Teaching ESL
Should English as a Second Language Students be given special treatment in mainstream classrooms?
A Research Paper on English as a Second Language
Shaina Fox
Lambton Central Vocational Institute
Author Note
This paper was prepared for peer tutoring, online.
Should English as a Second Language Students be given special treatment in mainstream classrooms?
❝If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart,” (Nelson Mandela). English as a Second Language (ESL) students are growing in population as Canada and other English speaking countries become more diverse with citizens that have different native languages. English is an influential language which is taught world wide for different reasons. English as a Second Language is the study of English by non-native speakers (Dictionary, 2014). While English may not be their native language, there is no reason to treat English as a Second Language students as unintelligent or lazy. Instead get to know more about them to help teach them both English and the curriculum. English as a Second Language students are not unintelligent or slow, they just don 't understand the language as fluently as native speakers, because of this they should be treated as an equal to native speakers in mainstream classrooms. English as a Second Language (ESL) is the study of English by non-native speakers (Dictionary, 2014). These students are likely immigrants from a different country trying to learn English in an English speaking country. Other countries with different native languages may also have ESL students trying to learn English in their home country. In Canada and other native English speaking countries with diverse population, students who do not speak English as their first language may be enrolled in a mainstream English speaking school. In this case they will have to learn to speak English as
A Research Paper on English as a Second Language
Shaina Fox
Lambton Central Vocational Institute
Author Note
This paper was prepared for peer tutoring, online.
Should English as a Second Language Students be given special treatment in mainstream classrooms?
❝If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart,” (Nelson Mandela). English as a Second Language (ESL) students are growing in population as Canada and other English speaking countries become more diverse with citizens that have different native languages. English is an influential language which is taught world wide for different reasons. English as a Second Language is the study of English by non-native speakers (Dictionary, 2014). While English may not be their native language, there is no reason to treat English as a Second Language students as unintelligent or lazy. Instead get to know more about them to help teach them both English and the curriculum. English as a Second Language students are not unintelligent or slow, they just don 't understand the language as fluently as native speakers, because of this they should be treated as an equal to native speakers in mainstream classrooms. English as a Second Language (ESL) is the study of English by non-native speakers (Dictionary, 2014). These students are likely immigrants from a different country trying to learn English in an English speaking country. Other countries with different native languages may also have ESL students trying to learn English in their home country. In Canada and other native English speaking countries with diverse population, students who do not speak English as their first language may be enrolled in a mainstream English speaking school. In this case they will have to learn to speak English as
References: Cummins J (1996). Negotiating Identities: Education for Empowerment in a Diverse Society. Ontario CA California: Association for Bilingual Education Eilers C (2011). Common Gestures In One Place, But Offensive Elsewhere. Retrieved from ESL. (2014). Dictionary.com. Retrieved from Shoebottom P (1996-2014). A guide to learning English.Retrieved from