Addressing the Needs of English Language Learners in an English Education Methods Course

Abstract

During the 2005 Conference on English Education (CEE) Summit, English educators identified the importance of responding to linguistically and culturally diverse learners in the English classroom. The integration of English language learner (ELL) issues throughout and within the methods course is one way to successfully prepare secondary English preservice teachers to meet the needs of their future students. In this chapter, the two authors describe how the collaboration of an English as a second language teacher educator and a secondary English teacher educator led to the “rethinking and revising” of a secondary English methods course. The authors consider how teacher educators in different departments can collaborate to meet the needs of English preservice teachers and offer strategies developed individually and collaboratively to infuse ELL issues and instruction throughout the secondary English methods course.