The language experience approach (LEA) to reading instruction uses learner-dictated passages to foster reading development. In this study, researchers explored LEA instruction for English learners with exceptional needs that were supported by voice typing, word prediction, and screen reading tools. A multiple baseline design was used to…

Discusses some of the inherent problems of teaching Indochinese refugees in schools without ESL (English as a Second Language) programs. Considers the strengths and weaknesses of using the language experience approach with Indochinese refugees. (JT)

Children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) are particularly vulnerable for later reading problems. This article describes the use of experience books, associated with the Language Experience Approach (LEA), as a motivating and linguistically appropriate literacy tool for young children who are DHH. The authors explain how remediation…

For children in school whose fluency in English (as a second language) is minimal, reading instruction using the language experience approach has proved successful. (JM)

Compares bilingual reading instruction in Puerto Rico with that on the mainland, commending the emphasis given in Puerto Rico on comprehension as opposed to the emphasis given to decoding on the mainland. (HOD)

The Language Experience Approach (LEA) to teaching reading in English as a second language is described. LEA uses the student's own experiences, vocabulary, and language patterns to create texts for reading instruction. Three stages are defined for assessing learners' levels of language use. The LEA instructional procedures are designed to be…

Discusses the language experience approach to reading and writing and describes how such an approach would benefit limited and non-English speaking high school students. (DD)

Alternatives to traditional testing techniques are proposed for use in the adult English as a second language classroom. It is argued that traditional testing does not place responsibility for achievement on the learner as is appropriate with adult students. The suggested alternative methods are: the language experience approach, sustained silent…

An exploratory study of the feasibility of the Language Experience Approach (LEA) for teaching reading to semi-literate students of English as a second language (ESL) is presented. The instructional approach uses knowledge and interests from the students' own experience as the basis for teaching reading comprehension. The method was used with two…

Describes an adult English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program using the Language Experience Approach and designed to serve immigrants and refugees. Discusses the use of educationally naive bilingual tutors and a combinatory instructional format. Argues that the program is pedagogically sound, cost effective, and encourages the students to take…

In Nashville, Tennessee, there are children representing 24 different non-English language groups. Teachers involved with planning instruction for and teaching such language minority children should consider not only the language differences, but also the cultural differences since many foreign students are from cultures very different from the…

Noting that while the language experience approach to reading instruction assumes that the learner is intuitively familiar with the language and that this familiarity facilitates recognition of the language on the printed page, this paper argues that students learning to read in a second language do not have the same degree of intuitive…

Reviews basic procedures and theories supporting the Language Experience Approach as it applies to second language learning and literacy instruction. (Author/VWL)

Suggests that limited English speaking students' oral language can be developed by using pictures and concrete referents and then by using the language experience approach to teach English reading. (FL)