Service-learning is the merging of academic work with real-life community service activities that encourages students to reflect and think critically about their experiences. Although service-learning has been used in various disciplines, it has not been used extensively with English language learners. However, it offers ESL (English as a Second Language) students the possibility of expanding their potentials beyond the four walls of the classroom. This multiple-case study examined the unique perspectives of six adult ESL students from five different countries. Data collection consisted of the students' written work (journals, reflections papers, and projects) and semi-structured interviews. By offering ESL students opportunities to provide a service to others in authentic English-speaking environments, these students gained communicative competence and developed confidence in themselves. Although the participants were nervous about working in the community initially, they overcame their anxiety by using various strategies and realized that they do have the ability to communicate successfully with English speakers in the "real world," and they possess valuable skills that they can offer to the community. Additional benefits to the students included increasing their knowledge of American culture and history, developing a higher level of motivation, and forming connections to other human beings. Challenges included overcoming fear and feelings of incompetence and sustaining the same levels of confidence and fluency, once the service-learning project and the semester were over.

This study is a result of trying to grasp what teachers look at when they assess writing. The motive is to better understand what goes on inside a teacher’s mind when correcting a written piece of work and to raise the level of awareness of what teachers actually do. Background information as to what the teachers support their assessment on and how they acquired their “correcting skills” is also treated. The study brings up both what teachers say and what teachers do. It is an exploratory and open ended investigation. To perform this exploration a qualitative method is used. Interviews with open questions and observations of the assessment situation with think aloud protocols are performed. Examples of the teachers’ real life marking in students written texts are also considered. The findings show that teachers possess an intuition based on knowledge which has been constructed by themselves and that they cannot depict easily. Their own awareness of what they do seems to be mixed with what they would like to do at occasions. Linguistic topics such as morphology, grammar, syntax, vocabulary, spelling and idiomaticity are considered by both teachers showing that surface errors are of importance. Coherence and thematic treatment are also taken into consideration when teachers assess but the way they value these aspects together with views on what writing is, what communication is together with other possible choices shows that correction and assessing is highly subjective. In addition, this study points at the possibility that a teacher progresses from analytic to holistic with time and that writing as a process is more valid when a teacher becomes more experienced.

The purpose of this study was to record and analyze experiences of teachers implementing a sheltered collaborative teaching model for second language learners. This study also analyzed the effect of this model on the on-time graduation rate of limited English proficient students. Discussing the experiences of teachers involved in this model provided valuable information that can be used to refine instruction and improve ELLs cultural assimilation, self-motivation, and involvement in co-curricular activities. The mixed methods design study taking both a phenomenological and quasi-experimental case study approach focused on collecting experiences from teachers and graduation data to determine the outcomes of the collaborative instructional model. The context of this study was two high schools in a suburban school district in central Virginia. The participants were seven teachers who have implemented the collaborative model within the last two years. Triangulation of the data sources included interviews with the participants, field notes, and archival data. Both NVivo and Statistical Package for Social Sciences were used in coding and describing the data. Results of this study are presented in narrative descriptions of the experiences of the participants and a descriptive report of the graduation data. Themes resulting from the analysis across all the narratives are discussed within the framework of ELL academic success. Both graduation data and teacher reports are discussed to determine the effect of this instructional model on the on-time graduation rate. / Ed. D.

The research conducted in this thesis is centered on the ESOL Hispanic student population, in the art classroom in Georgia. The information contained in this paper is meant to serve as a guide and resource for art educators with high populations of ESOL students in their classrooms. A review of current ESOL best practices in several content areas is included. Based on the research, guidelines and suggestions for accommodating these learners in the art room were developed, as well as a sample unit that includes three lesson plans, PowerPoint presentations and assessment rubrics.

The research conducted in this thesis is centered on the ESOL Hispanic student population, in the art classroom in Georgia. The information contained in this paper is meant to serve as a guide and resource for art educators with high populations of ESOL students in their classrooms. A review of current ESOL best practices in several content areas is included. Based on the research, guidelines and suggestions for accommodating these learners in the art room were developed, as well as a sample unit that includes three lesson plans, PowerPoint presentations and assessment rubrics.

Background: English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) students, enrolled in health care tertiary education, have lower graduation rates compared with English native speakers. The demographic profile of most western countries is continuously changing and therefore this issue has became a concern especially for those countries which are confronted with an acute health care workforce shortage. One of the most important predictors in student retention is their perception of academic success. The purpose of this study was to explore ESOL health undergraduate students’ perceptions of campus climate, faculty and peer social support, and sought to determine whether or not there is a relationship between these factors and ESOL students’ perception academic success. Methods: The study was carried out at Auckland University of Technology (AUT). The inclusion criteria for this study were: undergraduate students enrolled with the Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, having other than English as their first language, and studying predominantely on one of AUT University’s campuses, namely Akoranga campus. The study implemented had a cross-sectional design using a novel purpose built electronic survey. ESOL health undergraduate students’ insights were explored using a 22-item web-based survey consisting of three scales: peer and faculty support, campus climate, and academic success. The content validity and realiability of each scale were tested. The study questionnaire was made available online to all ESOL health undergraduate students willing to participate in the research. Generalized estimating equations were used to test the study hypothesis. Six related binary outcome variables, measuring perceptions of academic success, were included in the analyses. Results: Twenty-seven ESOL health undergraduate students from a variety of health undergraduate programs agreed to participate in the research. The majority of participants were of Asian ethnicity with ages between 21 and 30 years and had completed their secondary education overseas. The GEE analyses showed that campus climate was significantly associated with academic success, p-value=0.01, but peer and faculty support was not, p-value=0.07. The estimated odds ratio (OR) for the campus climate relationship implies that for every unit increase in the first principal component factor for campus climate, the odds that a participant agreed with the academic success scale decreased by 0.43 (95% CI: 0.30, 0.84). The only open-ended question of the survey revealed that 39% of the participants did not intend to leave the faculty before graduation, while 17% saw the “lack of support” as a possible reason for abandoning the university without a degree. Conclusion: ESOL undergraduate students’ perception of campus climate may have an influence on their perception of academic success. Students’ perception of peer and faculty support was not significantly associated with academic success, but 17% of respondents to the open-ended question saw “lack of support” as a possible reason to leave the course before graduation. The findings were hampered by the small sample of ESOL students recruited.

Assessment is one of the key strategies that, if used correctly, can effectively enhance student learning. This study explores senior ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) students' experiences of and attitudes towards formative assessment in the mainstream classroom. The purpose of this study was to investigate how formative assessment might be used effectively to enhance ESOL students' learning from the perspective of senior ESOL students. Data were collected using mixed methods including questionnaires and follow-up interviews with a range of participants from different ethnic backgrounds. One hundred ESOL students participated in the questionnaire and 22 were subsequently interviewed. The questionnaire provided data on the majority ESOL students' experiences and attitudes. Then the interviews allowed participants to describe their experiences and attitudes in more detail. The qualitative methodology used also provided the opportunity for the participants to explain any possible reasons for their attitudes. This study revealed that all the participants had some experiences in some of the formative assessment activities used in classroom. The participants' perspectives also indicated that ESOL students' high expectations for their academic achievement relied on teachers' understanding of their needs as well as effective classroom practice. Feedback was the most favoured formative assessment method by the ESOL students because the students could find out what they had done correctly and where they had gone wrong. Questioning was not liked by the participants, partly because of the language barrier limiting their understanding of the questions, partly because of the way teachers asked the questions (i.e. no wait-time), and partly because of cultural sensitivity (i.e. not wanting to draw attention to oneself). However, the value of questioning as a formative assessment method was recognised by a number of the participants. Self-assessment was liked and found to be useful by some participants. Peer assessment was not liked because of the students' mistrust of their peers' ability to mark their work correctly. Sharing learning objectives and assessment criteria was regarded as an important way to enhance learning as long as teachers provided clear explanations. The study raises questions about the effectiveness of existing formative assessment activities used in classroom and suggests some specific strategies that may help ESOL students learn more effectively. This study clearly indicates that not all formative assessments are equally effective to students of different backgrounds. The choice of formative assessment methods and the way they are administered in class are both important in determining their success for the participants. ESOL students have their own characteristics and needs (e.g. language limitations) and these should to be taken into consideration when choosing and implementing formative assessment methods. The study is of interest in particular to those who teach ESOL students in mainstream classrooms but also has strong links to the field of cross cultural communication, and to the study of effective teaching and learning.

This study investigated the effect of one semester of ESOL education on preservice teachers by examining their perceived knowledge and skill in working with English Language Learner (ELL) students, their attitude toward having ELL students in their mainstream classrooms, and what classroom methods they perceive as effective in their ESOL preservice education courses. Data for this study were collected from pre- and post-course attitudinal surveys during one semester of course work, from participants at two specific points in their educational experience; participants in the (1) introductory and (2) final TESOL course. There were 293 participants who took the pre-, and 273 who took the post-course survey, from a total of 513 preservice teachers. This represents approximately a 57% participation rate on the pre- and 53% on the post-course survey. Little is known about the effect that ESOL preservice education has on preservice teachers' attitudes toward ELL students, and no studies known to the investigator have examined the methods of an ESOL preservice program to see preservice teachers' perceptions of the effect of these methods. The effect of the following independent variables were used: (a) course (initial and final ESOL course), and (b) time (pre- and post-course). A new survey instrument was developed that identified the following factors which were used as dependent variables: (a) perception of ESOL knowledge and skill (PEKS), (b) attitude toward inclusion (ATI), and (c) perceived effectiveness of instructional methods (PEIM). Significant differences were found regarding: (1) PEKS by course and time, and (2) PEIM by course. No differences were found for the variable ATI.

We know little about how English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) preservice teachers’ prior experiences and beliefs shape their learning process in teacher preparation programs, particularly in the area of second language (L2) reading instruction although research on preservice teachers’ antecedents has offered insights into our understanding of how they learn to become teachers (Johnson, 1992, 1994; Wilson, Floden, & Ferrini-Mundy, 2001). This inquiry was designed to contribute to such knowledge. The participants were nine ESOL pre-service teachers enrolled in an ESOL program of a large urban university in the southeastern region of the United States. Using modified versions of Language Teaching/Learning Beliefs Questionnaire (Brown & Rogers, 2002), of Multidimensional TESL Theoretical Orientation Profile (Johnson, 1992) and of the Theoretical Orientation of Reading Profile (Deford, 1985), reflective essays submitted during admission, observations, interviews, videotapings, and focus group, the study explored answers to questions regarding the influence of ESOL preservice teachers’ antecedents on their learning in coursework and field experiences over three semesters. The inquiry stemmed from the framework of constructivism (Crotty, 1998), of introspection and retrospection (Scarino, 2005), and of How People Learn (Donovan & Bransford, 2005). Data were analyzed using grounded theory and constant comparative techniques (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Findings indicated that faculty used various strategies to address teacher candidates’ background for conceptual change and development of professional dispositions. Programmatic decisions to select teacher candidates with specific background in learning an L2 were beneficial but teacher preparation programs may need additional instruments to tap candidates’ entering beliefs more effectively. Although some aspects of the participants’ prior experiences were not beneficial, these experiences generally contributed to their understanding of ESOL education, visions of L2 instruction, and the development of professional dispositions as related to culturally responsive and socially just teaching in important ways. Also, participants’ views of reading, visions of reading instruction, reading instruction in field experiences, and their understanding of literacy theory and pedagogy were primarily influenced by their first language reading experiences. Finally, participants were less confident in articulating a vision of L2 reading instruction because of limited L2 reading prior experiences.

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes of high school social studies teachers who had English Language Learners (ELL) mainstreamed in their social studies classes. In the school district in which the study took place, approximately 70% (n=240) of the high school social studies teachers had ELL students in their classrooms. For the quantitative portion of the survey, 344 surveys were given to each social studies department chairperson in the county to be completed by all the teachers who currently had ELL students in their social studies classroom. For the qualitative portion of the study, eight high school social studies teachers were interviewed as to their attitudes towards mainstreaming ELL students. Both the survey and interview instruments were developed by Reeves (2002) when she measured teacher attitudes towards mainstreaming ELL students. While a majority of teachers appreciated the cultural diversity which ELL students brought to the classroom, more than three-fourths of the teachers reported that they would prefer ELL students not being in their social studies classrooms until they have reached a minimum level of English proficiency. While a broad spectrum of attitudes were reported towards support teachers received, many survey and interview participants did not feel that the training offered in university coursework or from the school district was particularly beneficial in preparing them to teach ELL students. A clear majority of teachers reported time for both planning and instructional delivery as major obstacles when ELL students are mainstreamed in content area classes. Finally, a majority of teachers (66%) supported making English the official language in the United States. Recommendations for future research and for future policy makers were reported in the final section of the study.