Active learners: students who take control of their own learning by monitoring their understanding and seeking out additional information and support if needed
Additive bilingualism: the second language is learnt in addition to, and does not replace, the first language, and there are also cognitive and metalinguistic advantages.
Appropriate individualized learning environments: environments that support each individual student’s learning needs
Assessments: tools that measure the degree to which students have met learning outcomes
Audit: to take a course in which no grade is given. In order to receive credit, the course must be taken again and a passing grade must be earned
Authentic contexts: academic settings and practical situations in which language learning takes place
BICS: Basic interpersonal communication skills conversational fluency
Bilingual education: Use of two languages for literacy and instruction – Ideally, literacy and learning begin with the learner’s first language, and a second language is introduced gradually
Bilingual Individual: Ability to speak/understand (and sometimes read/ write) two languages
Bilingual Society: Presence of at least two language groups
CALL: Computer-assisted language learning
CALP: Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency – language needed to succeed academically. Academic language is often formal and abstract with technical vocabulary related to a discipline
CEFR: Common European Framework of Reference for Languages
CLIL: Content and Language Integrated Learning – teaching subjects such as science, history and geography to students through a foreign language.
Cognitive ability: ability to perceive meaning, think critically, and reason logically
Compensation strategies: ways students can make up for their own weaknesses
Complementary classes: Language classes outside of the school curriculum not managed or paid for by the school
Content support: support in understanding the content or subject area concepts
Conversational fluency: basic language level necessary to make a person’s needs and wants known and communicate in familiar face-to-face situations
Core courses: grade level courses that students are required to take in MS and HS
Critical thinking: thinking that is beyond simple comprehension level, involving questioning, analyzing
Cross-cultural studies: the knowledge of how values, history, literature, religion and languages influence the interaction among diverse peoples
Dialect: Manner of speaking a language that varies according to region or social group (see also variety)
Differentiated instruction: instruction based on identifying different needs of the students and utilizing different strategies and adjusting the level of support
Dominant language: Language spoken by the dominant social group, or language that is seen as the main language of a country May have official or national language status even if it is not spoken by a numerical majority of the national population
EAL: English additional language
ELL: English Language Learning
English language proficiency: the overall ability to use English
ESL: English Second Language
ESL and content teacher collaboration: developing curricula and planning instruction of content and language together
Fluency of speech: the ease and facility with which a speaker uses the English language
Foreign language: Language that is not spoken in the immediate environment of the learner
Grade level outcomes: knowledge, skills and understandings students are expected to acquire or demonstrate at each grade level
Heritage language: Language of a person’s ancestors or ethnolinguistic group
High needs students: Students who need extra support in the classroom because of limited language proficiency, identified learning disabilities and/or social/behavioural issues
Home language: Language spoken in the home (see also L1, mother tongue), some people have more than one home language
Identity texts: positive statements that students make about themselves in the context of language and/or culture – these products can be written, spoken, visual, musical, dramatic, or multimodal combinations.
In-class ESL support: varied practices used by the ESL teacher to support student language and content learning, as well as student performance, in the content classroom
Interactive, communicative approach (to language learning): a method which focuses on speaking and listening skills, exchanging or sharing feelings, thoughts, or information with others
Key words: words that are essential to understanding a piece of writing or speech
L1: First language, native language (see also mother tongue, home language, local language). Refers to language or languages learned from birth
L2: Second language, non-native language, language of wider communication, or foreign language. Often refers to contexts where the language is spoken in the wider society outside the home; in bilingual education, refers to second (official, foreign) language introduced after the L1
Language functions: the different purposes for which people use language
Language implications: the language demands of a unit of study inclusive of language functions, text types, language features, topic-specific/-complementary vocabulary, and cultural understandings
Language mastery: a stage at which an individual has acquired the ability to read, write, speak and listen on level with a native English speaker
Language of instruction: Language used for teaching and learning the school curriculum, also called medium of instruction
Language skills: skills in listening, speaking, reading and writing
Language support: support in developing language skills
Learning styles: The ways and conditions that best promote individual student learning
Levels of language ability: stages of language proficiency
Lingua franca: Widely spoken language used for communication between ethnolinguistic groups – for example: Tok Pisin in PNG
Literacy skills: skills needed to read and write
Local language: Language spoken in the immediate community. (May refer to languages that are not yet fully developed in written form).d
Mainstream classes: classes other than ESL classes
Majority language: spoken by the majority of people in a region/country
Metalinguistic awareness: one’s thinking about how languages work
MI: Medium of Instruction
Minority language: spoken by a social and/or ethnic minority group (Sometimes used to refer to the language of a numerically large group that is not dominant)
Modified homework: homework that has been changed to suit a student’s language abilities and/or language learning needs
Mother tongue (MT): First language, native language (see also L1, home language, local language) Language that a person: (a) has learnt first; (b) identifies with or is identified as a native speaker of by others; (c) knows best; or (d) uses most
Multilingual Individual: Ability to speak/understand (and sometimes read/ write) more than two languages
National language: considered to be an important, widely-spoken language in a country; sometimes also an official language – Example: India recognizes two official and 22 national languages
Non-verbal cues: ways of communicating without language such as gestures, facial expressions and body language
Official language: Language adopted by a country for public administrative and institutional use, often including schools. Example: India has Hindi and English as official languages of the country and a number of different official state languages
Outcomes: the learning goals for a course
Pass: an alternative grade given in place of a letter grade to show a student has met course requirements
Peer competitiveness: the ability of ESL students to keep up and be successful in the mainstream classes without ESL services
Pull-out program: (for ESL learners):a program where ESL students study language intensive subjects in classrooms separate from non-ESL students
Relevant language: language appropriate to specific social and academic settings
Scaffolding: supporting student learning by assessing current levels of understanding and/or ability and determining effective actions to help each individual reach his/her academic and social potential
SIM: Sheltered immersion model
SLIC: Second Language Instructional Competence
SLL: Second Language Learners
Socio-cultural factors: aspects such as cultural values, practices, stereotypes, attitudes and the process of acculturation which can have a positive or negative affect on language learning
Stage of language development: place a child is at, in terms of language proficiency
Subtractive bilingualism: the second language and culture are acquired with pressure to replace or demote the first language, possibly relating to a less positive self-concept, loss of cultural identity, and maybe alienation and the danger of failure in education.
TESOL: Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (also name of an official qualification)
Unwritten language: spoken language, but not yet used for reading/writing
Variety: Manner of speaking a language that varies according to region or social group (see also dialect)
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References:
Ball, J. (2011). Enhancing learning of children from diverse language backgrounds: mother tongue-based bilingual or multilingual education in the early years. UNESCO Education Sector.
Cummins, J. (1998). Immersion education for the millennium: What have we learned from 30 years of research on second language immersion? In M. R. Childs & R. M. Bostwick (Eds.), Learning through two languages: Research and practice (pp. 34–47). Katoh Gakuen, Japan.
ISB. (2005). ESL Handbook. International School Bangkok. Retrieved from http://www.isb.ac.th/PDF/ESLhandbook2005.pdf
UNESCO Bangkok. (2007). Advocacy kit for promoting multilingual education: including the excluded. Bangkok: UNESCO.
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