Bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL)
degree requirements
Approvals in ESL and Bilingual Education are only valid when they are supported by Standard Teaching Certification (certificates #3, #4, #9, or #10).
The approval in English as a Second Language (ESL) requires 20 semester hours (18 semester hours for undergraduate elementary or 19 semester hours secondary education students) including the following courses:
- CI 481 Foundations and current issues in education English Language Learners (ELLs) (4 credit hours), OR ED 258 Bilingualism and Cross-Cultural Issues in a Diverse Society (3 credit hours) only for undergraduates in the Elementary Education program OR CI 594 Special Topics Seminar: Teaching All Teachers About Transitioning (4 credit hours) for students in the ATTACH and TATAT program
CI 482 Assessment and instruction: A multilingual/multicultural perspective (4 credit hours)
CI 472 Language proficiency assessment and ESL instruction (4 credit hours)
CI 464 Bilingualism and literacy in a second language (4 credit hours)
CI 540 Linguistics for teachers (4 credit hours) OR Ling 150 Introduction to the study of language (3 credit hours) for undergraduate students in elementary or secondary education.
To qualify to teach in bilingual classrooms, teachers who receive the ESL approval must pass a Target Language Proficiency (TLP) Test offered as part of the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) testing system. You’ll find more information about the TLP at www.icts.nesinc.com
Once the courses are taken, students should request the Council on Teacher Education’s (CTE) assistance with the process required to receive the approval on the certificate being sought or added to an existing certificate.
Students who are interested in receiving the Bilingual/ESL ENDORSEMENT to teach in grades 5 – 8, must also complete the Middle Grades Endorsement courses (CI 484 and EPSY 446).