English as a Second Language ESL

English as a Second Language (Title III)

Mission: 

To provide high quality, research-based, data-driven ESL/ESOL services to meet the federal requirements.

To develop, monitor, and continuously improve aligned ESL human and resource services to priority schools.

Goal:

The goal of the Craven County’s English as a Second Language/English to Speakers of Other Languages Program is to provide equal educational opportunities to students who have a primary home language other than English and who are English Learners (ELs)/multilingual learners (MLs).  The main focus is to provide an English-rich environment so that those students will become proficient in English as soon as possible.  The Craven County School system strives to create a learning environment that encourages student pride in their cultural heritage and provides the cognitive and affective support to help them become contributing members of our society.  This program, beginning in kindergarten and continuing through high school, will provide each limited English speaking child the opportunity to be successful in academic areas and to develop listening, speaking, reading and writing proficiency in order to be successful in all classes.

Objectives:

• To identify and assess all students whose native or home language is something other than English.
• To provide instruction to all students who do not understand speak, or read, and/or write English.
• To assess and monitor academic progress of language minority students with an ongoing evaluation process.
• To develop the skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing through an ESOL intervention curriculum.
• To provide an opportunity for multilingual students to function comparably with their English speaking classmates after the appropriate level of assistance and support.
• To create a learning environment that will provide for cognitive and affective needs.
• To support the curriculum and instruction of the regular classroom as appropriate to the language acquisition stages of the student.
• To provide special services to English Learners through English as a Second Language classes, ESOL pull-out classes, sheltered classes, and regular education with modification, tutorial, or transitory services.
• To provide staff development on ESOL instructional best practices woven around the English Language Development (ELD) Standards in collaboration with the State of North Carolina and WIDA Consortium for principals, guidance counselors, teachers, and other school and district personnel, as needed on the language and cultural needs of multilingual students.
• To communicate instructional goals and expectations to parents and encourage them to support their children’s progress and participate in their educational experience.
• To hire and maintain sufficient staff to provide multilingual learners with an equal educational opportunity.
• To exit students from the program when their language abilities are educationally appropriate for the mainstream classroom.
• To monitor students after exiting the program for up to 4 years offering assistance to classroom instructors on multilingual learner best practices, resources, and ESOL teacher assistance.