Busting Myths About English Language Learners

Three widespread misunderstandings that shortchange students on their academic growth

Ahmed arrived in Pennsylvania from a Somali refugee camp at age 13, speaking minimal English. He was placed in a regular 7th-grade classroom for large portions of his school day, understanding very little. He received 30 minutes of English as a second language instruction daily, but the other students were more advanced, and the teacher had little time to help him.

In 8th grade, still struggling with basic English, Ahmed (a pseudonym for an actual student) was lost in regular classes. His family had relatives in a larger city and heard about a special international school for English learners. So Ahmed moved in with his relatives to go to that school. However, he didn’t qualify for entrance because by then he had been in the country for a little more than a year. Now 14, Ahmed was missing more and more academic content every day.

In a nearby community, Sara’s parents had arrived in the U.S. from Honduras shortly before she was born. Her early childhood was spent within a Hispanic community, and she didn’t begin learning English until kindergarten. The school urged her parents to speak English at home, even though they did not speak English well, and advised them to read to her in English, not Spanish. Sara was placed in the school’s English as a second language program, which provided 20 minutes of instruction daily in a separate class.

Sara, now a 5th grader, communicates fluently in English in social situations. However, she has not developed sufficient academic English, falling further behind in school each year. Her Spanish learning was halted in kindergarten, so now English is her best language, yet she continues to be classified as an English language learner because she cannot attain the stringent test scores and grades to exit the program.

Sara’s school pulls her out for an ESL class during language arts instruction so she does not receive some of the English language content needed to meet the Common Core standards. Sara’s prospects for college and career readiness are dim.

Prevailing Practices

Several misunderstandings and myths contribute to the predicaments of Ahmed, Sara and many other students in elementary and secondary schools who do not speak English as their native language. I’ve observed these misunderstandings in my work preparing English as a second language educators for employment over the past 10 years and while working with parents of English language learners.

• Myth 1: The more English the better.

Many people believe the more you’re surrounded by a language the better you will learn it. Undoubtedly, sometimes there is too little input — as we may have experienced in foreign language classes that did not result in communicative competence. But English language learners face a decidedly different reality. Like Ahmed, they are immersed in English for the majority of the school day, which can pose significant challenges.

First, we acquire language that we are immersed in only if that language is comprehensible — when we understand what is being communicated. Maybe we understand it because it is accompanied by photos, demonstrations and other nonverbal communication. Or perhaps there are only a few unknown words, and our known language scaffolds what is unknown. When language is not comprehensible, there is little value to being immersed in it.

Second, English learners make greater gains in English when they are also continuing to develop their first language, according to Virginia Collier and Wayne Thomas, writing for the National Association of Bilingual Education’s Journal of Research and Practice. Because of solid research demonstrating the value of continued native language development, parents always should be encouraged to continue to use and develop the native language at home, and teachers should welcome additional languages in the classroom through multilingual visuals, texts and even group work in other languages. These approaches could have made a big difference for Sara.

Finally, learning a new language is mentally exhausting and physically and socially stressful. English learners need downtime when they can use their native languages. Prohibitions on the use of languages other than English are counter-productive. Instead, we should aim for rich multilingual spaces that benefit all in the school community.

• Myth 2: Most English learners need the same services.

The tendency to lump all English learners together is problematic in program and curriculum design. Claims by policymakers and practitioners that these learners “need to be pushed into the regular classroom” or “need to be pulled out for ESL classes” are much too vague to be helpful. Placement decisions must take into account English language level, grade level, prior learning, teacher training and other learner and situational factors.

Unfortunately, many programs for English learners are not nimble enough to allow for individualized placements. Strict adherence to one-year limits for newcomer programs and other similar policies may mean that students like Ahmed cannot access needed services. And the common practice of scheduling ESL classes by grade instead of by English language proficiency level often means that the ESL teacher is expected to teach five different language levels at once — an impossible task.

Individualized English as a second language programs begin with flexible guidelines, not fixed policies. ESL and subject-area teachers often are more reliable sources for placement than are standardized tests. Too-rigorous ESL exit policies sometimes keep students like Sara from experiencing the academic settings in which they could make the greatest gains.

At the same time, beginning English learners should not languish in classrooms where they understand little of the content. These English learners need many hours of English language development during their first few months in the country.

• Myth 3: Newly arrived English learners require the majority of ESL resources and attention.

Certainly, such students require specific services, ideally provided through a newcomer program that addresses both language and acculturation. However, in many schools it is long-term English learners, such as Sara, who pose the greatest challenge. Kari, an English as a second language teacher at a middle school in Lancaster, Pa., told me, “The majority of ELs in our program are actually at level 3 or 4 (out of 5), where they remain stuck for many years. It’s discouraging for both students and families to see the EL label when the student prefers to speak in English, speaks English at home and with friends and cannot read or write in another language … but is still an EL.”

What is the solution for such long-term English language learners? At least in part, it is to ensure that every teacher of English learners is trained and willing to teach both language and content. The guidance provided by the U.S. Department of Education in 2016 regarding English language learners affirms the need for training all teachers, stating that professional development “may be provided to all teachers who have ELs in their classrooms, to enable them to teach those ELs more effectively.”

In addition, the Department of Education warns that “long-term ELs who remain in EL status for prolonged periods of time may face significant barriers to attaining English language proficiency and graduating college and career ready.

Ahmed and Sara’s Paths

Ahmed’s ESL teacher campaigned to change the requirements for entrance to the international school in the school district, arguing that students should be admitted if their language proficiency falls below a certain level, rather than being based on length of residency in the U.S. The school admission policies did change, and Ahmed was admitted to the international program, where he received “sheltered” content classes — learning academic content while learning the English language. Within two years, he was thriving back in the regular school.

In Sara’s case, a new superintendent came in with a vision to create a middle school that would bring long-term English learners up to grade level. She selected successful content teachers to receive in-depth training on integrating language development with academic content. Sara was able to attend the new middle school, and by the end of 8th grade, she proudly met all the criteria for exiting the ESL program, well prepared to enter high school.

(Both Ahmed and Sara are composites of situations involving actual students with whom I have worked. The solutions to their situations are drawn from other students’ experiences, not necessarily their own.)

Stress Quality

How can schools resist the myths to provide what English language learners need to succeed in school? Stress instructional quality over quantity of English and help students develop their native languages as well. Individualize programs for these learners, placing them where they can understand academic content and grow in English.

Finally, focus sufficient resources on English learners who are fluent but who lack academic language proficiency. Ahmed and Sara will thank you.