English language learners succeed in St. Paul

Students at Prosperity Heights Elementary in St. Paul, Minnesota, are using identical work sheets, but they’re getting attention that’s as individual as their gap-toothed smiles. District officials tout their team-teaching model as one reason they’ve significantly narrowed the gaps between English language learners (ELLs) and their native English-speaking peers. Such collaborations between classroom teachers and ELL experts have corresponded with a steady rise in test scores for students who collectively speak more than 100 native languages. Making up 40 percent of the public school district, St. Paul’s ELLs are doing particularly well compared with other parts of Minnesota and many urban districts in the United States. That has prompted educators from as far away as Alaska and England to come see what’s at work. Read more of this article from The Christian Science Monitor.