Page 20 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9-12: English As a Second Language and English Literacy Development, 2007

THEONTARIOCURRICULUM,GRADES9–12 | ESLandELD
Reading
The Reading strand has three overall expectations, as follows:
Students will:
1. read and demonstrate understanding of a variety of texts for different purposes;
2. use a variety of reading strategies throughout the reading process to extract meaning from texts;
3. use a variety of strategies to build vocabulary;
4. locate and extract relevant information from written and graphic texts for a variety of purposes.
Adolescents whose first language is English come to the task of reading at the secondary school level with a full repertoire of linguistic resources in English. In contrast, English language learners learning to read in English are at the same time in the process of acquiring English vocabulary and grammar, as well as phonological awareness of the sound system of English. Thus, secondary school English language learners who possess age-appropriate reading skills in their first language still face a number of learning challenges as they approach learning to read in English. These challenges may include differences in sound-symbol relationships between the reader’s first language and English, limitations in learned English oral vocabulary, gaps in background knowledge, and lack of familiarity with the structure of English text forms.
Students in the ELD program with gaps in their prior education may be experiencing their first major foray into reading in any language, and thus may face an additional set of challenges. These might include lack of familiarity with the routines and expectations of the school environment, lack of reading-readiness concepts, and gaps in their general academic and background knowledge that would normally have been filled through childhood school attendance. An effective reading program for English language learners will take all these differences into account, and will provide rich and extensive opportu- nities for tapping into and building on students’ background knowledge, developing vocabulary, modelling and thinking aloud by teachers and students, discussing texts, and participating in group reading and learning activities.
As English language learners develop their reading skills in English, it is important that they have many opportunities to read a wide variety of texts from diverse cultures and for a variety of purposes. By reading widely, students will develop a richer vocabulary, become more attuned to the conventions of written English in various genres, and increase their understanding of diverse world views. A well-balanced reading program will pro- vide students with opportunities to read to widen their knowledge in all areas of the curriculum, to discover interesting information, for the pleasure of self-discovery, and for sheer enjoyment. Reading experiences that invite students to discover new worlds and to develop their imaginative powers will go a long way towards convincing them
that reading can be a rich source of pleasure and knowledge. Such experiences are likely to lead to a love of reading, which is among the most valuable resources students can take with them into adult life.
Reading is a complex process that involves the application of many strategies before, during, and after reading. Students need to identify which strategies are personally most helpful and how they can use these and other strategies to improve as readers. For example,
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