Watch Dr. Yasko Kanno's interview on the state of ELL In education in the U.S.
TESOL Presents Dr. George Bunch
Community colleges represent the first point of access to higher education for many US high school students from immigrant backgrounds. Yet while admission is open to almost all students at community colleges, access to courses that bear credit toward degrees, professional certificates, or transfer to four-year institutions is regulated through placement tests, prerequisites, ESL or remedial English course sequences, and other gate-keeping measures. Focusing on California, the state with the largest number of language minority (LM) students and the most extensive network of community colleges, I will present findings from recent research exploring statewide and local college testing and placement policies and practices, and how information about these high stakes procedures is (or is not) made available to students. I will discuss how policies and practices vary based on contrasting orientations toward bilingualism, academic language and literacy, the linguistic and experiential resources brought by LM students, the role of ESL and remedial English instruction, the kinds of information students should have access to, and the decisions that students should be able to make. I will conclude by offering a framework for improving community college policy and practice for LM students and sharing examples of innovative approaches being implemented in California and elsewhere.
