<p> This research traces the historical development and foreign policy objectives of English language instruction in Japan as a state sponsored initiative. The primary objective of this work is to examine the role of English foreign language education over the past one hundred and forty years by comparing Meiji policy formation with post World War II occupation reforms in relation to the social, political, and intellectual objectives of changing Japanese approaches to internationalization. The widely held conceit among EFL scholars and historians that classroom methodology (and the entrance exam system it subsumes) is at fault for the poor state of Japanese communicative English, ignores the internationalization objectives historically central to national language education policy in Japan. Universal English education for widespread international communication was never an objective of education policy, but was the fabricated assumption of a chauvinistic West, perpetuated by conservative elements in the Japanese government to improve Japan's international standing. The anti-democratic Japanese Ministry of Education embraced the 'western methods with eastern philosophy' approach to internationalization established during the nineteenth century, rejecting English education policy for widespread oral fluency. The liberal-democratic perspectives attendant to the culture of English speaking peoples threatened the Confucian hierarchical structure of Japanese society. In order to resist western homogenizing forces, but still advance domestic interests in an interdependent world, it was necessary to sustain English-speaking elites to negotiate foreign pressures. As a consequence English education has served as the gatekeeper of a strictly meritocratic national education system designed to proliferate a minority of talent for modernization, administering the organs of government, and preserving Japanese identity against foreign cultural contamination.</p>

<p>The demographics of public schools in the United States have changed over recent years to include millions of English language learners (ELLs), students whose first language is not English and who demonstrate limited proficiency in English. During this same time period, school personnel have struggled to identify ELLs for gifted programs because of language and cultural barriers. The problem addressed in this study was that researchers do not have a clear understanding of why or how some ELLs are being identified for gifted programs despite the documented difficulty with gifted identification of ELLs. Using a qualitative method and embedded single-case study design with a school district's gifted identification process for Spanish-speaking ELLs as the main unit of analysis, the purpose of this study was to explore the ways in which three Spanish-speaking ELLs in a southeastern U.S. school district were identified for a gifted program. Data sources included in-depth interviews with nine teachers and three parents of these students, and a document analysis of state-required gifted characteristics checklists completed by these teachers during the gifted referral process. Data were analyzed and coded to identify patterns related to how these Spanish-speaking ELLs were identified for the gifted program in the school district. From the coded themes, the four patterns of rapid learner, translation abilities, problem solving and creative thinking skills, and motivation emerged as key factors in the school district's gifted identification process for Spanish-speaking ELLs based on teacher interviews, parent interviews, and document review of the gifted characteristics checklists. Recommendations based on the findings included creation of additional gifted checklists that incorporated the characteristics of translation skills, rapid progress in English acquisition, and leadership in the ESL classroom as criteria in the gifted identification process for Spanish-speaking ELLs, professional development for teachers in how to use these factors in the process of identifying gifted Spanish-speaking ELLs, and parent meetings and personal communication to ensure parents of ELLs understand the gifted referral and identification process in the district. Recommendations for future research included studies of other school districts' gifted identification processes for ELLs and studies of the gifted identification process for ELLs from other countries and cultures. </p>

<p> The purpose of this project was to locate a potential funding source and write a grant proposal for a program designed to prepare Latino immigrant youth for high school graduation and college readiness through education, mentoring, and parental involvement. The proposed program was designed to be implemented at Estancia High School located in Costa Mesa, California. The program will provide students and their families with an opportunity to gain knowledge and skills needed to navigate high school and postsecondary education. This will be accomplished through participation in educational workshops, mentoring sessions, college tours, and financial aid advising. If funded, the program will address many of the educational needs of Latino immigrant students who often encounter multiple barriers that may put them at greater risk for truancy, school dropout, low-wage jobs, and risky behaviors. Actual submission for funding was not required for successful completion of this project.</p>

<p> The landmark 2001 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act has been a step forward in federal policy for the ever-increasing population of English Learners (ELs), fostering inclusion in standards-based assessments and college and/or career-readiness efforts, yet, ELs continue to struggle academically. The current 5.4 million ELs make up <i>the</i> lowest performing academic group in the United States (US) today. Despite its good intentions, NCLB is leaving behind the very students it was designed to help. The emphasis on various programs/services adopted by public schools based on the plethora of evidence-based instructional strategies has uncovered a less emphasized, yet, critical gap in research: attention to, enforcement, and/or a comprehensive and systematic analysis of the educational rights of ELs. Across the US, districts are learning of their lack of knowledge needed to meet legal requirements. The incentive to increase EL-related knowledge, beyond instructional strategies, is paramount. </p><p> This study presents a systematic analysis of EL-related case law outcomes using a four-step method of analysis and "simple-box scoring." Seven trends were identified using these legal policy research methodologies: (1) EL-related legislation, claims, and violations, (2) equal education opportunity violations, (3) inequitable educational programs, (4) inadequate EL programs and services, (5) funding issues, (6) ineffective EL identification, and (7) assessment. </p><p> As NCLB reauthorization draws closer, persistent focus on improving ELs' education suggest policy-making needs will increase, particularly with Common Core State Standards (CCSS), including alternatives to costly litigation. While essential knowledge may be gained from this study, such data are but one aspect of overall challenges and do not reveal uncontroverted guidelines for educating ELs. This study bridges the gap of critical knowledge needed to meet legal requirements for ELs, each of whom are entitled by law to access mainstream curriculum. Further limitations and implications are presented. </p>

<p> The seven-month participatory qualitative inquiry (Emerson, Fretz, &amp; Shaw, 2011) explored how a first grade team in a metro Charlotte elementary school perceived and enacted instructional grouping and differentiation for English Learners within a prescribed literacy curriculum. Informed by a Vygotskian theoretical framework for understanding the social construction of teacher identity (Holland, Lachicotte, Skinner, &amp; Cain, 1998), the study examined how institutionalized practices interacted with teachers' lived experiences and professional subjectivities to mediate how they made sense of and potentially improvised their teaching of the English Learners in and outside of mainstream classrooms. Data analysis revealed the complexities of teachers' professional selves as they made sense of their teaching within the structure of "Balanced Literacy." Findings included teachers' recasting of English Learners as "struggling readers;" the ambiguity of ESL within the context of the standardized reading curriculum; and, finally, the conflicting subjectivities of teachers as they negotiated the remediation of English Learners. </p>

<p> English Language Learners (ELLs) are one of the fastest growing student populations throughout the country. With ELLs come unique challenges schools must navigate to best serve these students. One challenge is the identification of these students and proper placement and service within ELL programs offered by schools. Another challenge is determining if an ELL also has a disability, particularly a learning disability, since language proficiency problems can mimic learning disability symptoms. This study sought to discover how states identify ELLs, and especially ELLs with disabilities (ELLWDs). The researcher examined the policy documents of all 50 states, analyzing and coding those documents for key elements relating to ELLs and ELLWDs found within previous research. Additionally, to better triangulate data, the researcher examined student populations for a sample of 15 states through state reported USDOE sources and US Census sources to determine how well the subgroups of ELLs and ELLWDs might be identified based on population comparisons. The study found that states tend to use the federal definition of limited English proficient as a basis for their definition of ELLs and that a little more than half of the states addressed the issue of ELLWDs at all. They do not have a formal identifying definition for these students. While federal DOE and OCR oversights have increased awareness and service for ELLS, more work remains, in particular with creating a common identification matrix for ELLWDs and raising awareness of their presence in the student population.</p>

<p> In light of the paradigm shift from teacher-centered to learner-centered instruction occurring globally, the need for committed teachers is critical. Due to the influx of foreign nationals securing positions in the U.S. educational system, the teacher workforce has become more diverse. This diversity manifests a broad range of beliefs and values in regard to the teaching and learning process that are culturally inherited by an individual. Hence, "cultural incongruence" between the teacher and school organization is more likely to occur. A lack of understanding of how the cultural and educational aspects of normative commitment influences teachers' implementation of learner-centered instructional practices can lead to school systems experiencing organizational conflict. </p><p> Six multicultural English-as-a-second language teachers, three males and three females, representing six countries were purposely selected to participate in the study. The normative commitment survey from Meyer and Allen (2009) Three Component Model of Organizational Commitment, professional performance documents and a semi structured interview served as the data collection methods. The interview data was analyzed using Laughlin et al. (2006) to the start coding process. The information gathered from the surveys and professional review documents was triangulated with the interview data to evaluate consistencies or inconsistencies amongst the sources. The data yielded six reoccurring themes throughout the study. (1) Cultural Congruence, (2) Cultural Incongruence, (3) Paradigm Shifts in Teacher Training, (4) Pedagogical Identity Manifestation, and (5) Societal Obligation. Further, the findings of this study can contribute to the development of cultural educational training with a focus on instructional methodology for school districts with high English-as-a-second language populations. These findings can also be used in the hiring process in order to evaluate potential organizational congruence.</p>

<p> English language teaching and learning receive considerable attention in Saudi Arabian schools as seen in existing efforts of development. A primary purpose of this study is to participate in these efforts of development through the application of a modern constructivist instructional practice for English language teaching and learning on the intermediate school level. This study, in part, strives to determine whether or not the adoption of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) would be a more effective means of increasing the students' reading comprehension achievement scores when compared to the traditional teaching method of the English language that involves (among other things) prompting and drilling of students. This study also strives to gain issues and insights that accompany the application of TBLT through constant comparison and contrast with those that accompany the traditional teaching method. </p><p> This mixed-method study is quasi-experimental that uses a pretest and posttests for collecting quantitative data, and classroom observation and researcher log for collecting qualitative data. The study involved 122 participants divided into treatment and control groups. The treatment group has received ten weeks of English language instruction via the TBLT method while the control group has received ten weeks of English language instruction via the traditional teaching method. The independent variable is the use of TBLT in the classroom and the effect/dependent variable is the students' reading comprehension achievement scores. </p><p> A Two-Factor Split Plot analysis with the pretest as the covariate is used for analyzing the quantitative data. Analysis of qualitative data included synthesis, rich, and detailed description for classroom observation and grounded theory for researcher log data. The findings show that teaching via the TBLT method has significantly helped students increase their reading comprehension achievement scores more than that of the traditional teaching method of the English language. The findings also suggest that the TBLT method, as a constructivist practice, is a better way for English language teaching and has involved practices that are desired in a modern educational context when compared to the traditional teaching method of the English language.</p>

<p> With a growing population of English Language Learners in our schools, their specialized classroom needs must be addressed. California state testing shows that English Language Learners (ELL) consistently perform below proficiency as compared to other students who are not English Language Learners. Many times, in response to pressure placed by the state testing requirements, administrators and educators focus on English Language development strategies at the cost of other content areas such as science. The Science and English Learning Development Blended Program is a professional development project that combines English Language Development (ELD) strategies within science lesson plans to address the language needs of English Language Learners through science content. The Blended Program was in place for four years in an urban school district in southern California. During its initial year of implementation, a research study focused on the types of changes teachers made to their science lesson plans as a result of their professional development: all of the changes made had to do with English Language Development and not Science. Implications of this study suggest that at the start of the program changes to support science content were not made because the teachers did not have the science knowledge to be comfortable enough to make changes to address the science portion of the lesson. The data analyzed for this study was collected during the Blended Program's third and fourth year of implementation. The findings show changes which reflect the following themes: science concept acquisition, oral language development, and scaffolding instruction. These themes reflect changes . that address both English Language Development and science. The individuals involved with the Blended Program have now had training for ELD and Science content for three or four years. Results suggest that the training not only equipped the teachers with English Language Development strategies but has also improved teachers science content knowledge and as a result teachers are better equipped to address the science in the lesson.</p>

<p>This qualitative research study with 10 Chinese parents explored parental beliefs, involvement, and challenges in support of their child's English language development. Findings indicated that all participants highly valued their child's English education and emphasized the short and long-term advantages of learning English in early years. All participants expressed a strong motivation to support their child's English education. Parents were involved in the roles of a financial provider, guide, and learning-partner. Challenges to parental involvement came from both home (lack of time, English proficiency, and a suitable home English learning environment as well as financial pressure) and outside sources such as lack of governmental support, unqualified bilingual teachers, and ineffective English curriculum. The researcher recommends that English education preschool programs recruit skilled bilingual or English preschool teachers, implement an interactive, child-centered English language curriculum, and design home-school partnership programs. Policy makers must design policies to support English education preschool programs. </p>