Community Cultural Interactions and Observations Template

Name: Andrew Weron

Journal #: 1
Date/Time of Interaction/Observation: 10/27/2014 Monday, 9:00am 10:00am
Brief Background Information:
This observation took place during a class in the INTO program at the ILLC
building on the Oregon State University campus in Corvallis, Oregon. This class
consisted only of ELLs from varying backgrounds, and ages around 20. Most of the
students appeared to be about a level 3 on the SOLOM matrix.

Specific Language and Relevant Behavior Observed:

The main lesson consisted of small group work to organize words into
sentences on a worksheet. Students conversed in English in groups of 4s and 5s.
Working through sentence after sentence. They were not allowed to use any
electronic devices to assist them, but they were able to use notecards they had
previously made. Behavior I saw included: talking in a native or non-English
language, looking to other groups for helps, and discussion within the group with
statements like, no I think its

My Interaction with the ELL (if applicable):

I did not personally interact with this class. The activity was small group
work based on words discussed from the previous meetings.

Course Materials & Course Outcomes Connections to Interaction/Observation

(Cite in APA):
Outcomes:
1. Describe characteristics of ELLs.
2. Identify characteristics of different ELL proficiency levels
Freeman, D., & Freeman, Y. (2011). Between worlds: Access to second language
acquisition (3rd ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

My Reflection

This observation was slightly chaotic and provided challenges. I had

anticipated observing ELLs in the STEM program at Lincoln Elementary but found
out that the ELLs were not in my particular group. After talking with an INTO
instructor, Kara, I had planned on observing her class. However, there was a mistake
and she gave me the wrong time, so I ended up sitting in on the class time and place
she told me, but with a different instructor. I believe his name was Andrew
Christiansen, but Im not sure exactly. The instructor invited me to observe his class
and I enjoyed watching the interactions between the students. I could see the
personality differences of the ELLs; some were more friendly and talkative while
others were more reserved. When working in their groups, some students utilized
the whole group input while others had a few confident leaders that took the lead.
The instructor told me that this was a Monday class so he did a Monday-type
activity. It was meant to be fun and engaging and ease the students back into the
material from the weekend break. The assignment was challenging but intended to
be fun and engaging for the students. I enjoyed this observation and learned a lot. I
saw how each student is different and has their own personality, just like native
speakers in their classrooms. It seems that proficiency levels can effect how
interactive the student is with the lesson. At this level, students ay be more
conscious of how they present themselves and their involvement level. I wonder
how these ELLs would behave at an elementary level since that is the area I wish to
teach. I thought this observation was very worth while and I would like to see how
this class compares to my next observation.