Case Study of a Teacher's Instructional Interactions with English Language Learners in Support of Their Literacy Development

The population of English language learners (ELLs) in United States schools continues to increase year after year. These students enrolled in schools in the United States face many challenges as they are learning a new language and culture. This case study was designed to investigate the research question: What are the instructional approaches used by a teacher who has demonstrated expertise in supporting ELLs in a linguistically diverse classroom? The focal teacher in the study was a 34-year-old African American woman who taught 3rd grade Reading and Language Arts. Her classroom consisted of a diverse group of students in which the majority of the students were ELLs. There were 29 students in the classroom. Out of the 29 students, 16 received services through the English for speakers of other languages program (ESOL). Analysis of observations and interviews revealed several important themes related to her successful instruction. These included (a) group and partner work, (b) vocabulary development, (c) high expectations, (d) use of academic resources, (e) guided and modeled instruction, and (f) building relationships. In addition to the themes, the teacher also used culturally responsive pedagogy to create a supportive and enriched learning environment to meet the needs of all her students