Addressing the demands of the common core state standards with English language learners

Abstract

The K-12 student population in many states across the United States is becoming increasingly diverse.
New York has the fourth highest number of English language learners (ELLs) across all states, behind
California, Florida, and Texas (Migration Policy Institute, 2013). Therefore, all teachers in the state need to
be prepared to work with ELLs. Yet, this student population is consistently ignored when content
standards are conceptualized, and often treated like an afterthought. In particular, this appears to be the
case with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in English Language Arts, Literacy in History/Social
Studies, Science and Technical Subjects, and Mathematics, which set high expectations for the learning of
all students, including ELLs.