Gabby Giovenco

Teaching ELL

Mary Monsour

March 6, 2016

Interview with David Roman

I observed at Harrold Middle School in Hempfield district. Instead

of observing specifically with an ELL teacher, I observed a student

because it made more sense to me to see how the different teachers

and students interacted with David (pronounced Daveed). Also

because in a middle school students have more than one class, the

teachers have different groups of students each period. The student I

observed specifically was David Roman, a seventh grader from Mexico.

I had the benefit of observing him and another ELL student, Gaugan. I

spent my days with David though and gained great insight to this type

of education and got to see how different language proficiency level

students participate in school.

Here are some of the questions I asked David and observed answers.

1. How old were you when you moved to the United States?
 Answer: David stated that he moved here from Mexico when he

was nine or ten years old. Now he is in seventh grade at Harrold

Middle School.

This was something I was really curious about because I moved

around my entire life so questioning when David moved it

allowed me to create a connection between him and I. I also

asked this question because age plays such a crucial part in the

development of language as we have read through out the

chapters. David is extremely proficient in speaking English even

though he has only been here for a couple years.

2. What do you like about your native language?

Answer: I like Spanish more because it feels better, it flows and

it more natural he further explained that although he speaks

English pretty well and does not struggle too much with it today

that he still prefers to speak Spanish when he can.

I have had many interactions with non-native English speakers

and I find that most of the time no matter how proficient they are

in their second language; their native language will always feel

better. I find that with myself when I am learning Spanish.

3. Do you remember struggling with anything specific?

Answer: David didnt say explicitly that learning English was a

struggle. At this point he kind of crossed his arms and shrugged

his shoulders. This was a different reaction from him than I had

been seeing. He is usually a very social person and bright.

 Getting David to open up about the process of learning English

was slightly difficult, one because I did not want to pry and two

because the question may have been a little hard to swallow or

comprehend. I can imagine how much of a struggle it had to

have been to learn not only a new language but also a whole

new culture and territory. In regards to questions like these David

often answered with yes or no and that was about it, even

though he knew I knew he could speak in sentences. So I

respected his answers and tried not to push him to the point of

regression in regards to his answers. He may have just been

disinterested.

4. What is your favorite part about school here?

Answer: David at this point responded with a bit more of a

response, but still short to an extent I like the people here and

the teachers

David did not elaborate too much here. But from reading his

body language and seeing him brighten up more I could tell this

question intrigued him. His emotions to school here seemed

more than genuine like he truly liked it here.

5. Do your parents/family here speak English?

Answer: David said that both his parents are able to speak

English but that at home they all only speak Spanish.

This particular questioned intrigued me and I was really invested

in asking David about it. I know growing up in Arizona and on the

 West coast in general that a lot of my friends spoke English and

Spanish but their parents only spoke their native language. This

can be impactful for the students working to learn a new

language because they will either have the reinforcement of

learning the language at home or not and this can cause

different developmental affects. David revealed that both his

parents do speak English.

6. Were they supportive in you learning English?

Answer: David said his parents spoke English and with the move

to the states that they wanted him to learn more of it too.

Davids Spanish is very good. When he speaks English he speaks

at a fast pace like many Spanish speakers do and he has a very

prominent accent.

David is probably at the higher stages of language proficiency

because he can speak with accuracy but he is still an ELL

because he still had to learn English and he is still working on

aspects of it. David does so well with the language that even

before he moved to the states his parents probably began to

teach him the workings and basics of the linguistics. Encouraging

the learning of a second language before the student is

immersed in another country and culture is beneficial because it

provides them with background knowledge and some stability in

regards to what to expect, they wont be going in blind.

7. Do any of your friends here speak Spanish with you?
Answer: I thought this was peculiar but David said none of his

friends at school speak Spanish, he said he wished he had some

that did but it doesnt bother him much. After the few

observations I went to I realized there are only a few ELL

students in the school, only a handful of them and David is one

of two or three ELLs in seventh grade. English and Spanish to

him are almost fluent. So it makes sense that he doesnt have

peer buddies that speak Spanish too.

Peer buddies are a good thing to have in regards to ELL students,

but because David is so developed in the English language I

wouldnt say it is necessary. I think every student could benefit

from having a peer buddy though just because it gives him or her

someone that they can connect to culturally. The more

connective things are for students the more engaged they will

be. I found this with David frequently; although he participates in

class it is sometimes difficult to keep him on task.

8. What helped you to learn English?(Strategies)

Answer: At first David didnt fully understand this question or

maybe did not want to answer it and I had to break it down a bit.

But eventually he said that pictures helped and teachers

connecting things to him and his culture.

After David answered this question I got further information from

Mrs. Mash his social studies teacher. She admires some of the
 doodles and drawings he does in class. Mrs. Mash recognizes

Davids skill with a pen and interest in art and visuals as his way

of coping with the differences between here and Mexico because

the drawings allow him to create without necessarily speaking.

This is a strategy or skill that can be utilized to engage David in

the lesson at hand. Instead of having him take traditional notes,

have him do thumbnail sketches that illustrate the notes. Art is

an international language.

9. What is your favorite subject to learn about?

Answer: Art! Art and math are my two favorites This is one of

the reasons I knew David and I would work well together is

because he loves art.

As I stated earlier, art is an international language and I feel as if

David utilizes it in this manner. David is very advanced in the

development of his second language seeing as he is at a stage 4

or 5 in terms of language proficiency. I found it very interesting

that David stated that he adored art and math, the two subjects

in school that dont necessarily rely on speech or the English

language to be taught because art is applicable to anyone and

can be culturally relatable in more than one way. It can also be

visual, tactile, kinesthetic and auditory in a sense, so for David to

enjoy art so much might be reflective of arts connection to him

regardless of his native and second language. After witnessing

him in Mrs. Duboys math class I saw that although David

 sometimes struggled with the concepts of math he was always

actively participating. I found that the other ELL student,

Gaugan, who is at a much lower proficiency level, reacted the

same way. That too I find reflective of the utilization of a

language that does not require a language other than numbers,

which are nearly international.

10. Was this subject different in Mexico?

Answer: I asked him this question and he was a little puzzled by.

He said he didnt really remember what the subject was like in

Mexico, but that he wasnt as into art as he is now. I figure math

would have still had his interest while in Mexico because math is

an international language almost.

In asking this question I thought I would get some insight into

how the cultures differ. Being an artist, I personally know that art

does differ culturally, but the processes and products all focus on

the creation. In regards to David he may have an interest in art

as a kid in Mexico, but the move to the states may have

motivated him more to create as coping method that Mrs. Mash

suggests. When I say that David is an artist, I truly mean this. He

has a great amount of talent, I love that his teachers encourage

his artistic abilities because it helps him emotionally deal with

the differences in culture but it also motivates him and his skills.
 As stated earlier, I observed David Roman, a seventh

grader at Harrold Middle school in the Hempfield school district.

Along with getting the chance to observe and work David, I got

to observe another ELL student as well, Gaugan. But David is

originally from San Luis Potosi, Mexico. He moved here when he

was nine or ten years old. He struggles with minor things in the

English language, like certain forms of comprehension. He also

has a bit of an accent, which took me a little while to get used to.

David is quite proficient in the language especially for the short

period of time in which he has been in the states; he is a level 4

or 5 so I was able to learn a lot from him. Being able to observe

him alongside Gaugan, who is just developing his language skills

provided me with the chance to see the differences between

language levels and how they are handled accordingly. David is

much more independent while Gaugan is guided more by his

teachers. All the teachers I observed alongside the students were

dedicated to the betterment of the students and strived to

educate their ELLs accordingly.

Both of Davids parents speak English and I believe they

began to teach him English before he moved to the United

States, because he did develop his skills quickly. It was a lot of

fun interviewing David and some of his teachers. But I feel that

because I interviewed the student I gained more of insight into

how the education system really affects the students in terms

being an ELL and ESL. Not only that but getting to know David

through the interview allowed for him and I to become more

comfortable with one another which then allowed us to work

efficiently together in some of his classes. Conversing with David

was fun and exciting, it was radical getting to see him use his

English language skills but then also using his native language

when applicable.
Mrs. Mash is the teacher I contacted because her and I

have some common colleagues in this field. She allowed me to

come into her classroom and then assisted me in getting

permission from the school to observe David for each of the days

that I observed. I took the time to also observe and interview

Mrs. Mash and another of Davids teachers, Mrs. Blaney. Mrs.

Mash is a seventh grade social studies teacher. I asked her if she

had any prior experience to working with ESL, ELL students, and

she said yes. This made me a little more comfortable because I

did not feel like I was walking into a classroom blind. I asked her

if she ever thought about pursuing something in terms of ELL

and she disclosed to me that she just recently got her

certification to become an ELL instructor but is also trying to

become a principal. I learned a lot from Mrs. Mash and the other

teachers along with David. I made sure to ask the teachers

questions as well so I also interviewed them and this also guided

me in my experiences in the school. Mrs. Blaney was really fun to

 work with; she is the type of teacher that I want to be one day.

She speaks fluent Spanish so I asked her if she uses this with

David at all and she said yes. She always greats him in Spanish

and presents questions and subjects in Spanish to him, she said

she does this because it connects the two of them in a more

cultural way and it engages him. It makes him feel more

comfortable in the environment.

Throughout this interview process I learned a lot of things

and benefitted from a great school, people and specifically

David. I also learned that interviews are something that I should

use to my advantage more often because it creates a personal

relationship between the subject and I, which can further the

experience in a good way. I would definitely like to further this

interview eventually and gain even further insight with David and

the teachers that impact him.

Thank you to David.

Hi David,

I just wanted to say thank you for the chance to interview

you. I know we only got the chance to meet a few times but I

really enjoyed learning from you. You provided so many insights

for me to use in regards to my education. Your use of culture and

enthusiasm for school was very impressive and appreciated.

Being someone who can speak more than one language will be

extremely beneficial in the future. Your art is wonderful as well

and I hope you continue with it; dont give it up because the

world needs more people like you. Thank you again David for

working with me and being totally awesome!

Thanks,
Gabby Giovenco