Curriculum and Placement

English language placement testing is held on the first day of the semester to determine the appropriate level of instruction for each student. Class size is small, with the average  ranging from 6 - 10 students per class. This allows for individual instruction and many opportunities for student participation.

Certificates of completion are awarded to students who successfully complete all class assignments and have maintained a satisfactory attendance record.

Upon successful completion of ELA courses, students will have the language skills to:

Beginning Level :

Engages in basic conversations on familiar topics with native speakers. Frequently responds inappropriately. Can read simple narrative and descriptive texts using a bilingual dictionary to understand main ideas. Can write simple statements and questions (using simple and compound sentences) and begins to understand the concept of a paragraph and use basic sentence structure correctly.

Intermediate Level:

Begins to initiate conversation and participate effectively, in social and academic conversations with occasional hesitation. Almost always responds appropriately. Can read articles and reports where opinions on current events are stated using an all English dictionary and read materials of an academic nature with frequent use of a bilingual dictionary. Can give short informational presentations; understand most questions, statements, and conversation on a social level, and classroom discussions with repetition and rephrasing. Can write with a variety of sentence structures, including complex sentences; begins to organize ideas and progress to developing a logical paragraph.

Advanced Level:

Can converse comfortably in social and classroom settings with sustained and connected verbal exchanges responding appropriately and using varied vocabulary. Can read and understand texts in student’s academic area with frequent use of an all-English dictionary. Can speak confidently and effectively presenting information, ideas and opinions in a coherent organized fashion. Is able to write a well-organized research or mini-research paper with proper documentation, suitable for mainstream academic courses.