Hello everyone! My name is Amanda Ransford and I am a senior at the University of Houston! I am working towards my EC-6 Generalist degree and will graduate in the Spring of 2019. I look forward to the knowledge I will gain from this course.
Click here to watch my introductory video!
Hello Amanda! I love how you included the picture of our Cohort! Also, I did not know about your little brother! I too know a small amount of sign language, and I have always had a personal drive to learn how to communicate with others in ASL. One of my other dreams is to become ASL certified in the future! I completely agree with you that is imperative for educators to understand the individual needs. According to our text, “Educators who work with ELLs must be aware of the linguistic diversity in their schools and surrounding communities” (6). This goes hand in hand with exposing them to an environment rich in their native language. This exposure provides them with the opportunity to master the objectives by including their prior knowledge and blending it into the newly required learning outcomes. I cannot wait to see the rest of your video blogs!
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research
Megan! Of course, I included the picture of our cohort! I love ya'll and saddened that we are all split up this year. Wow, I did not know that you knew ASL. Becoming certified in the future sounds like a great goal and will provide many opportunities. I love that my oldest son, Dylan, decided to take ASL as his second language course this year! Wright states that Spanish is the most common language spoken in homes and with Spanish speakers making up over 80% of the ELL population (Wright, 2015, p. 8). Combining that information, our community demographics, in addition to Dylan's heritage, I was slightly surprised that he did not choose to dive deeper into the Spanish culture and language acquisition.
DeleteWright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.
Hi Amanda! I always love watching your videos and learning more about you and your family, you are such a great mom and will be an amazing teacher! I have always wanted to learn sign language, very jealous you were given the opportunity to learn the language. Diving deeper into the Spanish language for your son is amazing! Wright states, “most ELLs are born in the United States, but the level of English spoken in their homes varies considerably” (2015, p. 2). There are so many people who have family members that speak Spanish but they do not. It must be very difficult to communicate with them. I’m sure your son appreciates the fact that you are doing your best to make the communication between everyone much easier. Great video, keep up the hard work!
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition
Hi Mackenzie! I did not realize you were taking this course too! Thank you for the sweet comments regarding me being a mom and teacher! Yes, my family did learn ASL. However, I would not say it was an "opportunity," it was more of a need/requirement in order to continue our activities of daily living. Our circumstances changed, which meant we had to adapt to those changes in order to maintain our family dynamics. Yes, I agree with your comment regarding Wrights' statement. I know many individuals who were born in the United States and grew up in a home encompassed with daily exposure of their native language. Yet, as adults they have lost most of their L1 and in turn, their children's L1 has become English. Wright states, "one of the characteristics of being human that separates us from other species is the ability to use language" (Wright, 2015, p.28). I find this a very powerful statement. I feel because our schools focus so much on English, through generations, the native language of our ELL's diminishes. If language is so powerful and separates us from other species, we need to provide opportunities for our ELLs to develop both their L1 and L2. Their L1 is a part of their uniqueness!
DeleteI am looking forward to viewing your future videos to learn more about you!
Wright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.
Amanda, just like you, my family had to adjust and learn ASL for my uncle who is deaf. It is such a change in family dynamic to learn a whole new language to be able to communicate with one person. I agree that it is so important to keep the ELL's native language present for the student. We are so focused on teaching them a new language that we forget that their native language is a part of their culture and home. They will never get away with it. Just like we need ASL to communicate with our loved ones, these students need their native languages to communicate with theirs. As educators, we should encourage the use of their native language so that they can communicate with members of their communities outside of the school and their friends at school. We should teach them it is okay to use their native language and that they should keep developing it, as it is an important part of their identity.
DeleteHowdy Amanda!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on almost being past the finish line! You have a beautiful family and I’m sure they are very proud of you and your journey. Thank you for sharing. It’s great to see you and your cohort get a long!
It’s very unfortunate that horrific events have to happen for changes to be made but I believe that those things work for us to become better people. We may see a tough situation that were in an say “how does this help me?”or would could say how our experiences could help other people. Hearing someone else pursue their passion inspires me.
(updated) Howdy Amanda!
DeleteCongratulations on almost being past the finish line! You have a beautiful family and I’m sure they are very proud of you and your journey. Thank you for sharing. It’s great to see you and your cohort get a long!
It’s very unfortunate that horrific events have to happen for changes to be made but I believe that those things work for us to become better people. We may see a tough situation that we’re in and ask “how does this help me,” or we could think, “how do our experiences help other people?” Hearing someone else pursue his or her passion inspires me so thank you for not allowing your circumstances to restrict you.
Although your upbringing wasn’t filled with other languages, it is our responsibility as educators to be aware of the Federal policies for ELLs so that we can best support our English Language Learners in the classroom. Unfortunately, some policies have a very discriminatory impact on minorities while other fully support the equal protection of minority rights (Wright, 2015, p. 51). Because the Spanish language directly impacts you, you will be a great advocate for the Spanish speaking ELLs regardless of your level of proficiency in that language. Good luck in teaching! ☺
Hello Asmara! Thank you for checking out my video and complimenting my family! Yes, we have a great cohort and very thankful we get to share our journey in becoming teachers! I agree with your thoughts regarding our circumstances/events can build us as an individual. Once you have experienced these circumstances/events, it tends to build our inner self, our character. It allows us to gain perspective that we may not have had before. Lifes experiences help us grow! We need to be mindful that each of our students has their very own life experiences, each filled with their own uniqueness. Yes, it is imperative for us to be knowledgeable of our federal policies for our ELLs, as well as, "thinking linguistically. Our classrooms are language environments and language is at the heart of teaching and learning. In order to help students succeed, we need to "understand language as an integral element in the content we teach," the contributions of our students in the classroom, and how our students participate in our lessons and activities (Wright, 2015, p.29).
DeleteWright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.
Hi Amanda, thanks for sharing your video! I also have had interactions with Spanish and ASL in my life. I took Spanish as my foreign language in middle and high school and have continued to practice it through language apps. I did not gain much from my Spanish classes and am still very weak in my Spanish speaking skills. One of my close friends is majoring in ASL Interpretation. Through her I have learned many signs and lots about the Deaf Community. What is interesting about your story is that you have been immersed in both ASL and Spanish. You were immersed in ASL when it was spoken in your household, and you were immersed in Spanish when you spent time with your Momo. I think immersion is the best way you can learn a language, which is probably why you still know some ASL signs and Spanish phrases today.
ReplyDeleteHey Lauren! That is super awesome that your friend is majoring in ASL Interpretation! I also watched your introductory video and had the opportunity to learn a little about you! I recall commenting on immersion on your blog! Immersion can be powerful. I was reading about the bilingual immersion programs in our textbook. These are programs that target English-speaking students exclusively which strive to have the students become bilingual and biliterate, achieve academically in both languages, and to develop cross-cultural understanding. Programs like these assist our English speakers in learning high-demand world languages, as well as, creating opportunities for our Hawaiian and Native American students to help them learn their native language (Wright, 2015, p.103). I think these immersion programs can create an opportunity for students' futures and preserve indigenous languages.
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Second Edition.