One challenge faced by educators working with English learners is distinguishing between exceptionality and language differences. Explain this challenge and its possible impact on children with limited English proficiency within the learning environment.

What will be an ideal response?


One of the largest challenges faced by educators working with children who have limited English proficiency is distinguishing between exceptionalities and language differences. Oftentimes, delays or disabilities can be masked by a child's language differences. In other words, educators may not consider the fact that a child has a delay or a disability because they assume the child's struggles are due to their limited proficiency in English instead. On the other hand, a child may be placed in an early childhood special education program because of a presumed learning disability when, in reality, the child's difficulties are a direct result of their limited proficiency in English. Although there is no easy solution to this dilemma, educators must be aware of these possibilities as they have the potential to greatly impact students. If we place a child in special education classes when their difficulties are due to a limited proficiency in English, we are doing the child a disservice. Likewise, if we assume that the child's difficulties are due to their limited English proficiency when they are actually due to a learning disability, we will be denying the child the services that they need to be successful in the learning environment.

Education

You might also like to view...

Open Circle, another research validated program for ________, relies on the use of the "Open Circle format in which students and teacher arrange their chairs in a circle and keep one chair empty to symbolize that the circle is open to anyone."

a. K-5 students b. middle schoolers c. emotionally disabled d. secondary students

Education

In the above situation, the lack of effect of the different arrangements of the pennies on the total number is referred to as the __________________________ in the psychological structure of the operation

Fill in the blank(s) with correct word

Education

About how many school-age children speak a language other than English at home?

A) slightly more than one in five B) slightly more than one in ten C) slightly more than one in twenty D) slightly more than one in fifty

Education

Piaget and Vygotsky never shared their ideas about child development with each other because

a. they didn't speak the same languages and lived too far apart. b. Piaget was too busy travelling to teach about his child development theories. c. Piaget and Vygotsky came from different schools of psychological philosophies. d. Vygotsky was isolated from the Western world and died young.

Education