How to Incorporate ELL Culture into Writing
How to Incorporate ELL Culture into Writing
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Imagine that you have a class of 20+ students throughout the school year. In the middle of the school year, you get a new student who is from another country and speaks minimal English. That student is struggling to communicate and keep up with lessons. Additionally, they feel as if their culture is not recognized in the classroom and feels excluded from the class. The student wants to share their experiences, but has a hard time communicating.
Writing is one of the best ways to let our students express themselves. People can write about their hobbies or passions, culture, tell a story, and so much more. Writing opens up a door of creativity for our students. Furthermore, it is a great way for students to communicate and share their stories. Writing is such an important aspect of an ELL's educational journey. There is so much they can learn and so much they can teach to others. As educators, we need to allow students to incorporate their culture and histories into their writing to learn more about them.
Here are a few ways to include culture into writing:
1. Having students write about their identities/experiences
While skills-based learning is important in the classroom, our students will not feel fully accepted if we do not recognize their identities and histories that make them unique. We need our students to realize that skills do not define them; there is more to someone than their academic ability- what hobbies they enjoy, what makes them themself. This should be a top priority in the classroom. You can combine skills-based assessments and practice with identities and histories. One way to do this is have students write about their cultural background, traditions, etc. This allows students to practice their writing skills while also learning more about themselves and each other. Once everyone writes about themselves, they can share in groups or out loud to the class. While it is important for students to learn about themselves, it is also important for them to learn about their peers as well. Teachers are encouraged to participate in this activity as well so students can learn more about their teacher and make that same connection.
2. Culture Days
Another great way for students to learn more about their culture and other cultures through writing is by having culture days. Each student could be assigned a country to research and learn more about. Depending on the grade level, students could write a research paper about the country they were assigned and what they learned, what makes it unique, etc. The assignment could be done with just the research paper, however if you want your students to get more involved, each student could present what they learned and present a cultural activity, food, etc. Not only do ELL students get to learn about other cultures, students will get to learn about the cultures of ELL students and learn more about their identities and histories.
All in all, these activities show that we want to get to know our students' identities and histories and learn more about them. Additionally, it shows we put identities above skills and that there are more to our students than academic based assessments. This creates a growth vs. fixed mindset in the classroom. (Tailor, 2021).
Sources:
Kubota, R., & Lin, A. M. Y. (Eds.). (2009). Race, culture, and identities in second language education : Exploring critically engaged practice. Taylor & Francis Group.
Tailor, M. (2021). 50 Wellbeing Lessons for the Diverse Primary Classroom: Teaching Through Inclusive Practice (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi-org.proxy.longwood.edu/10.4324/9781003148166
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