Structured English Immersion Models Education Week

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Nov 2, 2025, 3:07 AM

structured english immersion models education week

Structured English Immersion (SEI) is an educational approach designed to teach English as a second language to Limited English Proficient (LEP) students, ensuring they gain proficiency in English while also learning academic content. This method has been mandated in various states, requiring LEP students to receive instruction primarily in English unless they qualify for an exemption. SEI originated from concepts of bilingual immersion programs, with the aim of rapidly transitioning students into mainstream classes. There are diverse implementations of SEI across states like California, Arizona, and Massachusetts, each with its own goals and instructional strategies. The SEI model emphasizes English-only instruction but may incorporate some native language support to enhance comprehension and emotional comfort for students. Federal laws protect the educational rights of LEP students, ensuring that they receive appropriate resources and instruction tailored to their language proficiency levels.

However, challenges remain, including disparities in academic achievement between LEP and English-proficient students, highlighting ongoing debates around the effectiveness of SEI and its variations. Ultimately, SEI aims to create an inclusive learning environment that respects cultural diversity while addressing the unique needs of English language learners. Structured English Immersion (SEI) is a method of teaching English as a second language. Several states have passed legislation mandating the use of Structured English immersion in service of Limited English Proficient (LEP) students unless otherwise exempted by waivers. This paper briefly introduces the concept of LEP and Federal LEP program expectations and educational access rights as they apply to SEI and all LEP programs. The bilingual Canadian concept of language immersion, upon which the original concept of structured English immersion was based, is introduced with the varying definitions of what SEI is or is not.

Diverse applications of SEI in the states of California, Massachusetts, and Arizona are presented. Keywords Bilingual Education; English Immersion; English Language Development (ELD); English Language Learners (ELL); English as a Second Language (ESL); Immersion Education; Primary Language (L1); Second Language (L2); Limited English Proficient (LEP); No Child Left... According to the US Department of Education (2004), there are 5.5 million limited English proficient (LEP) students whose first language is other than English. While, eighty percent of LEP children have the ability to speak Spanish, over four hundred first languages exist for the US LEP population as a whole. All of these children face the challenge of learning academic skills and content, and most often not in their first language (Collier & Thomas, 2007) in addition to developing proficiency in the English language. Programs for English Learners Home | Structured English Immersion | Dual Language Immersion | Developmental Bilingual | Transitional Bilingual

Structured English Immersion (SEI) is a language acquisition program for English learner (EL) students in which nearly all classroom instruction is provided in English, but with curriculum and a presentation designed for pupils who... At minimum, a local educational agency (LEA) will offer SEI as a program option for EL students. Education Code Section 306 (c). English Language Arts (ELA)/English Language Development (ELD) Framework for California Public Schools, Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve (2015) The ELA/ELD Framework provides guidance to LEAs and educators on the implementation of the state-adopted California Content... English Language Development (ELD) Standards This CDE web page includes the State Board of Education-adopted California ELD standards, ELD video series, information, and resources to assist LEAs in designing, implementing, and enhancing integrated and... Analyzing Arizona's Approach to Language Development

What is an English Learner?Arizona defines English learners (ELs) as “Children and adults who are learning English as a second or additional language. This term may apply to learners across various levels of proficiency in English. English learners may also be referred to as English language learners (ELLs), non-English speaking (NES) students, limited English proficient (LEP), and non-native speaker [sic] (NNSs) (Echevarria & Graves, 2014).” ESL stands for English as a Second Language. Also referred to as: English for speakers of other languages (ESOL).ESL is mostly used in classrooms where the language minority is diverse and includes multiple languages. It allows for accommodation to students from diverse language backgrounds in the same class.

Teachers in ESL programs are not required to be proficient in the students’ home language(s).There are two types of ESL programs: pull-out and content-based. In ESL pull-out, students spend part of the school day in a mainstream classroom but are "pulled out" for a portion of each day to receive instruction in English as a second language. Content-based ESL programs include structured immersion (SEI) and sheltered instruction. They share the goal of teaching ELLs both English language and academic content. Teachers use a variety of strategies – such as the use of gestures, visual aids, and simplified English – so that students can access the same content as their English-speaking peers. College of Education, Grand Canyon University

ESL-545: Methods of Structured English Immersion for Secondary Education The state of Arizona defines an English language learner as someone with a primary language other than English who does not have a sufficient proficiency score on the state’s testing procedures (Arizona English Language... ESL, or English (as a) Second Language, where students are learning how to speak a second language. ESL teachers adopt the idea that English Learners have a primary language other than English and build upon those language skills to learn language (Diaz-Rico, 2018). Bilingual refers to the competency in two or more languages. Bilingual language learning models allow for teaching in multiple languages (Diaz-Rico, 2018).

Structured English Immersion (SEI) is a total immersion bilingual education technique for rapidly teaching English to English language learners. The term was coined by Keith Baker and Adriana de Kanter in a 1983 recommendation to schools to make use of Canada's successful French immersion programs.[1] The Canadian model was developed to encourage bilingualism... More recently, SEI has been defined as a methodology in which English language learners (ELLs) learn English through structured and sequential lessons. Specially developed for ELLs, these lessons are based, to a large degree, on the mainstream curricula.[2] In a 2009 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Horne v.

Flores, the majority opinion stated, "Research on ELL instruction indicates there is documented, academic support for the view that SEI is significantly more effective than [transitional] bilingual education.[3] Findings of the Arizona State Department... Only Arizona mandates that its public schools implement SEI models as follows: In Arizona, where SEI is required of all schools in the state,[6] all textbooks, materials, and assessments used in an SEI classroom must be aligned to the Arizona K-12 English Language Learner Proficiency Standards[7][8][9][10][11]... The Arizona English Language Learner Assessment (AZELLA) is used to measure English proficiency of SEI students in Arizona.[12]

Structured English Immersion Models Education Week

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