Rationale: English language learners
Many U.S. communities are increasingly home to students from different backgrounds in which many different languages are spoken. Teachers must be prepared to teach a class of children who may speak a variety of languages. About eight percent of school-age children in Illinois are classified as Limited English Proficient.1 Preparation to teach such children is important for all teachers, particularly elementary teachers who are often the first English instructors for these students, and for the additional 15 percent of Illinois children who may have some English proficiency but speak a language other than English at home. Ideally, every methods course should include a significant number of assignments in which lesson planning and other tasks give teacher candidates practice in using instructional strategies designed to teach English language learners (ELL).
