October 2007
Monthly Archive
23 Oct 2007 07:30 am
Ontario communities get set for English as a Second Language Week celebrations
| The important and necessary role of English as a Second Language (ESL) education for new Canadians is being celebrated across Ontario during ESL Week, which takes place from November 18-24, 2007. “Helping new Canadians learn English is a critical first step for them to gain confidence and the ability to be employable and contribute to the Canadian – and Ontario – economy,” says Renate Tilson, executive director, TESL Ontario. “Coming to Canada with no or limited knowledge of the English language can be an isolating experience for an immigrant, refugee or international student. We hope that ESL Week helps Canadians understand the important role of ESL education to our society.” |
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search for : English as a Second Language, ESL
22 Oct 2007 07:53 am
Bilingual preschool offers best of both worlds
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About two weeks ago, Ericsson Elementary School in Moline opened two half-day, five-day-a-week preschool programs. There is one morning and one afternoon program to serve 3- to 5-year-olds from the surrounding neighborhood.It is a bilingual program. Students are taught in their native language, in this case Spanish. The preschool includes an English-as-a-Second-Language component where the children also are learning English. The district received a renewable $120,000 state Preschool for All grant to fully fund the preschool programs at Ericsson. The goal is to have 20 students in each session. Currently, there are nine 3-year-olds in the morning and 10 4- to 5-year-olds in the afternoon. District officials expect those numbers to increase quickly. |
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search for : English-as-a-Second-Language
20 Oct 2007 06:49 am
Fewer Adult Immigrants Are Attending Classes
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Some Arizona educators believe that fewer immigrants are registering for classes because of Proposition 300. The resulting law passed last year requires students to provide proper documentation that they are legal United States residents and denies undocumented immigrants in-state tuition or state-funded education. Because the Tempe Union courses are free, potential students who cannot provide these records cannot take the classes. English classes have been hardest hit. Mesa resident Anely Villegas came to Arizona nine years ago for a chance at a better life for her family. She is in her second year of ESL and hopes to earn her GED and eventually become a nurse. When she registered, she provided an Arizona driver’s license as her documentation. “It is not fair,” Villegas responded when asked about Proposition 300. “In America, they want us to speak only English but then they do not want us to get help.”
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search for : ESL
19 Oct 2007 07:05 am
Ohio State University Campus Briefs
| The Foreign & Second Language Education Program in the College of Education and Human Ecology has been awarded a five-year, $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of English Language Acquisition. It’s purpose it to implement a professional training program for in-service English-as-a-second-language and secondary content teachers throughout Ohio, and to conduct research on collaborative teacher education and teachers’ experiences with combining academic content and English language learning. |
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search for : The Foreign & Second Language Education Program, College of Education and Human Ecology, English-as-a-second-language
18 Oct 2007 06:44 am
Parents Sue After English Speaking Son Was Placed In An ESL Class
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The parents of a Latino boy who does not speak Spanish filed a $700,000 federal lawsuit against the Hillsboro School District, alleging that educators placed their son in an English as a Second Language program solely because of his ethnicity. National ESL experts say the learning program contains safeguards to keep such mistakes from happenings. But errors do occur, especially among children with disabilities because educators are not fully trained in distinguishing learning disabilities from limited English speaking skills. State and district officials say children are placed in the English as a Second Language program after a process that includes annual assessments and parent participation. |
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search for : Hillsboro School District, English as a Second Language, ESL
17 Oct 2007 06:52 am
Department Of Education Grant Helps MSUM Train ESL Teachers
| Minnesota State University Moorhead is training more area teachers to work with English Language Learners with the help of a federal grant. The $1.35 million Department of Education grant will reimburse local teachers for part of their tuition at MSUM as they pursue a certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language. Linda Houts-Smith, MSUM assistant professor and coordinator of Teaching English as a Second Language at MSUM, said the grant will increase the number of area teachers who are highly qualified to work with English Language Learners. |
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search for : English Language Learners, Teaching English as a Second Language
16 Oct 2007 07:28 am
New California State Funding Will Allow Schools To Improve ESL Classes
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Thousands of students who take remedial English, remedial math or English as a Second Language classes at the San Diego Community College District will soon benefit from additional tutors and curricula improvements because of new state funding. The Basic Skills Initiative recently approved as part of Assembly Bill 194 will provide California’s community colleges with $33.1 million this fiscal year. The money cannot be used to provide new courses, but it will help districts offer more faculty training, in-class tutors and enhanced student assessment. |
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search for : remedial English, English as a Second Language
15 Oct 2007 07:22 am
ESL Growth In Las Cruces Public Schools
| When it comes to telling the state how much funding the district needs, it’s all about “units.” The state gives the district $3,645.77 per “unit,” with an average student being worth 1.25 units and special education or English as a Second Language students equaling more units due to additional costs for their education, said Terry Dean, LCPS executive director for finance. Last year’s 40th day enrollment number, 23,466.5, translated into 43,465.818 units — and it’s extrapolating the latter number from the former that really requires the crunching. Dean expects growth — something that would bring in more than $750,000 in additional state money. “We’re counting on that money,” said Dean. “We’ve already budgeted for that.” |
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search for : English as a Second Language students
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