Art Instruction and the Development of ESL Students' English Language Development

This thesis examines the relationship of Art Education and ESL students' language development. ESL students struggle to acquire the English language for a variety of reasons. Reaching proficiency in the English language takes time to develop. With the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 [NCLB], ESL students are now mandated to learn the English language according to their grade level in 9-12th grade. With the passing of the NCLB Act, students are mainstreamed into core subject areas within a year or two. Many of these students are not ready to be mainstreamed in the core subject areas because these students are not academically prepared at the levels required to educationally succeed due to their language barriers. Art Education however, is a bridge that can be built to other content areas. The arts can make a great difference in students' learning and improving their language development through giving students opportunity to talk and write about their art in the art classroom