week two DIVERESE LEARNERS

       After reading Chapter 3, you should be more familiar with the five stages of oral English language acquisition as they have been identified and discussed in detail. While the order of stages is sequential, the amount of time students spend at each stage can range from a few weeks (silent period) to several years (intermediate fluency). Watch and analyze the required video segment, Stages of Language Development, along with Table 3.2 in your text. As a beginning teacher, you and your peers might have difficulty identifying the “next step” you need to take in order to move a student to the next level of English proficiency. What are the challenges faced by teachers in moving children from one level to the next? Discuss the synergizing of teacher- student responsibilities in moving through the levels of language acquisition. As students progress through the five stages, what are some of the things teachers can do to assist students in this process? What are some of the things students should do to increase their own language mastery and inform teachers of some of the needs they may have?