I need to find a brief history of adult ESL education in CA

February 17, 2012 3:28 PM

I need to find a book/article/website on the history of teaching Adult ESL in California.

This is for a paper I am writing for a class. I interviewed the chair of an ESL department and he mentioned some historical facts about ESL in California. He did could not provide specific details, so now I am looking for sources to back up his statements.
I have tried searching the catalogs and article databases of various libraries (college and private). I have also tried just plain ol' Googling. I have tried several different search terms. I have tried searching the websites of various adult ESL education programs in California, but still have not found anything that just provides some basic information on a history of adult ESL education in CA.

Help me, Hive Mind. You're my only hope.

posted by firemonkey to education (3 answers total)

You might find some info here: http://www.otan.us/
posted by Linnee at 7:44 PM on February 17, 2012

Lives on the boundary by mike rose might work.
posted by Jagz-Mario at 7:49 PM on February 17, 2012

I have tried searching the catalogs and article databases of various libraries

You're probably not using the ideal search terms for those databases or catalogs because I would expect to find results on that topic using those resources. You should be using ERIC for this project as well as definitely looking at books on the topic; I could give you search terms here but we won't be looking at the same databases or catalogs. There are several other databases which are also relevant, but you need to know how to search them for things to work out effectively.

If you're writing a paper for class, it is typical to have access to a university librarian who can help you with your research. Now would be the ideal time to contact them, and if you can't go in person, they are often available over email or another virtual service. AskMe is most likely not your only hope or even your best one.
posted by librarylis at 10:40 AM on February 18, 2012