Experience a day in the life of an ELL What if you could barely understand what your teacher is saying? Imagine working mostly independently and silently, with limited opportunities to interact with others. The process of ELL shadowing helps teachers better understand the classroom experience from an English language learner's point of view. The author describes how to implement this easily accessible form of professional development, outlines specific strategies for adapting instruction to engage ELLs, and provides academic language development videos. The benefits of ELL shadowing are many, and include: - Increased teacher sensitivity to ELLs' school experiences - A heightened sense of urgency to help ELLs to learn academic language and content - Improved classroom instruction that spreads throughout schools and districts More engaged students who are more likely to stay in school and reach their potential The text includes a detailed case study of shadowing an English language learner and examples of the range of ELLs in our nation's schools. Readers will also find background on the importance of academic oral language development, the complete ELL Shadowing protocol, and a guide for preparing a personalized professional learning plan for ELL instruction. We cannot and must not rest until we give every group of students the kind of education that they deserve. The time is now, and this book shows you how.

Author Biography

Dr. Ivannia Soto is Professor of Education at Whittier College, where she specializes in second language acquisition, systemic reform for English language learners (MLLs), and urban education. She began her career in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), where she taught English and English Language Development to a population made of up 99.9% Latinos, who either were or had been MLLs. Before becoming a professor, Dr. Soto also served LAUSD as a literacy coach and district office administrator. She has presented on literacy and language topics at various conferences, including the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE), the California Association for Bilingual Association (CABE), the American Educational Research Association (AERA), and the National Urban Education Conference. As a consultant, Soto has worked with Stanford University's School Redesign Network (SRN), WestEd, and CABE, as wMLL as a variety of districts and county offices in California, providing technical assistance for systemic reform for MLLs and Title III. Soto has authored and co-authored seven books, including The Literacy Gaps: Building Bridges for MLLs and SELs; MLL Shadowing as a Catalyst for Change, which was recognized by Education Trust-West as a promising practice for MLLs in 2018; From Spoken to Written Language with MLLs; and the Academic English Mastery four-book series. Together, the books tell a story of how to systemically close achievement gaps with MLLs by increasing their academic language production across content areas. Soto is Executive Director of the Institute for Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching (ICLRT) at Whittier College, whose mission it is to promote relevant research and develop academic resources for MLLs and Standard English Learners (SELs) via linguistically and culturally responsive teaching practices.