English learners reclassification and academic achievement: Evidence from Minnesota

This dissertation employs applied economic analysis techniques to three topics of public policy interest: the impact of cadastral surveying systems on the efficient allocation of land property rights, the impact of hurricanes on two-year postsecondary educational institutions, and the impact of reclassifying English learners as English proficient. First, I exploit variation in cadastral surveying systems in Louisiana arising from idiosyncrasies between French, English, and American settlement patterns to test for the persistence of original land allocations in both the shape of modern-day land parcels as well as differences in the price per acre of land parcels. I find that historical cadastral systems have persistent impacts on the shapes of modern-day parcels, but I also find that the rectangular surveying system tends to produce lower values than the arpent or metes-and-bounds system. These results suggest that high transactions costs do impede the re-definition of land property rights through Coasian bargaining in a way that lowers economic inefficiency, and that initial allocations matter. Second, I show that severe hurricanes result in declining enrollment, completions, and funding for two-year schools. I show that these effects are highest at schools with a low share of their students receiving federal financial aid grants. These results suggest that expanded financial aid after a severe hurricane may help mitigate the negative effects on educational attainment. Third, my coauthor and I evaluate the process for reclassifying English learner (EL) students as English proficient. Exploiting the threshold-based reclassification policy in Minnesota, we use a regression discontinuity design to recover counterfactuals— how much would EL students who were not reclassified due to the reclassification policy have improved in academic achievement had they been reclassified? We find that reclassification had no discernible effect on math and reading scores for 3rd-grade EL students, while reclassification increased the math scores of 6th-grade EL students. Our subgroup analysis finds that the positive effects of reclassification mostly depend on the large estimates in the first-year cohort of EL students. Taken altogether, these results imply that reclassification was unlikely to harm the 3rd- and 6th-grade EL students.

Using two states’ longitudinal data, this study tracked long-term English learner (LTEL) students’ performance on an annual English language proficiency (ELP) assessment (the ELPA21) from their pre-LTEL period. We followed English learner (EL) students who were initially classified as EL students in Kindergarten or in Grade 1 until they reached Grade 5. We defined LTEL students as EL students who have not achieved English language proficiency after five years of their initial EL classification. We examined LTEL students’ overall-, domain-, task-, and item-level performance in the ELPA21 and compared how their performances differed from non-LTEL students. We also identified features of items in the Grades 2 through 5 ELPA21 that were particularly challenging for LTEL students. LTEL students showed significantly lower proficiency and slower development in reading and writing than in listening and speaking domains in Grades 2 through 5, suggesting the need for strengthening elementary EL services and targeting instruction for EL students at risk of becoming LTEL students. In addition, findings suggest variability of task types and item features across grade levels that presented more challenges for LTEL students. The findings have implications for EL policies, programs, and instruction, especially for elementary EL students at risk of becoming LTEL students.

Longstanding gaps between the reading achievement of English learner (EL) students and native English speakers highlight the need for evidence-based reading interventions validated for EL students. This study compared the efficacy of two flashcard-based interventions, incremental rehearsal (IR) and strategic incremental rehearsal (SIR), for teaching EL students high-frequency words. Using an adapted alternating-treatments single-case design, 8 students were exposed to IR, SIR, and a control condition. Participants were Spanish-speaking students in the elementary grades. Short-term (next session) retention, generalized text reading, and long-term retention (1–4 weeks) of words were assessed. Findings indicated that both approaches improved word reading over the control condition; however, the extent to which IR and SIR differed in their efficacy varied across each outcome and participant. The most consistent finding was that students’ long-term retention of words taught with SIR was higher than words taught with IR. Results have implications for the implementation of SIR with EL students. Limitations and future directions for research are discussed.

The relationship between English language proficiency and academic performance among English learners: A subgroup analysis by home language background

The number of rural English learner (EL) students and families has increased over the past decade, due in part to U.S. immigration and economic policies. Educators in rural schools face challenges associated with EL education, including obtaining resources for language teaching and learning, identifying and retaining specialized teachers, and accessing professional development to support teachers and educational leaders in EL student learning. Other challenges include communicating with non-English-speaking families to support learning. The author reviews research on the intersecting areas of rural education and EL education. The subfield of rural EL education has been underexamined across the research community, and nationally there is need to examine the backgrounds, languages, and learning needs of this group of students. The author highlights five pressing areas: knowledge of the characteristics and demographics of EL students and families across rural designations; language education approaches, models, and practices for EL students; hiring and retaining teachers of ELs in rural settings; and professional development for mainstream teachers and leaders of rural EL students. This review calls for an organized national research agenda that begins to unravel rural EL education and that offers a coherent direction for scholars, teacher-educators, and policymakers.

Considerable research investigates the immigrant advantage, yet little work examines the influence of school-based linguistic status. Contradictory patterns exist: research identifies both an immigrant advantage and a language minority disadvantage in college going. Although not all immigrant youth are language minorities, many do speak a language other than English. Educators in U.S. schools group immigrant students into three discrete linguistic categories: native English speakers, language minorities not in ESL, and English learner (EL) students. We employ multivariate methods to investigate immigrant college going by linguistic status using the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002. Results suggest an immigrant advantage only among the two immigrant groups not in ESL, and evidence of undermatching-wherein students choose post-secondary options for which they are over prepared-among high achieving EL students. Expanded understanding of the immigrant advantage might improve EL students' pathways into college, stemming this loss of human capital.

With the increased rigor of academic standards, high expectations of academic writing skills have been imposed on students in U.S. K-12 schools. For English learner (EL) students who cope with the dual challenges of learning rigorous subject matters and developing their English language proficiency simultaneously, extra support and effective instructional strategies are crucial. Given the rapidly growing use of computerized testing and the prevalence of writing on computers in K-12 education, this study explored the use of an automated writing evaluation (AWE) tool in support of the needs of EL students and teachers. Specifically, this study examined the types of feedback that middle-school EL students received from the AWE tool as well as from teachers and how the students addressed the feedback. A total of 130 students participated in the study, including 106 EL students with different English proficiency levels and 24 non-EL students as a comparison group. The results suggest that the AWE tool provided considerably more feedback to EL students compared to non-EL students and that teachers’ feedback was mainly regarding language use rather than content development and organization. Drawing on the findings, implications for practice and research are discussed.

The Computer Science For All initiative intends to teach computational thinking and programming skills to all levels of students with varying background and experience in computer science. This includes English Learner (EL) students. There should be a concentrated effort to narrow the achievement gap among EL students and non-EL students especially in computer science courses that can lead to economic prosperity and social mobility in the digital society. With the growing number of EL students joining the student population in public schools across the United States, it is critical that these students are provided with equitable access to computer science education through effective instructional strategies and meaningful resources. This research study intends to develop EL accessible curriculum and resources for an introductory computer science high school course and use research-based designs and strategies to evaluate the quality of the developed EL accessible materials, instructions, and assessments in computer science learning and achievement among EL students. As a result of this study, all of the developed EL accessible instructions, materials, and assessments are deemed satisfactory; however, there remain necessary revisions of these materials to be implemented in order to fully address the needs and concerns of EL students in computer science learning and achievement.

ABSTRACTThis article reports on a mixed-methods study of Washington state principal professional development (PD) needs focused on supporting English learner (EL) students. With a growing number of EL students, a heterogeneous group that represents a variety of language, cultures, and experiences, it is imperative to understand what principals need as they drive change and set the tone for teachers and their schools. Twenty-three principals were surveyed using the English Language Learner Program Survey. A subsample of seven principals was also interviewed to explore areas of need. Descriptive analysis of survey results revealed differentiated instruction, family and community involvement strategies, and culturally responsive teaching as the top three areas of PD needs. Thematic analysis of follow-up interview data illustrated the many challenges principals face, such as limited resources and the school climate, when serving EL students. These trends have informative implications for school site leadership regarding the need for professional learning opportunities focused on supporting EL students. However, replication is needed in a larger sample to truly determine the significance of these findings.

BackgroundThis study grew out of a recent Supreme Court case known as Horne v Flores. The case began in 1992 in Nogales, Arizona when a 4th grade English learner (EL), Miriam Flores, sued the district and the state for failing to provide her (and other EL students) with an appropriate education as guaranteed by the Equal Educational Opportunity Act of 1974. After years of failing to respond to federal court orders, in 2007 Arizona adopted, and in 2008 implemented, a 4 hour English language development course that (1) segregates EL students from their English speaking peers; (2) denies them access to the core curriculum; and (3) groups them with students who also lack knowledge of English so that the EL students have no opportunity to interact with English speaking students. The Supreme Court intervened in June 2009 with a decision that largely absolved the state from any requirement that they fund programs for EL students in a manner that bore “a rational relationship to the students’ needs.” But, the Court did remand the case back to federal court to investigate whether the program in place was, indeed, meeting the needs of the EL students. Arizona has a history of serious school segregation that has harmed English language learners and other students. In l950 the state still had a law mandating racial segregation of students and even when the Supreme Court ruled Southern segregation unconstitutional in l954, Arizona was one of only a handful of states where state law still permitted school districts to openly segregate their students. Both Latino and black students went to court to try to reverse segregation, winning victories in state and federal courts in the l950s but this did not resolve the issues, which are still being litigated in Arizona sixty years later in 2011.PurposeAt the time of the remand in 2009, there was no empirical research on the impact of the four-hour English Language Development (ELD) program, nor had there been any legal challenge to a program that both segregated EL students from their English speaking peers for the entire day in many cases, and denied the students access to the regular curriculum, which is guaranteed by an earlier Supreme Court decision, Lau v Nichols, in 1974. This study draws upon both new empirical research on this topic as well as the extant literature on instruction of English learners and the effects of segregation on minority students to fill this void. The study reported here is one of nine studies commissioned by the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles at UCLA whose intent was to determine how students are taught and how they learn in the four hour program, and to what extent the program operates meets the requirement of federal anti-discrimination laws.FindingsBased on an exhaustive review of the extant research on segregation and linguistic isolation, this study finds that the excessive segregation of Arizona's Latino and EL students is most probably harmful to their achievement and social and emotional development. It exacerbates the existing segregation of these students, not just by school, but by classroom as well, and as other studies recently conducted in Arizona have shown, it is stigmatizing, marginalizing, and putting these students at high risk for school failure and drop out. Moreover, unlike what the Arizona Department of Education has contended, it is not moving the great majority of these students toward full English proficiency within one year, thus potentially exposing them to years of this unnecessary segregation and lack of access to the regular curriculum, pushing them further and further behind academically. Many districts in Arizona simply have not implemented the state required program and some have requested to be waived from the four-hour block for high school students “on track to graduate” because the program makes it nearly impossible for most secondary EL schools to graduate from high school with their peers. This study also finds that many research-based alternatives exist to the present program model being provided by Arizona schools, and some of these are described in the paper. Included here are discussions of sheltered English, bilingual, and dual language programs. Two-way dual language programs are especially highlighted as they have as a clear objective the integration of EL students with English speakers.Research DesignResearch review and analysis.ConclusionsThis review of new and extant research on linguistic isolation, the effects of segregation of English learners, and the content and practices observed in the Arizona 4 hour ELD model concludes that Arizona's program for its EL students places them at risk of school failure, delayed graduation, and negative academic self-concepts. The program also challenges the rights established in Lau v Nichols (1974), raising serious questions about its constitutionality. The authors conclude that Arizona should seek more effective program models to educate its EL students.

Collaboration is an aspect of engagement that focuseson learningthrough group work and having discussions with other learners. Activelearning approaches are a way to foster collaborative engagement becausethey provide more opportunities for interaction among learners. ProcessOriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL), a socially mediated activelearning approach, uses verbalizing and discussing ideas with peersin small groups to reach a shared understanding. Due to the growingnumber of immigrants in the United States, the number of English Learners(ELs) in American classrooms has been increasing rapidly. ELs encounterchallenges such as unfamiliarity with American science class normsand expectations, feelings of not being valued and socially accepted,and instructors’ lower expectations of them. These challengescan impact this group of students’ learning and achievements.Previous studies have discussed that learning chemistry can be morechallenging for EL students due to the critical role of language inlearning. We argue that ELs use discourse moves differently comparedto non-ELs in a POGIL-based class in terms of engaging in conversationsthat can lead to a shared understanding at the group level througha joint knowledge construction process. Our findings indicated that,in our sample, ELs were less likely to engage in discursive movesthan non-ELs. This difference may result in missed opportunities fora shared understanding and joint knowledge construction. In additionto differences between EL and non-EL students in our samples, we alsofound differences between EL students who attended K–12 schoolsin the United States compared to international EL students. Implicationsfor future studies of these possibly distinct EL populations are considered.

This paper investigates potential disparities in how teachers perceive academic achievement between English Learner (EL) students and their non-EL counterparts. Using data on elementary and middle school students in North Carolina, I compare teachers' academic assessments of EL students to those of non-EL students in the same class with the same standardized-test-based achievement. Results reveal that teachers hold more negative perceptions of achievement for EL students compared to academically comparable non-EL peers. These results emphasize the added difficulties experienced by EL students in academic settings, compounding the challenges they already encounter from language barriers.

English learner (EL) students face the challenge of learning a new language while simultaneously learning other subjects. Similarly, English as Second Language (ESL) teachers have the added responsibility of teaching academic language in STEM subjects to EL students, in addition to language teaching. This article explores how a participant researcher as an ESL teacher collaborated with two mainstream teachers and a science teacher, to enhance EL’s language and STEM literacy. Four teachers participated in the study, with one science graduate and one participant researcher, an ESL graduate student, working in a public middle school to co-design and co-teach science lessons. The study analyzed the effectiveness of their semester-long collaboration on the learning of domestic and EL students using mixed methods, such as observations and surveys. The results indicate that ESL teachers and students benefit from the support of pre-service teachers for both STEM content and language. This suggests that placing STEM major graduate students in ESL classrooms and ESL major graduate students in STEM classrooms for their practicum can re-connect language to content literacy development for EL students.

In this chapter, I report on a single-case study of a teacher who successfully supported diversity and equity in her classroom despite institutional obstacles. My purpose is two-fold: (a) to examine linguistically responsive teaching (LRT) practices employed by the teacher to support English learner (EL) students' diverse backgrounds and enhance their learning and (b) to explore how the teacher promoted EL students' rightful presence in the school community. My data sources include classroom observations, interviews, and documents. My data analysis encompasses open and focused coding with the identification of theme andsubtheme patterns. The findings demonstrate that the teacher utilized various LRT practices focused on key vocabulary, semantic complexity of text, and linguistic scaffolding. My findings also reveal that the teacher promoted ELs' rightful presence via a collective disruption of power and authority. Together, the teacher and students interrupted normative knowledge and power relationalities in their classroom learning.This chapter provides examples of the teacher's pedagogical practices that supported diversity and equity in an antagonistic school context that created obstacles for the teaching and learning of EL students.

The purpose of this study is to improve the English learning anxiety and learning effect for middle school students. From the perspective of educational psychology, the influence of vocalized reading practice on the English learning of students is studied based on the self-efficacy theory and the schema theory. To encourage the students to practice English, the study might solve the problem of insufficient opportunities by applying the artificial intelligence (AI) chat system to the oral English practice of the students. Several research hypotheses are put forward, which concern the correlation between the English learning anxiety of the students with their self-efficacy, topic familiarity, and English grades under vocalized reading practice. Then, the hypotheses are verified through a controlled trial and a questionnaire survey (QS). Afterward, the experimental and QS data are statistically analyzed and tested with a regression model. The results show that the English grades, self-efficacy, and topic familiarity of the students have been significantly improved in the experimental group after the vocalized reading practice. The significance coefficient of the regression model is P = 0.000 < 0.05, which can be used to verify the proposed hypotheses. The English grades, self-efficacy, and topic familiarity can well-predict the English learning anxiety of the students. The computer simulation in educational communication (CSIEC) teaching system and AI can help create an interactive learning environment for the students to practice oral English by chatting with AI robots.