Learning the Language

To read the story of how Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento got out of "program improvement" under the No Child Left Behind Act from two of the educators who were involved, check out "The Positive Impact of English Language Learners at an Urban School," published recently in Language Magazine (for the edited article, you'll have to subscribe). More than half of the school's students are English-language learners.

In the article, Ted Appel, the principal of Luther Burbank, and Larry Ferlazzo, a social studies and English teacher at the school, say that they try to create life-long learners rather than "teach to the test." They also work hard to involve parents in the education of their children. "Hundreds of home visits are made with interpreters by teachers and other Burbank staff each year," they write.

I haven't heard of many high school teachers or administrators at other schools doing home visits.

I visited and wrote about this school in the spring. Mr. Appel and Mr. Ferlazzo both seemed to me to be big-picture kind of educators. To get a sense of that, check out today's posting on Mr. Ferlazzo's blog, "The Best Teacher Resource Sites for Social Justice Issues."