Why English Language Programs Fail: A Silent Crisis for English Learners

The Hidden Problem English Learners can't talk about in their English Language Programs

In high schools across the country, thousands of multilingual students are placed in newcomer programs designed to support their transition into an English-speaking academic system. These programs should be accelerating language acquisition. Instead, they often quietly become something else: social or academic hubs where students feel comfortable but don’t actually acquire the language.

This is a silent crisis in English learner education.

At first glance, these programs seem to be working. Students feel welcomed. They form friendships with others who speak their home language. They are engaged in content and acheiving standards that will give them ELA credits. But underneath the surface, a major issue is brewing: many of these students are not actually progressing in English.

The consequences are staggering:

• Students spend years in these programs without achieving full English proficiency.

• They fall behind academically because they lack the language to truly engage with core subjects.

• They remain socially isolated from the broader school community.

• They graduate—or worse, drop out—with minimal English skills, limiting their future job and college prospects.

This problem is not just about education—it’s about equity. If we fail to prioritize language acquisition, we are systematically limiting students’ futures.

How Did We Get Here?

The failure of many English learner programs comes from a well-intentioned but flawed approach:

1. Social Comfort Over Language Growth

   Schools want students to feel safe and supported—which is critical—but when classrooms become spaces where students primarily interact in their home language, and are givne free range to translate, they lose out on English exposure.

2. Content Before Language

   Many curricula prioritize content learning first—meaning students are asked to master grade-level material before they’ve developed the English skills to understand it. This leads to over-reliance on translation instead of authentic language learning.

   
   

3. Lower Expectations for Language Growth

   Too many English learner programs lack clear accountability measures for English acquisition. When students aren’t expected to regularly speak, read, and write in English, progress slows to a crawl.

   
   

The Research is Clear: This Approach Doesn’t Work

Dr. Bill VanPatten, a leading researcher in second-language acquisition, states that language must be used for communication—not just memorized—to be acquired. Similarly, Dr. Stephen Krashen emphasizes that meaningful interaction in the target language is the most powerful driver of language growth.

Lightbown & Spada (2013) reinforce that students must be consistently exposed to structured input, interaction, and processing in English to develop proficiency. But in many high school English learner programs, those elements are missing—or deprioritized in favor of simplified, translated content.

The Consequences Are Getting Worse

Many new nationwide and state-level policies are pushing English learners into mainstream content classes faster—even when they don’t have the language skills to succeed. This makes it more critical than ever that every minute in an English learner classroom is focused on actual language acquisition.

Yet many schools are still failing to make this shift.

How to Fix It: The Urgent Changes Schools Must Make

If we truly want to serve multilingual students, we must stop prioritizing comfort over acquisition. Here’s how we fix it:

1. Shift to Structured, Communicative Learning

Newcomer classrooms must move beyond translation and isolated vocabulary drills. Instead, they should be task-based and communicative, meaning students learn language by using it in meaningful ways.

For example:

• In history, instead of just listening to lectures about the American Revolution, students can work in pairs to recreate a debate between historical figures, using sentence frames to help them express ideas in English.

• In science, instead of passively watching a video on cell reproduction, students can describe a an imagage of a biological process to a partner, who then draws it based on their explanation.

  
  

By embedding structured conversation and interaction into lessons, students develop both content knowledge and English skills at the same time.

2. Require Language Objectives in Every Lesson

English learners need explicit language goals in addition to content goals. This means every lesson—no matter the subject—should include a clear English language objective.

For example:

• In a math class, a language objective might be: Students will explain how to solve a word problem using sequencing phrases like “first,” “then,” and “finally.”

• In an English class, students might have to practice using transition words like “however” and “therefore” to write an argumentative essay.

When every class includes functional language-specific goals, English development happens faster—without sacrificing academic progress.

3. Stop Over-Reliance on Translation and Simplification

It’s easy to default to translating key instructions and assignments—but translation is not language acquisition. Schools should:

• Reduce the use of translated materials and instead use visual supports, gestures, and simplified but natural English.

• Push for peer-to-peer English conversation in structured activities.

• Create clear expectations that students will engage with English—not just their home language.

  
  

4. Implement Regular, Rigorous Assessments of English Growth

Schools should be tracking whether students are actually making progress in English—not just assuming they are. This means:

• Regular speaking and writing assessments to measure functional language growth.

• Evaluating whether students can communicate ideas independently—not just understand translated material.

• Tracking how long students remain in English learner programs—if they aren’t exiting within a reasonable timeframe, the program isn’t working.

  
  

5. Make Independent Reading an Expectation, Not an Option

One of the most powerful, undeniable predictors of English growth is independent reading. When students read in English every day—even at a basic level—they develop vocabulary, sentence structure, and comprehension skills at a dramatically faster rate.

Yet too many newcomer classrooms do not require daily reading. This must change. Every school should:

• Provide high-interest books at students’ reading levels.

• Set structured silent reading time every day.

• Implement follow-up discussions and activities to ensure comprehension and engagement.

  
  

The Bottom Line: English Acquisition Must Be the Priority

High school newcomer programs are failing students when they focus more on comfort than competence. It’s time for a fundamental shift.

• If English learners are spending years in the program without acquiring English, we are failing them.

• If students are relying on translation instead of practicing communication, we are failing them.

• If English learner classrooms don’t have clear expectations for language growth, we are failing them.

The most important thing multilingual students will learn in school is how to communicate in English—because that skill will impact every single aspect of their future success.

By shifting toward communicative, structured, and accountable instruction, schools can stop trapping students in linguistic stagnation—and instead give them the skills they need to thrive.

The stakes are high. It’s time to act.

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