English as a Second Language

English as a Second Language is for non-native resident and international speakers of English who would like to improve their English language skills. Contact us by e-mail or call (011) 916-781-7148.

Innovative Program

We have an exciting program. Our classes are based on an innovative curriculum and the instructors use a variety of current methods and techniques. The faculty are all highly-trained with Master's degrees in the field of TESOL, enthusiasm, dedication to improving the program even more and most importantly, friendly smiles. We are a serious academic ESL program with a fresh, fun approach.

Excellent Location

We are growing quickly and attracting international students from many countries around the world partly because of our prime location in the heart of the California Gold Country and close to many famous places such as San Francisco, Lake Tahoe and the Napa Valley.

Small Diverse Classes

We also have hundreds of resident ESL students from areas of the former Soviet Union, Central and South America, the Middle East and many other areas. Class size is limited to 15 to 25 students so there is plenty of opportunity for student participation and contact with the instructors.

Well-equipped Facilities

Our facilities include classrooms equipped with TVs, VCRs and overhead projectors. We also have a state-of-the-art ESL Computer Lab with over a dozen software programs for practicing English language skills. There is Internet access and ESL Internet links with hundreds of Internet activities. Additionally, we are also very proud of the ESL Outside Reading Collection that has hundreds of books at a range of ability levels. Students can borrow them from the library.

Many Levels of Instruction

We have a 7-level ESL Program beginning at the Novice (beginner) level and progressing up to the Advanced College level (the equivalent of English 1A or English 101 at most universities). At least one year of ESL adult education is recommended for resident students entering at the novice level. There are 3 classes at every level except the most advanced: Writing/Grammar, Reading/Vocabulary and Listening/Speaking. All Sierra College ESL classes are credited college classes of 4 units each. ESL 30W, 40W and 40L have degree and transfer credit for Community Colleges, California State Universities, The University of California (they do not meet the composition requirements at the University of California though) and private universities and colleges. In addition to 4 hours of classroom instruction for each class, there is a 1-hour laboratory requirement that is competed in the ESL Computer Lab.

The Skills That You Need

The Writing/Grammar classes blend grammar explanation and practice with academic and real-world writing tasks that utilize the grammar being studied. The Reading/Vocabulary strand emphasizes developing reading and vocabulary skills including prereading strategies, comprehension and reading speed development. Students do a lot of outside reading. The Listening/Speaking courses develop students' skills and confidence so they can communicate and understand others in all situations from daily life to academic lectures. Class activities include presentations, surveys, skits, speakers and much more.

Please look at this chart of our program to get a better idea of how the classes in our program are organized.