Reading Text in an Unfamiliar Language (Entry #3)

     For this activity, I chose to read song lyrics written in German.  Since Halloween is just around the corner, the lyrics I chose were from a Halloween song.  I do not speak or understand German, but my grandfather would often use German phrases when I was growing up.  I studied French in high school, but remember very little of the language.  I lived in the Czech Republic for six months in college and could speak and understand just enough Czech to get by, but once again, I remember very little of that.  So, as I prepared to read the lyrics, my plan was to try to connect some of the German words to English or French words that are similar.  I also hoped that a word or phrase may be familiar from my grandfather's common sayings.  

Here are the first two stanzas of the song:  

O-RHESUS-NEGATIV

Es war Mitternacht, ich ging spazieren,
da bemerkte ich,
ein Finstermann mit 'm grossen Hut
verfolgte mich,
und dann sprach er mich an,
schmatzend und mit knirschenden Zähnen:
"Ach, würden Sie wohl so freundlich sein
und Ihre Blutgruppe mal erwähnen!"

Ich dachte mir, das ist 'n Vampir,
da muss man vorsichtig sein,
ich sagte: "Moment, ich guck' mal eben
in meinen Ausweis rein."
O-Rhesus-Negativ. Da verzog er sein Gesicht
und meinte: "So 'n Mist, ausgerechnet diese Sorte
vertrag' ich nicht!"

     As I began reading, I soon realized that those strategies were not going to be very helpful.  The title of the song was "O-Rhesus-Negativ".  I immediately assumed negativ to mean negative, but I had no idea what rhesus may mean.  The first time I read the song lyrics, I recognized only a few words (Vampir = vampire, Bier = beer, Gott = God).  I was not able to pull any meaning from these words.  As I reread the song, I started to hear phrases that sounded familiar, but I had no verification if I was accurate or not.  For example, the first line of the song was "Es war Mitternacht, ich ging spazieren".  After reading it aloud a few times, I started to think that it meant "It was midnight and I went walking".  I realized that "Mitternacht" sounded like midnight as I read it aloud.  Then I remembered seeing "spazieren" at tourist centers in Prague and thought that walking tours were advertised in those areas, and walking would make sense in that phrase of the song.  In the last stanza, the word "transsilvanischen" appears.  Once again, after reading the stanza aloud, I realized the word is probably connected to Transylavania (especially since the song discusses vampires), but I could not understand any more than that.  I was left with several words and one phrase that I had attached meaning to, but in no way did I understand the text.  I had tried to scale back as much as possible and dissect the language, but I still could not comprehend the text.

     As a teacher, this reminded me of the difficult tasks placed before my students everyday.  For those ELL students with very limited or no English, they are frequently asked to understand text that is completely unfamiliar to them.  This process made clear what it feels like to be in that situation.  It was frustrating to read and reread the text and still have no idea what it meant.  I could successfully (or at least reasonably) decode the German, but it was meaningless to me.  I see this often in the classroom as well.  Students are able to read a text, so we assume they are understanding the content.  However, frequently those students are only able to decode, but the language is still too complex for them to comprehend.  That is exactly the situation I found myself in with the German song lyrics!  

     There are some strategies that I think would have helped me, and in turn, are helpful to ELL students.

• Pictures and/or realia-  There were no visual representations with the lyrics and they certainly would have helped.  "The use of nonlinguistic representations enhances students' ability to represent and elaborate on knowledge using mental images" (Hill, 2006, p. 7).  Pictures give students clues about the content of the text, and then help create meaning.
• Previewing the vocabulary-  If I had someone teach me the key German vocabulary words from the lyrics ahead of time, I would have been able to recognize those words and understand more about the meaning of the text.    
• Collaborating with a group-  Trying to work through this unfamiliar language independently was difficult.  If I had a group to share ideas and problem solve with, then I think we would have been able to find more meaning.  Not only would we have been forced to repeatedly speak the German words, but also we would have more knowledge and background to draw from.  "Individual students are scaffolded by the contributions of the group as a whole" (Gibbons, 2002, p. 20).  On my own, I began to feel discouraged with the task.  Having a group to work with would have felt safer and more productive. 

     This activity was a helpful reminder of what an ELL student might feel like in a classroom, but for hours and with all assignments, not just one.  It was difficult and frustrating.  It is important that as the teacher, I know my students and their language levels so I am not overwhelming them constantly with tasks that are too "language heavy".  I will also keep in mind those strategies that would have been helpful to me, and allow for those opportunities in the classroom.   


Reference:
http://german.about.com/library/blmus_udolind01.htm  

Oral Language and Reading (Entry #2)

     After years of working in a school where the majority of my students are ELL's, it is clear that oral language and the reading process are connected.  Just through classroom observations, I can see that connection highlighted over and over again.  When monolingual students join my class with no English, they are not able to speak or understand any of the language, so therefore, they certainly are not able to read or write in English.  However, their oral language begins to develop very quickly.  They first begin to ask important questions that help them take care of their needs (bathroom?  lunch?  computer?).  Then, they are able to communicate with their classmates in a social setting ( recess, lunch, partner work).  Eventually, the students will begin to participate in class discussions when they feel safe with the content.  As this progression of oral language is taking place, so is progress with the child's reading.  They may not know any letters or sounds as they are first exposed to the language.  But as they are exposed repeatedly, they begin to recognize words and phrases that are important for their everyday needs.    Then, what they are able to read expands everyday.  The more the child speaks and interacts using the language, the more they recognize in their reading.  If they are not using the language orally, then it is nearly impossible for them to recognize sound patterns and rules as they are reading.  If I tried to read a language that I had never heard spoken or tried to speak myself, how would I possibly know what that language should sound like?  Students need to hear and speak a language in order to recognize the letters and sounds that are part of that language.   The more oral interaction that takes place, the quicker a child will begin to take risks with their reading.  They will begin to try decoding with the phonemes they have heard and any phonics skills they have mastered.
     Oral language also plays a large role in reading for meaning.  Readers must ask themselves constantly if what they are reading makes sense, particularly struggling readers.  They use meaning to help them monitor and clarify their reading.  As a child's oral language develops, they are able to ask themselves, Does that sound right?  Without oral language skills, a child will not know what sounds correct or incorrect.  That oral piece is crucial to a student's ability to self-monitor.
     The oral language of a student may progress rapidly, and it is sometimes easy to forget that they are still in the beginning stages of acquiring the language.  As connected as oral language and reading are, it does not mean that a child will be able to read everything they can speak and understand.  The oral language develops first, then they will build on their reading skills and finally their writing skills.  Sometimes it is easy to forget how much language may be impacting a child's literacy because we hear them speak with their classmates and to teachers and we think they are fluent, proficient, English speakers.  We have to keep in mind that strong oral language skills do not equal reading proficiency.  Oral language is needed as the building block and foundation for the reading process, but they are not equal entities.