English Language Learners

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The demands for students with low academic content knowledge, and with little or no vocabulary are great and crucial to improving English Language Learners’ (ELL) accomplishments. They are also important for sustaining graduation rates long term. Bilingual Education (English and Spanish) is vital for students and parents who come to this country and want to maintain a relationship with the community and the school administration. Spanish culture and their native language will make for better communication. Furthermore, it is a way to prevent dropping out of high school given the risky nature of their absenteeism, poverty level, lack of parental involvement among other factors. “At-risk Hispanic students aged 16-19 who judged themselves as not …show more content…

Even though, it is an authentic document with a completion of mathematics and some required courses, they do not earn credits from their previous academic years; however, a mandatory placement test is taken. These tests are just to evaluate and measure the level of knowledge in Mathematics and English; therefore, the Test Administrator and the Bilingual Specialist Supervisor decide from their results in which level of ESL and mathematics the students will be placed. If the student has a low score in his/her English test, then the student will be placed in a ESL Level 1 class. The content subject areas such as Science, Language Arts, History will be given in his native Spanish speaking language until the student demonstrate proficiency in the English language by taking an exit exam to the ESL Program. Comparable to the mathematics test, if the student has a low score in his/her mathematics test, then the student will be placed in Algebra 1 in their native Spanish speaking language. If the student obtains an average score, then the student is placed in Geometry in his native Spanish speaking language. If the student has a high score, then the student is placed in Algebra 2 in his native Spanish speaking language. The problem comes when the school groups more than 25 of these newcomers in a classroom regardless of their formal or interrupted formal education and the lack of knowledge of the school routines and expectations. In addition, according to the Office of English Language Learning & Migrant Education, 2008, p.1), “teenagers that are in the ESL Program require specialized literacy and content area instruction and overall a high need for individualized or small group support”. Many of the newcomers need a great deal of attention, and one way to show frustration is by speaking out and complaining or stating

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