BICS/CALP

Discuss the extent to which the BICS/CALP distinction may influence the cognitive and academic development of 8-year-old Spanish-speaking immigrants to the U.S.

8-year-old Spanish-speaking immigrants to the U.S. who have been placed in a mainstream class or ESL class face some challenges as well as their primary teachers and ESL teachers in both BICS and CALP aspects.The Students who joined the mainstream class will face many difficulties with their friends as well as subjects they will learn. They might feel frustrated with misunderstanding of their friends and feel small in whatever they do. So they have a tendency to hesitate to play with their new friends. Also, during the class, they meet new vocabulary which they have no idea what they mean. It looks impossible to go forward in the progress of learning. But, fortunately they are young and natural learners because they are curious about everything they meet. That can make them easier to learn new things than adolescence. Their primary teacher and ESL teachers will meet challenges to teach them. They have to consider and think over how to teach the subject matter, have them understand their instructions, and participate in classroom activities. There are several possible ways for teachers to help them. For example, before placing them to the mainstream, assess their cultural background, current level in English, prior education, etc. With those records, teachers can understand their new students more. Also, they can make class environment more supportive to the new students through simplifying sentences they use and repeat them to make the students understand better. Also, the teachers can provide more visual teaching aids so that they can grasp the meaning easily. In addition, those teachers can ask the other students to help the new students in playing and learning subjects. New immigrants will learn more from their peers.In conclusion, new immigrant students who are aged 8 can adjust themselves easier and faster in both BICS and CALP aspects on the condition that primary teachers and ESL teachers provide a more supportive learning environment and their peers help. They are young enough to feel curious about everything they meet and they are natural learners.