MinneTESOL 2013 Preconference WorkshopMinneSLIFE Adapting Lessons for SLIFE Using the Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm (MALP)Kristi Herman Hill, Martha Mason Miller, Sarah Schmidt de Carranza

MinneTESOL 2013

Wonder WallPlease write down something related to SLIFE/LESLLA/ LFS students you are wondering about and attach it to the wonder wall.

Who are SLIFE?SLIFE stands for students with limited or interrupted formal education. They are also referred to as SIFE, LESLLA, and LFS.

Many SLIFE have experienced interruptions in their education due to war, migration, lack of educational facilities, or other constraints.

What are the Characteristics of SLIFE?SLIFE are described as students who are Secondary or adult aged Two or more years behind their age group in academic content knowledge May or may not be literate in their first language. Often refugees coming from war-torn countries, but it is important to make the distinction that not all refugees are SLIFE, and not all SLIFE are refugeesWhat are the unique needs of SLIFE?Think-Pair-Share: Think of a SLIFE student that you have had in one of your classes. How were this students needs different from other ELs?

Emotional Needs of SLIFEMany SLIFE come from war-torn regions where they have experienced physical and emotional trauma.

Physical Needs of SLIFE

SLIFE frequently come from refugee camps, where they often did not receive adequate nutrition and medical care as children.

Cultural Needs of SLIFEOral culture: SLIFE bring a strong tradition of learning through oral transmission.

Cultural Needs of SLIFEInterconnectedness: Many SLIFE come from collectivist cultures in which the needs of the group are placed before the needs of the individual.

Cultural Needs of SLIFEImmediate Relevance: Students are accustomed to learning about things that are immediately applicable and practical in their lives. Immediate Relevance Example

Cultural Dissonance

Academic Needs of SLIFELearn basic and grade-level subject-area conceptsDevelop basic literacy skillsDevelop academic ways of thinkingAdapt to cultural differences in learning and teachingWhere in the world are you in your work with SLIFE? Choose the landmark that best represents your understanding of SLIFE.

What is MALP?MALP stands for the Mutually adaptive learning paradigm. It is a paradigm designed to use elements from a students existing understanding of knowledge, combine them with western-style schooling formal paradigms so that students can build on the familiar to access the unfamliiar.Where does MALP come from?Drs. Andrea DeCapua and Helaine Marshall have developed the MALP paradigm as a result of years of research and study of SLIFE students.MALP SourcesMarshall & Decapua, 2013

The next 3 slides are taken from page 31 of Making the Transition to Classroom Success.

What are the features of MALP?Feature 1:Accept the existing learner conditions of needing immediate relevance and interconnectedness

MALP FeaturesFeature 2Combined processes of learners and Western-style education: shared responsibility and individual accountability together with oral transmissions and the written word.

MALP FeaturesFeature 3Focus on Western Style Learning Activities: decontextualized tasks scaffolded by familiar language and content.

MALP Handout

MALP Checklist

Turn and Talk..What would these processes potentially look like in your practice?Applying MALPBuilding skills, language, and background for science.

Objective:Be a scientist. Observe, inquire, experiment, discuss, do.Carry out a science experiment.Use key science vocabulary.

StudentGenderAgeEthicityYears in schoolPM17Karen0NM19Karen0CF15Karen0AM18Karen3JM15Mexican5DF18Karen6MF15Karenni10High school SLIFE, WIDA 1

Theme: Plants

Begin with the familiarMake connections to students experienceAdd one new element at a timeExchange ideas: teacher is not The expert

DeCapua & MarshallMALPVygotskyZPDKrasheni + 1

Introduction ofVocabulary and Concepts

scientistobservemeasure

MALP: Accept conditions for learning.A1. Immediate relevance

Started marigolds for the school garden

Make connections to students prior experience and knowledge

Build communityA2. Develop and maintain interconnectednessStudents planted sunflowers in five pots. They placed the pots in North, South, East, and West windows, and in a storeroom with no windows. We discussed which would grow best and why.hypothesis

HYPOTHESISExperiment: How does light affect plant growth?I wanted them to think in terms of formulating a scientific question. Students were responsible for watering, observing, and measuring the plants, which were in different parts of the building. B1. Shared responsibility

Each student wrote in their science notebook.B1. Individual accountabilityB1. Incorporate shared responsibility and individual accountability

Science notebooks:

HypothesisMaterialsProcedure

The Scientific Method

InterconnectednessStudents worked together in pairs, threes, or as a class. They helped each other, scolded each other, and laughed together. = Languages were in constant flux: Karen, English, Spanish, Karenni. Stronger students helped the others, who copied everything written down. Community

Permitting and encouraging cooperative work acknowledges their cultural norms. Using their languages to negotiate meaning helps them learn and allows all students to participate.

MALP: Combine Processes for Learning

B2. Scaffoldingthe written wordthrough oralinteractionFrom oral transmission to the written word

Multilingual discussions throughoutDrew and labeled diagramsWrote measurementsStudents explained project to a substitute teacher, who wrote the story on chart paper. Students copied the story, then read chorally. (Language Experience approach)

MALP B2

C1. Focusing on tasks requiring academic ways of thinking.

C2. Making tasks accessible with familiar language and content.

DeCapua, Andrea and Marshall, Helaine. Breaking New Ground. Ann Arbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press, 2011.

MALP: Focus on New Activities for LearningDeCapua, Andrea and Marshall, Helaine. Breaking New Ground. Ann Arbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press, 2011.Over the course of several weeks, students:observe as scientistsmeasuretake notes (words and illustrations)graphquestion more deeplyform a hypothesisdiscuss evidencereach conclusions based on evidence

DeCapua, Andrea and Marshall, Helaine. Breaking New Ground. Ann Arbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press, 2011.

MALP: Focus on New Activities for Learning

Work in groupsGet into groups by age group and subject area.

Introduce yourselves and your lesson.Work in groupsUsing the blank MALP checklist, how would you modify this lesson to better meet the needs of SLIFE?Share outWhat kinds of changes did you make to your lesson?

How will these changes be beneficial to SLIFE?Wrap Up/EvaluationThank you for coming!