Improving the Teaching and Learning of English Language Learners:
The Instructional Conversational Model
Project Overview
University of Georgia researchers in the College of Education’s Center for Latino Achievement and Success in Education (CLASE) are examining the effectiveness of the Instructional Conversational (IC) pedagogy for improving the academic development of English language learners (ELLs) in upper elementary grades. This research is supported by a four-year, $2.9 million grant from the Institute for Education Statistics, a division of the US Department of Education. Though previous quasi-experimental studies indicate that IC improves the academic achievement of both ELLs and native-English speaking students this pedagogy has never been tested using a randomized controlled experiment. The CLASE researchers will be using this, the gold standard of experimentation, to determine the effectiveness of Instructional Conversation for improving the achievement of ELLs.
To investigate the efficacy of this pedagogy, the CLASE researchers will be randomly assigning approximately 150 teachers from high-poverty elementary schools in Georgia to the treatment and control groups. Teachers in the treatment group will receive extensive training and support to master the IC pedagogy while those in the control group will receive the standard professional development offered by their schools or districts. The CLASE team will investigate the effects of this pedagogy on the academic development of the students in the treatment and control classrooms. Since reading comprehension as a gateway for ELLs success, the CLASE team will use it as a marker of academic success. They will also study the impact of Instructional Conversation on the affective, cognitive, and English language development of these students. It is their belief that this study of approximately 1,200 third and fifth grade students will show that those taught using the IC pedagogy will have a significant increase in academic achievement over those taught using typical pedagogies. Note that while this efficacy trial is focused on ELLs the researchers believe this pedagogy will benefit ALL students in the treatment classrooms.
What is Instructional Conversation?
Instructional Conversation is defined as a regularly-scheduled teacher-led communication between small groups of students with a clear instructional goal. This pedagogy provides intensive, differentiated, experiences for students in key areas for second language acquisition and academic development by increasing the rate and intensity of vigorous interactions with peers and expert teachers. The Instructional Conversation pedagogy is in line with current best educational practices. It increases metacognition skills as well as language development by enhancing and/or supporting:
- direct instruction (will be embedded in conversation)
- guided practice
- checking for understanding and correcting misconceptions
- higher-order thinking skills
- problem solving
- risk free learning environment
Click here for more information about Instructional Conversation and the standards for effective pedagogy.
Why should districts, schools and teachers be involved in this project?
The level of professional development and support that is being offered in this project is unprecedented. After attending a one-week summer institute focusing on the cognitive theories behind IC and the practical issues involved in implementing this pedagogy in the classroom, teachers in the treatment group will be supported with coaches and trainers for a full academic year. This support includes weekly observations by coaches and meetings between teachers and coaches, as well as videotaping and peer coaching when appropriate. Teachers in Georgia who have been introduced to this pedagogy and experienced this support report that they believe it has enabled them to cover more material in more depth. After a full year of practice and support the efficacy trial will occur; even during this trial teachers will still have an opportunity to work with their coaches to the extent they feel necessary.
This project will interface with any system’s initiatives without requiring additional funding and every instructional goal will match the grade level curriculum. The IC pedagogy will be sustainable for systems and schools even when the project is complete since participation in the project will be an investment in each system’s most valuable asset: their teachers. It is anticipated that teachers in the treatment group will master the pedagogy, thereby becoming master teachers who can serve as peer coaches for others in their schools. With this in mind CLASE will make every effort to ensure that IC training is offered to teachers in the control group after the study is completed.
Interested In Getting Involved?
Teachers Click Here.