What particular teaching strategies do the ESL instructors use?
The ESL instructors of the department are well-versed in current pedagogy and theoretical concerns. The pedagogy we have found to be most effective is CBI, or Content Based Instruction, and specifically, SCLI, or Sustained Content Language Instruction in academic disciplines. All the courses in the “regular” program and the “intensive” program are content-based. For example, a unit on freedom of speech in ESL 035 might begin with the chapter in the textbook (NorthStar. Focus on Reading and Writing, Advanced: Cohen/Miller, Addison-Wesley Longman, 2004). Teachers will add several readings from newspapers or journals. Students will be required to debate and write about issues that affect them personally (e.g. censorship) and link their arguments to content material, thus learning other skills like research, computer use and citation, in addition to English. Likewise, the CBI model is applied to the Literature and Contemporary Issues strands of the program. Students are tested both on lang
