1 STANDARD 5A

Standard 5.a. ESL Research and History. Candidates demonstrate knowledge of history,
research, educational public policy, and current practice in the field of ESL teaching and apply this
knowledge to inform teaching and learning.
Candidates are familiar with the history of ESL teaching, including legal decisions and judicial mandates that
have had an impact on the development of the field of ESL. They understand the impact of NCLB and other
federal, state, and local laws and policies on the instruction and achievement of ELLs. They stay current with
recent research, methodologies, and strategies in the field. They use this knowledge to design effective
instruction for ELLs. They can explain the impact of legislation on their classrooms and the schools
community.

The artifacts I chose to display my experience with ESL Research and History, is an essay I
wrote on Dual Language for an assignment in ESC 759, a course on the foundations of bilingual and
bicultural education. My essay on Dual Language Education Programs was integrated with two
others on similar topics (Home Language and History of Bilingual Education) to create a cluster
essay. It was technically peer-edited and I found it useful that the details from each essay supported
the arguments of the others.
As mentioned in the abstract, my essay compares and measures various Bilingual and ESL
models to argue that Dual Language Programs are more effective and offer long-term benefits to any
student. In the essay I define dual language education and survey U.S. Bilingual models,
international programs and even American Sign Language ones to discuss the structure, components,
benefits and effectiveness of Dual Language Programs. My references and bibliography consisting
of course textbooks, articles, teacher guidebooks and other books on theory, also demonstrate my
knowledge of history, research educational public policy and current practice in the ESL field.
While my group members essay on the history of bilingual education deals with more of the
historical aspects of ESL, my essay on Dual Language Programs focuses more on the current
practice and applying that knowledge on teaching and learning.
While I understand the impact of historic and political legal decisions and mandates on
development of ESL education in the United States, I recommend Dual Language Programs as not
only a way to meet these legal mandates but to ideally move beyond them in meeting all students
needs and increasing their achievement.

Creating this artifacts also demonstrates how I stayed current with recent research, in that I
also included the current legal eligibility and procedures for schools to develop Dual Language
Programs. In terms of best practices, I also criticize the U.S. Dual Language Programs that are not
complete two-way models and discuss strategies to create a multicultural school community that
further fosters the development of Dual Language Programs for both bilingual and monolingual
students.
This artifact contributes to my professional understanding as I am not disposed to advocate
for quality bilingual education and able to promote and support the development of effective Dual
Language programs in schools.
Furthermore, the skills I used to research, apply theories and articulate my positions on ESL
education can be applied to future studies, inquiry and teacher learning. Finally, I can make sense of
the ways in which current legislation impact classrooms and I will be able to use this knowledge and
research skills to design effective instruction for ELLs in the future.