What is English as a Second Language (ESL) Support?
All Jeffco schools offer ESL support to the more than 5000 English Learners in our district who speak more than 100 languages. ESL staff provide additional instructional services to children who speak or understand more than one language to ensure academic success in their grade level classrooms. ESL Staff use specific strategies to support English language development (listening, speaking, reading and writing), in all content areas: literacy, math,social studies, science and electives.
Goals of Jeffco’s ESL Program
• English Learners will be at or above grade level in all content areas.
• English Learners will develop high levels of academic English language proficiency.
• The ESL/Dual Language staff promote cultural awareness and family involvement and help bridge home and school cultures.
Benefits of ESL Support
• A majority of English Learners who score proficient or advanced on the annual Colorado English language proficiency test perform as high or higher on state achievement tests than their native English-speaking peers.
• English Learners participate more successfully in their learning experiences because the English language instructional support they receive allows them to understand and accomplish the same grade level expectations as their native English-speaking peers.
• Students gain knowledge of their own culture as well as the cultures of others through interactions with a broad variety of people and cultural perspectives (Miramontes,Nadeau, Commins, 2011).
What might English language instructional support from the ESL Staff look like?
At the elementary level:
• ESL Staff partner with classroom teachers to ensure that students are able to meet
grade level expectations.
• ESL Staff provide small group instruction for specialized English language needs