Can ESL Come to the Ball?

Teaching standards are under attack: "Little Training, Poor Oversight" ran the banner headline of a recent Los Angeles Times criticizing the caliber of teachers in California. Mean-while, national concern over teaching standards focused on Massachusetts where more than half of prospective teachers took and failed a basic skills exam. An attempt by the State Board of Education to lower the passing grade outraged Massachusetts Governor Paul Cellucci, who demanded that the board return to the original grading standards.

"We want to make sure that when a new teacher goes into the classroom they are competent and capable," said Cellucci. Massachusetts House Speaker, Thomas Finneran, was appalled to find that candidates couldn't "define a noun or a verb or what democracy means or the meaning of the word 'imminent'".

Until this spring, Massachusetts was one of only seven states that did not require teachers to pass a test to qualify for certification. Criticism of new recruits comes at a time when the demand for teachers has never been higher. In Baltimore, the district offered qualified candidates a $5,000 signing bonus toward a house, while Dallas gave $1,500 signing bonuses to 200 new teachers this past spring. Governor Cellucci has proposed an even more enticing package: a $20,000 signing bonus, full repayment of college loans, and more cash rewards later for achieving specific career goals.

ESL teaching remains, by and large, education's Cinderella. The most disturbing trend in our profession is the tendency of school districts to throw unqualified and inexperienced teachers into the English language learning classroom.

The Los Angeles Times article pointed out the difference between a "front door" entry to teaching requiring an undergraduate degree, specialized courses in teaching and supervision as a trainee teacher, and the "back door," which allows just about anybody with a college degree into the classroom "especially if they are willing to... work with students who don't speak English." Sure, a credential does not guarantee that the holder will be competent in the classroom, but it does ensure that the person has at least had some classroom training. This willingness to accept any Joe or Josephine in the ESL classroom also reflects official attitudes (in some quarters) towards ESL where pupils are left to be taught in a "dumbed-down" curriculum considered inferior to that of their "mainstreamed" peers.

The simple fact is that many positions in public school ESL teaching do not offer adequate pay. If this problem is not addressed, there will never be enough qualified teachers to cope with the demand for effective ESL teachers.