M12: Teaching Math to ELs

 Let's talk  about what makes math challenging for multilingual students. Be sure to read pages 279-283.

A common perception is that math is easy for ELs because it is mostly numbers - this is a MYTH.  This point is important to remember!

The syntax and discourse of math can be difficult.  In addition, the eye movement required in math problems is different from most other content areas (you move left to right and up and down repeatedly in reading math problems).

What makes math vocabulary challenging?

Vocabulary Includes:

• BICS and CALP
• Phrases for mathematical concepts
• Lexical items that indicate certain operations
• Symbols
• Special grammatical structures and presentation styles.

Syntax challenges for ELs in Math:

• high use of prepositions
• passive voice
• lack of one-to-one correspondence between the symbols and words
• high frequency of logical connectors

Semantic challenges for ELs in Math:

• making meaning (symbols, prepositions, multiple meaning words such as "net")
• students must put structure and vocabulary together to come up with correct meaning in context
• more advanced skills that build on each other

Content-area specific discourse challenges for ELLs are in Math texts:

• lack redundancy or paraphrasing
• are conceptually dense
• require up and down as well as right to left eye movement
• require reading rate adjustment--must be read slower to catch all meaning
• require multiple readings
• use symbolic devices (charts, graphs) that may be unfamiliar
• contain a great deal of technical language with precise meaning