The education of students whose dominant language is not English and/or are English language learners, is the responsibility of every school district/charter school in the Commonwealth. Title 22, Chapter 4, Section 4.26 of the Curriculum Regulations requires that the school district/charter school provide a program for every student who is limited English proficient (LEP) or an English language learner (ELL). The regulation states:
"Every school district shall provide a program for each student whose dominant language is not English for the purpose of facilitating the student's achievement of English proficiency and the academic standards under § 4.12 (relating to academic standards). Programs under this section shall include appropriate bilingual-bicultural or English as a second language (ESL) instruction."
To comply with this requirement, the Bald Eagle Area School District will provide the student with a planned program of English as a second language instruction (ESL) to facilitate the acquisition of English language skills and provide an instructional program appropriate to the student's developmental and instructional level.
Principle #1: Students need to feel good about themselves and their relationships with others in second language situations. (Rigg & Hudelson,1986)
Putting the principle into practice:
Principle #2: Comprehension naturally precedes production during the process of second language development. (Krashen & Terrell, 1983)
Putting the principle into practice:
Principle #3: Second language competency develops most quickly when the learner focuses on accomplishing tasks rather than focusing on the language itself. (Rigg & Terrell, 1983)
Putting the principle into practice:
Principle #4: Students can learn to read and write in a second language while they develop their oral skills. (Rigg & Hudelson, 1986)
Putting the principle into practice:
Principle #5: Learners acquire a second language through trial and error; mistakes are part of the natural process. (Rigg & Hudelson, 1986, Krashen & Terrell, 1983)
Putting the principle into practice:
References:Krashen S. & Terrell, Tracy. 1983. The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in the Classroom. Hayward, CA: Alemany Press.
Rigg, P. & Hudelson, S. 1986. One child doesn’t speak English. Australian Journal of Reading. 9, 3, pp.116-125.
Bald Eagle Area School District Limited English Proficiency Program Policy