Student Achievement and ESOL Co-Teacher Content Certification in the Secondary Core Content Classrooms
Location
Language and Culture - Boston 1
Proposal Track
Research Project
Session Format
Presentation
Abstract
This quantitative study aimed to contribute to the knowledge base of effectively co-taught ESOL content classrooms. To this end, the researcher examined co-taught courses to determine whether the ESOL co-teacher’s content certification was significantly related to student achievement. The convenience sample consisted of (n = 185) ten secondary ESOL co-teachers and their students in a common suburban district in Georgia. Participants consisted of three Algebra I classes, five Biology courses, and two Economics classes. Content certification was verified through the state agency that serves as the authority on teacher certifications, and Georgia Milestones test scores provided student achievement data. This study employed descriptive analysis, linear regression, chi-square tests, t-tests, Spearman’s rank-order, point-biserial correlation, and Cohen’s d effect size to evaluate the data according to the research questions. Results showed that certification proved to be a statistically significant indicator of increased student achievement overall (t(183) = -2.201, p =.029; χ2(3, N = 185) = 9.45, p = .024). However, the breakdown per subject area revealed that the Algebra I data indicated a significant and positive relationship between certification and student achievement (t(64) = -2.057, p = .044; Cohen’s d = .68), whereas Biology did not (t(101) = -1.562, p = .122). This exploration promoted school improvement for ELs in that the results constitute compelling data to transform the scheduling of ESOL co-teacher placement in the studied context, which could promote equitable education for ELs through appropriate academic and linguistic instruction.
Keywords
English learners, co-teaching, content certification, high school, student achievement
Professional Bio
Megan DeVoss is a in high school ESOL practitioner completing her Ed.D. in School Improvement with a concentration on English learners.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
DeVoss, Megan, "Student Achievement and ESOL Co-Teacher Content Certification in the Secondary Core Content Classrooms" (2019). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 1.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2019/2019/1
Student Achievement and ESOL Co-Teacher Content Certification in the Secondary Core Content Classrooms
Language and Culture - Boston 1
This quantitative study aimed to contribute to the knowledge base of effectively co-taught ESOL content classrooms. To this end, the researcher examined co-taught courses to determine whether the ESOL co-teacher’s content certification was significantly related to student achievement. The convenience sample consisted of (n = 185) ten secondary ESOL co-teachers and their students in a common suburban district in Georgia. Participants consisted of three Algebra I classes, five Biology courses, and two Economics classes. Content certification was verified through the state agency that serves as the authority on teacher certifications, and Georgia Milestones test scores provided student achievement data. This study employed descriptive analysis, linear regression, chi-square tests, t-tests, Spearman’s rank-order, point-biserial correlation, and Cohen’s d effect size to evaluate the data according to the research questions. Results showed that certification proved to be a statistically significant indicator of increased student achievement overall (t(183) = -2.201, p =.029; χ2(3, N = 185) = 9.45, p = .024). However, the breakdown per subject area revealed that the Algebra I data indicated a significant and positive relationship between certification and student achievement (t(64) = -2.057, p = .044; Cohen’s d = .68), whereas Biology did not (t(101) = -1.562, p = .122). This exploration promoted school improvement for ELs in that the results constitute compelling data to transform the scheduling of ESOL co-teacher placement in the studied context, which could promote equitable education for ELs through appropriate academic and linguistic instruction.
