Introduction

“The scores of Asian and White students are above the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average in each subject area. However, when the scores of African American and Hispanic students are added, the U.S. national average “plummets to the bottom tier of the rankings.” As students of color and English Language Learners (ELLs) become an increasing large percent of the U.S. student population, the country’s educational destiny will become more tightly connected to the academic status and achievement of these students, most of whom are structurally excluded and marginalized within our society and schools. Students of color in the United States are the canaries in the coalmine. Their status and destiny are a harbinger of the future of the country.” (James A. Banks, The Flat World and Education Forward) The number of ELL’s in U.S. schools has jumped dramatically in the last 15 to 20 years, and this has caught many states with historically low percentages of minorities, off guard. According to the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA, 2008), “The percentage of mostly Latino ELs in U.S. public schools rose almost 61% between 1995 and 2005, although overall, the total student population growth was 2.6%. There was triple digit growth in 23 states that same time period.” (Calderon p.2) School districts have been overwhelmed in trying to meet the needs of these students, and looking to the future, the birthrates of Latinos will continue to be the highest until 2030 (Tienda 2007). This means that the demographics in this country will be changing to where Caucasians will no longer be the majority. In considering the quote above from Linda Darling-Hammond’s book, The Flat World and Education, the very future of this country’s ability to compete globally will depend greatly on how successful we are in preparing our students for the demands of the 21st Century workplace. As we leave the Industrial Age and bumble into the Knowledge Age, students graduating from secondary schools, technical colleges, and universities will need to have strong oral and written communication skills; they will need to be critical thinkers and be able to solve problems. The workforce of tomorrow must rely on teamwork and collaboration and be able to apply technology; being able to manage projects and show leadership and innovation (Trilling & Fadel pg. 6). As Richard Riley, Secretary of Education under Clinton said, “We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist…using technologies that haven’t yet been invented…in order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet.” Considering the future demands for education, we as educators must ask ourselves: are we preparing our students for these changing times? With respect to ELL’s are we addressing their needs in a way that will prepare them for a successful life? Are we doing everything we can to ensure they are college and career ready? Given the list of skills needed to compete globally in the 21st Century listed above, are we preparing our ELLs to be successful contributing citizens of this country, or are we under-serving too many of them, and relegating them to a life of low wages and poverty? As a Secondary ESOL Coordinator for a large school district, I know that one of our greatest concerns and sense of urgency lies with older ELLs who have been in the ESOL Program since Kindergarten. These long-term ELLs, or LT-ELS, must be able to comprehend, write, read, and speak high academic language in more advanced course content, and too many of them are still struggling in many areas of their lives. Too often, we look for a magic bullet to solve our problems. When we all come together and talk, however, we realize that no one has solved the achievement gap or the challenges associated with LT-ELS. We might find schools where success is occurring, but whole districts? In Margarita Espino Calderon’s book, Preventing Long-Term ELs, we see that this continues to be a concern in school districts around the country. This blog is meant to guide new or veteran district leaders who are wrestling with how to solve these issues. I believe the many challenges facing school districts with growing ELL populations can be overcome by applying extreme focus to the needs of this group, and commitment by everyone in the district to meet these needs. Feel free to post your successes and challenges here so that we may learn from one another.