CATESOL is the independent California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 and Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

 affiliate of TESOL International Association, a global nonprofit devoted to advancing excellence in English language teaching.

Mission statement (from www.catesol.org)

CATESOL's mission is to promote excellence in education for English language learners and a high quality professional environment for their teachers. CATESOL represents teachers of English language learners throughout California and Nevada, at all levels and in all learning environments. CATESOL strives to:

• improve teacher preparation and provide opportunities which further professional expertise
• promote sound, research-based education policy and practices
• increase awareness of the strengths and needs of English language learners
• promote appreciation of diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Governance and organization

CATESOL is governed by a Board of Directors, elected by the membership. The Board consists of an executive committee and level board members, who represent elementary, secondary, adult, and college/university constituencies; the presidency and the level board members alternate between northern and southern California annually.

Conferences, events, and activities

CATESOL holds an annual state conference

Academic conference

An academic conference or symposium is a conference for researchers to present and discuss their work. Together with academic or scientific journals, conferences provide an important channel for exchange of information between researchers.-Overview:Conferences are usually composed of various...

, in spring (March or April), which features papers, colloquia, workshops, plenary speakers, intensive pre-conference institutes, publishers' exhibits, and other events. The annual conference rotates between northern and southern California. Recent past state conferences have taken place in Santa Clara (2010), Pasadena (2009), Sacramento

Sacramento

Sacramento is the capital of the state of California, in the United States of America.Sacramento may also refer to:- United States :*Sacramento County, California*Sacramento, Kentucky*Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta...

 (2008), San Diego (2007), San Francisco (2006), and Long Beach (2005).

The organization also hosts three regional conferences yearly in the fall (San Diego, Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, and Northern California

Northern California

Northern California is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The San Francisco Bay Area , and Sacramento as well as its metropolitan area are the main population centers...

). Nine chapters host bi-annual professional workshops to assist English as a Second Language

English language learning and teaching

English as a second language , English for speakers of other languages and English as a foreign language all refer to the use or study of English by speakers with different native languages. The precise usage, including the different use of the terms ESL and ESOL in different countries, is...

 teachers at the local level. The nine chapters are: Bay Area, Capital Area, Los Padres, Northern Nevada, Orange County, Saroyan, Southern Nevada, Steinbeck, and Yosemite.

CATESOL takes, when circumstances arise, formal positions on a variety of sociopolitical issues, including secondary

Secondary education

Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...

 and post-secondary education, language policy

Language policy

Many countries have a language policy designed to favour or discourage the use of a particular language or set of languages. Although nations historically have used language policies most often to promote one official language at the expense of others, many countries now have policies designed to...

, and distance education

Distance education

Distance education or distance learning is a field of education that focuses on teaching methods and technology with the aim of delivering teaching, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional educational setting such as a classroom...

.

Publications

CATESOL publishes a quarterly newsletter (CATESOL News) with teaching ideas, information about chapter events, discounts at conferences, and professional networking opportunities. CATESOL also publishes a refereed academic journal

Academic journal

An academic journal is a peer-reviewed periodical in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as forums for the introduction and presentation for scrutiny of new research, and the critique of existing research...

, The CATESOL Journal, which appears in December and features articles on theory

Theory

The English word theory was derived from a technical term in Ancient Greek philosophy. The word theoria, , meant "a looking at, viewing, beholding", and referring to contemplation or speculation, as opposed to action...

, research

Research

Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...

, pedagogy

Pedagogy

Pedagogy is the study of being a teacher or the process of teaching. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction....

, and educational policy

Education policy

Education policy refers to the collection of laws and rules that govern the operation of education systems.Education occurs in many forms for many purposes through many institutions. Examples include early childhood education, kindergarten through to 12th grade, two and four year colleges or...

 related to the teaching of English to speakers of other languages

English language learning and teaching

English as a second language , English for speakers of other languages and English as a foreign language all refer to the use or study of English by speakers with different native languages. The precise usage, including the different use of the terms ESL and ESOL in different countries, is...

, including U.S.-born bilinguals, “Generation 1.5” students, immigrants, and international students. The organization also publishes proceedings

Proceedings

In academia, proceedings are the collection of academic papers that are published in the context of an academic conference. They are usually distributed as printed books either before the conference opens or after the conference has closed. Proceedings contain the contributions made by researchers...

from CATESOL conferences.

External links

• CATESOL home page
• 2012 CATESOL annual conference in Oakland
• CATESOL levels, chapters and interest groups
• TESOL home page