INTRODUCTION

The 2007 volume of the MinneTESOL/WITESOL Journal brings changes in both the journal’s publication format and the editorial staff. First, this is the journal’s premier online issue. While some of us are attached to our paper copies of the journal, going online promises some exciting new options for us.  We hope that the online journal will be more accessible to the membership and will also bring a greater audience to the excellent articles. Going to an online format will also save a little more paper, which will not be bad for the environment. Second, as editors representing MinneTESOL, Mike Anderson and Bonnie Swierzbin have taken the place of Kristi Liu and Nima Salehi, whom we thank for their years of service and for facilitating a smooth editorial transition. We also thank Nima, Becky Uran Markman and Aydin Mohseni for their work in making arrangements for online publication and for putting together the format for the website based on board member and editor input. Finally, in an additional editorial change, Michelle Fuerch joins Marguerite Parks as a co-editor representing WITESOL, replacing Don Hones, whom we recognize for his many years of excellent work on this journal.

The first section of this journal includes articles that discuss ESL teaching and learning issues at a variety of levels, from high-stakes testing and challenges at the district level to working with low-literacy adults and individuals’ choices of learning strategies.

We begin with the article “Educating English Language Learners in a Rural District: A Case in Point” by Tina Scott Edstam, Constance L. Walker, and Karla Stone. This article provides a close-up, direct look at the process of developing and implementing a school action plan to address the needs of ELLs in a rural school district. Their forthright description of the challenges and strengths of the ESL staff in this district led one reviewer to say, “There is so much truth here.”

In our second article, “Overcoming Limitations: How a Filipino Speaker of English uses Compensation Strategies,” Jennifer Lloyd portrays the impact of social context on the language learning strategies of individual learners.

Next is an article by Julie Trupke-Bastidas and Andrea Poulos, “Improving Literacy of L1-Non-Literate and L1-Literate Adult English as a Second Language Learners,” that describes classroom-based research aimed at improving English literacy of adult East African women, a population that has sometimes been overlooked in research. 

Our fourth article, “Making Decisions about ESL Curriculum,” by   Patricia Hoffman and Anne Dahlman returns to issues at the district level. The authors describe the process of ESL curriculum evaluation and design in a particular Minnesota school district and offer guidelines for the fundamental process of choosing an ESL curriculum.  This article will be of special interest to ESL educators non-urban districts with growing ESL populations as their programs change to address the needs of these learners.

The section finishes with the article “...And the Beat Goes On: Further Evidence to Support the Need for Accommodations and Universal Design in High Stakes Testing of English Language Learners” from Andrea Erichsrud and Christopher Johnstone. The results of this qualitative research study show how irrelevant information or culturally-bound concepts, such as soup cans and box tops, used in testing can potentially distract and confuse ELLs.

The second section of the journal includes reviews of works in print. Katie DeKam reviews two engaging new books, The Lion’s Share and Dhegdheer, from the Somali Bilingual Book Project sponsored by the Minnesota Humanities Commission. Michael Coggins examines All New Very Easy True Stories: A Picture-based First Reader, a textbook for students with low literacy levels. The last two reviews focus on textbooks for advanced students. Tor Lindbloom reviews Sourcework: Academic Writing from Sources and Cameron Jaynes reviews the second edition of All Clear Listening and Speaking 3.

The 2008 volume will be a special topic issue focusing on research and best practice for the instruction of ESL learners who have low levels of literacy. We encourage our readers’ contributions to the next volume and we especially invite submissions from our colleagues in Wisconsin, who were sadly underrepresented in this year’s submissions.  We also welcome feedback on the new format of the journal.

We thank all of those involved in the process of creating this volume of the journal, particularly the authors and the Editorial Advisory Board. We also thank Hamline University, and the University of Minnesota for their support of the editorial process.

Mike Anderson                                                Bonnie Swierzbin

University of Minnesota                                    Hamline University

Marguerite Parks                                             Michelle Fuerch

University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh                        Ripon College