Essential Question: How can understanding the needs of the E.S.L. client assist the therapist in developing an effective treatment plan?

Foundation Questions:
1. What is needs assessment?

2. What methods can a therapist use to assess the needs of an ESL client?

3. What cultural differences must an SLP consider when working with an ESL client during needs assessment?

4. What elements constitute an effective therapy plan?

5. In what ways does assessment of an ESL client differ from assessment of a native
English speaking client?

My Purpose:

I plan to highlight a variety of methods for assessing the needs of an ESL client, in hopes that readers will gain a greater understanding of how effective assessment of ESL clients' needs can positively contribute to the development of a successful therapy plan.

Genres:

I intended to use the following genres for this project.

Poem (client)
This poem will reflect the client’s feelings of isolation and frustration concerning his inability to adequately understand and speak the language of his new homeland (English).

Webliography (clinician)
This will completed by the clinician and will provide pertinent information about E.S.L. resources and therapy activities. This will give others a way to access this information quickly and easily.

Powerpoint Presentation (clinician)
I plan to include a general overview of needs assessment in ESL clients, as well as, the various ways that the clinician can accomplish this. Next, I will highlight how a therapy plan can be more effective after thorough assessment of the ESL client's needs.

Journal Entries (client)
One article will focus on the client’s frustration with his communicative endeavors in the workplace. Another journal article will be in the voice of the clinician and will describe the planning and process of needs assessment of her ESL client.

Interview Transcript (clinician and client's workplace) The clinician and a representative from the client’s new workplace will engage in discussion relating to specific concerns about the client’s pronunciation and overall comprehension of the English language. The clinician will also present the client’s employer with possible strategies that can within the workplace to improve communication with the client.

Lesson Plans (clinician)
I intended to show how SLP’s can use E.S.L. activities during a therapy session to improve pronunciation, listening, and pragmatic abilities.

Guest Editorial (clinician)
This will be written by an expert in the field of E.S.L. learning. It will discuss how individuals acquiring E.S.L., their families, employers, speech-language therapists, and primary E.S.L. teachers can all work in conjunction with one another to provide instruction and support for the client. Specific strategies/helpful hints for each group of people will also be provided.

Integration of Genres:

My MRP will delve into the language and communicative barriers that an individual acquiring E.S.L. may encounter, as well as, provide numerous activities useful for E.S.L. therapy sessions. The variety of viewpoints contained in the MRP will allow readers to more clearly understand why it is essential for the E.S.L. learner to be successful in his communicative endeavors.

Tentative References:

Claybourne, Tim. (September/October 2000). The Status of ESL, Foreign Language and Technology. Media and Methods, 36. Issue 1, p. 6. Retrieved from Academic Search Elite on September 28, 2002.

Gonzalez, Orsini. (November 1999). Building vocabulary: Dictionary consultation and the ESL student. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 43. Issue 3, p. 264. Retrieved from EBSCOHost Academic Search Elite on September 28, 2002.

Hadaway, Nancy L., Vardell, Sylvia M., Young, Terrell A. (May 2001). Scaffolding oral language development through poetry for students learning English. Reading Teacher, 54. Issue 8, p. 796. Retrieved from EBSCOHost Academic Search Elite on September 28, 2002.

Kavanaugh, Kevin. (April 1999). Teaching the language of work. Training and Development, 53. Issue 4, p. 14. Retrieved from Academic Search Elite on September 28, 2002.

King, Kathleen P. (Summer 2000). The Adult ESL Experience: Facilitating Perspective Transformation in the Classroom. Adult Basic Education, 10. Issue 2, p. 69. Retrieved from EBSCOHost Academic Search Elite on September 28, 2002.

Sawin, Gregory. (Summer 2000). How to communicate with people who speak English as a Second Language (ESL). ETC: A Review of General Semantics, 57. Issue 2, p. 140. Retrieved from EBSCOHost Academic Search Elite on September 28, 2002.

Essential Question: How can understanding the needs of the E.S.L. client assist the therapist in developing an effective treatment plan?

Foundation Questions:
1. What methods can a therapist use to assess the needs of an ESL client?
2. How can Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and the ERG theory be used in needs assessment?
3. What is the Multiple Intelligence theory and how can it be used in the assessment
process?
4. What elements constitute an effective therapy plan?
5. In what ways does assessment of an ESL client differ from assessment of a native
English speaking client?

My research area focuses on individuals acquiring English as a second language. My essential question was, “What therapeutic methods are used by SLP’s when working with individuals learning E.S.L.?” Potential foundation questions that could be asked pertaining to this topic are listed below.

1. Why would someone learning E.S.L. enroll in speech therapy?
2. Why do SLP’s often work with these individuals?
3. What types of specialized materials/learning resources are used with individuals learning E.S.L.?
4. What types of language/communication difficulties to people learning E.S.L. encounter?
5. What types of language distortions typically occur as a result of foreign accents?
6. How does the language of E.S.L. speakers improve as a result of speech therapy?
7. Who decides if an individual learning E.S.L. is in need of speech therapy?