English as a Second Language (ESL) Program Specialist

Pre-Service Teachers

The ESL Program Specialist Certificate program is a 15-credit program including practical teaching experience with English learners. The ESL Certificate program is a five-course program that pre-service teachers complete to meet content guidelines set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) for the ESL Program Specialist Certificate.

Pre-service teachers concurrently completing their initial teaching license (Instructional I) will be eligible to apply directly through the PA Department of Education for the ESL Program Specialist Certificate after being granted their initial teaching license. Students interested in this route should confer with ESL Program Specialist Certificate faculty and their academic program advisor to ensure their options and plans align with major requirements and PDE expectations.

The Department of Curriculum & Instruction offers the ESL Certificate program to prepare students to teach in Pennsylvania K-12 classrooms.

Students interested in teaching English in other countries or would like to teach adult English learners should consider the online TESOL program or the master’s of arts degree in TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) program in the Department of Applied Linguistics.

Courses

Students complete four courses for certification as an ESL Program Specialist:

• CI 280 Introduction to Teaching English Learners
• CI 288 Foundations of Multilingual Learners
• CI 388 Sociopolitical Contexts of Teaching Multilingual Learners
• CI 488 Designing Assessment and Curriculum for Multilingual Learners

• CI 395 Internship (concurrently taken with CI 488)

   

CI 280 Introduction to Teaching Multilingual Learners

This course focuses on developing foundational knowledge related to working with students designated English learners otherwise referred to as multilingual learners (MLs) in U.S. school contexts. The basic premise of the course is that teachers play an important role in creating a positive classroom learning environment and bringing school success for MLs. Moreover, demographic changes across the country necessitate that all educators be prepared to advocate for and facilitate learning for MLs. This course is designed to develop essential dispositions, skills, and knowledge for teacher education students to fulfill their important role.

CI 288 Foundations of Multilingual Learners

This course will examine language, its structures, and the ways that language mediates learning in classrooms and schools. This course addresses specifically how English as a Second Language (ESL) Program Specialists, in collaboration with content area teachers, can support the holistic learning and success of language learners in ways that value home languages and the acquisition of multilingual literacies. Students will develop a critical understanding of foundational concepts related to first and second language acquisition and the development of bilingualism and biliteracy for children and young people. Students will explore English as a language system, including linguistic forms and functions, as well as the fundamentals of early literacy and strategies to build semantic networks across languages and support learners’ emergent biliteracy.

CI 388 Sociopolitical Contexts of Teaching Multilingual Learners

This course will examine the micro-level experiences of language learners and macro-sociopolitical context in which they are embedded. This course will prepare English as a Second (ESL) Program Specialists to better understand political and social dynamics shaping the experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse students. As such, ESL Program Specialists will develop a strong understanding of the technical qualities of formalized and standardized assessment, and the potential biases they hold in relation to multilingual populations. This course will discuss alternative forms of assessments that can inform curriculum and instruction. Professional resources and organizations at the state, national and international levels will be explored to help teachers with their future career development. As a result, this course will help build ESL Program Specialists’ capacity to collaborate with other educators and school personnel, advocate on behalf of MLs, and partner with families and communities to support MLs.   

CI 488 Designing Assessment and Curriculum for Multilingual Learners

English as a Second Language (ESL) Program Specialists play multiple roles in schools and classrooms. They collaborate with classroom teachers to identify and assess newcomers, assist the adjustment of new students into the school and classroom, and most importantly, build a caring and pedagogically sound classroom environment for MLs. In this course, educators can design and implement a curriculum that integrates language and content-area learning. The course will prepare ESL Program Specialists to better attend to and develop MLs’ literacy skills while engaging them in rigorous grade-level curriculum to meet Pennsylvania content and English language development standards. The course will cover topics such as linguistic differentiation, translanguaging pedagogies, classroom discourse practices, multimodal learning strategies, and ongoing formative assessments.

CI 395 Internship

Candidates complete a minimum of 45 hours of field experience in alignment with the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) guidelines. The ESL Internship places candidates in a supervised face-to-face field experience within a public school setting, where students engage directly with students classified as English learners and their content-area teachers as well as their ESL Program Specialist(s). Taken in conjunction with CI 488, this internship bridges coursework and classroom practice providing candidates opportunities to observe, engage with and teach multilingual learners.