Prior to student teaching, students must demonstrate proficiency in both Spanish and English. Candidates for Texas teacher certification may earn the endorsement for teachers of English as a Second Language by taking Second Language Acquisition, Survey of Linguistics, Methods of Teaching ESL, Integrating ESL with the Content Areas, and Student Teaching in the ESL Classroom. Certified Texas teachers may teach for one year in a TEA-approved ESL or bilingual classroom in lieu of completing student teaching. The curriculum in bilingual education prepares the student to teach in a bilingual setting on the elementary school level. Students learn the philosophy of bilingual education, the theories of first and second language acquisition, and the strategies for teaching in a bilingual classroom.
Bilingual classes are small, and students receive personal attention from faculty.
The Language Center provides a support system of activities for computer, video, and interactive video. The Bilingual Education Student Organization and Alpha Mu Gamma , National Collegiate Honor Society, are active organizations for persons majoring in or interested in bilingual education. Students coming to the University with language proficiency may receive credit for language proficiency. After graduation Students find immediate employment upon graduation. Bilingual teachers who can function in the classroom in both English and Spanish and teachers with endorsement in English as a Second Language are in great demand in classrooms across the United States.