Education for ESL

Skoczylas, L. (2012 January 8). “JPS uses new strategy for ESL.” [Electronic Version] The Post-Journal

Driebusch, C. (2012 January 20). “More immigrants, fewer English classes.” [Electronic Version] The Wall Street Journal

Summary: There has been an increase in the number of non-English speaking students but a decline in the number of classes offered for these students to take due to funding. In Jamestown, a program has been started for students whom do not speak English very well, where they are in a different classroom, learning the same things, but just at a slower pace. These students have done very well in the program and their test scores are improving.

            I felt that in the article, “More immigrants, fewer English classes” the author wrote in such a way that could cause confusion when reading. The first time I read the article, it sounded like it contradicted itself. First it sounded like there was less interest in the English programs for the immigrants, but then later it said there was a waiting list and funds were being cut. After reading the article again, I concluded that the enrollment was going down because the classes were being cut from the budget. I feel like the author should have been a little clearer about this and emphasized it more.

            In the second article, I really liked the idea of putting the students whom were learning English into separate classes not only to benefit the students themselves, but also others in the classroom. I feel that immigrants who do not speak English well can slow down the normal classes because they do not understand what it going on. I am sure that the immigration students are very smart, but being able to slow things down for them to understand what is being taught is important for their development.

            While reading this article I varied my reading speed and picked out important wording to understand the article better.