Cristina D'Alessandro Post #1

Questions, questions, questions!! As I have heard some of my classmates express as well, I have so many questions regarding education and learning. I was inspired to focus my MA project on English Language Learners because of my commitment to working with these students and their families in the after school program I worked at for four years. I found that these students were in need of an advocate, or someone that they felt valued them and their child’s education. My mom, who was an English language paraprofessional for years and also had a passion for helping ELL students and families, also inspired me.  I have also realized that ELL students are no longer receiving the extra help that they have been accustomed to. ELD instruction time at the school district I student taught at will likely be eliminated next school year and many districts no longer employ English language specialists. This means that teachers will have to work even harder to fulfill ELLs instructional needs.

I wrote about ELLs and reading in my literature review. My question at the moment of writing the lit review was: what happens to English Language Learners’ reading comprehension when they participate in small group discussion while reading? I reviewed research that discussed students’ motivation to read and how high quality instruction impacts reading comprehension. I feel as though I will change my question. I would like to look into ELLs and journal writing, but am also interested in so many other topics. My current goal is to narrow down my research focus.