Parallel Session Proceedings »
4.4.7 Exploring the Linguistic Profile of Gifted English Language Learners
This study gleaned insights into the linguistic profile of gifted English Language Learners (ELL). It explored students, parents, and teachers’ views of the gifted ESL journey of linguistic development through discussions on vocabulary development strategies, personal traits, and socio-cultural influences. Exploration used a single case study and gave voice to four students, two parents, and three teachers. Data consisted of background survey, Duckworth’s 12 Item Grit Scale, Oxford’s Strategy Inventory for Language Learning, Expressive One-Word Picture Vocabulary Test, focus groups, and interviews. The setting was a K-12 school where students were (a) enrolled in the same school, (b) predominantly taught in English, (c) arrived to school with knowledge of a language other than English, (d) identified by the school as gifted and ESL, and (e) in Grade 8 or 9. Students’ profile showed that developing academic language is important for school success and should not be limited to determining efficacious linguistic strategies as it is also connected to interest and motivation. Parents’ and teachers’ data confirmed students’ results. Findings suggested that the ‘good’ gifted language learner consciously deploys (a) linguistic strategies, (b) personal traits, and (c) socio-cultural influences for linguistic development. The study proposed a vocabulary development model that promotes a focus on students’ needs and interests to increase motivation for second language learning which leads students to persist to expand their vocabulary.