Beyond Conversational: Supporting Long-Term English Learners (LTELs)
Update: 2026-01-02
Description
Join host Melissa Grinstead, Lead ESOL Contributor for AWB Education, as she tackles a critical and often-overlooked group of students: Long-Term English Learners (LTELs). These are students who have spent five or more years in English learning programs yet still struggle to access grade-level content due to difficulties with academic language.
Melissa explores why LTELs often get overlooked in classroom settings, emphasizing the crucial distinction between conversational language (BICS) and academic language (CALP)
Understanding this difference is key to identifying specific skill gaps that prevent LTELs from achieving academic success.Listeners will receive a set of highly practical, actionable strategies for supporting LTELs, including:
Listen to the full episode:
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Thank You for Listening! This has been an episode from The FowardED Network—Where we are Advancing Voices and Shaping Education. We are dedicated to supporting everyone invested in K-12 success: teachers, leaders, parents, and community advocates.
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This episode includes AI-generated content.
Melissa explores why LTELs often get overlooked in classroom settings, emphasizing the crucial distinction between conversational language (BICS) and academic language (CALP)
Understanding this difference is key to identifying specific skill gaps that prevent LTELs from achieving academic success.Listeners will receive a set of highly practical, actionable strategies for supporting LTELs, including:
- Providing explicit instruction in advanced academic vocabulary and complex grammar structures.
- Utilizing visuals and realia to make abstract concepts concrete.
- Implementing sentence frames and graphic organizers to scaffold complex writing and discussions.
- Creating meaningful collaborative learning opportunities to practice academic discourse.
- Strategically leveraging students' native languages (L1) as a resource for cognitive development and content comprehension.
Listen to the full episode:
https://push.fm/fl/yourmorningboost
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-forwarded-network-advancing-voices-shaping-education--6630377/support.
Thank You for Listening! This has been an episode from The FowardED Network—Where we are Advancing Voices and Shaping Education. We are dedicated to supporting everyone invested in K-12 success: teachers, leaders, parents, and community advocates.
Want to keep the conversation going?
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This episode includes AI-generated content.
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