Academic Language Proficiency

• vital part of content-area instruction and is a pressing need of ELs
• Academic language is the language required for students to gain access to content taught in English, and to succeed in the classroom 
• Fluency in academic language is critical for academic achievement 
• students need to be taught both expressive and receptive language 
• using students everyday experiences can help them learn academic language 
• academic language instruction should include not only vocab but syntax, and text structure. 

• table 1. The Continuum of Conversational to Academic Language Conversational language tends to . . . “Hybrid” area Academic language tends to . . . Shared background knowledge . . . be embedded in meaningful contexts, drawing upon shared background knowledge, or existent in the moment of the conversation. When people converse, they often talk about a specific topic about which they both have at least some direct knowledge, experience, and relevant information. While discussing unfamiliar content, adequate background knowledge is purposefully provided by a speaker. Both presentation and text may make ample use of visuals, such as charts, posters, and photos, to make the academic content more highly contextualized for the reader/ listener. . . . be relatively decontextualized, relying largely on information contained in the language of the oral or written text. The reader or listener has to provide his or her own relevant background knowledge or context necessary for understanding. Paralinguistic cues . . . be fundamentally interpersonal. Faceto-face exchanges allow for contextual and interpersonal cues such as gestures, facial expressions, and intonation. Speakers often use interpersonal cues such as gestures, speaking rate, pauses, and intonation to make the message more comprehensible. . . . be fundamentally impersonal. Emphasis, mood, and tone must be communicated primarily through words and content. Face-to-face exchange is very limited or nonexistent. Vocabulary . . . use more familiar everyday words. Precise meanings generally are not as important as maintaining conversational flow and adequate mutual understanding. Speakers and texts use unfamiliar words and expressions that make relatively simple concepts more difficult to understand. . . . use specific and less familiar vocabulary that can be technical, abstract, and carry precise meanings the listener/reader is expected to understand. Grammatical shortcuts . . . frequently use grammatical shortcuts, such as “and” or pronouns, whose meanings are apparent to the participants in the context of the conversation. Talk can include nonstandard, colloquial speech. Speakers and writers can make their content-rich message more accessible by using a conversational tone, which can include figures of speech, familiar expressions, and less density of ideas. . . . frequently use specific grammatical, organizational, and presentation elements. Writing and speech is more formalized and structured. To establish authority, tone is set by an impersonal, declarative style. Language is denser with more ideas presented. Language to express cognitive functions . . . place fewer explicit cognitive demands on the reader or listener. Events and persons are known, familiar, and concrete. Inferences, analyses, and presenting reasoned arguments are typically less prominent. Everyday conversational events can be cognitively complex and challenging, such as a child logically retelling a television episode and showing a causal sequence, or presenting an argument for why he should be able to stay out late without parents’ direct supervision. . . . be used for more complex cognitive functions, such as summarizing, analyzing, and explaining; relating what is read to other ideas; evaluating and critiquing arguments; composing reasoned, well-developed texts; and interpreting and solving word problems. Examples Husband and wife exchange information about what they did at work that day; each is generally familiar with what the other one does and with his or her work colleagues. In an animated conversation, friends discuss a date the night before. Two experienced divers, planning a scubadiving trip, decide locations and gear they will need. Softball players argue over whether a player was out when she ran to first base. Family members order from a menu at a restaurant. Friends watch a movie and make occasional comments, observations, and jokes to one another. Children take turns during show and tell, sharing with the class a favorite toy from home. An individual trying to follow a conversation about unfamiliar persons and complicated events is provided background information or shown pictures. A student converses with someone who speaks with little expression, uses little eye contact, and does not respond to others’ behaviors or responses. A speaker uses expressions such as “if you juxtapose the two“ instead of “if you put them side by side,” or asks, “What are the parameters here?” instead of “What do we need to consider?” A person describes a television program to her friend and explains why she found it so moving and insightful. A student reads a book or listens to a lecture on recent advances in genetics. A teacher shares an encyclopedia article on the Electoral College. A professor of contemporary literature presents a postmodern, post-structuralist analysis of The Sound and the Fury. A sociologist is interviewed on a news program and asked to explain the impact of the economic downturn on community-based organizations. A student must explain his reasoning, in writing, when solving a mathematical word problem. Co-workers at a public relations firm must present and argue for their proposed campaign to rehabilitate the tarnished image of a client.