How Did Multiple Years (7+) in a BE/ESL Program Affect the English Acquisition and Academic Achievement of Secondary LEP Students? Results from a Large Urban School District.

The rapid increase in the number of Limited English Proficient (LEP) students is especially significant in the nation's large urban school districts. The numbers of LEP students in special, bilingual education programs has exploded due to the constant stream of immigrants into the United States and the inability of so many children, even those who have already been in such bilingual education programs, unable to meet program exit criteria. The fact that a large number of continuing LEP students fail to exit ESL programs even after 7 years is a serious issue facing many urban school systems with limited resources. This paper explores what it means for all the students who remain permanently in LEP programs or continue to be labeled as such. What happens academically to these students, and what kind of futures they have is rarely addressed or seriously discussed in the field. It is concluded that while there are certainly other relevant factors affecting these long-term LEP students, there is evidence that continuing BE/ESL programs does not improve academic performance and that such learners usually lack higher order thinking skills necessary to perform well on norm and criterion-referenced assessments. Other conclusions are drawn and policy implications discussed. (KFT) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. How Did Multiple Years (7+) In A BE/ESL Program Affect The English Acquisition and Academic Achievement of Secondary LEP Students? --Results from a large urban school district-Hua Yang, Theresa Urrabazo, and Wayne Murray Dallas Public Schools PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES 1 INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)