Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer discusses that the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) makes it imperative upon the schools to overcome the cultural barrier to English Language Learning (ELL) by establishing a means of communication with the parents. The writer suggests that schools could invite the parents of immigrant families to such school activities as classroom demonstrations of different culture or presentations of awards for children's accomplishments. In communicating and coordinating with parents, it is suggested that the schools use the immigrants' language and may thus need to hire special translators for the purpose. The writer notes that a common perception among immigrant parents is that English is the language of a rich and powerful postindustrial society, whereas their native language is less impressive and commands less respect. The writer concludes that language learning, according to experts, is an interactive activity as dependent on social context as it is on cognitive transfer.

Outline:
Introduction
Legal Issues
School Community
Language Issues

From the Paper:

"English language learners are children of newly arrived immigrants in the US, refugees from war-torn countries or immigrants with a language other than English spoken at home. Whatever the circumstances that drove these families to make the US their new home, their children have even varying levels of education in their primary language, such that their ability to learn English fast and efficiently as their chief means of assimilating into American society becomes an extremely challenging task for the US school system. This shows in national and state surveys indicating that ethnic and racial minority children are the most at-risk group in social institutions, with the most significant academic underachievement, high poverty rates, high teen pregnancy rates, low skill levels, and low-paying employment opportunities. The projection is that by 2015 over 50 percent of all students in K-12 public schools across the US will be ELL students, boosting the number of this school population that has the highest dropout rate and the lowest ranking in academic achievement and expectations. The phenomenon necessarily speaks ill of the American public school system."

Sample of Sources Used:

• CREDE. "Program Alternatives for Linguistically Diverse Students." Available online at: www.cal.org/crede/pubs/.
• Christy, J. "Helping English Language Learners in the Classroom. Available online at: http://www.glencoe.com/sec/teachingtoday/subject/help_ELL_lit_la.phtml
• Garcia, E. (1991). "The Education of Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Students: Effective Instructional Practices." University of California, Sta. Cruz, CA.
• Gray, T. & Fleischman, S. (2005). "Research Matters: Successful Strategies for English Language Learners." Association for Supervision and Curriculum, December 2004-January 2005, Vol. 62. No. 4.
• Kadamus, J. (2004). "Report on Building Capacity to Improve the Performance of Limited English Proficient ELLs." Albany, New York.

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