English Learners

Reach All . . . Teach All . . .

It is the mission of the ESOL Department of Arkansas City Public Schools to monitor, expedite, and facilitate the English-language acquisition of our ELL or English Language Learner students. Our primary goal is to provide high-quality, rigorous and diverse educational experiences for all ELL students.

Arkansas City schools implement the “Inclusion Model” of instruction for ELL students. The instructional focus for these students is the development of English-language proficiency in the domains of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Students are offered all educational opportunities that are afforded to each and every student in attendance within our District.

ELL students participate in computer-assisted learning experiences. RosettaStone, a research-based language acquisition program, is utilized to support ELL students in their development of English-language proficiency. Language Live, an innovative research-based program is used to increase student achievement in the area of language development, specifically speaking and reading.

Every building in our district has SAT (Student Assistance Team) members to assist the English-Language Learner students within the classroom setting. They provide translation services to our ELL students, serve as school-to-home liaisons for our ELL Parents, translate at Parent Conferences, and serve as a resource to assist classroom teachers of ELL students.

The ESOL Program provides quality professional development to educators throughout the district to address appropriate strategies for increasing ELL language development and student achievement. Ultimately, the mission of the USD 470 ESOL Department is to provide the necessary resources to District Schools to assist them in preparing our ELL student population to be successful bilingual and biliterate citizens in an ever-changing multicultural society.