10 Facts & Statistics About ELLs

 

• The percentage of public school students in the United States who were English language learners was higher in school the year 2011–12 (9.1 percent, or an estimated 4.4 million students) than in 2002–03 (8.7 percent, or an estimated 4.1 million students). In contrast, during the latter part of this period, between 2009–10 and 2011–12, the overall percentage of ELL students remained about the same (9.1 percent or an estimated 4.4 million students).

 

• In 2011–12, seven of the eight states with the highest percentages of ELL students in their public schools were in the West.

 

• In eight states, Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Texas, 10.0 percent or more of public school students were English language learners, with ELL students constituting 23.2 percent of public school enrollment in California. 

 

• Fourteen states and the District of Columbia had percentages of ELL public school enrollment between 6.0 and 9.9 percent. In addition to the District of Columbia, these states were Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Washington. 

 

• The percentage of ELL students in public schools was between 3.0 and 5.9 percent in 15 states and was less than 3.0 percent in 13 states, with West Virginia having the lowest percentage (0.7 percent).

 

• The percentage of ELL students in public schools increased between 2002–03 and 2011–12 in all but 10 states, with the largest percentage-point increase occurring in Hawaii (6.6 percentage points) and the largest percentage-point decrease occurring in Arizona (8.4 percentage points).

 

• In 2011–12, ELL students in cities made up an average of 14.2 percent of total public school enrollment, ranging from 10.9 percent in small cities to 16.7 percent in large cities. In suburban areas, ELL students constituted an average of 9.0 percent of public school enrollment, ranging from 6.4 percent in midsize suburban areas to 9.4 percent in large suburban areas. In towns, ELL students made up an average of 6.2 percent of public school enrollment, ranging from 5.7 percent in distant areas to 8.4 percent in fringe areas. In rural areas, ELL students made up an average of 3.9 percent of public student enrollment, ranging from 2.5 percent in distant areas to 4.7 percent in fringe areas.

 

• Less than 1 percent of public school teachers are ESL instructors. That means there’s just one ESL instructor for every 150 ESL students. The standard classroom ratio across America is one teacher for every 15 students.

 

• In the last decade, the number of English language learners enrolled in public schools across the country has skyrocketed, from 3.5 million in 1997-98 to 5.3 million in 2008-09. That’s a 51 percent jump, and many school systems have not had resources to meet the needs of these children.

 

• It was estimated that 17.9% of all individuals in the U.S. speak another language (i.e., other than English) in the home.

 

 

Ten percent of all public school students are English as a Second Language Learners (ESL), meaning they have limited English proficiency.

 

Characteristics of the Population 

• Researchers in second language acquisition have demonstrated that learning a second language may take from anywhere from two to three years for oral language skills to develop and 4-6 years or 5-7 years or sometimes even longer for academic language skills to develop. Academic language skills will only develop in this mentioned timeframe if the student has achieved a strong foundational base in their first language. 

• If students do not receive the opportunities to practice both of their languages equally, then their two languages are subject to either being lost or not fully developing.

• Four conditions must exist for learners to acquire English: (a) The student must have a need to communicate; (b) She/he must have access to English speakers; and (c) He/she needs to interact, receive support, and receive feedback from the English speakers; and (d) The student must be given time to learn English. If these conditions are not adequately met, then English acquisition may be hampered. In addition, if the native language is not supported and English becomes a dominant language then language loss may occur. 

 

**Click here for more characteristics of K-12 ELL students.**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Legislation in Regards to the Education of this Population 

 

Rulings that Support Bilingual Education

 

Lau v. Nichols

The 1974 Supreme Court case Lau v. Nichols resulted in perhaps the most important court decision regarding the education of language-minority students. The Chinese American students attending school in the San Francisco Unified School District who were mainstreamed into classrooms even though they were not proficient in English. These students were left to "sink or swim." The school district argued they did nothing wrong, and that the Chinese American students received treatment equal to that of other students.

Under these state-imposed standards there is no equality of treatment merely by providing students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum; for students who do not understand English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education.

The influence of Lau on federal policy was substantial. After the court's decision, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights created the Lau Remedies.

The Lau Remedies specified proper approaches, methods and procedures for (1) identifying and evaluating national-origin-minority students' English-language skills; (2) determining appropriate instructional treatments; (3) deciding when LEP students were ready for mainstream classes; and (4) determining the professional standards to be met by teachers of language-minority children. Under the Lau Remedies, elementary schools were generally required to provide LEP students special English-as-a-second-language instruction as well as academic subject-matter instruction through the students' strongest language until the student achieved proficiency in English.

 

United States v. Texas

United States v. Texas (1971, 1981) includes mandates that affect all Texas schools. The court ordered the district to create a plan and implement language programs that would help Mexican American students learn English and adjust to American culture and also help Anglo students learn Spanish. The court relied heavily on the testimony of José Cardenas and his theory of incompatibilities, which blames the educational failure of students on the inadequacies of school programs rather than on students themselves.

 

Serna v. Portales

Serna v. Portales (1974) was the first case to raise the issue of bilingual education outside of the context of desegregation (Del Valle, 2003). The case dealt with a White-majority school in New Mexico that failed to meet the unique needs of "Spanish-surnamed students." It was argued under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of "race, color, or national origin" in any program that receives federal funding. The court found the school's program for these students to be inadequate.

 

Aspira v. New York

 Puerto Rican parents and children in New York took legal action in Aspira v. New York (1975) which resulted in the Aspira Consent Decree. This decree mandated transitional bilingual programs for Spanish-surnamed students found to be more proficient in Spanish than English. The Aspira Consent Decree is still in effect and has been a model for school districts across the country, though it is frequently under attack by opponents of bilingual education.

 

Rios v. Reed

Bilingual education in New York received a further boost a few years later in Rios v. Reed (1978). The case was argued under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and the EEOA. Puerto Rican parents brought suit claiming that many so-called bilingual education programs were not bilingual but based mainly on ESL. The federal court found the district's bilingual programs to be woefully inadequate, pointing to the lack of trained bilingual teachers and the absence of a clearly defined curriculum, clear entrance and exit criteria, and firm guidelines about how much instruction should be in the native language of the students. Although the court issued no specific remedies, the federal Office of Civil Rights came in to ensure that the district made improvements. This case is significant because it made a strong case for offering bilingual education and for doing it right.

 

 

Rulings Against Bilingual Education

 

Otero v. Mesa County Valley School District

In the 1980s, in the wake of Lau, support for bilingual education was eroded by the courts. For example, a case in Colorado, Otero v. Mesa County Valley School District (1980), failed in the plaintiffs' attempt to obtain a court order for bilingual education. The plaintiffs wanted a plan for its Mexican American students like the one based on the testimony of Cardenas that was recommended by the court in United States v. Texas (1971) even though they made up a small number of students in the district, and less than 3% could even speak or understand Spanish. As in United States v. Texas, the court's decision made it clear that despite Lau, there is no constitutional right to bilingual or bicultural education (Del Valle, 2003).

 

Keyes v. School District No. 1

In another Colorado case, Keyes v. School District No. 1(1983), the court also rejected a Cardenas-like plan on the basis that Lau did not mandate bilingual education and that according to the decision in Rodriguez there is no constitutional right to education. The bilingual education component was just one part of this complicated desegregation case. Del Valle suggests that the court seemed content that the district was simply offering a "number of programs" for ELLs, without examining the adequacy of these programs. This issue of program adequacy, however, was addressed in subsequent lawsuits.

 

Castañeda v. Pickard

The right to bilingual education suffered a further blow in 1981 in Castañeda v. Pickard. The case originated in Texas, where plaintiffs charged that the Raymondville Independent School District was failing to address the needs of ELL students as mandated by the EEOA. The federal court ignored the old assumption that Lau and the EEOA mandated bilingual education. Nevertheless, it did find that Raymondville fell far short of meeting the requirements of the EEOA. A major outcome of this case is a three-pronged test to determine whether schools are taking "appropriate action" to address the needs of ELLs as required by the EEOA.

The Castañeda standard mandates that programs for language-minority students must be (1) based on a sound educational theory, (2) implemented effectively with sufficient resources and personnel, and (3) evaluated to determine whether they are effective in helping students overcome language barriers (Del Valle, 2003). Since the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lau, two other lawsuits have been decided in the high court that, while not related to bilingual education, nonetheless undermine the original legal argument of Lau.

 

Gomez v. Illinois State Board of Education

Despite these shortcomings, a case 6 years after Castañeda— Gomez v. Illinois State Board of Education (1987) — demonstrated the value of the Castañeda test in legal efforts to rectify inadequate programs. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit relied heavily on Castañeda in its decision and gave state boards of education the power to enforce compliance with the EEOA. The court declared, in a ruling much like Lau, that school districts have a responsibility to serve ELL students and cannot allow children to just sit in classrooms where they cannot understand instruction. However, as in Lau, the court did not mandate any specific program models.

 

 

Historical Research Articles:

"The Learning Style Preferences of ESL Students" by Joy Reid (1987)

The article presents the results of a questionnaire that asked 1,388 students to identify their perceptual learning style preferences.  Statistical analyses of the questionnaires indicated that native speakers learning style preferences often differ significantly from those of nonnative speakers of English; that //ESL students from different language backgrounds sometimes differ from one another in their learning style preferences; that other variables such as sex, length of time in the US, length of time studying English, level of education, and age are related to differences in learning styles; and that modifications and extensions of ESL student learning styles may occur with changes in academic environment and experience.

 

Designing Thinking-Aloud Studies in ESL Reading by J. Mark Rankin (1988)

The article discusses advantages of options available in the design of the thinking-aloud studies in ESL reading. It introduces the method, contrasts its use in reading with its use in writing, and suggests possible variables around which to center research. It presents suggestions to choosing subjects and reading materials, planning, preparing, and training subjects for thinking-aloud sessions. The article also presents options for recording, transcribing, and analyzing data. 

 

Current Research Articles: 

"Putting the Pieces of the Puzzle Together: How Systematic Vocabulary Instruction and Expanded Learning Time Can Address the Literacy Gap" by Claire White and James Kim (2009)

 

The article discusses research on expanded learning time in school that has shown time spent beyond the traditional school day can play an important role in influencing student achievement. The expanded learning time provides students with additional time to master certain skills and topics and to expose them to enriching activities. Expanded learning time policies that implement systematic vocabulary instruction can be especially beneficial for struggling readers and writers. The article goes on to discuss the positives of why schools should implement systematic vocabulary instruction throughout the school day. 

 

"English Language Learners: A Policy Research Brief Produced by the National Council of Teachers of English" by the National Council of Teachers of English (2008)

 

This article focuses on the many faces of language learners, recent policy history, common myths about ELL students, and research-based recommendations for effective ELL instruction. The article provides important statistics and facts about English Language Learners and gives the reader "key terms" he/she should know and become familiar with. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Last Updated August 4, 2014