How to Use

Building on the idea of Problem-Based Learning (Levin, Hibbard and Rock, 2002), with each scenario you will encounter challenges that teachers may face when working with English Language Learners. Read the introduction, watch the video and then answer the questions. When you submit your answers, those generated by our experts will appear for comparison.

Case Scenarios

Case 2: School was Different

What does school mean? What if, for most of your life, you had been told you weren’t allowed to go to school? What if school were a place where teachers would hit you?

Listen to Sofia, a girl from Afghanistan, and Asubuhi, from Tanzania, describe what school was like. Next, tell how you would help these students learn and succeed in schools here in the USA by answering the questions below. Compare your answers to those of our team of experts.

 

Q 1. 1. Sofia was not allowed to attend school before coming to the USA. How would you have helped her adjust to this completely unfamiliar environment?



Q 2. Asubuhi said in his country, students were hit as punishment. How might the expectation of corporal punishment affect his behavior in an American classroom?



Q 3. What should classroom teachers do to help him adjust to American consequences for misbehavior?



Q 4. Sofia says, “We didn’t have no school buses,” which is grammatically incorrect. Why didn’t the interviewer stop her and make her say “We didn’t have any school buses.”?



Q 5. Which best describes you?



Q 6. Which category best describes your primary grade level?



Q 7. Which category best describes your teaching experience?