Adapting Features from the SIOP Component: Lesson Delivery to English Lessons in a Colombian Public School

Despite some school efforts to offer students the best second language learning, English language lessons are often taught with an overuse of the mother tongue. Hence, an action research project was conducted in order to discover how to adapt some features of the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) component: Lesson delivery, for the teaching of English in sixth grade at a public school in Bogotá, Colombia. Data collection included observation checklists, field notes, surveys and artifacts. The findings demonstrated that the overuse of Spanish–the students’ mother tongue–was reduced when in addition to implementing the lesson delivery component, the teacher developed vocabulary activities. Finally, it was suggested that teachers have SIOP training for teaching content and

to focus more on students needs.

A pesar de algunos esfuerzos para ofrecer a los estudiantes un mejor aprendizaje de una segunda lengua, a menudo se recurre al uso excesivo de la lengua materna en las clases de inglés. Con el objetivo de hallar la forma de adaptar algunas características del componente del protocolo de

observación SIOP para la instrucción ‘Sheltered’: Desarrollo de clase, para la enseñanza de inglés en grado séptimo, se realizó un proyecto de investigación acción en un colegio público en Bogotá, Colombia. En la recolección de datos se emplearon formatos de observación, notas de campo,

cuestionarios y evidencias documentales. Los resultados demostraron que el uso excesivo de español –la lengua materna de los estudiantes– se redujo porque además de la implementación del componente Desarrollo de clase, se llevaron a cabo actividades de vocabulario. Con esta investigación se sugiere que los profesores adquieran conocimientos acerca del citado modelo para la enseñanza de contenidos, y que se enfoquen más en las necesidades de los estudiantes.

Adaptación de las características del componente de SIOP: Desarrollo de clase, en las clases de inglés en un colegio público colombiano

Hollman Alejandro Rativa Murillo
Institución Universitaria Colombo Americana, ÚNICA, Colombia
alejandrorativa89@gmail.com

This article was received July 1, 2012, and accepted on February 4, 2013.

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Despite some school efforts to offer students the best second language learning, English language lessons are often taught with an overuse of the mother tongue. Hence, an action research project was conducted in order to discover how to adapt some features of the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) component: Lesson delivery, for the teaching of English in sixth grade at a public school in Bogotá, Colombia. Data collection included observation checklists, field notes, surveys and artifacts. The findings demonstrated that the overuse of Spanish—the students’ mother tongue—was reduced when in addition to implementing the lesson delivery component, the teacher developed vocabulary activities. Finally, it was suggested that teachers have SIOP training for teaching content and to focus more on students’ needs.

Key words: Lesson delivery component, SIOP model, teaching and learning English language.

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A pesar de algunos esfuerzos para ofrecer a los estudiantes un mejor aprendizaje de una segunda lengua, a menudo se recurre al uso excesivo de la lengua materna en las clases de inglés. Con el objetivo de hallar la forma de adaptar algunas características del componente del protocolo de observación SIOP para la instrucción ‘Sheltered’: Desarrollo de clase, para la enseñanza de inglés en grado séptimo, se realizó un proyecto de investigación acción en un colegio público en Bogotá, Colombia. En la recolección de datos se emplearon formatos de observación, notas de campo, cuestionarios y evidencias documentales. Los resultados demostraron que el uso excesivo de español –la lengua materna de los estudiantes– se redujo porque además de la implementación del componente Desarrollo de clase, se llevaron a cabo actividades de vocabulario. Con esta investigación se sugiere que los profesores adquieran conocimientos acerca del citado modelo para la enseñanza de contenidos, y que se enfoquen más en las necesidades de los estudiantes.

Palabras clave: componente Desarrollo de clase, enseñanza y aprendizaje del idioma inglés, modelo SIOP.

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Introduction

In the process of learning a second language, apprentices have been using and trying several methodologies and strategies. Some learners have obtained great results while others have not. It is difficult, almost impossible, to establish a specific way of learning for a person or a group of people. No matter if they have almost the same environment and educational background, there are always some slight differences that make teachers adapt their teaching according to students’ needs. As a result, these differences have been some of the reasons for pedagogues to implement bilingual education programs.

Second Language Learners (SLL) have immersed themselves into the target language or second language (L2), for instance, while living in a city where the target language is used (speaking, writing, reading and listening). Recognizing the target language as the “language that a non-native speaker is in the process of learning” (Target Language, n.d., para. 1), and a second language as the “language whose acquisition starts after early childhood [and is described as] any language that is not the mother tongue or native language” (Second Language, n.d., para. 1). On the other hand, a great number of SLLs have accepted the challenge to study in an immersion program in a non-English speaking city where the target language is not the means of communication for the majority of its citizens. This forces SLLs to be in touch with a language other than English, such as Spanish. In these immersion programs, SLLs must use (speaking, writing, reading and listening) the target language all the time in many kinds of activities.

In Colombia, most schools are willing to be-come bilingual. This desire obeys the fact that the Colombian Ministry of Education has created programs that foster bilingualism such as Programa Nacional de Bilingüismo and Bogotá Bilingüe en Diez Años (Bilingual Colombia Program and Bilingual Bogotá in Ten Years). As a result, elementary and high school students take English classes provided by their respective schools; these, of course, have a variety of different bilingual educational programs. Among the most common, one may find English Immersion Method (EIM) and Two-Way Bilingual Education Method (TWB) with the latter being the most preferred since English teaching courses may include students’ mother tongue, in this case Spanish. Law 115 of 1994, articles 21 and 22 highlight the importance of second language acquisition. Following the guidelines of this law and the desire to improve the knowledge of a foreign language, the Colombian Ministry of Education established a plan called Programa Nacional de Bilingüismo 2004-2019 in order to foster the command of a foreign language, which, in turn, is a way to improve the academic, cultural, and economic factors around the country (Programa Nacional de Bilingüismo, 2010). Later on, after Agreement 253 in 2006, the Council of Bogotá established the project called Bogotá Bilingüe en Diez Años (Colombia, Concejo de Bogotá D. C., 2006). Its main objective is to provide an appropriate environment for citizens to achieve the ability to communicate in English based on the international standards found in the Common European Framework (CEF).

The Bogotá Bilingüe project suggests public and private schools adopt their own bilingual programs and models. For instance, Miravalle School, located in the south of Bogotá, set up the EIM for their English classes. The main objective of EIM is to develop second language proficiency while learning academic content such as science and maths (Peregoy & Boyle, 2008). However, the reality of this school is completely different; there is no English instruction for any content area. Students take English lessons for three hours and twenty minutes per week and the real English language contact during lessons is uncertain since most of the time during a lesson delivery is in the students’ native language, Spanish. Therefore, it is necessary to use immersion models to support the bilingual process in schools like Miravalle, where this study was conducted. One of these models is the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol which, according to Echevarria, Vogt and Short (2008), is an approach for teaching content to English learners in strategic ways that make the subject matter concepts comprehensible while promoting the students’ English language development.

The purpose of this study is to explore how teachers can adapt features from the Lesson Delivery SIOP component to foster the use of English in a group of sixth graders at Miravalle School. Moreover, although SIOP was designed to teach content areas to English language learners (Echevarria, Vogt & Short, 2008), in this project it was tailored towards English lessons. Bear in mind that teachers at Miravalle plan lessons following these steps: routine, explanation, application and clarification. Lesson delivery component provides guidance to keep teachers on track according to their lessons preparations. For this research project, it is suitable to say that use and application of SIOP components imply changes and acceptance by teachers and school in order to avoid extensive use of Spanish.

Research Question

• How can teachers adapt features from the Les-son Delivery SIOP component to foster the use of English in a group of sixth graders at Miravalle School?

Sub Questions

• What are the key features of the lesson delivery component when implementing SIOP in an English class?
• In what ways does the implementation of features from the Lesson Delivery SIOP component provide teachers with opportunities to foster the use of English?

Theoretical Framework

This project is based on the desire to identify how to apply SIOP in English lessons in a public school in Bogotá, Colombia. First of all, it is worthwhile to revise some theories and their application to the objective of the project. They will appear in the following order: Additive and Subtractive Bilingualism (Lambert, 1974), Bidirectional Interdependence (Cummins, 1979), and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) (Echevarria et al., 2008).

Additive and Subtractive Bilingualism

Lambert (1974) refers to two categories for bilingualism: additive and subtractive bilingualism. On the one hand, an additive bilingual situation develops when the addition of a second language and culture does not replace or displace the mother tongue and culture. Consequently, it works as an expansion to the linguistic repertoire in that both languages are considered useful for social and professional lives. On the other hand, subtractive bilingualism occurs when the learning of a major second language (e.g. English) weakens a person’s minor mother tongue (e.g. Portuguese) and culture sometimes to the point of replacing them. This is an important theory to take into account during the project, because it illustrates the two states that our students can experience while learning a second language. Besides, it is a suitable theory at the moment to show students the importance of both languages and the advantages of adding a new language to their repertoires.

Bidirectional Interdependence

Cummins’ (1979) theory Bidirectional Interdependence states that certain L1 knowledge can be positively transferred during the process of L2 acquisition. The L1 linguistic knowledge and skills that a child possesses can be used to develop the corresponding abilities in the L2. This theory has two significant contributions to this project. First, second language learners need to know that while learning an L2 they can implement and apply their L1 knowledge as L2 learning support. Second, SLLs must compare and recognize the relationship between L1 and L2. As Spanish and English share some language properties, students need to identify those circumstances and use them effectively in the second language learning process.

English Immersion Method (EIM)

This method applies the idea of not using any L1, thus instruction is entirely in English. Teachers strive to deliver lessons in simplified English so that students learn both English and academic subjects (“English-Language Learners”, 2004). It could be possible to say that when people want to learn a language they must use—in speaking, writing, reading and listening—the target language all the time and for any situation. Besides, McGroarty (2001) said that one of the EIM goals is to “build strong academic literacy skills and to give students access to subjects taught in the second language” (p. 348). According to Gómez and Hincapié (1998), some linguists believe that if people have been able to learn their L1 without using any language model, they should be able to learn an L2 in a similar way. Since Miravalle’s English curriculum was based on EIM, it is important to understand its methodology and characteristics.

Two-way Bilingual Education Method (TWB)

The Two-way Bilingual Education Method is a variant of the EIM; McGroarty (2001) affirmed that it was designed to assist students of minority and majority languages who want to learn and develop literacy skills in both of them. It is the most common teaching methodology for ESLs in elementary and high schools in Bogotá, Colombia. Through this method, lessons are given in two languages to students (in this case Spanish and English). The main goal of this method is that students become proficient in both languages. However, this method could present diverse difficulties since, at the beginning of this research, Spanish was used almost all the time and for any situation. Following TWB characteristics, learners could use their L1 as a support when learning an L2 as Cummins (1979) stated in his Bidirectional Interdependence theory. Furthermore, in this instructional program the importance of becoming proficient in both languages is taken into account as Lambert (1974) declared in the Additive Bilingualism theory.

Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)

SIOP was the English language instructional model adapted and applied for this study. It was developed with the need to assist non-English speakers in their process of learning content areas, such as science and maths, while learning the English language (Echevarria et al., 2008). In addition, it includes eight components for instruction (see Table 1). For the development of this study, the Lesson Delivery component was tailored from instruction in English language lessons. This component guides teachers to follow their lesson plans by practicing some useful and easy tips: Content and Language Objectives Clearly Supported, Students Engaged Approximately 90% to 100% of the Class Period, and Proper Pacing of the Lesson to Students’ Ability Levels. This component is completely appropriate for this project as lesson delivery was recognized as the point where teachers lose their paths and forget their English or bilingual instruction.

Review of Related Literature

Throughout language learning, great amounts of theories and methods have been proved. A relevant quote from Harbord (1992) affirmed that there must not be reasons to use Spanish in the English lessons as a time-saver or to make life easier. Then, even taking into account the great number of bilingual education programs that exist, we find that few research studies on English immersion and two-way bilingual education method are presented.

It is suitable to take as a point of reference two research projects developed in Bogotá, Colombia: Torres (1998) and Gómez and Hincapié (1998). The first research project was done in an important English institute where L1 was not allowed at any time during the lesson delivery. This can be described as an immersion program. In contrast, the Gómez and Hincapié project was developed in two schools where L1 was used as the basic tool most of the time and applied to any situation in the classroom. This can be described as a non-immersion program.

The Use of the Mother Tongue in the Foreign Language Process: A Tool or a Hindrance

The study was based on the English Immersion Method (EIM). A group of 16- to 35-year-old students were distributed among four classes: two were experimental groups (EG) and the other two were control groups (CG). In the EG a guideline, designed by Torres (1998), was used for ESL teaching. Through this guideline, the teacher and the students had specific situations for using some Spanish, thereby increasing L1 use. Besides, the other CG continued their classes without any modification.

After a survey, most of the English learners agreed with the idea that L1 was a useful tool, and disagreed with the concept of only using L2 as a means of communication. Therefore, the EG wanted to use more L1 in their lessons. However, the CG preferred to only use L2, despite the recognition of L1 as a helpful tool. So, all groups shared the idea that L1 use depends on situations, for example to give instructions, to explain grammar or to make corrections. However, students would not like their mother tongue to be put aside all the time. Just as well, they did not want an English class with complete L1 exposure because they paid for L2 exposure (Torres, 1998).

In the English institute where the guideline designed by Torres (1998) was applied, 70% of the students passed the course. This percentage was higher than that of the CG. As a result, students from the EG obtained better outcomes because through this use of L1 they had new opportunities to facilitate learning. As stated by Harbord (1992), a brief clarification in L1 could be a more efficient path to comprehension. Subsequently, the EG had benefits from clarification of grammar and vocabulary questions in L1. Also, it was appropriate to correct mistakes in L1.

Finally, ESL teachers in English immersion programs need to identify when to use L1 and why. And for this research it is important to remember Torres’ (1998) results—the smaller amount of L1 the better. Torres (1998) demonstrated that the mother tongue should not be ignored in an ESL setting but it needs to be used appropriately. English teachers need to keep appropriate activities in mind for using L1.

The Use of First Language in a Low Intermediate Level for Teaching English as a Foreign Language: A Guideline

This research project was based on the two-way bilingual education method (TWB). It was developed in two non-bilingual high schools in Bogotá where students were sixth graders around 12 and 13 years old. Participants were organized into two groups, one EG and other CG. The EG followed a guideline planned by the authors; it was based on the four main parts of lesson activities: before, during, post, and feedback of the activity. The CG did not use any guidelines, though. Through this guideline, the teacher and the students had specific situations for using Spanish, thereby decreasing L1 use. After a questionnaire, the teacher and the students agreed on the situations in which L1 must be used: giving instructions, complicated tasks, and grammar explanation.

EG and CG were assessed in the four basic language skills through a test. As it was previously said, EG obtained better results than CG in the pre-test, although, in the post-test both groups improved their outcomes but EG showed a tendency of better results, especially in one skill: speaking. These results could be associated with the guideline designed by Gómez and Hincapié (1998) as they proposed specific moments in class delivery for using Spanish. Throughout, this guideline EG increased L2 contact, developing more L2 knowledge. The researchers concluded that through L1 application learners could have problems in grammar, semantics, syntax and pronunciation, and that L1 differences are not helpful. Language differences will provoke language interference, which clearly will affect language learning.

As Atkinson (1987) said, teachers need to be conscious of the quantity of L1 use and why, otherwise it will affect the ESL process. However, in this study the L1 amount was reduced and it produced an improvement in speaking for the EG, showing a significant difference with the CG results. According to Gómez and Hincapié (1998), the EG obtained such a better result in speaking because through the guideline students were more able to use English in any task, in activities where they asked and answered questions using L2. Since their English level was increased through more exposure, and Spanish was reduced just for specific situations in the EG, students could have better outcomes. Teachers need to identify specific situations and quantities of L1. Concerning these results, we can conclude that the less L1, the better. This research was presented and analyzed two main reasons. First, it was taken as a point of reference to create the observation checklist used to observe the English lessons and identify the research problem. Second, this study was done in two schools in Bogotá, Colombia, the same city where the present study was developed.

Here, both sides of the issue concerning the English Immersion Method and the Two-Way Bilingual education method were presented. The amount of L1 use in ESL classrooms must be identified and applied precisely: not as much as in non-bilingual schools, and not completely avoided as in English institutes. Furthermore, any English program, school, institution, or teacher should first ask her/himself some questions i.e. Who are the learners? Who are the teachers? What is the necessary program? How will it be implemented? (Gómez & Hincapié, 1998). As a result, through these questions, they will identify basic principles, needs, methodologies, and the future of English language learners.

Method

Data Collection

In this action research project, qualitative data collection techniques were used as primary tools. The main sources of information were daily observation checklists of teachers during English lessons and field notes to record extra information after English classes. Also, surveys were applied to gather opinions about the use of Spanish in the English classroom. Finally, artifacts were collected to follow students’ processes of English knowledge (see Table 2).

Data Sources

Observation checklist

Based on Gómez and Hincapié (1998) and Torres (1998), an observation checklist was designed. It was used during lesson deliveries in order to gather information about the use of Spanish throughout English lessons. Consequently, the student-researcher checked for specific situations when the English teacher needed to employ Spanish in the English classroom (see Appendix A).

Field notes

As they are a way of reporting observations, they were taken into account for the second observation as the English teacher began to use Spanish for some unexpected situations, which were not calculated on the observation checklist. Field notes were written after each English lesson and provided data as to when the English teacher used Spanish to control students’ behaviors, for example.

Surveys

Since they are useful to collect information about specific aspects of the teaching method, surveys were provided for six English teachers and 41 sixth grade (Class 6A) students from a public school in order to find out their opinions about the use of Spanish during the English lessons.

Students’ surveys were designed to verify their attitudes about Spanish use during English lesson since in previous observations some students did not agree on the use of Spanish instruction. The surveys were also used to evaluate how effective, useful, and interesting the planned lessons were for the sixth graders (see Appendixes B and C).

Teachers’ surveys

They were designed with the main objective of finding out if teachers’ answers were following their English methodology and the school’s English methodology (EIM). Also, they were used to discover teachers’ opinions about the use of Spanish in the classroom specially when thinking about bilingual contexts (see Appendix D).

Artifacts

Portfolios were managed as artifacts. Students designed portfolios during class time and wrote helpful information for English lessons divided into two sections: Useful questions and Vocabulary. Portfolios were planned because previous observations showed that students were using Spanish most of the time, especially when they did not know the correct vocabulary or how to ask a specific question. So with the help of portfolios the L1 use was reduced. As a result, 6A students applied the useful questions section to clarify doubts during instruction like “How do you say correr in English?” Furthermore, the vocabulary section was a kind of dictionary where students defined words by drawings, key words, synonyms or antonyms. However, Spanish was not allowed (see Appendix E).

Implementation

As the main goal of this study was to explore how teachers can adapt features from the SIOP component Lesson Delivery to foster the use of English in a group of sixth graders at Miravalle School, three English lessons were planned and delivered by adapting the following features from the SIOP model: Content Objectives and Language Objective Clearly Supported, Students Engaged Approximately 90% to 100% of the Period, and Pacing of the Lesson Appropriate to Students’ Ability Levels. Furthermore, vocabulary activities such as Word Wall, Matching, Flash Cards, Cloze Sentences, and Personal Dictionaries were developed during lessons in order to present, develop and assess useful words for class activities.

Finally, the teacher clearly presented correct grammar structures to fulfill lesson tasks. An example is the structure of can: subject + can + verb in infinitive form, My alebrije can fly. The vocabulary activities and grammar structures were developed for two main reasons. First, to follow the SIOP features: key vocabulary was emphasized and a variety of techniques such as Provide a model of a process, task, or assignment was used to make content concepts clear. And second, after observations and students’ surveys, it was found that English lessons provided very few vocabulary activities and grammar structure explanations, consequently, some students suggested it as a necessary procedure for language learning.

Keeping in mind the purpose of adapting features from the Lesson Delivery component, we decided that before it took action, a vital component was needed to successfully continue: Lesson Preparation. The lesson plan template was modified from the Lesson Plan Template #3 found in Echevarria et al. (2008). The lesson presented in Table 3 shows how sixth graders go through several tasks in order to achieve a final objective, which is to identify a Mayan mythology creature, an alebrije. Through the lesson template, the student-teacher researcher clearly organized a lesson sequence based on vital SIOP features such as content and language objectives, key vocabulary emphasized, links between past experiences and learning, supplementary materials, and so on. The first step is to identify the topic, in this case following Miravalle’s curriculum, Mayan mythology and its topic-based alebrijes. Then, it is suitable to recognize the group of students involved for several reasons, such as adaptation of content, appropriate speech, scaffolding techniques, higher order questions, and pacing the lesson appropriately. Furthermore, project was developed with a group of forty-one sixth graders during their English classes.

Taking into account the Lesson Preparation component (Echevarria et al., 2008), we feel that content objectives are required to focus the lesson appropriately in order to support school and state standards for content areas. However, Miravalle School did not use English as a means of communication to teach any content area. On the other hand, the English language class designed its curriculum following a topic-based structure where different topics were included like Mayan mythology, Colombian festivals, Love and Friendship Day (Valentine’s Day), Halloween, and Christmas. Based on the Language Objectives from Echevarria et al. (2008), the teachers should incorporate in their lesson plans techniques that support students’ language development. For instance, in Table 3 students developed reading and writing skills. Furthermore, as the main objective of this research is to adapt features from Lesson Delivery component to English lessons, the alebrijes template presented in Table 3 demonstrated activities that reinforce features 23 and 24: content and language objectives clearly supported by Lesson Delivery.

Then, Key Vocabulary was presented in order to achieve the SIOP Feature Key vocabulary emphasized and its corresponding activity, a word wall poster. This was a double-purpose activity: first, to present, develop and assess vocabulary, and second, to show students that with the help of simple images, they could understand vocabulary without the need to use Spanish. Supplementary materials, which were necessary to develop the lesson, were presented such as a word wall poster, copies of the reading about alebrijes, and markers. Also, according to Echevarria et al. (2008), materials are especially important for students who do not have the appropriate English level, academic backgrounds and/or who have language and learning difficulties. As stated previously, this project was developed with a group of forty-one sixth graders who were at a low intermediate English level. The word wall poster was a great help for most of the students to understand vocabulary easily. Also, in the group of sixth graders there were two students with learning difficulties who could take advantage of the vocabulary activity supported by a poster with simple images and words in English.

During lesson preparation it is important to plan questions that promote higher-order thinking skills, which is SIOP Feature 15. Most of the time, these questions are based on Bloom’s (1956) taxonomy of educational objectives that includes six levels: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. In this first lesson about Mayan mythology, the higher-order questions were: What can your alebrije do? and What illness can your alebrije cure? To answer these two questions, the teacher presented a grammar structure as a model to follow. Students practiced the “can” structure as they had already studied it in a previous lesson in order to provide the answers My alebrije can fly and My alebrije can cure cancer. These answers showed students’ understanding of the “can” structure and their use of imagination.

Furthermore, Building Background was presented; it contains two SIOP features, Links to Experience and Links to Learning. First, Links to Experience is based on students’ prior knowledge. This feature was addressed with some questions: Have you ever dreamed? Have you ever dreamed of strange situations? Have you ever dreamed about animals? The Links to Learning were the material, vocabulary and concepts that were covered beforehand in class. In the alebrijes lesson, there was a short review of the pronoun “it”, the verb “has”, and the possessive ’s. After the lesson sequence, students read the “Los alebrijes” text in pairs. Concerning the Lesson Delivery component, students worked in pairs to achieve SIOP Feature 25 about students’ engagement, and feature 24 regarding tasks that support language objectives. Following the lesson sequence, students used their imagination and drew an alebrije; later on English learners described their alebrijes keeping in mind the teacher’s model: It has a lion’s head.

Finally, in lesson preparation, it is necessary to identify how students will develop their activities taking into account four stages: Scaffolding, Grouping, Processes and Strategies. Also, it is necessary to plan how the topic will be reviewed and assessed. In this case it was individually and in written form (see Appendixes F and G for other implemented lessons).

Findings

As the implementation was designed to respond to the research questions, they are presented below with their corresponding answers (see Table 4).

How can teachers adapt features from the SIOP component: lesson delivery to foster the use of English in a group of sixth graders at Miravalle School?

Adapting English lessons based on the SIOP template, students admitted that the lessons were easy to understand; they learned more vocabulary and could use their imagination. In order to maintain students engaged most of the class time, teacher used images to present, develop and assess the new vocabulary, for example animals’ parts and words with the /f/ and /v/ sounds. Furthermore, following the Lesson Delivery component from SIOP, Spanish was reduced in several categories. However, the teacher used Spanish to establish rapport and assist students with learning difficulties. Also, teachers and students agreed on the idea to use Spanish when comparing L1 and L2, controlling behavior, and giving the school’s administrative information. Additionally, employing SIOP strategies such as key vocabulary at the beginning of the class, review of grammar and tenses structures, and personal dictionaries helped students increase the English language use participating actively most of the class time and reaching the class objectives.

What are the key features of lesson delivery component when implementing SIOP in an English class?

Taking into account Lesson Delivery features and the data gathered, we found that students liked the idea of having objectives; most of the time at the end of the lessons sixth graders wanted to achieve them. Besides, students liked sharing, helping and working with other classmates following the Lesson Delivery feature of promoting student engagement. It is important to know students’ strengths and difficulties in order to pace the lesson appropriately, plan objectives and group configurations correctly.

In what ways does the implementation of the SIOP component lesson delivery provide teachers with opportunities to foster the use of English?

Since students were engaged most of the time in class activities, they could easily apply their English knowledge. Following a proper pacing and group configuration in the English classroom, sixth graders had more opportunities to practice their English knowledge. What’s more, they were conscientious of the importance of the English language: “si hablamos más en inglés, podemos aprender más y mejor” (If we speak more English, we can learn more and learn it better). At the same time, sixth graders were aware of the importance of English and the need for Spanish: “Español para explicar, inglés para practicar” (Spanish to explain, English to practice). Most of the students actively worked on their portfolios, personal dictionaries and useful questions. The need and use of English increased in students’ opinions.

Conclusion

In concluding, this study shows that some of the findings from the literature review were confirmed. Following the research project developed by Gómez and Hincapié (1998), in this study the use of Spanish was reduced and narrowed to specific situations and, as a result, students shared better English outcomes. Similarly, in this study the use of Spanish was decreased in order to foster the use and need of English. According to Cummins (1979), L1 knowledge can be positively transferred during the process of L2 acquisition. In the same way, sixth graders frequently compared L1, Spanish and L2 English grammar structures.

Finally, as previously stated, the bilingual program of Miravalle School is based on the English Immersion Method (EIM); however, based on the observations, results and findings from this study, the school could make appropriate use of Spanish if it focused the English curriculum on TWB standards. Besides, since this research project demonstrated that the SIOP model effectively worked in English lessons, the school could use it as an English language instructional program. Through TWB implementation and SIOP adaptation, the suitable bilingual program for Miravalle School should follow the Two-Way Immersion SIOP (TWIOP) model.

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Lambert, W. E. (1974). Culture and language as factors in learning and education. In F. E. Aboud, & R. D. Mead (Eds.), Cultural factors in learning and education (pp. 91-122). Bellingham, SW: Fifth Western Washington Symposium on Learning.

McGroarty, M. (2001). Bilingual approaches to language learning. In M. Celce-Murcia (Ed.), Teaching English as a second or foreign language (pp. 345-356). Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle.

Peregoy, S., & Boyle, O. (2008). Reading, writing and learning in ESL: A resource book for teaching K-12 English learners (with MyEducationLab) (5^th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

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Tang, J. (2002). Using the L1 in the English Classroom. English Teaching Forum, 40(1), 36-43.

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About the Author

Hollman Alejandro Rativa Murillo holds a B.A. in bilingual education (Institución Universitaria Colombo Americana, ÚNICA, Colombia). He currently works as a research assistant in the SIRP research group at ÚNICA in the “Ethics matters research project.” His interests are teaching English as a second language and development as a future researcher.

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Appendix A: Observation Checklist

This observation checklist aims to find out the extent of the English teacher’s use of Spanish language during English lessons. The results will be used for research purposes only.

School’s method: English Immersion Date:______________________________ Activity: ___________________________

Please, mark each time the teacher uses Spanish during the lesson:

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Appendix B: First Student Survey

This survey aims to find out your opinion of the use of Spanish in the English classroom. Your answers will be used for research purposes only.

Thank you for your cooperation!

1. You think the English class is _________

Easy
Normal
Difficult
Why?___________________________________________________________________________

2. Do you think that your teacher should use Spanish in the English lessons?

Yes____ No____Why? _____________________________________________________________

3. Do you like it when your teacher uses Spanish in the English class?

I don’t like it____
I like it a little____
I like it sometimes____
I really like it____

4. Check the reasons for using Spanish during English lessons (more than one option is possible).

to provide instructions
to explain grammar
to clarify vocabulary
to establish rapport
to re-explain a topic students did not understand
to ensure students understood
to express feelings and/or behaviors
to explain cultural differences
to correct students’ mistakes
to compare L1, Spanish and L2, English
to ask questions
to answer questions
to control behavior
to ask and give school administrative info
other, please specify _______________________________________________________________

Adapted from Tang (2002).

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Appendix C: Teachers Survey

This survey aims to find out your opinion regarding the use of Spanish in the classroom, especially when thinking of bilingual contexts. Your answers will be used for research purposes only.

Thank you for your cooperation!

Which grades are you teaching right now? ______________

1. Should Spanish be used in the English classroom? Why?

2. Do you use Spanish when delivering your English lessons? If affirmative…

3. Check the reasons for using Spanish during your English lessons (more than one option is possible).

to provide instructions
to explain grammar
to clarify vocabulary
to establish rapport
to re-explain a topic students did not understand
to ensure students understood
to express feelings and/or behaviors
to explain cultural differences
to correct students’ mistakes
to compare L1, Spanish and L2, English
to ask questions
to answer questions
to control behavior
to ask and give school administrative info
other, please specify _______________________________________________________________

Adapted from Tang (2002).

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Appendix D: Second Student Questionnaire

This survey aims to find out your opinion of the use of Spanish in the English classroom. Your answers will be used for research purposes only.

Thank you for your cooperation!

1. You think the English class is _________

Easy
Normal
Difficult
Why?___________________________________________________________________________

2. Do you think that your teacher should use Spanish in the English lessons?

Yes____ No____ Why? ____________________________________________________

3. What do you prefer- for your teacher to use Spanish or English in the lessons?

Spanish____ English____ Why? ___________________________________________

4. Answer yes or no and why.

Did you like the alebrijes class? Yes___ No___
Why? __________________________________________________________________________

Did you like the /f/ and /v/ sounds class? Yes___ No___
Why? __________________________________________________________________________

Did you like the Review of Past and Present tenses class? Yes___ No___
Why? __________________________________________________________________________

5. Check the reasons for using Spanish during your English lessons (more than one option is possible).

to provide instructions
to explain grammar
to clarify vocabulary
to establish rapport
to re-explain a topic students did not understand
to ensure students understood
to express feelings and/or behaviors
to explain cultural differences
to correct students’ mistakes
to compare L1, Spanish and L2, English
to ask questions
to answer questions
to control behavior
to ask and give school administrative info
other, please specify _______________________________________________________________

Adapted from Tang (2002).

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Appendix E: Artifacts

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Appendix F: Second Lesson Plan

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Appendix G: Third Lesson Plan