wrote:
>> Our school used to "pull out" our middle
>> school students for anywhere from 2-5 periods a day.
>> It was a nightmare. We were not allowing to give the
>> kids a decent exposure to reality and the culture of
>> a mainstream classroom...which is where they would
>> eventually end up, so we felt they were missing out.
>> Their world was skewed. Last year, at semester time,
>> we began to push kids into classes. I just called it
>> "mainstreaming" the kids. For the kids, the
>> learning curve was high. The teachers were scared
>> that the blank looks on the kids' faces meant there
>> was no comprehension at all. We assured them that
>> immersion was the fastest way for the kids to attain
>> the language. It worked: the first girl we
>> mainstreamed passed the writing portion of the state
>> assessment. Now we mainstream all our kids. They have
>> "ELL" class once a day, but in addition to
>> learning English, we layer what the mainstream
>> teachers are doing in their classes. My job is
>> chaotic because of that portion, but it's awesome to
>> have them explain to me what order of operations
>> means from their math class or how to write a correct
>> response to a short answer question from their
>> English class. Maybe our model is not true push-in
>> because I have them for one class a day. They are NOT
>> being robbed of any mainstream instruction, however.
>> They are in my class during their elective. At the
>> G.L.A.D. training I attended last summer, the first
>> thing they told us was how ineffective pull-out is
>> for ELL students.
>>
>> On 10/29/09, lbp wrote:
>>> I am also fighting the push-in philosophy at my
>>> school. Everyone in our area was so gungho on it
>>> for a while, but I couldn't see how it would
>>> possible work at my school. Unfortunatley what
>>> ended up saving me from push-in was they cut the
>>> ESL teacher position down to halftime. I have other
>>> licensures, so I am still full time, but I now only
>>> have half the day to accomplish what I used to have
>>> all day to do. Needless to say this effectively
>>> ended push-in except for a few diehards who keep
>>> pushing for it.
>>>
>>> Trying to decide where to push in would be a
>>> nightmare, I have six grades and only three
>>> periods. I also have quite a few new arrivals which
>>> speak absolutley no English at all. Sheduling would
>>> be a nightmare, not to mention trying to schedule
>>> common prep times with all those teachers and I
>>> don't see this working with out at least some
>>> common prep time.
>>>

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