The Importance Of English As A Second Language

English language learners (ELL) are one of the fastest growing classifications of students attending schools in the United States today. They represent a diverse group of students typically coming from homes or backgrounds where English is not the primary language spoken. Additionally, ELL students experience difficulties communicating or learning academic instruction in English.

ESL is stands for English as a Second Language, which is a program that?s mainly developed to supplement the Bilingual Education in order to give extra help to the immigrants to learn English. ?The profession of teaching English as a second language within the United States began to expand in the 1960s in response to increasing numbers of immigrant and refugee children entering the country, as well as to the growing numbers of international students attending U.S. universities? (Collier and Ovando, 1998). Students in the ESL program receive the instruction of their level of English proficiency, so they can learn the English from the very basic level. Once they get better with their English skills, they will be able to move out the ESL program and be as competitive as the native speakers of English in other subject classes. The first decades of ESL programs fails to help students with academic work in math, science, social studies, and other curricular areas but English. In order to improve this situation, ESL programs started to focus more in helping students with their academic works during the 1950s and 1960s (Collier and Ovando, 1998).

This is a good starting point to help teachers distinguish between a true learning disability and learning English as a second language. If an ELL has a real learning disability then early detection is essential. However, if an ELL does have a learning disorder and does not receive special education for many years, because teachers were waiting for he or she to learn the language, serious consequences could happen (Haung, Clarke, Milczarski, Raby, 2011). Students could be grade levels behind their peers and could suffer emotionally and socially in and out of school. Some ELLs may be able to speak in their native language, but they may not be able to read and write in it. Finally, teachers also have to pay very close attention to ELLs. Each ELL has had a different set of experiences and ranges of educational exposure (Haung, Clarke, Milczarski, Raby, 2011). Teachers must push for appropriate professional development for teachers working with ELLs. Teachers are more prepared to deliver appropriate assessment and instructional modifications to ELLs with disabilities when they have been given appropriate professional development (Haung, Clarke, Milczarski, Raby, 2011).

It has been estimated that by the year 2025, approximately one out of every public school student will be identified as an ESL/ELL student in the United States. ESL stands for English as a Second Language and ELL stands for English Language Learner. An ESL/ELL student can be defined as a student whose predominant language or languages at home, is other than English, and would require additional English language support to develop reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. The difference between an ESL student and ELL student is minor; An ESL student participates in programs that are customarily specialized while an ELL student partakes in a traditional educational classroom. English Language Learners have surpassed other subgroups in becoming the fastest growing of the public school population. Despite the common misjudgement of some people towards the ESL/ELL population, 76% of the ESL/ELL students in elementary schools and 56% of the ESL/ELL students in secondary schools are native-born. The highest percentages of ELL/ESL students in public schools are found in the west of the United States. Taking the average of both bigger and smaller cities, ELL students make an average of 14% of the total public school enrollment and in suburban areas, ELL students make up an average of 8.5% of public school enrollment. The ESL/ELL population has more than doubled over the past 15 years and more than half of those students struggle with their academic performance. An ESL/ELL

In recent decades, the United States has seen a dramatic increase in the diverse population, especially with English-language learners in the education system. English-language learners are students who are unable to communicate fluently or learn effectively in English. These students come from a non-English speaking home or background and require specialized instruction in the English language and their academic courses. Educators use a number of terms when referring to English-language learners, limited English proficient (LEP) students, non-native English speakers, language-minority students, and either bilingual students or emerging bilingual students (York, 2008). As

With the immigration population increase comes a language barrier increase. Therefore, English as a Second Language (ESL) tools in the classroom is essential. ESL was established in the 1970s when children of many mother tongues, crowded classrooms due to the immigration increase (Tomkins, G., 1981, p.

A full range of services are provided to meet individual needs. One of these services, English as a Second Language, provides support in general education classrooms for students whose first language is not English. The English Language Learning (ELL) Program utilizes various instructional models where students work within a classroom setting, in small groups or individually

Sullivan (2011), reports that numbers have fluctuated between states with some reporting from zero to 17.3% and the average falling within 9% (Sullivan, 2011). Huang, Clarke, Milczarski, & Raby Huang (2011), indicate that since the 1980’s, the number of ELL students has doubled with more than 8% in the PreK-12 grades (Huang, et al., 2011). As such, the influx of students has also increased the need for not only new, but experienced teachers to provide language assistance as they acquire English. One reason for this need is that ELL students have the additional pressure of learning English and the content simultaneously and require experienced teachers. When these students begin to struggle, they are left with little resources and wind up being tracked for special education services. According to Stein (2011), there are many complex factors that place so many ELL students in special education services and one of the main ones is the characteristics of second language learning and its false assumption that a learning disability is present (Stein, 2011). According to Hall (2014), when students enter classrooms speaking very little English and the teacher is unable to communicate with them in their native language, ELLs can feel alienated and/or become easily frustrated (Hall, Quinn, Gollnick, 2014). Huang, et al. (2011), states that when

The mere reference to the label given to students acquiring the English language potentially sparks debate amongst educators, policy makers and researchers. The federal government refers to these students as Limited English Proficient (LEP) students. This identification references the deficiencies the student may have rather than to identify the diversity and gifts that the student may possess. Such labels set premature limitations of the student and predisposes the student to limited rigor in instruction. Educators and researchers reference the same subgroup of students as ELLs, establishing the understanding that with sufficient support, increased rigor and cultural understanding, students will succeed.

English language learners are students whose first language is not English. Consequently, ELLs have lower reading ability levels compared to non-English learners (Begeny, Ross, Green, Mitchell, & Whitehouse, 2012; Ross & Begeny, 2011). In addition, different ELL categories exist: long-term ELLs, migrant ELLs, and transnational ELLs. Long-term ELLs are United States citizens who have been enrolled in American schools since kindergarten; however, these students are classified as limited English proficient because they have not successfully acquired English during their elementary years. Furthermore, transnational ELLs move back and forth from their native country to the United States; therefore, the constant move between countries inhibit

ELL (English Language Learner) are individuals whose first language is not English and who are presently learning English. The term ELL can envelop an extensive variety of proficiencies in English from truly negligible abilities to very familiar. In schools and locale ELL may be utilized to mean the same as constrained English capable (LEP), however in fact it doesn't mean the same thing. It's critical to comprehend what a content or speaker considers ELL to mean.

English language learners and ELLSEs may be similar but they are also quite different. Both are considered to be emergent bilinguals. The students who are ELL’s will most likely have trouble with instruction in a new language, but if taught in their home language they will better be able to pass

In the secondary grades regardless of the number of students speaking a common language ESL programs are provided. The program helps English language learners develop proficiency in listening, speaking, reading and writing in the English Language. It is full time instructional setting using second language methods in grades pre-k through 8th grade and providing learners with a full time certified teacher to provide supplementary instruction in all subjects. ESL program also provides a part time service in which it is considered a pull-out program model with a part tine teacher that provides English instruction while student’s remains in a mainstream classroom ESL programs should teach the affective, linguistic and cognitive needs of ELL’s.

Acquiring and learning a second language do not refer only to handling oral communication skills. It is more than that; it takes the students´ abilities in enhancing their lexicon, their management in syntax, and their perspective about words´ influences in people. Thus, summing this up, it is indispensable that ESL students have a grand deal about linguistic knowledge. In other words, ESL learners not only require speaking, but also reading, writing and thinking in English when they complete whatever English career.

ESL students are students that speak English as a second language. Presently, there is many different system to characterize this type of students (qtd in Shi, Steen 63). For example, they can be seen as “English Language Learners (ELL), English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), English Language Development (ELD), English Language Service (ELS), and