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The TESOL standards are as leftist as they come. There are other standards out there, but you can bet we're going with the TESOL in my class. We have been assigned a boatload of readings and all of them push bilingual/dual immersion. What upsets me is the fact that I paid $800 for this class and nobody is even pretending that both sides of the debate will be given consideration. I am open minded at this point. So much for intellectual diversity in US academia.

The instructor has made it clear that English immersion equals "Anglo" racism. He focuses only on what's good for Hispanic children. When someone in the class asked, "What about the children who speak other languages," his answer was that there are not enough hearts available for everyone who needs a transplant. He is Hispanic. And he is a bigot. But I guess that's ok in the world of academia.

Oh dear! When I did my Master's back in the 90s in Vermont, there was an add-on certification for "Bilingual-Multicultural Education." I didn't get that one.

It sounds like the instructor is a real kookoobird. Are your other instructors like this, too? Out of curiosity, what are they teaching you about teaching English? What methods, etc.?

If I come across some of my old stuff with the research, I'll ping you. It may not help with the kookoobird, but at least you'll know what the research says!

In my experience, ESL meant just that. There was absolutely no Enlgish spoken in the classroom. All of the lessons were given in Spanish. The only English the kids spoke was on the playground and at lunch.