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Supporting the Progress of English Learners

Through the Four Language Domains

By Audrey Figueroa Murphy

English learners (ELs) in U.S. schools are encountered at all grade levels and with varying
levels of ability. In order to learn and progress alongside their classmates, these students need
to develop skills across the four language domains: listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
Working from the premise that ELs’ language development is the responsibility of all teachers,
the author presents basic best practices for teaching ELs in each domain as well as rubrics that
can be used to assess and track students’ progress.

hanges in global economics and population dynamics since the late 20th century
Chave led to an increase in the number of second-language students in many
countries. In the United States, the number of English learners (ELs) grew from
3.8 million in 2000 to 4.9 million in 2016 (National Center for Education Statistics,
2019), and this growth continues into the present decade (National Education
Association, 2020). As it has become increasingly common to encounter ELs in
schools, educators have gradually come to realize that it is not sufficient to leave
a language-learning student in the back row until she “picks up some English,” or
to pair two such students together until they “work it out,” or even to rely solely
on the efforts of teachers who specialize in teaching English to speakers of other
languages (TESOL). Rather, and particularly because language learners do not
always conveniently land on our shores in the early grades before content instruction
accelerates, it is now widely recognized that the language development and overall
academic growth and progress of second-language students are the responsibility
of all teachers (Faltis et al., 2010; Murphy, 2009; New York State Education
Department, 2014; Nutta et al., 2010).
Particularly in the United States, moreover, where newcomers arrive from many
quarters, language learners are diverse. They speak a variety of home languages,
in which they may or may not be literate, and they enter the new school system
with differing levels of skill in the language of instruction. One thing they have in
common, however, is that, in order to succeed academically, they need to grow their
skills across the four domains of language: listening, speaking, reading, and writing
(Barrow, 2014; Cook et al., 2011; Goldenberg, 2020). Furthermore, although many
newcomers arrive possessing—or soon develop—what scholars refer to as Basic
Interpersonal Communicative Skills (BICS), the skills in listening and speaking that
suffice for this level of functionality are not the same as what are required for students
to engage in academic discursive practices (Cummins, 2001). Therefore, this article
presents basic teaching strategies, activities, and assessments that teachers can use
to support ELs’ progress toward academic language proficiency.
For practical and pedagogical reasons, the presentation is organized according to
the four language domains. It is important to note, however, that, in practice, language
learning and language use are dynamic processes and that there is interaction across
the four domains (Cheong et al., 2018; Sadiku, 2015; Yang & Plakans, 2012).

14 The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin: International Journal for Professional Educators