ELD teacher seat still vacant

By Sean Campbell

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

It’s almost three months into Davis High’s 2023-24 school year and a permanent English Learner (EL) teacher has yet to be found.

DHS offers two EL classes, ELD 1 and ELD 2/3. ELD 1 serves as an introductory class where students learn the basics of English while ELD 2/3 works towards students reclassification out of the EL program. Even within the levels there is a language divide as students have a variety of native languages and backgrounds in English.

The opening occurred due to both of DHS’s 2022-23 ELD teachers, Nicholas Garratt and Kelly Wilkerson, stepping down. 

Garratt took the role as the ELD 1 teacher last school year because he did not get a full schedule of social science classes which he “felt more qualified to teach.” Garratt also had experience teaching English in Europe, where he immigrated for his football career. This year he has a full schedule of World Civilization and Economics classes.

Garratt recognizes the difficulties in teaching the class. “A lot of these students come here without the intention of wanting to be here,” Garratt said. “The language itself is also difficult.”

Despite Garratt’s passion for social sciences, he is unsure if he would have made the same decision knowing the end outcome. “I was under the impression that there was a more qualified person in the English department that was enthused about taking up the role,” Garratt said. “However, that person is no longer at DHS.”

According to the California School Dashboard, a website run by California’s Department of Education, DHS has had low level EL progress. Only 60% of the 51 reported students in ELD classes progressed a level during their time in the program. This problem continues into students other classes as EL students perform 206 points worse in mathematics than the California standard. Garratt does not think that anyone is to blame for the situation but that “it’s unfortunate the students’ needs aren’t getting met.”

The job has been posted on multiple sites as of August according to DHS Principal Bryce Geigle. “Hiring is based a lot on chance,” Geigle said. “You just have to hope a qualified candidate will see your post and apply.”

According to Geigle it has been a difficult hiring process. “We have interviewed multiple people and offered multiple people the job,” Geigle said. “For their own reasons they have declined the position.”

Geigle attributes this primarily to the current teacher hiring climate. An EL teacher is a specialized position, requiring an English Learner Authorization on top of an English teaching credential. This complicates an already difficult hiring process. “The concentration of people with that additional qualification decreases significantly, especially in an already limited climate,” Geigle said.

One of DHS’s goals with the new hire is to create a sense of continuity for the program that has not been present in recent years due to high turnover rate in the department, according to Geigle. “We are looking for someone who is solely an ELD teacher and coordinator to solve that problem long term,” Geigle said.

Until then, longtime Davis Joint Unified School District substitute Scott Kugler has taken over.

According to Kugler, empathy is the most important quality in successfully connecting with EL students. “(Having) a knowledge of what it’s like to not be able to communicate with the rest of a society due to a language barrier helps me get where they are coming from,” Kugler said.

Kugler likened the daily activities in the class to a native English speaker in one of DHS’s introductory Spanish courses. “We do a lot of basic drill worksheets where they identify which word to use or what tense a sentence is in,” Kugler said. “The type of stuff you would do in Spanish 1.” He also likes to keep it fun by listening to students’ favorite English songs in class and creating lessons based on the lyrics.

ELD 1 student Melany Gomez is thankful that Kugler stepped into the role. “I feel very supported by him and all of my other tutors and teachers,” Gomez said.

Another ELD 1 student, Daniela Hernandez, is thankful for the resources provided in her other classes. “I feel comfortable asking for support and help from all my teachers and peers,” Hernandez said. “I get a lot of my assignment and exams in Spanish which helps.”

Some projects are harder to support than others. “Presentations in English are especially hard for me,” Gomez said.

EL students not only face challenges academically due to the language barrier, but also socially, according to Kugler. “Being in a new place and experiencing a new culture can be extremely alienating,” Kugler said. He encourages other students to reach out to EL students and “make a new friend, both your experience and theirs will be the richer for it.”

Kugler is thankful for the help he has received from the English department as well as EL teacher on special assignment Melody Law Ewey. Ewey helps Kugler run the class multiple times a week. Without this help Kugler “would have been at a loss for how to help the students.”