English as a Second Language Courses

Placement in the ESL courses is determined for new students by testing at the beginning of the academic year and for returning students by a combination of testing and evaluation of the student's progress the previous year. Some students may move up a level during the course of the year, and some in the transitional level classes may move into a regular English class. Most students in the ESL program take two English classes daily, ESL Language and ESL Literature. There are three levels of ESL Language and three of ESL Literature.

Intermediate ESL Language

Intermediate ESL focuses on developing students’:

* oral and written fluency
* academic skills
* reading skills
* knowledge of English grammar structures
* vocabulary
* American pronunciation

In addition, students in Intermediate ESL:

* learn about contemporary issues
* read and write poetry

Intermediate ESL Literature

In the past year, students in Intermediate ESL Literature have read short stories, A Christmas Carol, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Second Summer of the Sisterhood, Night, and The Diary of a Young Girl.

Advanced ESL Language

Advanced ESL Language provides students with:

* an understanding of the elements in a well-written paragraph and essay.
* Instruction and practice in writing using various organizational methods and sentence structures
* knowledge of the writing process
* reading and discussion of a variety of current event articles and essays
* practice with new vocabulary and idiomatic expressions
* TOEFL and SAT practice

Advanced ESL Literature

Last year's Advanced ESL Literature students read the following novels and plays: Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies, Catcher in the Rye, Winesburg, Ohio, Brave New World, Romeo and Juliet.

Transitional ESL Language

Transitional ESL Language gives students an opportunity to sharpen their knowledge of English through:

* intensive grammar practice
* advanced-level readings
* writing assignments
* research projects
* discussions and debates
* practice with new vocabulary and idiomatic expressions
* TOEFL and SAT practice

Transitional ESL Literature

Last year's Transitional ESL Literature class read the following novels and plays: Ethan Frome, Fahrenheit 451, Death of a Salesman