English Learners

General Information

As a means to increase college readiness, a California State University (CSU) task force has developed the Expository Reading and Writing Course (ERWC), a full-year college preparatory English course for high school juniors or seniors. Course assignments, organized into 14 modules and based mainly on non-fiction texts, emphasize the in-depth study of expository, analytical, and argumentative reading and writing. The University of California has approved the ERWC for area "b" credit (from the "a-g" requirements), and the course meets college preparatory requirements for both the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU).

The ERWC has been revised to align with the Common Core State Standards, address critical reading and writing problems identified by the CSU English Placement Test Committee, and prepare students to meet the expectations of college and university faculty. The task force has also developed additional modules, four per grade level for grades 7-11, that follow the revised ERWC assignment template and are intended to augment curriculum and expertly promote instruction with expository texts.

The Benefits of ERWC

• Certification for teachers to be able to use the ERWC course in grades 11-12 and modules for grades 9-11 to advance English for Academic Purposes (EAP) Placement Test results from “conditional status” to “college-ready.”
• UC Pre-Approved A-G Eligibility Course that schools and districts can adopt to fulfill “B” English requirement and increase rigor now for grades 11 and 12.
• A Common Core-aligned,  research-validated curriculum and instructional model for teaching California standards with emphasis on expository reading and writing and college readiness.


About ERWC 3.0

In June 2019, the California State University system will release the third edition of the ERWC for grades 11 and 12. Schools have several choices regarding the implementation of ERWC in school year 2019-2020: 

• Your school may choose to offer the new edition of the course in grade 11, grade 12, or both grades. 
• Your school may choose to continue offering the second edition of the course in grade 12 for one remaining year. 
• Beginning fall 2020, all schools offering the ERWC in grade 12 must offer the third edition of the course. 

In total, there are 81 new and revised modules that utilize a revised ERWC Assignment Template for grades 9-12. Nineteen modules include support for integrated English language development (ELD). Five new modules can be integrated into a school's Career Technical Education (CTE) Health Pathway. There are also new categories for the modules that include:  issue, foundational document, drama, full-length book, research, and concept mini-modules.

Teachers who are already ERWC certified will have access to the new 11th and 12th grade course and the new modules throughout the ERWC Online Community. Teachers who are already ERWC Certified will NOT need to attend additional professional learning to use the modules.

Professional Learning

ERWC 3.0 Introductory Workshop

A four-day workshop that certifies 9-12th grade teachers to teach ERWC courses and modules. Through in-depth analysis of expository reading and writing, teachers acquire knowledge of what it means to read and write rhetorically and the ways in which this approach promotes career and college readiness. Teachers who attend all days of the professional learning receive print and digital access to ERWC curriculum for all grade levels.

All introductory workshops are online. Teachers can register for any workshop in any California region.

ERWC 3.0 Update Course

A two-day refresher course for teachers who are already ERWC certified who would like a more formal introduction to the new ERWC 3.0 modules and a deeper understanding of argumentation, rhetoric and writing.

Register Online

If you have previously been ERWC certified and are interested in taking a refresher course, please email Jennifer Upham for further information.

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Guided Language Acquisition Design (GLAD®) is an instructional model for TK-12 that supports the vision of the California English Learner Roadmap policy by strengthening educational programs and practices for English learners. Project GLAD® supports the implementation of integrated English-language development (ELD) and designated ELD. This model provides full and meaningful access to a 21st century education that results in attaining high levels of language proficiency and mastery of grade level standards.

Guided Language Acquisition Design (GLAD®) is an instructional model for TK-12 that supports the vision of the California English Learner Roadmap policy by strengthening educational programs and practices for English learners. Project GLAD® supports the implementation of integrated English-language development (ELD) and designated ELD. This model provides full and meaningful access to a 21st century education that results in attaining high levels of language proficiency and mastery of grade level standards.

Project GLAD® Professional Learning Series

What's it like at your school for a student who is learning English?

You have their test scores, grades, and English proficiency levels, but do you really know what their educational experience looks like and sounds like? What about how often they communicate during class time and how they feel about their learning?

The Student Shadow Project provides the structure and support for your district or school team to be immersed in the perspective of students who are learning English for the purpose of enacting systemic change for their success.   

By following students who are learning English through a portion of their academic day, your team experiences how it feels intellectually, emotionally, and physically for these learners.  It helps your team tackle the barriers to equity and access by providing a front row seat to all the little things that are difficult to see, but critical to address.

Why Shadow a Student?

If your students who are learning English aren't making the academic strides you expect, and you're ready to shine a light on their needs, then take a walk in their shoes. Follow them from class to class and gain invaluable insight.  Hear what they have to say about their learning, their challenges, and their goals.

Create an urgency in your administrative team, lead teachers, counselors, board members, and principals to prioritize the needs of your students who are English learners through the Student Shadow Project.

The project was adapted from ELL Shadowing as a Catalyst for Change by Ivannia Soto for K-12 students who are designated English learners.

Research reveals that students who are learning English are given few opportunities in class to engage in meaningful conversations with their peers, even though developing academic oral language is fundamental to their success. Program participants are tasked with paying specific attention to their students' academic speaking and listening opportunities in the classroom to reveal patterns and trends.

About the Program

The three-day Student Shadow Project begins with an overview of the shadowing process, including a deeper dive into the research on effective practices for English learners, the rationale for shadowing, and how to report and record your observations.

The student shadowing begins on day two of the program with two to three hours of observation, which includes tracking the students' academic speaking and listening. It is followed by a study and analysis of the collected observations and other available data, then a general conversation on next steps.

Day three is time for your district or school program participants to begin planning or refining professional learning and structures to address the newly-uncovered issues.

Shadowing often uncovers the lack of academic speaking opportunities and the need for more student-to-student interactions. Many times, it also reveals unintended consequences of structures in place, such as a student placed in an inappropriate class or group, or a need for more strategic staffing to meet the needs of English learner students.

When your empathy expands with the Student Shadow Project, your eyes are opened to the invisible hurdles that prevent students who are English learners from reaching their fullest potential.

While it was created for students who are English learners, the Student Shadow Project is easily adapted to gain insight into the perspective of any student subgroup on your campus.

What Project Participants Have Said

"This project significantly impacted my awareness of patterns of instructional strengths and weaknesses impacting the academic language development of our English learner students. It created a sense of urgency in me and prompted me to reflect on our current systems and mind-sets."

"Being 'in the shoes' of an English learner student was really eye-opening. It's clear that even though we may stress the need for collaborative conversations, we need to provide teachers with solid professional learning in this area."

"It has provided another very powerful tool in triangulating data to assess how our system is meeting the needs of our students."

"The project has really forced me to think strategically about how to facilitate academic conversations in all classrooms that involve all students. Specifically, that a quiet room is not necessarily conducive to English development."

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• View comprehensive ELD resources for LEAs on Padlet
• Latinx Education Achievement Report / Informe del Progreso de la Educación Latinx

Secondary Pathways Mailing List

Email Sonja Gagnon to join the English Language Development mailing list