Application # 1
Case study of a learner with limited academic language skills
Start
Index
Summary
Data analysis
Reading assessments
ACCESS scores
Classroom observation
Factors
Suggestions and supports
Conclusions
References and additional information
Summary
In this case study, we will analyze the academic language performance of Sady, a 9-year-old girl enrolled in a bilingual 3rd-grade classroom in an Elementary School located in a suburban area of Illinois.First, we will present evidence that suggests the student may be struggling with academic language, using assessments and informal observations to support our findings. Then, we will hypothesize some of the possible reasons for Sady's underachievement. To do so, we will observe various aspects, including instruction, curriculum, and the learner's environment. Finally, we will make some recommendations that could help Sady improve her language competency and may be equally beneficial for peers who share a similar situation.
Data analysis
When we suspect that one of our students is underperforming, data analysis is a powerful tool that enables us to confirm or refute our suspicion.Student testing is commonplace in Illinois Public Schools at least three times per year. Standardized tests in Reading, Math, and Science are mandatory. In our case study, we examine Sady's reading results in both Spanish and English, as she has been in the bilingual program since kindergarten.
Reading assessments
In the table presented below, we observe the percentiles Sady obtained in August 2025 in standardized tests in word reading, fluency and comprehension both in Spanish and English. The test was DIBELS Reading for English and Amplify Lectura for Spanish.
A sample of the English reading fluency test is attached in this link.
A sample of the English word reading test is attached in this link
English fluency reading test
The student was asked to read this passage for one minute. Wrong words are marked in red. The closing bracket shows the last word read. The total was 20 words per minute. The expectation in 3rd Grade at the beginning of the year is between 73 and 104.
English word reading test
The student was asked to read as many words as possible for one minute. Wrong words are marked in red. The closing bracket shows the last word read. The total was 17 words per minute. The expectation in 3rd Grade at the beginning of the year is between 40 and 59.
ACCESS test
ACCESS is a mandatory test for English non-native speakers taken once per school year. It evaluates four domains — reading, writing, speaking, and listening — through four different tasks. Students should get an overall grade of 4.9 to be considered proficient English speakers. This table on the right shows Sady's scores in the ACCESS test taken in January 2025.
Informal classroom observationand teachers' feedback
Reading
Apart from data analysis, direct observation in the classroom and discussions with teachers about the student may also provide valuable information. We have focused our attention on the exact four domains that were evaluated in the standardized tests: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. We also compared information with Sady's teacher from last year, the reading specialist, and the instructional coaches.
Writing
Listening
Speaking
Reading
To gather more information about Sady's reading, we had a brief conversation with the Reading Support Teacher, who works with the student in a small group of two other students for 20 minutes four times a week. According to the teacher, Sady is having a hard time transferring her reading skills from her native language, Spanish, to English. She is applying Spanish phonetic rules to English words, which reduces fluency and makes the text's meaning indecipherable. She feels comfortable reading cvc words with short vowels and short sentences with high-frequency words such as personal pronouns or prevalent verbal forms (have, make, did). Comprehension skills are good, but the student is not exposed to grade-level reading texts due to her lack of fluency.
Writing
Sady's writing is limited and, as happens in reading, the student is applying phonetic rules from her native language, Spanish, to English words. By doing so, she writes "ai" instead of "I", "jaus" for "house" or "eskul" for "school", which makes perfect sense if we try to correlate every sound with its corresponding phoneme in Spanish, thus sentences become intelligible for an English reader. Apart from the spelling mistakes, Sady creates grammatically correct sentences with proper meaning and related to the topic. The vocabulary is minimal and colloquial. Verbs are always in the present tense, even when she refers to past or future actions. Images and pictures greatly help this student, who has difficulties with spontaneous writing without visual support. Dictation is a real challenge for Sady. Although she has been in a bilingual classroom since kindergarten, she does not seem to recognize high-frequency words, and their spelling is incorrect. The situation is even worse with homophones, which are completely indistinct and unfamiliar to her.
Listening
When observing Sady's listening skills in the classroom, she seems to understand oral language related to the topic. However, sometimes she needs clarification from her peers because she is unsure about the instructions the teacher has given. She can definitely follow short oral directions, but when it comes to more complex academic language, she looks around, shows doubts, and hardly ever raises her hand to ask the teacher; she prefers staying quiet, even if that means not completing the task. When communicating with peers, her preferred language is Spanish. She still communicates with English-speaking students and, again, she seems to understand the message, but very often, another student translates the whole meaning of the sentence for her.
Speaking
Sady is very talkative in her native language, but she does not participate as much in the English lesson. We could observe a different behavior when the teacher only speaks English, she will not answer the questions nor raise her hand. If the instruction is in English but the teacher is bilingual, she will occasionally participate in the discussions. At some point, if she does not know how to express herself, she will continue the discourse in Spanish. We could extrapolate this observation to the group of peers. Sady is expressive and talkative with Spanish and/or bilingual peers. When she is with only English speakers, she shuts down, loses interest in the conversation, and walks away. When she is asked to describe a situation or picture, she makes very basic sentences with no details or descriptors. The phrases "There is a dog" and "I see a girl" seem relatively poor expressions for a 9-year-old student who has spent all her academic life in a bilingual setting.
Factors that may contribute to the student' limited academic language proficiency
Learner
Environment
Curriculum
Instruction
Instruction
- Sady receives 50% of instruction in English
- In 1st and 2nd Grade, instruction was 30% in English
- Her teacher is bilingual, using both languages competently
- Some of Sady's peers are newcomers, and they do not speak any English
- All the classroom information is provided in both languages
- Teacher makes clarifications in Spanish when students do not understand the English vocabulary
Curriculum
- This is the 2nd year of implementation of the curriculum
- Every unit of Language Arts has a different language: one in Spanish, the next one in English, and so on.
- The student's district has been pretty inconsistent in the curriculum choice: they change more often than desirable
- Teachers recognise they do not feel confident enough with the new curriculum
- The curriculum assumes that students are proficient in both languages
- Students are exposed to grade-level texts with vocabulary and structures unknown to most of them
Environment
- Sady's family language is Spanish.
- Her mother and her father did not finish elementary education in their countries.
- The family interactions are brief and limited because Sady's parents are usually working when the student is at home.
- Sady does not receive any support with school assignments or homework.
- In social activities with friends or family, she is just exposed to the Spanish language.
- Apart from school, the only English student receives comes from TV shows or social media .
Learner
- Sady is underperforming in English, while in Spanish she is at her peers' level, and in Math she is above proficiency level.
- The average Lexile for a third-grade Student is around 520, and the student is at 85.
- There is no other particular concern in the student's academic performance apart from English.
- Attendance is regular and consistent.
- The attitude towards education is positive, the student seems to enjoy school, and she is fully present in the classroom activities.
- Regarding social-emotional aspects, Sady is well adjusted to her group, and there is nothing relevant to emphasize.
Strategies and support to develop stronger academic skills
Vocabulary
Labelling
Morphology
Sight words
Small group
Cognates
Fluency
Technology
Text types
Phonics
Working in a small group with students at the same performance level will allow the teacher to attack the skills that these particular students are lacking. Students will gain confidence and reassurance.
Small group
For ESL students, it is pretty relevant to center the phonics lessons on the sounds that differ from their native language. Spanish and English share many sounds; the instruction should emphasize those that are not equal.
Phonics
Teaching vocabulary with images, icons, or gestures can facilitate the learning process effectively. Besides, when the vocabulary is related to a text or topic, it can be memorized more easily.
Vocabulary
Spanish and English share many words with similar roots but different endings. Noticing these similarities and differences helps students transfer vocabulary from one language to another and create patterns that can be applied to new words.
Cognates
Labeling the classroom with appropriate vocabulary and assigning different colors for English and Spanish words can help students recognize common terms and retain the spelling of these words.
Labels
Students can benefit from exposure to different text types: fiction, non-fiction, newspaper articles, poetry, and comics, all appropriate for their grade level. By doing so, their lexical repertoire will increase in breadth and depth.
Text types
Getting familiar with common prefixes and suffixes used in English will allow our student to recognize patterns in new words and successfully apply possible meanings. Besides, it can also contribute to a reading fluency improvement.
Morphology
To gain fluency, the student should start with reading passages according to her current performance level, not to her grade level. Once she feels confident, we should steadily increase the reading difficulty, scaffolding the lexile and complexity of the texts.
Fluency
The visual or lexical reading route implies recognizing familiar words without sounding them out. The objective of practicing high-frequency words is to ensure that the student does not need to decode the word every time she reads it.
Sight words
Technology offers countless opportunities for reading in sophisticated programs where students can learn vocabulary, record their own reading, or listen to passages at different speeds. Properly used, it can become an ally to gain language abilities.
Technology
Conclusion
As ESL teachers, our mission is to help students bridge their existing knowledge from their native language to the second one. And to do so effectively, the more we know about the reading process and its components, the better equipped we will be to help our pupils to be successful in this challenging task.
Sady's case is a frequent place for many ESL students. The limited language academic skills are not a problem attributed to the learner but rather to an environment that does not facilitate the learning process and an existing curriculum that fails to differentiate materials for students not performing at grade level. Once said that, if we provide the student with differentiated instruction, incorporating strategies and scaffolding the reading content, we hypothesize that she will be able to reduce the existing achievement gap between her and her peers.
" I did what I knew how to do.Now that I know better, I do better."
Resources and references
ACCESS scores interpretation guide https://wida.wisc.edu/sites/default/files/resource/Interpretive-Guide.pdf Vocabulary building through word formation https://rharriso.sites.truman.edu/vocabulary-and-word-formation/ Vocabulary development with ELL teachers https://www.readingrockets.org/topics/english-language-learners/articles/vocabulary-development-ells
Thank you for your attention
Application # 1
Carolina Estevez Alonso
Created on October 9, 2025
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Transcript
Application # 1
Case study of a learner with limited academic language skills
Start
Index
Summary
Data analysis
Reading assessments
ACCESS scores
Classroom observation
Factors
Suggestions and supports
Conclusions
References and additional information
Summary
In this case study, we will analyze the academic language performance of Sady, a 9-year-old girl enrolled in a bilingual 3rd-grade classroom in an Elementary School located in a suburban area of Illinois.First, we will present evidence that suggests the student may be struggling with academic language, using assessments and informal observations to support our findings. Then, we will hypothesize some of the possible reasons for Sady's underachievement. To do so, we will observe various aspects, including instruction, curriculum, and the learner's environment. Finally, we will make some recommendations that could help Sady improve her language competency and may be equally beneficial for peers who share a similar situation.
Data analysis
When we suspect that one of our students is underperforming, data analysis is a powerful tool that enables us to confirm or refute our suspicion.Student testing is commonplace in Illinois Public Schools at least three times per year. Standardized tests in Reading, Math, and Science are mandatory. In our case study, we examine Sady's reading results in both Spanish and English, as she has been in the bilingual program since kindergarten.
Reading assessments
In the table presented below, we observe the percentiles Sady obtained in August 2025 in standardized tests in word reading, fluency and comprehension both in Spanish and English. The test was DIBELS Reading for English and Amplify Lectura for Spanish.
A sample of the English reading fluency test is attached in this link.
A sample of the English word reading test is attached in this link
English fluency reading test
The student was asked to read this passage for one minute. Wrong words are marked in red. The closing bracket shows the last word read. The total was 20 words per minute. The expectation in 3rd Grade at the beginning of the year is between 73 and 104.
English word reading test
The student was asked to read as many words as possible for one minute. Wrong words are marked in red. The closing bracket shows the last word read. The total was 17 words per minute. The expectation in 3rd Grade at the beginning of the year is between 40 and 59.
ACCESS test
ACCESS is a mandatory test for English non-native speakers taken once per school year. It evaluates four domains — reading, writing, speaking, and listening — through four different tasks. Students should get an overall grade of 4.9 to be considered proficient English speakers. This table on the right shows Sady's scores in the ACCESS test taken in January 2025.
Informal classroom observationand teachers' feedback
Reading
Apart from data analysis, direct observation in the classroom and discussions with teachers about the student may also provide valuable information. We have focused our attention on the exact four domains that were evaluated in the standardized tests: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. We also compared information with Sady's teacher from last year, the reading specialist, and the instructional coaches.
Writing
Listening
Speaking
Reading
To gather more information about Sady's reading, we had a brief conversation with the Reading Support Teacher, who works with the student in a small group of two other students for 20 minutes four times a week. According to the teacher, Sady is having a hard time transferring her reading skills from her native language, Spanish, to English. She is applying Spanish phonetic rules to English words, which reduces fluency and makes the text's meaning indecipherable. She feels comfortable reading cvc words with short vowels and short sentences with high-frequency words such as personal pronouns or prevalent verbal forms (have, make, did). Comprehension skills are good, but the student is not exposed to grade-level reading texts due to her lack of fluency.
Writing
Sady's writing is limited and, as happens in reading, the student is applying phonetic rules from her native language, Spanish, to English words. By doing so, she writes "ai" instead of "I", "jaus" for "house" or "eskul" for "school", which makes perfect sense if we try to correlate every sound with its corresponding phoneme in Spanish, thus sentences become intelligible for an English reader. Apart from the spelling mistakes, Sady creates grammatically correct sentences with proper meaning and related to the topic. The vocabulary is minimal and colloquial. Verbs are always in the present tense, even when she refers to past or future actions. Images and pictures greatly help this student, who has difficulties with spontaneous writing without visual support. Dictation is a real challenge for Sady. Although she has been in a bilingual classroom since kindergarten, she does not seem to recognize high-frequency words, and their spelling is incorrect. The situation is even worse with homophones, which are completely indistinct and unfamiliar to her.
Listening
When observing Sady's listening skills in the classroom, she seems to understand oral language related to the topic. However, sometimes she needs clarification from her peers because she is unsure about the instructions the teacher has given. She can definitely follow short oral directions, but when it comes to more complex academic language, she looks around, shows doubts, and hardly ever raises her hand to ask the teacher; she prefers staying quiet, even if that means not completing the task. When communicating with peers, her preferred language is Spanish. She still communicates with English-speaking students and, again, she seems to understand the message, but very often, another student translates the whole meaning of the sentence for her.
Speaking
Sady is very talkative in her native language, but she does not participate as much in the English lesson. We could observe a different behavior when the teacher only speaks English, she will not answer the questions nor raise her hand. If the instruction is in English but the teacher is bilingual, she will occasionally participate in the discussions. At some point, if she does not know how to express herself, she will continue the discourse in Spanish. We could extrapolate this observation to the group of peers. Sady is expressive and talkative with Spanish and/or bilingual peers. When she is with only English speakers, she shuts down, loses interest in the conversation, and walks away. When she is asked to describe a situation or picture, she makes very basic sentences with no details or descriptors. The phrases "There is a dog" and "I see a girl" seem relatively poor expressions for a 9-year-old student who has spent all her academic life in a bilingual setting.
Factors that may contribute to the student' limited academic language proficiency
Learner
Environment
Curriculum
Instruction
Instruction
Curriculum
Environment
Learner
Strategies and support to develop stronger academic skills
Vocabulary
Labelling
Morphology
Sight words
Small group
Cognates
Fluency
Technology
Text types
Phonics
Working in a small group with students at the same performance level will allow the teacher to attack the skills that these particular students are lacking. Students will gain confidence and reassurance.
Small group
For ESL students, it is pretty relevant to center the phonics lessons on the sounds that differ from their native language. Spanish and English share many sounds; the instruction should emphasize those that are not equal.
Phonics
Teaching vocabulary with images, icons, or gestures can facilitate the learning process effectively. Besides, when the vocabulary is related to a text or topic, it can be memorized more easily.
Vocabulary
Spanish and English share many words with similar roots but different endings. Noticing these similarities and differences helps students transfer vocabulary from one language to another and create patterns that can be applied to new words.
Cognates
Labeling the classroom with appropriate vocabulary and assigning different colors for English and Spanish words can help students recognize common terms and retain the spelling of these words.
Labels
Students can benefit from exposure to different text types: fiction, non-fiction, newspaper articles, poetry, and comics, all appropriate for their grade level. By doing so, their lexical repertoire will increase in breadth and depth.
Text types
Getting familiar with common prefixes and suffixes used in English will allow our student to recognize patterns in new words and successfully apply possible meanings. Besides, it can also contribute to a reading fluency improvement.
Morphology
To gain fluency, the student should start with reading passages according to her current performance level, not to her grade level. Once she feels confident, we should steadily increase the reading difficulty, scaffolding the lexile and complexity of the texts.
Fluency
The visual or lexical reading route implies recognizing familiar words without sounding them out. The objective of practicing high-frequency words is to ensure that the student does not need to decode the word every time she reads it.
Sight words
Technology offers countless opportunities for reading in sophisticated programs where students can learn vocabulary, record their own reading, or listen to passages at different speeds. Properly used, it can become an ally to gain language abilities.
Technology
Conclusion
As ESL teachers, our mission is to help students bridge their existing knowledge from their native language to the second one. And to do so effectively, the more we know about the reading process and its components, the better equipped we will be to help our pupils to be successful in this challenging task.
Sady's case is a frequent place for many ESL students. The limited language academic skills are not a problem attributed to the learner but rather to an environment that does not facilitate the learning process and an existing curriculum that fails to differentiate materials for students not performing at grade level. Once said that, if we provide the student with differentiated instruction, incorporating strategies and scaffolding the reading content, we hypothesize that she will be able to reduce the existing achievement gap between her and her peers.
" I did what I knew how to do.Now that I know better, I do better."
Resources and references
ACCESS scores interpretation guide https://wida.wisc.edu/sites/default/files/resource/Interpretive-Guide.pdf Vocabulary building through word formation https://rharriso.sites.truman.edu/vocabulary-and-word-formation/ Vocabulary development with ELL teachers https://www.readingrockets.org/topics/english-language-learners/articles/vocabulary-development-ells
Thank you for your attention