ELL News Headlines

The Guardian Teacher Network went in search for inventive ways to get students excited about reading and writing. Here's their round-up.

As teachers across the country are walking out recently in a fight for higher pay and better school funding, librarians are fighting to keep their jobs. From Oakland to Dallas to Scranton, PA, and in large and small towns across the United States, school librarian positions are being eliminated at an alarming rate. When the jobs are cut, it is difficult to know what to do. Emotions are running high and fighting seems futile. Besides, says Elissa Malespina, it’s against the nature of most librarians to cause trouble. But that stereotype must be shed when necessary and Malespina did just that.

The Every Student Succeeds Act becomes a working reality in district central offices and schools this fall. But it's unclear if the law, which passed in a haze of rare bipartisanship more than two years ago, will live up to its promise.

Federal authorities recently swept through a meatpacking plant in Eastern Tennessee, rounding up nearly 100 people they accused of being in the United States illegally. Immigrant rights groups say last week's operation in eastern Tennessee was the largest workplace immigration raid in a decade. More than 500 students stayed home from school the next day. Now, a week later, most are back in class. But the community is still reeling, teachers say.

In August, Ruben Alonzo will open Excelencia Charter Academy. The elementary school will start with 120 seats for transitional K-1st grade, with an innovative teaching model for English learners. It will grow to serve grades K-5th grade. Alonzo said his vision for Excelencia grew out of his own experience, working hard in the Texas fields during summers and excelling in school the rest of the year.

Teachers and students may feel like they are limping across the finish line at the end of the school year. During the last quarter, when testing is finished and spring is in the air, teachers and students can be tempted to go on cruise control. However, this attitude can result in a loss of valuable learning and practice time, especially for English-language learners who benefit from as many language-learning opportunities as possible.

Children love playing games, particularly during school hours. Fun experiences are memorable to the brain, which has been shown to help information stick — an especially important component to ESL learning.

In this video, a 9th-grade world studies teacher introduces a seven-step process to help English-language learners learn new vocabulary. The process starts with repeating the word three times and ends with students discussing the meaning and usage of the word with a peer.

In Canadian public schools, the children of new immigrants do as well as native-born children within three years of arriving. There kids don't just get language and academic support; their home cultures are celebrated as they are integrated into classes. And strong social services and healthy education funding help too. Special correspondent Kavitha Cardoza of Education Week reports.

Across the country, many English-learners don't have access to the same high-quality math courses that their native English-speaking peers do. These five California districts offer a road map to change.