J.W. / Elementary School

When and where did you first start learning English?

• I was part of the program when I was in elementary school, around 3rd and 4th grade. Although I wasn't born in the US, I moved here when I was about a year old, so I've been through the American school system the entire time. I was taught Japanese by my parents but was able to fluently speak English. My English was actually stronger than my Japanese when I was younger and had never had a though time with the language in school.

Could you tell us a little about your ESL experience?

• For some odd reason, the school enrolled me in the ESL program when I was in third grade. It was confusing for me because I remember I was pulled out of class one day and sent to a different classroom to "learn" English. I asked my teacher but she didn't really know why either but never did anything to pull me out of the program. I remember I told my parents and they didn't understand either, but neither of them could speak English well. So I ended up in staying in the program despite knowing English.

Do you think the ESL program helped you in any way (or how did your time in ESL impact your development)? If so, how? If not, why?

• I believe that the ESL program actually held me back. Since I was pulled to participate in ESL during class time, I missed a lot of basic math and sciences which I had to catch up on my own. I remember I was so distraught at being behind math that I cried to my parents. There was definitely a barrier for me since I was learning English at a lower level while also not being able to learn other subjects. My ESL teacher would give me great scores, and I asked her when I could move out of the program. But she said it wasn't up to her, which was confusing because I had no clue how this program was being run if the teacher couldn't make a decision on if I "passed" or not.

Do you think you would have been better off with/without the program?

• For my situation, I believe that I would have been better off without the program. The program held me back in other subjects and I felt a need to get out the program as soon as possible. My peers also looked at me differently because I was suddenly sent to the ESL program when I was doing just fine in the previous years.

Do you think ESL had an integrative effect (i.e. do you feel included/excluded from your classmates who are not in the ESL program)?

• I definitely felt excluded in the classroom because I was in the ESL program. As I said before, my peers viewed me differently and I felt ostracized often. The students in the ESL program were not close with me because I was not exactly learning English like thy were. I felt as I was stuck in a catch 22 situation where I couldn't go anywhere.

Would you recommend your ESL program to others? Why or why not?

• Personally, I would not because my school's ESL program was not run nor managed well. I felt lost and if I had a question about moving out of the program, I was sent in circles having the run around offices to get the answer. If the program was run better, I would definitely recommend it to other students because it would help them learn English at their own pace rather than being forced to keep up with students who are fluent in English.