College courses aid English learners in high school

Dual enrollment can increase the rates of graduation, study says

“People don't know they're supposed to actually target students that are first generation and underrepresented. A lot of the success rates are students that might be successful already.”

— James Espinoza, principal of Middle College High School in San Bernardino

High school senior Martha Hernandez was born in Baja California, Mexico, and came to the U.S. when she was 10 years old, in fifth grade. She was still considered an English learner when she entered high school, based on California's test of English proficiency.

When students are classified as English learners, they must take English language development classes to improve their language skills, in addition to English language arts and all other academic classes.

But at Hernandez's high school, Mountain Empire High School in the mountains of rural San Diego County, English learners enroll in English-as-asecond-language classes through the local community college. They earn college credit while learning English.

Researchers and advocates say that dual enrollment — taking college courses during high school — can increase rates of graduation, college enrollment and college success. Yet students who are still learning English in high school often face barriers to dual enrollment courses.

According to one study by Wheelhouse: The Center for Community College Leadership and Research at UC Davis, 10% of English learners had taken at least one community college class while in high school, compared with 18% of all students.

English learners are less likely than many other groups to finish the required courses for entering UC and CSU — known as A-G requirements — and to attend college in the first year after graduating from high school. Only 16.8% of students not proficient in English were marked as “prepared” for college and career on the California School Dashboard in 2019, compared with 44.1% of all students.

Hernandez was surprised to get college credit for her English-language classes and she says it inspired her to do well in the courses.

“It benefits me more, because if I'm going to learn something, I should gain something, too,” Hernandez said. “I guess that's a good strategy to make people motivated.”

After sophomore year, Hernandez tested out of the program. No longer considered an English learner, she enrolled in both AP English and AP U.S. history her junior year. She's now a senior, and she plans to go to a four-year college to study to become a doctor.

This dual enrollment program for English learners is one of several highlighted in a 2020 report by the nonprofit organization Jobs for the Future.

“English learners can rise to the challenge and have better academic outcomes when they have the opportunity to do things like take college courses,” said Sarah Hooker Bentley of Jobs for the Future and one of the authors of the report.

The report recommended specific strategies as especially beneficial for English learners. One is enrolling these students in collegebased English language courses like the ones Hernandez took.

English learners also can do well if they are able to enroll in advanced college courses in their native languages.

It is crucial to provide extra support for English learners to help them understand vocabulary and grammar that they may need to succeed in collegelevel courses, Bentley said.

Dual enrollment for English learners works best when courses are specifically designed for them, said April Moore, president of the California Coalition of Early & Middle Colleges, which is dedicated to dual enrollment.

She said English learners need extra time to practice their language skills with each other, learn academic language and help with learning how to take notes.

Many school districts are hesitant to offer this type of classes for English learners, in part because the requirements for college-based ESL courses are so different from the requirements for teaching English language development to students in high school, Moore said.

For example, the California Department of Education requires a different number of hours of English language development for students in K-12 than the number of hours required in a college-level course.

Lack of information is also a barrier to English learner participation in dual enrollment courses.

James Espinoza, principal of Middle College High School in San Bernardino, said more district staff need to be made aware that they can and should design dual enrollment courses for English learners and other underrepresented groups.

“People don't know they're supposed to actually target students that are first generation and underrepresented. A lot of the success rates are students that might be successful already,” Espinoza said.

Bentley said the more adults at schools know about dual enrollment opportunities for English learners, the better.

“Whether it's a guidance counselor, their ELD teacher, or a newcomer liaison when a newcomer first starts high school, if those individuals are not well-connected or don't have strong understanding or knowledge of dual enrollment opportunities and the potential benefits for English learners, it's even more difficult for that information to get down to students and families,” she said.