Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-wg55d Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-02T15:28:50.987Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Teaching Adult Second Language Learners Who Are Emergent Readers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2011

Martha Bigelow  and
Patsy Vinogradov
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Some second language (L2) learners are unique in that they bring low print literacy and limited formal schooling to the language learning enterprise. A range of personal, economic, historical, and political circumstances bring them to highly literate, industrialized societies where print literacy becomes not only desirable but necessary to earn a living and participate in a range of everyday activities. This article is a review of current research related to this population of learners for the purpose of informing educators about their particular teaching and learning needs. While the emphasis is on scholarship focused on adult L2 emergent readers, attention is also given to related research with bi- and multilingual children and monolingual adults who are not print literate. Finally, sociopolitical and historical issues are touched upon with regard to broader policy matters that may have contributed to or perpetuate low print literacy.

Type
SECTION B: SECOND LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION FOR SPECIFIC LEARNERS
Information
Annual Review of Applied Linguistics , Volume 31 , March 2011 , pp. 120 - 136
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bigelow, M., & Watson, J. (2011). Educational level and L2 learning. In Gass, S. & Mackey, A. (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition. New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
Birch, B. (2007). English L2 reading: Getting to the bottom (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
DeCapua, A., & Marshall, H. (2011). Breaking new ground: Teaching students with limited or interrupted formal schooling in secondary schools. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reder, S., & Bynner, J. (Eds.). (2009). Tracking adult literacy and numeracy skills: Findings from longitudinal research. New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
Tarone, E., Bigelow, M., & Hansen, K. (2009). Literacy and second language oracy. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar

REFERENCES

Adrian, J. A., Alegria, J., & Morais, J. (1995). Metaphonological abilities of Spanish illiterate adults. International Journal of Psychology, 3, 329–353.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Auerbach, E. (1992). Making meaning, making change: Participatory curriculum development for adult ESL literacy. Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics.Google Scholar
August, D., & Shanahan, T. (Eds.). (2006). Developing literacy in second-language learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on language-minority children and youth. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Bartlett, L. (2007). Literacy, speech, and shame: The cultural politics of literacy and language in Brazil. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 20, 547–563.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bialystok, E. (2007). Acquisition of literacy in bilingual children: A framework for research. Language Learning, 57, 45–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bialystok, E., Luk, G., & Kwan, E. (2005). Bilingualism, biliteracy, and learning to read: Interactions among language and writing systems. Scientific Studies of Reading, 9, 43–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bigelow, M. (2007). Social and cultural capital at school: The case of a Somali teenage girl with limited formal schooling. In Faux, N. R. (Ed.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum (pp. 7–22). Richmond: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Bigelow, M. (2010). Mogadishu on the Mississippi: Language, racialized identity, and education in a new land. New York, NY: Wiley-Blackwell.Google Scholar
Bigelow, M., & Watson, J. (2011). Educational level and L2 learning. In Gass, S. & Mackey, A. (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition. New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
Birch, B. (2007). English L2 reading: Getting to the bottom (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Bramão, I., Mendonça, A., Faísca, L., Ingvar, M., Petersson, K. M., & Reis, A. J. (2007). The impact of reading and writing skills on a visuomotor integration task: A comparison between illiterate and literate subjects. International Neuropsychological Society, 13, 359–364.Google ScholarPubMed
Burt, M., Peyton, J. K., & Adams, R. (2003). Reading and adult English language learners: The role of the first language. Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics. Retrieved from http://www.cal.org/caela/esl_resources/digests/reading.htmlGoogle Scholar
Condelli, L., & Wrigley, H. S. (2006). Instruction, language and literacy: What works study for adult ESL literacy students. In Van de Craats, I., Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium (pp. 111–133). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Condelli, L., Wrigley, H. S., & Yoon, K. S. (2008). “What works” for adult literacy students of English as a second language. In Reder, S. M. & Bynner, J. (Eds.), Tracking adult literacy and numeracy skills: Findings from longitudinal research (pp. 132–159). New York, NY: Routledge.Google Scholar
Cook-Gumperz, J., & Gumperz, J. J. (1981). From oral to written culture: The transition to literacy. In Whitehead, M. F. (Ed.), Variation in writing: Functional and linguistic-cultural differences (pp. 89–109). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.Google Scholar
Crandall, J., & Peyton, J. (1993). Approaches to adult ESL literacy instruction. Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics and Delta Systems.Google Scholar
Curtis, M. E., & Kruidenier, J. R. (2005). Teaching adults to read: A summary of scientifically based research principles. Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy. Retrieved from http://www.nifl.gov/publications/pdf/teach_adults.pdfGoogle Scholar
DeCapua, A., & Marshall, H. (2011). Breaking new ground: Teaching students with limited or interrupted formal schooling in secondary schools. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Gelder, B., Vroomen, J., & Bertelson, P. (1993). The effects of alphabetic-reading competence on language representation in bilingual Chinese subjects. Psychological Research/Psychologische Forschung, 55, 315–321.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de la Piedra, M. T. (2006). Literacies and Quechua oral language: Connecting sociocultual worlds and linguistic resources for biliteracy development. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 6, 383–406.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dellatolas, G., Braga, L. W., Souza, L. d. N., Filho, G. N., Queiroz, E., & Deloche, G. (2003). Cognitive consequences of early phase of literacy. Journal of International Neuropsychological Society, 9, 771–782.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Espinoza-Herold, M. (2007). Stepping beyond sí se puede: Dichos as a cultural resource in mother-daughter interaction in a Latino family. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 38, 260–277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Faux, N. (2006). Preparing teachers to help low-literacy adult ESOL learners. In Van de Craats, I., Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium (pp. 135–142). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Faux, N. (Ed.). (2007). Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum. Richmond: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Freeman, Y. S., & Freeman, D. E. (2001). Keys to success for bilingual students with limited formal schooling. Bilingual Research Journal, 25, 203–213.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York, NY: Continuum.Google Scholar
Gardner, S. (2008). Transforming talk and phonics practice: Or, how do crabs clap? TESOL Quarterly, 42, 261–284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Geudens, A. (2006). Phonological awareness and learning to read in a first language: Controversies and new perspectives. In de Craats, I. Van, Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium. (pp. 25–44). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Geva, E., & Zadeh, X. Y. (2006). Reading efficiency in native English-speaking and English-as-a-second-language children: The role of oral proficiency and underlying cognitive-linguistic processes. Scientific Studies of Reading, 10, 31–57.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gonzalez, J. E., & Uhing, B. M. (2008). Home literacy environment and young Hispanic children's English and Spanish oral language: A communality analysis. Journal of Early Intervention, 30, 116–139.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goody, J. (1987). The interface between the written and the oral. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Kolinsky, R., Cary, L., & Morais, J. (1987). Awareness of words as phonological entities: The role of literacy. Applied Psycholinguistics, 8, 223–232.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kurvers, J. (2007). Development of word recognition skills of adult L2 beginning readers. In Faux, N. R. (Ed.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum (pp. 23–44). Richmond: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Kurvers, J., Vallen, T., & van Hout, R. (2006). Discovering features of language: Metalinguistic awareness of adult illiterates. In Van de Craats, I., Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium (pp. 69–88). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Kurvers, J., van Hout, R., & Vallen, T. (2007). Literacy and word boundaries. In Faux, N. R. (Ed.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum (pp. 45–64). Richmond, VA: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Levinson, M. P. (2007). Literacy in English Gypsy communities: Cultural capital manifested as negative assets. American Educational Research Journal, 44, 5–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewis, C., & del Valle, A. (2009). Literacy and identity: Implications for research and practice. In Christenbury, L., Bomer, R., & Smagorinsky, P. (Eds.), Handbook of adolescent literacy (pp. 307–322). New York, NY: Guilford.Google Scholar
Luria, A. (1976). Cognitive development: Its social and cultural foundations (Cole, M., Lopez-Morillas, Ed.; M. & Solataroff, Trans, L..). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. (Original work published in Russian, 1974)Google Scholar
Mace-Matluck, B. J., Alexander-Kasparik, R., & Queen, R. M. (1998). Through the golden door: Educational approaches for immigrant adolescents with limited schooling. McHenry, IL: Center for Applied Linguistics and Delta Systems.Google Scholar
McLuhan, M. (1994). Understanding media: The extensions of man. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. (Original work published 1964)Google Scholar
Menard-Warwick, J. (2005). Intergenerational trajectories and sociopolitical context: Latina immigrants in adult ESL. TESOL Quarterly, 39, 165–185.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Menken, K., & Garcia, O. (2010). Negotiating language policies: Educators as policymakers. New York, NY: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morgan, B., & Ramanathan, V. (2005). Critical literacies and language education: Global and local perspectives. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 25, 151–169.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Olson, D. R. (2006). Oral discourse in a world of literacy. Research in the Teaching of English, 41, 136–143.Google Scholar
Ong, W. J. (1982). Orality and literacy: The technologizing of the word. London, UK, and New York, NY: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Papen, U. (2005). Adult literacy as social practice: More than skills. New York, NY: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perry, K. H. (2007). Sharing stories, linking lives: Literacy practices among Sudanese refugees. In Purcell-Gates, V. (Ed.), Cultural practices of literacy: Case studies of language, literacy, social practice, and power (pp. 57–84). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Perry, K. H. (2008). From storytelling to writing: Transforming literacy practices among Sudanese refugees. Journal of Literacy Research, 40, 317–358.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Petersson, K. M., Ingvar, M., & Reis, A. (2009). Language and literacy from a cognitive neuroscience perspective. In Olson, D. R. & Torrance, N. (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of literacy (pp. 152–182). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peyton, J. K., Burt, M., McKay, S., Schaetzel, K., Terrill, L., Young, S. et al. (2007). Professional development for practitioners working with adult English language learners with limited literacy. In Faux, N. R. (Ed.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum (pp. 213–225). Richmond: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Philp, J. (2003). Constraints on “noticing the gap”: Nonnative speakers’ noticing of recasts in NS-NNS interaction. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 25, 99–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Read, C., Zhang, Y., Nie, H., & Ding, B. (1986). The ability to manipulate speech sounds depends on knowing alphabetic spelling. Cognition, 24, 31–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reder, S., & Davila, E. (2005). Context and literacy practices. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 25, 170–187.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reis, A., & Castro-Caldas, A. (1997). Illiteracy: A cause for biased cognitive development. Journal of International Neuropsychological Society, 3, 444–450.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Reis, A., Faísca, L., Mendonça, S., Ingvar, M., & Petersson, K. M. (2007). Semantic interference on a phonological task in illiterate subjects. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 48, 69–74.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Reis, A., Guerreiro, M., & Petersson, K. M. (2003). A sociodemographic and neuropsychological characterization of an illiterate population. Applied Neuropsychology, 10, 191–204.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rubin, A. (1980). A theoretical taxonomy of the differences between oral and written language. In Spiro, R., Brice, B., & Brewer, W. (Eds.), Theoretical issues in reading comprehension: Perspectives from cognitive psychology, linguistics, artificial intelligence, and education (pp. 411–438). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Sarroub, L. K. (2008). Living “glocally” with literacy success in the Midwest. Theory into Practice, 47, 59–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Street, B. (2003). What's “new” in new literacy studies? Critical approaches to literacy in theory and practice. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 5, 1–14.Google Scholar
Tannen, D. (Ed.). (1982). Spoken and written language: Exploring orality and literacy. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.Google Scholar
Tarone, E., & Bigelow, M. (2005). Impact of literacy on oral language processing: Implications for second language acquisition research. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 25, 77–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tarone, E., Bigelow, M., & Hansen, K. (2007). The impact of alphabetic print literacy level on oral second language acquisition. In Faux, N. R. (Ed.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum (pp. 99–122). Richmond: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Tarone, E., Bigelow, M., & Hansen, K. (2009). Literacy and second language oracy. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Tollefson, J. (2006). Critical theory in language theory. In Ricento, T. (Ed.), An introduction to language policy: Theory and method. (pp. 42–60). Malden, MA: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Trupke-Bastidas, J., & Poulos, A. (2007). Improving literacy of L1-non-literate and L1-literate adult English as a second language learners. Minne/WITESOL Journal, 25, http://www.minnewitesoljournal.orgGoogle Scholar
UNESCO. (2009, November). Inequality undermining education opportunities for millions of children. (Press release no. 2008–115). Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/education/gmr2009/press/GMR2009_pressrelease_EN.pdfGoogle Scholar
Van de Craats, I. (2007). Obstacles on highway L2. In Faux, N. R. (Ed.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Research, Policy and Practice: Proceedings of the Second Annual Forum (pp. 149–163). Richmond: Literacy Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University.Google Scholar
Van de Craats, I., Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.). (2006a). Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium. Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Van de Craats, I., Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (2006b). Research on low-educated second language and literacy acquisition. In de Craats, I. Van, Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium (pp. 7–24). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Vinogradov, P. (2008). “Maestra! The letters speak.” Adult ESL students learning to read for the first time. MinneWITESOL Journal, 25. Retrieved from www.minnewitesoljournal.orgGoogle Scholar
Vinogradov, P. (2010). Balancing top and bottom: Learner-generated texts for teaching phonics. In Wall, T. & Leong, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the 5th Symposium (pp. 3–14). Retrieved from http://www.leslla.org/files/resources/Conference_Proceedings_FINAL_Aug12.pdfGoogle Scholar
Vinogradov, P., & Bigelow, M. (2010). Using oral language skills to build on the emerging literacy of adult English learners. Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics. Retrieved from http://www.cal.org/caelanetwork/resources/using-oral-language-skills.htmlGoogle Scholar
Vinogradov, P., & Liden, A. (2008). Principled training for LESLLA instructors. In Van de Craats, I. & Kurvers, J. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Fourth Symposium (pp. 133–144). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar
Walker-Dalhouse, D., & Dalhouse, A. D. (2009). When two elephants fight the grass suffers: Parents and teachers working together to support the literacy development of Sudanese youth. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, 328–335.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Warriner, D. S. (2007). “It's just the nature of the beast”: Re-imagining the literacies of schooling in adult ESL education. Linguistics and Education, 18, 305–324.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Warsame, A. A. (2001). How a strong government backed an African language: The lessons of Somalia. International Review of Education, 47, 341–360.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Watson, J. (2010). Interpreting across the abyss: A hermeneutic study of initial literacy development by high school English language learners with limited formal schooling (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN.Google Scholar
Weinstein, G. (2006). “Learners’ Lives as Curriculum”: An integrative project-based model for language learning. In Beckett, G. H. & Chamness Miller, P. (Eds.), Project-based second and foreign language education: Past, present, and future (pp. 159–165). Greenwich, CT: Information Age.Google Scholar
Yopp, H. (1992). Developing phonemic awareness in young children. Reading Teacher, 45, 696–703.Google Scholar
Yosso, T. J., & García, D. G. (2007). “This is no slum!”: A critical race theory analysis of community cultural wealth in culture clash's Chavez Ravine. Aztlán: Journal of Chicano Studies, 32, 145–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Young-Scholten, M. (Ed.). (2008). Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Third Annual Forum. New Castle upon Tyne, UK: Newcastle University.Google Scholar
Young-Scholten, M., & Strom, N. (2006). First-time L2 readers: Is there a critical period? In Van de Craats, I., Kurvers, J., & Young-Scholten, M. (Eds.), Low-Educated Adult Second Language and Literacy Acquisition: Proceedings of the Inaugural Symposium (pp. 45–68). Utrecht, The Netherlands: LOT.Google Scholar