Institutional Contempt for Multilingual Students

   


I have tried to impress on my colleagues that the term "ELL" (English Language Learners) is inappropriate for multi-lingual  students at my school because 1) it is a term used exclusively with K through 12 and 2) that it is not a term used with college-age students because  the implication is an ELL student is "less than."    I heard a student during my PhD course work use this term in class and it was shut down quickly by the instructor, who explained term was not appropriate in post-secondary educational settings.

It is, at best, the equivalent of calling colleges students “kiddos.” 

Students at Seven Hills Charter Public School filed a petition last week at whitehouse.gov seeking to drop the phrase "English-language learner" and replace it with "multilingual students." About 23 percent of students at the school are English-learners.

"The term English Language Learner carries negative connotations and does not value the other languages and cultures that students come from. This can negatively impact students' self-esteem and academic performance.” (Mitchell)

The article goes on to draw attention to the negativity of a deficit based model implied by this term. The term is further problematic at our school because we do not have because we have English for academic purposes or EAP.  EAP is different and distinct from ESL (English as a second language). 

Recently I have read student Literacy Narratives that talk about the feelings of exclusion they felt when pulled from class for "ELL".  These descriptions remind me of stories students with speech and pronunciation have shared when pulled out of class.  That resonated with me because I was pulled out for speech impediments in grade school and I remember well the feelings embarrassment and shame. 

I ask anyone with experience in ELL to share your thoughts with me.

Works Cited

Mitchell, Cory.  “Does the Term 'English-Language Learner' Carry a Negative Connotation?” Education Week. 1 Feb 2016

https://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2016/02/does_the_term_english-language.html 




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