Teaching Mathematics and Language to English Learners

To create a classroom learning community in which all students are engaged and inspired, a mathematics teacher's mastery of the content must be matched by an awareness of the needs of individual students and an understanding of the instructional strategies that will enable all learners to develop their mathematical knowledge and skills. Yet when the classroom includes English learners (ELs), students from immigrant families who are not yet fully proficient in academic English, establishing such a learning community requires a mathematics teacher to look beyond the strategies that have worked well with fluent English speakers. To achieve success in the mathematics classroom, EL students must learn both mathematics and English simultaneously. This means that a teacher who has EL students in his or her classroom is not only a mathematics teacher but also a language teacher. In this article, the authors presents and discusses the following five questions to guide an approach for effectively embracing the teacher's dual role: (1) Why Are My EL Students Considered "English Learners?"; (2) What Mathematics Do My English Learners Already Know?; (3) How Can I Make My Lessons More Accessible to EL Students (Without Simplifying Mathematical Content)?; (4) How Can I Incorporate Meaningful Language Practice into My Lessons?; and (5) How Can I Leverage My Classroom Space to Enhance Student Learning?