We have been talking alot in some of my other classes about ESL students. I am interested in what you all's view is on whether we should keep these students in the classroom, have them been in totally separate classrooms, or have them be in the regular classroom and then pullled out for an hour or two a day.

I don't think totally separate classrooms would do them much good. My understanding is that language immersion works best for rapid language learning, but whether it is best to leave them in a classroom all day or have them pulled out for tutoring, language assistance, or just moral support I don't know. It would be good if a language tutor could accompany an ESL student into the regular classroom but I know that's not affordable.

I agree with Dana that totally seperate classes wouldn't be the best option. An "assistant" for the student seems like it would be ideal, but I agree that it would be costly. In a class that I observed last year, an ESL student managed without an assistant. It was a computer applications 1 class and the teacher placed the student beside another student who was very willing to help her get her work done. After giving instructions to the whole class, the teacher would always go to the ESL student to clarify things if needed. It seemed to work really well.

In one of my textbooks, I read that people who first learn words in another language while still immersed in their own language fare better than just total immersion. This makes sense. For example, I am a Spanish major, and after taking two years of classes here, I will be going to Spain this summer. I have been to Costa Rica once before, but the whole time I was there (a month) I felt like I was playing catch up to try and understand the words that so often didn't make sense. Now, I have a much broader vocabulary and more exposure to the nuances of the language. I'm not nervous at all to immerse myself in another language. I know that with American schools teaching children who do not speak a language that is easily accessible can present a challenge. For example, someone who speaks Chinese and suddenly moves to Boone, I think, would really have a hard time without the help of ESL and other language tools. I think that if at all possible, care should be taken to instruct a child in his/her own native language as long as possible before placing them where their native language isn't really spoken. If that's not possible, then perhaps put two children who speak the same language in an ESL class. Even though it would be tempting to speak their own language, they could actually use their own language to help eachother learn a new language. Then, after a little while, they can then start being mainstreamed as their vocabulary grows stronger and broader. I don't know if this is a real-world solution, but I do know that if I was totally immersed without anything to go on in a new language, I really feel my learning curve would be slow until I finally developed an ear for the new language. I only can say that there is evidence to support the idea that it's better to learn another language in the context of the old one, and then, after a good amount of exposure to vocabulary and grammatical structures, a person can then branch out into the new language.

I think a balance between an ESL classroom and a regular classroom would be the best option. The best way to develop a new language is to be emerced in it. I feel that students would benefit from being in a classroom of English speaking students. However, I also believe that a seperate classroom for certain subjects is important. Students who have overexposure to a culture other than their own begin to lose their own culture and that is never the goal of education.

ESL students do need additional support at school. My high school has one ESL teacher here for just one period a day. Students in this class can get the extra help they need in their other classes. I believe that it helps them to be in regular classrooms. It is also beneficial to the other students.