| Proposal: | The Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership (TLPL) is proposing a new Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). The purpose of this certificate is to offer professional development to a variety of educators in the area of TESOL at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The target participants will be educators who are currently certified in other content areas and have English language learners (ELLs) present in their classes but do not have the pedagogical and theoretical knowledge needed for meeting their specific language needs; these educators also may or may not want to pursue an add-on certification in P-12 English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) for the state of Maryland. The certificate will also be beneficial for teachers of adults or supplemental schools who have not had formal preparation in TESOL.
The course sequence will consist of four (4) courses (12 credits) that are essential in order to be successful in working with ELLs in both ESOL and non-ESOL content classrooms, specifically courses in second language acquisition theory, ESOL pedagogy, ESOL literacy across the primary and secondary content areas, and second language assessment. These courses are already included in the Department's existing 42-credit Master's Certification TESOL Program and 30-credit Master's Non-certification TESOL Program. They will be offered to cohorts of teachers, with a maximum of 28 teachers per cohort.
Upon completion, the participants will receive a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in TESOL from the University of Maryland. Completers will also have the option of transferring these credits toward a Master's in Education and/or certification in the field. |
