Research Base

ELLA shows teachers how to analyze school curriculum and instructional activities for their academic language demands and prepare lessons that both scaffold access to grade level content and accelerate students’ English language proficiency development. The content and structure of ELLA integrates the following key components of research-based effective instruction for English language learners:

• Providing explicit and intentional instruction in the key components of reading with an emphasis on academic English development (August & Shanahan, 2006; Gersten et al., 2007; Francis et al., 2006; Scarcella, 2003; Schleppegrell, 2004).
• Implementing an extensive and varied approach to vocabulary instruction (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2004; Graves, 2006; Stahl & Nagy, 2006).
• Scaffolding learning, including significant opportunities for students to engage in structured, academic talk (Bruner, 1983; Vygotsky, 1978; Walqui, 2006).
• Creating systems for continuous improvement, including effective use of student assessment data and implementing a multitiered approach to instructional interventions (Elmore, 2002; Fullan, 2006; Schmoker, 2006).

The structure of the ELLA professional development project is based on contemporary models of teacher professional development (Abdal-Haqq, 1995; Ball & Cohen, 1999; Borko, 2004; Elmore, 2002; Wilson & Berne, 1999) which emphasize that effective teacher learning:

• Is situated in classroom practice, focuses on students, and is aligned with other reform initiatives at the site
• Is ongoing and intensive
• Actively engages teachers in constructing their own understanding
• Incorporates collaborative experiences where teachers can interact with their colleagues
• Is multifaceted and includes both frontloading of new knowledge and opportunities for practice with coaching, reflection, and feedback
• Is grounded in the scholarship of teaching
• Acknowledges and integrates teachers’ prior knowledge and experiences