Laura Baecher

The challenges of planning language objectives in content-based ESL instruction

The purpose of this research was to investigate the major patterns in content-based instruction (CBI) lesson plans among practicum teachers at the final stage of an MA TESOL program. One hundred and seven lesson plans were coded according to a typology developed to evaluate clarity and identify areas of potential difficulty in the design of content and language objectives by TESOL teacher candidates for use in PreK–12 ESL classrooms. Participants in our study tended to have more difficulty in designing language objectives than content objectives. There was also a tendency to write language objectives that focused heavily on the four language skills and on vocabulary, and considerably less often on grammatical structures, functions, or language learning strategies.

Jumpstarting Novice Teachers' Ability to Analyze Classroom Video: Affordances of an Online Workshop

Abstract Video analysis of teaching is an important element of teacher education, yet the skills of classroom observation are often assumed rather than explicitly taught. To prepare a group of teacher trainees to interpret videos of their own teaching, the researchers developed a self-paced, online workshop to introduce micro-ethnographic techniques for observing and analyzing teaching through video. A series of video tutorials and activities guides teacher trainees through the process of viewing the same video clip through different lenses. They are asked to reflect on student response opportunities, teacher use of praise, and feedback to student error. Results indicate that this training led to strong learning outcomes, such as seeking specific evidence from the video to support claims and being more cautious about making judgments. Findings also suggest that instruction in video analysis techniques is particularly suited for online learning environments.

Addressing English Language Learners in the School Leadership Curriculum: Mapping the Terrain.

Preparing school administrators to support effective instruction of English language learners (ELLs) is an important dimension of today’s school leadership programs, yet often difficult to enact. This paper reports a comprehensive needs analysis of a school leadership advanced certificate program carried out by Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and school administration faculty. This contributed to a comprehensive understanding of the needs of faculty and candidates in their beliefs and experiences with ELL pedagogy. Implications for collaboration with TESOL faculty to strengthen more effective instruction for ELLs are discussed.

Pathways to teacher leadership among English-as-a-second-language teachers: professional development by and for emerging teacher leaders

While the scope of activities that constitute teacher leadership has become better defined, the professional development of emerging teacher leaders is just beginning to be discussed. In this study, the teacher leadership activities of beginning English-as-a-second-language teachers in a wide variety of settings in New York City public schools were examined in terms of the professional direction, support and development that these new teachers received that set them on the path to teacher leadership. Identified were several paths to teacher leadership, which ranged from well-defined to ill-structured. This paper sheds light on the generative processes involved, and contextualizes the role of novice teacher leaders against increased attention to teacher leadership in the United States.

TESOL and Early Childhood Collaborative Inquiry: Joining Forces and Crossing Boundaries.

Preparing early childhood educators to support effective instruction of English language learners (ELLs) is an important dimension of teacher preparation programs, yet often difficult to enact. This article reports on a collaboration between early childhood education (ECE) faculty and teachers of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) faculty at an urban teacher preparation program in an effort to better understand and enhance ECE and TESOL candidates’ beliefs and understandings of ELL pedagogy. Over the course of a semester, one section of practicum teacher candidates from these two programs met in person and online, as did their instructors, to identify common concerns and approaches from their respective discipline areas. Video records of teaching from early childhood classrooms with ELLs played a critical role in fostering collaborative inquiry. Implications for infusing the ECE curriculum to strengthen instruction for ELLs are discussed.

The impact of video review on supervisory conferencing

This study investigated how video-based observation may alter the nature of post-observation talk between supervisors and teacher candidates. Audio-recorded post-observation conversations were coded using a conversation analysis framework and interpreted through the lens of interactional sociology. Findings suggest that video-based observations impacted the content and extent of teacher candidate reflection during post-observation discussions, enabling candidates to comment at greater length about their teaching, initiate topics, and cite evidence through reference to the video data. Implications for the role of supervisors and the potential of video-informed post-observation conferencing are discussed.

English Language Learners Pedagogy in the English Methods Class: Collaborative Planning as a Component of Preservice Teacher Preparation

As colleagues at an urban college of education, the authors engaged in an ongoing initiative to collaborate across their secondary English and teachers of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) preparation programs. This chapter outlines a collaborative project they implemented to strengthen English teacher candidates’ understanding of TESOL pedagogy, with benefits to TESOL specialists as well. In particular, they describe how co-planning between English and TESOL teacher candidates can set the stage for English teachers to enter the field with a greater understanding of differentiation strategies for linguistically diverse adolescents.

Targeted Observation of ELL Instruction as a Tool in the Preparation of School Leaders.

ABSTRACT Preparing school administrators to promote effective instruction of English language learners (ELLs) is an important dimension of today’s educational leadership programs, requiring innovative program activities. This study explores school leadership candidates’ use of an observation tool targeted to ELL instruction that incorporated guided video analysis and live observation. Collaboration between TESOL and school leadership faculty served to enhance the capacity of the leadership program to prepare candidates in school leadership with the needed knowledge and skills to enact meaningful supervisory practices for teachers of ELL students. Implications for leadership programs to strengthen instruction for ELLs are discussed.