High school math teacher Hillary Hansen learned just how big a role language plays in math instruction when she taught her first Basic Math course for ELLs last year. ELL teachers who hadn't taught content areas previously are now being asked to lead or support instruction in the math classroom, and many math teachers who don't see themselves as language instructors are now responsible for providing effective math instruction to ELLs. In reality, however, mathematical reasoning and problem solving are closely linked to language and rely upon a firm understanding of basic math vocabulary (Dale & Cuevas, 1992 Jarret, 1999).įor many educators, the challenge of bringing language and math instruction together is a relatively new one.
We tend to think of mathematics as a subject that does not require a strong command of language. Solving word problems, following instructions, understanding and using mathematical vocabulary correctly - all of these skills require a language proficiency that sometimes exceeds our expectations. Looking back, however, I realize that I had an advantage that I wasn't even aware of - I understood the language in which the problems were written, even if I didn't understand how to solve them! Although it is easy to assume that many English language learners (ELLs) will excel in math because math is a "universal language" and students may have had prior educational experience that included mathematical instruction, that assumption can lead educators astray.Īs I spoke with teachers and did research for this article, it became very clear that making sure that students understand math vocabulary and have ample opportunities to use it are very important. I didn't understand why it came so naturally to some students, but not to me.
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