| Teacher education programs and licensure policies | | | | conceptualization of teacher competencies for |
| have responded to the growing ELL population in | | | | educating ELLs. |
| classrooms in which bilingual teachers are not available. | | | | The following is a description of the components of |
| Non-bilingual-certified teachers provide specialized | | | | three levels of expertise that are addressed in |
| instruction to ELLs through various models and | | | | teacher preparation programs. Careful and thorough |
| programs of English-only instruction, including English | | | | lesson planning based on an understanding of a |
| as a Second Language (ESL) programs, structured | | | | coherent and sequenced progression of the |
| English immersion, and mainstream programs. | | | | curriculum according to state and local school district |
| Patricia Gándara and Russell Rumberger reported in | | | | frameworks and standards. Clear presentations and |
| 2005 that more than half (55%) of the teachers of | | | | delivery of content based on important ideas, |
| English language learners (ELLs) in California taught | | | | principles, and concepts. Differentiated teaching to |
| students through resource models and pull-out | | | | meet individual students' needs. |
| instructional services. Teachers of ELLs utilized | | | | Lesson planning based on a selection of subsets of |
| knowledge from the disciplines of linguistics and | | | | vocabulary, concepts, skills, and processes so that |
| second-language (L2) acquisition and the relationship | | | | learners are not overwhelmed with academic |
| between language and academic development. They | | | | content, but are still challenged and engaged. Ability |
| used this knowledge to identify and select | | | | to plan the curriculum around themes or "essential |
| appropriate teaching strategies to address learners' | | | | questions" so that learners can make connections |
| developing knowledge of English and growth in | | | | between each lesson and the overall curriculum and |
| literacy and content knowledge. | | | | standards, while also being provided multiple |
| To address the growing population of ELLs, both | | | | exposures and vehicles to comprehend the content. |
| historically and practically, teacher education programs | | | | Careful attention to modeling and scaffolding learning |
| have developed what can be characterized as a | | | | to provide a structure for learners in order to sort |
| three-tiered approach. Based on a set of generic | | | | out important ideas and reduce the "language load" |
| teaching competencies that all teachers possess, | | | | for different levels of English proficiency, based on |
| credential programs have focused on "emphasis" | | | | the need for comprehensible input. Differentiate |
| credentials to address the particular knowledge, skills, | | | | instruction according to each student's language |
| and abilities of nonbilingual and bilingual teachers of | | | | proficiency by adjusting the focus of instruction and |
| ELLs, as indicated by Josué González and Linda | | | | the level of difficulty (complexity, abstraction, reading |
| Darling-Hammond. California's licensure structure is an | | | | level, etc.) of the content. |
| example of the implementation of this | | | | |