Highland’s schools are facing a new challenge — an increasing number of students for whom English is a second language. The Highland School Board recently approved creating a new teacher assistant position to handle the unique educational needs of district students whose native tongues range from Russian and Vietnamese to Spanish and Dutch.

Andy Carmitchel, assistant superintendent for instruction, noted that in just over a year, the district has gone from having no English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students to now having eight requiring services — four at the Lindenthal campus and two each at Highland Middle School and Highland High School. Three additional students are being tested or monitored to determine their need for services.

“And more can move in at any time,” Carmitchel noted, pointing out that the district has had “students show up on our doorsteps when literally 24 hours earlier they were in their native country. (more…)

search for : English-as-a-Second-Language, ESL

English is a foreign language in half the primary schools in central London, new statistics show. Those who speak English as their first language are the minority in inner city areas of the capital. Nationally, one in five primary pupils are now from an ethnic minority, which means that non-English speakers are in the majority in many schools.

Headteachers are having to accommodate pupils, not just from traditional immigration hotspots such as Pakistan and Bangladesh but also more recent arrivals from Eastern Europe. A huge increase in students from countries such as Poland is leaving some councils with massive bills to fund extra support such as interpreters. Government figures obtained by the Tories show that London has the highest proportion of primary and secondary school pupils speaking English as a second language. In 348 of inner London’s 695 primaries, at least half of pupils do not have English as a mother tongue. (more…)

search for : central London, English as their first language, ethnic minority, non-English speakers, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Poland, English as a second language

Passion for education courses through the veins of Jean Menuez, and led her to the Poughkeepsie Family Literacy program at the Poughkeepsie River Church. The former “Today Show” producer has volunteered for the program’s English as a Second Language center and its adult General Equivalency Diploma courses for the last three years. “Her dedication to their learning English as a second language, learning to read, acquiring literacy in general, shows people she cares,” program coordinator Wesley Lee said. “When people see you care, they work harder.”

Menuez tried her hand at different types of volunteer work, including blood donation services, where she divvied out cookies and juice to those who had recently parted with precious blood. Finally, Menuez read a flyer for Even Start, a program to provide supplemental education to children and adults. Now called the Poughkeepsie Learning Facility, the program had lost its federal grant, crippling its ability to provide education the way it had. “It basically, more than anything, was because of this war,” Menuez said. (more…)

search for : Jean Menuez, Poughkeepsie Family Literacy, Poughkeepsie River Church, English as a Second Language

Growing up in Spain, Burlingame resident Linda Hall has spoken both English and Spanish much of her life. That’s one reason why it’s so important to her that her children learn to speak two languages as well. While her son and daughter, ages 1 and 3, are not old enough to attend school, she’s still leading an effort to start a language-immersion program in the Burlingame Elementary District. By doing this, Hall hopes a language program will be available for her kids by the time they are ready to enroll in school. “Being bilingual opens so many doors,” Hall said. “It also helps you a lot with your verbal skills.”

n language immersion, students spend about 90 percent of the day learning their subjects in the second language; the rest of the day, they are taught in English. The Burlingame school board has agreed to start a language-immersion program in either Mandarin Chinese or Spanish, as long as Hall can drum up a enough support. They want to start by having kindergarten, and possibly first-grade, language-immersion classes. So far, Hall is close to having enough students for a kindergarten class. The program may begin as soon as September 2007, but no decision has been made on what schools would have a language-immersion class. Burlingame school board Trustee Michael Barber is a huge proponent of immersion schools. “There’s some evidence which shows that learning a second language helps promote learning English,” Barber said. (more…)

search for : English and Spanish, language-immersion program, Burlingame Elementary District, learning a second language

Kids learn languages faster at a younger age, according to education experts, and that’s the philosophy behind a language program at one Forsyth County elementary school. Micah Gray and his fellow kindergartners spend 80 percent of their school day speaking Spanish, which is why he can count to ten in another language. He’s participating in Ashley Elementary School’s dual-language immersion program. It’s the only one of its kind in Forsyth County.

The program serves a dual purpose. Not only are kids learning to speak Spanish, but native Spanish speakers are also learning to speak English. Each grade level from kindergarten through fourth grade only has one class that immerses its students in another language. The school just got a $157,000 federal grant which will allowed them to buy materials and train teachers. The money will also be used to expand the number of classes offered per grade level. (more…)

search for : Forsyth County elementary school, Ashley Elementary School’s dual-language immersion program, learning to speak English

Newton-Conover City Schools’ principals are working hard. Each of the six school principals made a presentation of improvements and goals during the Newton-Conover City Schools Board of Education meeting Tuesday night.

Elementary school leaders also talked about the increasing number of Hispanic students. At Thornton and Shuford, about 28 percent of the population is Hispanic. Both principals told school board members they have one full-time English as a Second Language teacher and a part-time instructor. The ESL teachers work with students in the classrooms and also work with teachers on lesson plans. The school board and Superintendent Barry Redmond commended the schools for their hard work. “I’m so proud of our principals as instructional leaders. They are doing amazing work,” Redmond said. (more…)

search for : Newton-Conover City Schools, Hispanic students, English as a Second Language teacher, ESL teachers

Yes, students do need help in English. I can confirm that after having just read a batch of midterms for my large University Studies Program humanities course on Berlin. But Megan Vazmina got it all, or at least most of it, wrong in her Oct. 4 column, “Forget Chinese; students need help in English.”

Instead of claiming that Chinese and Japanese “aren’t critical for elementary and middle school students,” we should be applauding the Fayette County Schools for their vision and foresight. The students in the Fayette County Schools who receive the additional 40 to 55 minutes of daily instruction in Chinese and Japanese will not only understand and communicate better in English, they will be better prepared for success in the global economy of the 21st century. (more…)

search for : Fayette County Schools, Chinese and Japanese

San Elizario High School language arts teacher Jeffery Seay believes that all students are capable of learning, no matter what they’ve been labeled in the past. Just being around Seay has been inspiring for at least one of his 12th-grade students, said Ivan Zamora. Zamora, who had Seay in 11th grade as well, said his reading and writing skills are sharper now. “I actually improved a lot,” he said.

Although he’s taught grades eight through 12 during his career, this year Seay is working only with 11th- and 12th-grade students. He’s planning to teach “The Alchemist” by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho to students in his ESL class. “It’s kind of a personal favorite of mine,” Seay said. He explained that the book is about having dreams and pursuing them and makes a good read before graduation. Seay said he also has dreams for his students. “I would hope that our students would be able to be real independent thinkers,” he said. (more…)

search for : San Elizario High School