How Arts Integration Has Helped K–2 Teachers to Boost the Language Development of English-Language Learners

Abstract

This study looks at the impact of a cost-effective professional development model in which teaching artists helped early elementary teachers master arts-based strategies for boosting the oral language development of English-language learners (ELLs). Teaching artists visited K–2 classrooms for 50 minutes weekly for 28 weeks. Student scores on the listening and speaking sections of the California English Language Development Test were used to determine the impact on language development. The experimental group consisted of 267 students; the comparison group consisted of 2,981 students. The analysis of the listening and speaking scores, fall 2010 to fall 2011, showed significantly more improvement for students in the experimental group. This research has implications for school leaders who, in times of tight budgets, seek professional development opportunities that can assist teachers in addressing the language development needs of English-language learners.