(Click either on the image to the left, or here, to view the presentation. Navigate to our website, tinyurl.com/corelearning, and scroll down to Curriculum Council to view and print out all handouts.)
Unlike the California ELD standards, California's ELA/ELD Framework is a useful tool that is aimed at providing guidance on how to implement the ELA/Literacy standards and the ELD standards in tandem.
The Framework is built upon the premise that there exist five themes that run throughout both the ELA/Literacy and the ELD standards; these five themes are Meaning Making, Language Development, Effective Expression, Content Knowledge, and Foundational Skills. Chapters 3-7 of the Framework focus on specific grade level spans, and provides specific suggestions for the implementation of these themes. Most importantly, these chapters provide snapshots and longer vignettes, which provide examples of lessons and units that implement all five of the key themes.
The Framework, then, is a chance for teachers to see what the ELA/Literacy and ELD standards, working in tandem, look like. And what it boils down to, frankly, is really great instruction that is rooted in scaffolding learning for all students, including ELD students (but also any struggling readers).
The Framework emphasizes a need for collaboration (between elementary teachers, and between secondary content area teachers and ELD teachers) in order to curtail the problem of LTELs (long-term English learners)--students who stay in the ELD classes, not progressing towards College and Career Readiness.
With the right structures in place, and support from administrators, teachers could begin to implement this important work, and see the resulting success in students who have bridged the achievement gap.
By Maria Vlahiotis, Literacy Specialist
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