Facing Reality: English Language Learners in Middle School Classes

Author(s): Eliane Rubinstein-vila

Source: English Education, Vol. 35, No. 2, English Education in Middle Grades (Jan., 2003), pp.
122-136
Published by: National Council of Teachers of English
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Facing Reality: English Language

Learners in Middle School Classes
Eliane Rubinstein-Avila

middle school teachers today need to consider carefullythe complex

needs of the English language learners (ELLs)in their classrooms.As
Young(1996) argues,becausethe English-onlymovementcontinuesto "gain
momentum" across the country,the "mainstreamingof non-nativespeakers into English-onlyclassroomsis becoming the norm" (p.17). Therefore,
all middle school teachers today,not only those teaching English as a second languageclasses,oughtto considerobtainingESLendorsementsor sheltered English content area training in order to be better preparedfor the
day-to-dayrealities in their classrooms.In orderto ensure that no child lags
behind, the educationalplight of immigrantstudentsand US-bornchildren
of immigrants can no longer be neglected. Providingthe means for these
children to further their literacy development will not only benefit individual students, their families and communities, but also will benefit and
strengthen the nation.
In this article, I addressseveralrelevantquestionsof interestto middle
grades language arts teachers and teacher educators:Who are today'sEnglish language learners? How is the plight of "new" immigrant students
different from the plight of immigrant youth a century ago?Whydo immigrant youth in the 21st century requirespecial programs,if they succeeded
in the pastwithout them?Whatare the currentchallengesformiddleschool
ELLs,and how might middle school teachers,particularlyEnglishlanguage
artsteachers,best supporta diverserangeof Englishlanguageproficiencies
in their classrooms? How might teacher preparation programs provide
preservice teachers the tools they need to become successful professionals
and to help them prepare for the realistic challenges and recognize multiple possibilitieswith the ELLsin their classrooms?

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Looking to the Past to Help Us Understand the Present

and Plan for the Future
As Carroll,Blake,Camalo,and Messer(1996) argue, "Theexpectation that
teachers in today'smiddle and high schools will teach native speakersand
writers of English is outdated"(p. 25). In fact, the number of English language learners enrolled at the middle school level is currently higher than
at any other time in the historyof the nation. Atthe same time, the dropout
ratesof Hispanic/Latinostudentsfromsecondaryschoolsare highestamong
all minoritygroups,and many of these dropouts
are ELLs. Almost all students enter middle The number of English lanschool, but this is the point at which we begin to guage learners enrolled at the
lose them. The challengeformiddleschoolteach- middle school level is currently
ers, therefore, is to retain the growing number higher than at any other time in
of ELLswho are enrolled and to ensure their lit- the history of the nation.
eracy developmentand content-richeducation.
The following question has been askedby many Americans(some of
them educators):"Inspite of my great grandfather'slimited education and
no Englishskillswhen he arrivedin the US from
, he was able to put
his children throughschool, and he eventuallyeven boughta house. So why
do new arrivalstodayneed special treatment(i.e., bilingual/ESL/sheltered
Englishcontent area classes)?"It's an importantquestion, for while effective middle school teachers may not harborsuch feelings about their students, this pervasive attitude within a community could prevent the
allocation of tax revenues to supportthe education of non-nativespeakers.
The answer is that the needs of today'simmigrant students must be examined in historical,social, and economic contexts.
Duringthe firstgreatwave of immigrationduringthe turn of the 20th
century, immigrant adolescents were rapidly absorbedinto a burgeoning
industrialwork force. At that time, good health and a willingness to work
hard for long hours were the only requirements. In spite of workers' low
skillsand Englishproficiency,workwas plentifulin mills and factories.Thus,
immigrant adolescent workerswere slowly able to "move up" within the
factorystructure,and as adults, they were even able to achieve the American dream of home ownership and the chance to provide a better life and
greateropportunitiesfor their children.
However,the adolescent immigrants from the current great immigration wave, which startedafter the ImmigrationAct of 1965 and peaked
in the 1990s,face social and economic realitiesthat differsharplyfromthose
of their predecessorsa century ago (Suarez-Orozco&Suarez-Orozco,2001).
Today'sadolescent ELLs(first and second-generationimmigrants)are con-

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fronted with a different economy, one that has been described by using the
hourglass as a metaphor: The skilled and educated workers enter top-level
jobs, while unskilled workers are relegated to repetitive, badly paid jobs with
little, if any, security and opportunity for upward mobility. In today's
economy an adolescent with a high school diploma and only mediocre academic literacy skills is much less likely to achieve middle-class status as an
adult. Therefore, in order to succeed in the current economy, adolescent
ELLs need to obtain much higher levels of education and develop solid academic proficiency in English. In the recent past, approximately 80%of ELLs
(R-12) were typically enrolled in special programs such as bilingual (with a
range of first language support), dual immersion programs, English as a
second language classes, self-contained and sheltered English content classes
(Butler & Stevens, 2001). The passage of propositions such as 227 in California in 1988, and 203 in Arizona in 2000 (with other states threatening to
follow their lead) limited ELLs access to these services (Gandara & Maxwell-Jolly, 2000). As a consequence, many more ELLs are attending mainstream classes.
The question now becomes this: Are mainstream English and content
area teachers equipped to meet the needs of these students? While some
elementary teacher education programs are gearing up to prepare all
preservice teachers for culturally and linguistiAlthough ELLsare referred to as cally diverse students (see Mora & Grisham,
one entity, often in contrast to 2001), few middle school and secondary teacher
students for whom English is education programs are addressing the needs of
the home language, they are a ELLs across the curriculum (Moore, Bean,
vastly heterogeneous group. In Birdyshaw, & Rycik, 1999). For example, a recent
fact, diversity is one of the most examination of the impact of Proposition 227 on
salient features of ELLs. 16 school districts in California found that ELLs
are more likely to be taught by non-credentialed
and
no
teachers,
systematic professional development was in place (Gandara
& Maxwell-Jolly, 2000).

Heterogeneity among Middle-level English Language Learners

The majority of English language learners today are immigrants or the children of immigrants, part of the fastest growing segment of the nation's population (Suarez-Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001). Although ELLs are referred
to as one entity, often in contrast to students for whom English is the home
language, they are a vastly heterogeneous group. In fact, diversity is one of
the most salient features of ELLs (Peregoy & Boyle, 2000). This heterogene-

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ity is even greateramong middle school students.Such heterogeneityoften

is confrontedfor the first time in middle school, a situation that can create
social tensions for ELLstudents. Because middle schools often bring students together from diverse and distant neighborhoods,the students and
their families are less well known by teachers, other significant adults, and
peers.
In addition to individual differences (interest, motivation, personal
characteristics),ELLstoday differ in age, country of origin, ethnicity, language, culture, family SES(social economic status), prior formalschooling
experiences, and consequent levels of proficiency in their first language
and Englishlanguagedevelopment(Peregoy&Boyle,2000). Educatorscannot assumethat all ELLstudentsare immigrantsor children of immigrants,
since NativeAmericanchildren speakinga varietyof home languagessuch
as Chippewa,Cherokee,Choctaw,Apache,Crow,and especially Navajo,also
may be designatedELL(Peregoy& Boyle,2000). Similarly,many Mexican
families, especially in the Southwest along border towns, may have been
residingin their communities forover five generations,well beforethe land
they live on became United Statesterritory.
Teachers may not be fully aware of the impact of ELLstudents' SES
and social capital on their English language acquisition and development.
Often factors such as the students' perceived cognitive abilities or their
nationalities are viewed as challenges or blessings. Consequently,well-intentionedteachers may makesimplistic generalizationssuch as, "MySouth
Americanstudents seem to learn English so much fasterthan my Mexican
students."Howeverwhen SESis considered,the picturebecomesmuch more
complex. Whether ELLs are from Argentina, Colombia, Israel, India, or
Mexico,those whose parents are highly skilled professionalsor university
professors(usually living in the UStemporarily)bringwith them resources
and experiences that are aligned with mainstream school culture and expectations;therefore, they often are able to provide the academic support
that is expected by school personnel.
In orderto illustratemore vividly the impact of SESon the processof
academic English language development, I provide a snapshot of three
middle school ELLswhose experiences and academic needs vary.
Radika
Radikacame to the USwith her family from India.Afteronly one year in an
ESLprogram,she seemed to have integrated smoothly, and almost effortlessly,into the mainstream7th grade class. Like many ELLswhose foreign-

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bornparentsare highly educatedprofessionals,Radikadid well in school in

spite of languagebarriers.Radikahad been enrolledin schoolscontinuously;
she had not missed months or yearsof school in the transitionfrom Indiato
the US. She was highly literate in her first language upon arrival,and the
school she attended in India had providedher with a solid base in math,
science, and ESL. She also could count on her parents' help with school
assignments. In the US, the family lived in a higher income neighborhood
where Englishwas the dominantlanguage. Radika'saccess to extracurricular activitiesalso providedher with numerousopportunitiesto interactwith
native Englishspeakers.Printin several Indianlanguagesand Englishwas
common in Radika'shome in various forms (newspapers,manuals, magazines, books, dictionaries, comic books, and letters). On weekends Radika
and her siblings often accompaniedtheir parentsto museums, plays,recitals, and the entire familyattendedthe local libraryto checkout books.Radika
did not replace her mother tongue with English;rather,she added English
to her alreadyextensive language repertoire.
Stefani
Stefani,also in the 7th grade, was born in the US to workingclass Mexican
parents.Althoughshe had been enrolled in US urban schools from kindergarten (except for a year or two during which the family moved back to
Mexico), she was still categorized as ELL (because her standardizedtest
scores were below the 36th percentile). Stefaniwas enrolled in a bilingual/
ESLprogramthat was physicallysegregatedfrom the rest of the school (segregatedas many such programsare: in bungalows,basements,other wings
off the main building). Stefani'sinteractionwith native speakersof English
was infrequent, and most of her teachers were not fully credentialed.She
lived in an immigrant enclave where face-to-faceinteractions with native
English speakerswere also limited, if not rare. In spite of her parents' desire to supporther, they were not able to assist Stefani with school assignments and projects.Moreover,due to the poorly-litstreets and the potential
dangers of drug-relatedactivity in her neighborhood,her fearful and protective parentsprohibitedher from visiting friends or participatingin after
school programswhere she might have had opportunitiesto obtain assistance with homeworkand to interactwith nativeEnglishspeakers.Onweekends, since both parentsworked,Stefaniwas the principalcaretakerfor her
two youngersiblings,and thus spent most of the time indoorswatching television. While Stefani hoped to go to college after high school, her limited
access to the college-boundcurricula (due to her ELLstatus) no doubtcur-

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tailed her chances of being admitted to a four-yearinstitution (see Valdes,

2001).
Caco

Not unlike many immigrantfamilies, Caco'sfamily experienced a long and

bumpypath from the Dominican Republicto their final destinationin Massachusetts. As a result, Caco's formal schooling attendance was intermittent. Caco's parents were well aware and concerned with the disruption
that this was causing, but did not have much choice in the matter. Caco
began attendinga small town school in the Dominican Republicas a child.
Asis often the case among ruralfamilies beforeimmigrating,they movedto
SantoDomingo(the capital),where Cacoattendedseveraldifferentschools.
En route to New York,the family spent a year in Puerto Rico waiting for
visas, during which time Caco attended school only sporadically.Once in
New YorkCity,Caco attended a couple of schools before his family finally
resettled an hour away from Boston,where his parents and older brother
securedbetterfactoryjobs.In spite of his limited schoolingexperience,Caco
was enrolled in an 8th grade class with limited ESLsupport. Caco- resilient, quick-witted,and out-going-communicatedwith ease amonghis "bros"
(as he called his friends), but his academic literacy skills in both Spanish
and English were extremely limited. While he felt he was learning more
than he ever did before, Caco was not handing
in the requiredassignmentsand was failingmost Teacher preparation programs
of the content area classes. Cacobegan to fall be- have a responsibility to prepare
tween the cracks of the educational system and future teachers to teach the
he failed to develop the academic English skills students that they most likely
required to succeed at the secondary level and will be teaching, not imaginary
beyond.This lack of access is not conducive to or "ideal" ones.
the fulfillment of the AmericanDream. It leaves
Cacoand students like him with only one option:to join the workersat the
bottomof the hourglass.
Educating Middle-level Teachers of English Language Learners:
Challenges and Possibilities
I believe systemic challenges need to be addressedso that teachers can better supportthe Englishlanguagelearnersin their middleschool classrooms.
Teacherpreparationprogramshave a responsibilityto preparefutureteachers to teach the students that they most likely will be teaching, not imaginaryor "ideal"ones. Districtsalso havethe responsibilityto provideinservice

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teachers with the knowledgeand supportthey need to face challenges and

recognize possibilitieswith ELLs.Feeling unequippedto help studentssucceed can triggerdefensive reactionsthat, while not intentional, are damaging to students as well as to the ethos of classroomsand schools. As I stated
earlier, I believe that all middle school teachers need to acquire and develop knowledgeof sheltered Englishinstructionand a repertoireof strategies for effective teaching of ELLs in their classrooms. A strong dose of
empathy,carino, and greater understandingof the daily challenges these
students face, beyondthose they experience in school, is also essential for
creating a community of learners.
Rethinking Assumptions and Attitudes
The assumptionsand attitudesaboutadolescentsheld bymanymiddleschool
preservice teachers, coupled with the often limited preparation middle
school teachers receive in literacy and second
The assumptions and attitudes
language acquisition, are likely to spell disaster
about adolescents held by for ELLs. In exploring preservice teachers' asmany middle school preservice
sumptions about adolescents, Finders (1998/
teachers, coupled with the
1999)documentedthe attitudesof 60 (mostly feoften limited preparation male and mostlywhite) preservicemiddleschool
middle school teachers receive teachers and found that they overwhelmingly
viewed adolescent students as a homogenous
in literacy and second language
group.The preserviceteachers engagedin what
acquisition, are likely to spell
disaster for ELLs. Finders (1998/1999) calls "pervasivestereotyping,"referringto studentsas "packs"and "herds"
that required "reining in" and domestication. Such stereotyping,I would
add,is perhapseven greaterwhen middle school studentsdo not look,dress,
talk, or walk in a manner that is familiar or acceptable to middle school
teachers. Middle school teachers, even those with the best of intentions,
may tend to view ELLstudents as members of particularcultural groups
ratherthan as complex individuals.They may assume erroneouslythat language developmentis homogeneous from individual learner to individual
learner within cultural groups.
Other researchers have pointed out teachers' negative assumptions
of English language learners as well as the various structuralconditions of
schoolsthat inevitablyconstrainthe interactionsbetweenteachersand ELLs
(Gutierrez, Baquedano-Lopez& Alvarez, 2000; Rubinstein-Avila,2001;
Valenzuela,1999).Exploringteacher-studentrelationshipsat a middleschool
with a large Latino student body and many ELLs,Ratz (1999) found that

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Latinostudents felt discriminatedagainst and often unfairly blamed. Ratz

noted that teachers in the middle school in which she taught associated
being a "goodstudent"with many dominant white mainstream values besides just good grades:politeness, neat grooming, acceptable traditionalist
clothing,and use of standardEnglish,values which were adheredto by most
of the AsianAmericanand EuropeanAmericanstudents in her school. Ratz
learned that some teachers mistakenlyinterpretedfashion and behavioral
fads among Latinostudents as signs of gang membership. Eight focal ELL
participants,who were labeled "atrisk"due to low test scores, were placed
in the lowest track,where teachers were more likely to disinvest and channel their energy towardstudents who were doing well.
Nevertheless,teachers who are open to learning from their students,
do. For example, teachers are often unaware, until they look and listen
closely, that many immigrant students spend years away from either par&Suarez-Orozco,
ent, sometimesboth(see Suarez-Orozco
2001).Otherteachers I met in Californiawere astounded at the first-handinformation they
obtainedfrom their studentsaboutthe atrocitiescommitted in El Salvador.
Consequently,they took a greater critical stance in questioning their own
politicalalliances as they realizedthe importanceof seeking additional,and
alternative,sources of informationother than the mainstream news. Still
other teachers I knew in the GreaterBoston Area began to reflect on the
similaritiesand differencesin the challenges faced and opportunitiesavailable to their Puerto Rican vs. Dominican students and their families. All
these teacherswho believedthey could learn from their students,listenedand did.
Strategies for Instruction: Effective Integration of ELLsin
Mainstream Classes
Being sensitive to English language learners' needs does not entail feeling
sorry for them, lowering expectations,or "watering-down"one's language
or the curriculum. Quite the contrary,it is best reflected by conveying to
students that we have high expectationsfor all learners. There are several
thingsteacherscan do to supportELLlearners.Someadaptations,Echevarria
and Graves(1998) suggest, are as simple as slowing down, even if slightly,
one's verbal output and being conscious of enunciating clearly. They also
suggestthat long and complex explanationsshould be shortened,especially
when posing a problem or providingdirections. Displayinglessons on the
boardor on an overheadprovidesstudentswith additionalvisual scaffolding.
The role of talk and face-to-faceinteractionis vital for languagelearn-

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ing. It is imperativethat ELLsbe given ample opportunitiesto interact academically with peers as often as possible. They should be encouraged to
workwith fluent English-speakingpeers throughvariouscooperativelearning tasks,peer-leddiscussions,and readingcircles. ELLsneed to be allowed,
and even encouraged, to use their dominant language during small group
discussionsas a bridgeto developinggreaterunderstandingof new concepts
presented in English. Occasionaltranslation of conversation between the
teacher and ELLsby more proficient bilingual students in the classroom
may also facilitate meaning makingof complex concepts, especially where
the language barrieris likely to hamper comprehension(Rubinstein-Avila,
2002). Moreover,these situationsare excellent opportunitiesto model to all
students the authentic functions of bi/multilingualism.
When middle school teachers activate prior knowledgewithin a context-rich environment, students can more readily develop rich language
skills. Carroll and colleagues (1996) maintain, "Writingabout what one
knows best helps reduce the cognitive overloadthat interferes with [ELL]
writers' abilityto expressthemselves in a non-nativelanguage"(p. 27). Isolated drills are even less meaningful for ELLs,since they are unlikely to be
familiarwith the cultural and linguistic contextin orderto link the broader
purpose or usefulness of the particular skill being taught. A context-rich
environment includes providinga rich arrayof materialsthat tap students'
interests and are deemed age-appropriateby peers. Even teachers who do
not speaktheir ELLs'primarylanguage (an impossiblefeat in LosAngeles,
for example, where 125 languages are spoken) can explore the potential
cognates in key content vocabularyin a given lesson.
Providingsupplemental resources, especially visual aids, are other
importantstrategies. Since ELLsstrongly rely on contextual clues to construct content area meaning in a language they do not fully master,the use
of realia (pictures, symbols,illustrationsand objects)should not be limited
to the elementary grades; this includes reading symbols, graphs, maps,
multimedia such as videos, CD-ROMprograms,interactive computer displays,and relevant web sites (Egbert&Simich-Dudgeon,2001). Visualaids
such as semantic mapping and graphic organizersare also useful to build
content areavocabularyacrossthe curriculum.Hadawayand Mundy(1999)
deviseda typeof graphicorganizerfortheir "visual-verbal
technique,"where
vocabularywordswere placed on a continuum to visuallyillustratenot only
their variety,but also to underscore their intensity. For example, with the
word "rain"a word like "drizzle"was placed on one extreme of the continuum while "flood"was placedat the other.Similarly,fordescribingwind,
the words "breeze"and "hurricane"were placed in the extremes of the

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continuum. This technique, useful acrossall content areas, encouragesthe

use of synonyms,but it also underscoresthat since the terms may vary by
level or intensity,they are not always interchangeable.
Informationalpicture booksof various reading levels as well as films
alsosupplementthe developmentof manyconceptsin a visual manner.They
can be especiallyeffective when unfamiliarconcepts are being introduced.
Informationalpicture books containing vivid pictures, illustrations, and
informativetext can provideELLswith input for scaffoldingtheir meaning
making in content area classes (Carr, Buchanan, Wents, Weiss, & Brant,
2001). Englishlanguagearts teachers also may use picture booksto provide
ELLswith backgroundinformation of an unfamiliar historical period or
events as well as to aid in the comprehensionof and engagementwith more
complextextsbeing used in class. Golden(2001) revealshow adjustingone's
Englishcurriculum to incorporate,and even focus on, film can encourage
the development of visual and academic literacies in the middle grades.
ManyELLsmay relystronglyon visual stimuli alongwith collaborativepeer
discussionsin the processesof meaning making.
Effective middle school teachers already employ strategies such as
modeling and eliciting students' prior knowledge.Explicitmodeling of the
processesa certaintaskentailsas well as the expectedend productcan greatly
reduce the anxietyof ELLs.Forexample, beforeeliciting a list of characteristics describing fictional characters, language arts teachers can first ask
students to describe a friend, an evil person, the ideal person, and so on.
Suggestionscan be written on the board or an overhead. Thus, when returningto the characteristicsof the fictional characters,ELLswho may not
have been familiarwith these concepts (or equippedwith a vast vocabulary
of adjectives)are more likely to engage meaningfully.Similarly,since ELLs
are likely to be unfamiliarwith many additionalwords in the text, beyond
the "keyvocabularywords,"Englishlanguage arts teachers can encourage
studentsto take charge of their own learning and highlight the wordswith
which they may not be familiar. After comparing individual lists, which
will inevitablydisplaysome overlap,studentscan be dividedintosmallgroups
(heterogeneousby Englishproficiency)to discussthe meaning of the words,
attempt to define them, and provide a couple of examples in group composedsentences.
O'Byrne(2001) points out that ELLsare likely to continue needing
English as a second language assistance after they are "mainstreamed"or
"transitioned."Such students may have difficulties supportingtheir statements with examples from texts; in fact, they tend to use a great deal of
factual information,even copied verbatim from the text. Even ELLswith

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solid academic backgroundsin their native language may have difficulty

grasping implicitly the text structure conventions valued and expected in
US educational institutions;therefore,they benefit from modeling of organization,sequencing and referencing,since these elements vary acrosslanguages and are by no means universal (Peregoy&Boyle,2000).
Englishteachers also can supportELLsbyprovidingpromptand helpful feedback. Reyes (1995) as well as Carrolland colleagues (1996) claim
that ELLsboth expect and appreciateexplicitfeedbackon their written language. When editing ELLs'written work,Carrollet al., (1996) recommend
that teachers comment on the strengthsof their students' rich, colorful or
humorousdescriptions,and compliment them on risk-takingattemptssuch
as producinglonger and more complex sentences or improvingthe organization of their essays.These authorsunderscorethe importanceof keeping
continuous trackof the patternsof errorsstudentsmake,as individualsand
as a group, in order to later focus on those during mini-lessons(Carrollet
al., 1996). Reyes(1995) claims that teachers should not assume that ELLs
will automaticallyunderstandand incorporatecorrectionsunless they are
made in a directand explicit fashion. Englishteachers are stronglyencouraged to require students to edit their final assignments,followingthe peerand teacher-editeddrafts.This last step encourages ELLsto become more
cognizantand gain greaterawarenessof the patternsof their errors,as well
as of their strengths(Carrollet al., 1996).
Althoughit is imperative to adapt the mainstream curriculum and
use multiple strategiesto scaffoldELLs'learning of the content as they develop Englishliteracyskills, we cannot ignore the role of teachers' ideological and affective stances towardtheir English language learning students.
In the past, the general lack of inclusion of the experiences of students of
color and of the working class promptedwidespreadcriticism of attempts
to reformthe curriculum. While we have experienced greater inclusion of
"multicultural"texts in teacher preparationprogramsand consequentlyin
English middle school classrooms,Wong-Fillmoreand Meyer(1992) warn
educators to look out for adaptationsand inclusions that are "merelycosmetic" (p. 651). The authors rightfullyclaim that superficial attemptsonly
serve to perpetuate, rather than challenge, unidirectional, ethnocentric,
assimilationistvalues.
Anotherimportantcomponentof teaching immigrantstudents/ELLs,
as Valenzuela(1999) so aptlyremindsus, is caring, and caring entails empathy and understanding.While most students are generally sensitive to the
ways in which their teachers perceive and relate to them as human beings,
empathyand understandingare essential for studentswho are membersof

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Rubinstein - Av i la > Facing Reality

subordinategroups(Ratz, 1999;Nieto, 2000;Valdes,2001;Valenzuela,1999;

Suarez-Orozco& Suarez-Orozco,2001). In fact, the bond ELLscreate with
their teachers has a great impact on their achievements (Ratz, 1999;Nieto,
2000;Valenzuela,1999).Forexample,Miguel,an 8th gradeELLfromMexico,
struggledfor years to make meaning from school texts;he had become discouraged(by gradesand prior teachers' attitudes)and considered not continuinghis education.Butthe bondwovenbetweenhim and his two sheltered
Englishcontent teachers, and the on-goingscaffoldthat they providedhim,
resulted in the rekindling of Miguel's enthusiasm for school (RubinsteinAvila,in press). His two teachers' pervasivecaring- their carino- and their
unwaveringbelief in him renewed his interest,his belief in himself, and his
effortsto develop his limited literacy skills and continue on to high school.
As Miguel confided in me: "Whenthey [teachers] care, you know, then I
in press).Eighth
care;I reallytry to do it a lot more better"(Rubinstein-Avila,
about
felt
like
for
and
he
concern
movingon
grade
family Miguel,
expressed
to a new, and larger,school where he feared he would most likely be invisible to the teachers.
Caringalso entails acknowledgementand respectfor immigrant/ELL
students,their families,their experiencesand the languagethey use at home
and in their communities. Zentella(2002) claims that due to a narrowview
of bilingualism,and idealized (and archaic) views of linguistic purity,it is
not uncommon for teachers to voice pejorativeattitudes toward forms of
communication used among many second-generationLatino youth, what
he calls "Spanglishbashing"(Zentella2002,p. 328). Zentella,a sociolinguist,
posits that these newly created forms of communication creatively reflect
the post-migratorydailylives of first-and second-generationimmigrants.As
she poignantlywrites, "Itis, after all, in the borrowingand criss-crossingsof
forms and meanings that the hybrididentity of Latinas is most manifest"
(Zentella,2002, p. 329).
Conclusion
Unfortunately,the few existing publishedethnographiesabout low-income
adolescentEnglishlanguagelearnersportraytheir educationalexperiences
as rathergrim. The common denominatoracross studies seems to indicate
that students' academic and emotional needs are consistentlybeing either
denied or ignored(Ratz,1999;Valdes,2001;Valenzuela,1999).AsValenzuela
(1999) remindsus, "Programsmayprovidean illusion of inclusion"(p. 162),
but the real messageconveyedis that there is no supportor encouragement
for multilingualismor multiculturalism.

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English

Education,

V35 N2, January

2003

MiddleschoolELLsoftenare beingdeniedaccessto challenging,gradeappropriatecontent area instruction,due to their perceivedlinguistichandicap (see Valdes, 2001). Contrary to the growing interest in effectively
embracing ELLs in elementary curriculum,
The educational needs of ELLs middle school ELLsare
isolated, frequentlynot
ought to be addressed
or
even
included,
acknowledged,in school-wide
teacher
initiatives. The continuous educational neglect
preparation
throughout
courses and programs, not only
and miseducation of such a large and growing
in courses designated as
segment of the populationcomes at a high financial and moral price. The educational needs of
"bilingual/ESL or multicultural."
ELLsought to be addressedthroughoutteacher
preparationcourses and programs,not only in courses designatedas "bilingual/ESL or multicultural."We must finally realize that not only are we
"notin Kansasanymore!"as Suarez-Orozcoand Suarez-Orozco(2001, p. 28)
aptly remind us, but that Kansasitself is no longer the same. Valdes'(2001)
adviceis pertinenthere:"Wemustplancarefully,and we mustworkquickly"
(p. 159).Weas a nation can no longer affordto ignore the academic literacy
needs of such a large segment of our future citizenry.Asmy colleague Richard Ruiz says bluntly, "The idea that one can prepare teachers for classrooms in which all students speak English is a fantasy, yet we continue
developingprogramsas if the fantasywere true"(Gutierrez,Asato,Pacheco,
Moll,Olson,Lai Horng,Ruiz,Garcia,&McCarty,2002, p. 340).
It is time we face reality;Englishlanguage learners are the responsibility of all educators across educational institutions. Ratherthan preparing ELLs to enter the bottom of the hourglass economy, we should be
providingall students the necessary tools to become the future shapers of
new possibilities.No one institution can do it alone. Teachersand teacher
educatorsneed on-goingfederal, state, university,and district supportand
collaborationsin order to meet the educational needs of ELLsand provide
them the chances to engage in a variety of fields and pursue a wider range
of employment.As a nation that honors and celebratesdiversity,we have a
moral obligationto begin investing systematicallyin the growthand development of preserviceand inservice middle school teachers, in orderto provide for the successful transition of ELLsfrom elementary school to high
school and beyond.Facingrealitymeans acknowledgingthe impactof larger
societal ideologies on our programsand curricula, becoming alert and vigilant of our own blind spots. Ultimately,facing reality means investing systematicallyin the growthand developmentof Englishlanguageartsteachers
to ensure their middle school ELLstudents' success. Our thoughtful and

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Rubinstein-Avila

> Facing

Reality

sound teaching of Englishlanguagelearners and their middle gradesteachers should become a national priority.
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ElianeRubinstein-Avilais an assistantprofessorin the Departmentof Language, Readingand Culture,Universityof Arizona,Tucson, AZ.

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