Arizona's SEI Models

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    Four is an important number for Arizona when it comes to EL instruction. Four principles of instruction, and four approved instruction models, which every educator should be aware of when teaching in Arizona.

 The first of the four methods is the Two-Hour Model, which requires elementary schools to provide a total of 600 minutes per week, and high schools to provide 500 minutes, of targeted ELD instruction to each and every EL student. These minutes could be spread throughout a school day, with some in each core subject, for a total of 120 minutes per day for elementary students, and 100 minutes daily for high schoolers. Alternatively, schools could provide all of these minutes in an ELA (English Language Arts) class. It should be noted that whatever time is left in the day should be used to provide EL students with the same academic standards and learning opportunities as their peers. In other words, EL students are not to be singled out, or have their education standards lowered for the rest of the school day, simply because they speak another language.  

    Next is the Pull-Out SEI Model, which asks that elementary students who are removed from their typical classroom for ELD lessons receive 60 minutes of high intensity ELD each day. In addition, the Pull-Out Model requires that high schoolers receive 50 minutes of targeted English instruction each day. 

    However, this is not the only time that English should be taught, as elementary students need 60 minutes of integrated (in their typical classroom) EL instruction, provided either throughout the day, or in a block of ELA instruction. 

    The Newcomer Model asks that elementary students receive 120 minutes of targets ELD instruction, as well as 120 minutes of integrated ELD instruction spread out throughout the day. This total to 1200 minutes per week of ELD instruction of some kind, in order to allow students with low levels of English skills to quickly build and maintain high levels of English knowledge. 

    For high schools, students need 1000 minutes per week, or 100 minutes of targeted instruction alongside 100 minutes of integrated instruction daily. This method is highly intense, but it allows students to build their English skills quickly and soon begin to learn their required content in English with confidence. 


    Finally, there is the 50-50 Dual Language Immersion Model, the most unique of the four SEI Models that Arizona uses. It is also exactly what it sounds like: for 50% of the day, the content of the school is presented in English, and for the other 50%, the content is presented in the school's chosen partner language. Both English speakers and ELLs learn in this setting, which allows the native speakers of the partner language to teach their English-speaking peers, and vice versa. Connections are made between the 2 languages, such as the word "estrella," being "star," in Spanish, and "stellar," meaning "relating to stars," in English.  




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