July 21, 2000 UNT Inhouse publication: English language program receives national accreditation

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English language program receives national accreditation

The Intensive English Language Institute at UNT is one of six institutions in the United States to be accredited by the new Commission on English Language Program Accreditation.

The commission was established last year in response to new regulations set by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. The regulations allow only fully accredited intensive English programs to issue documents that allow international students to enter the United States to attend English instruction programs.

UNT's IELI joins similar programs at Georgetown University, the University of North Carolina, Eastern Washington University, the Defense Language Institute in San Antonio, and Harris County Community College in Houston in receiving accreditation.

IELI was already a member of the Association of Intensive English Programs and the Consortium of University and College Intensive English Programs, says Rebecca Smith-Murdock, the institute's director.

However, accreditation by the commission "moves IELI into a position of national and international high visibility," Smith-Murdock says.

To receive accreditation, IELI completed a nine-month self-study and a six-volume report for the commission. The institute demonstrated that it had met the commission's standards for English language programs and institutions in 10 areas: mission, curriculum, faculty, facilities/equipment/supplies, administrative and fiscal capacity, student services, recruiting, length and structure of the program of study, student achievement, and student complaints. The commission also visited the institute in February.

Smith-Murdock says commission accreditation will benefit the institute and UNT in marketing efforts.

"Already, overseas educational advisers, academic counselors at foreign embassies in the United States, programming agencies throughout the world, and State Department officers are using the list of commission-accredited intensive English programs as a reference list for advising potential students of schools that adhere to the highest standards," she says.

To maintain accreditation, IELI must submit an annual report. The commission selected IELI's self-study report to be used as training material for similar programs seeking accreditation. Eva Bowman, IELI associate director, participated in the training session at the international conference of NAFSA: Association of International Educators, held May 28-June 2 in San Diego.

Located in Kendall Hall, IELI has been a part of the UNT campus for 23 years and focuses on preparing students for success in an academic environment. Approximately 320 to 350 students are usually enrolled at IELI, and 80 percent of its graduates eventually enroll at UNT.

Students enrolling at IELI are tested for English proficiency and placed in one of seven levels of instruction — Level Pre-1 to Level 6. Each level requires students to take courses in communication to learn listening, speaking and reading English, and writing skills, which include grammar, spelling and research techniques. A large amount of daily homework is assigned.

Each level takes eight weeks to complete. Students attend class and labs and complete homework for up to 50 hours a week. Classes are taught in two eight-week terms during the fall and spring semesters. IELI also has one eight-week summer term.

Thirty instructors teach all classes entirely in English, though even the lowest-level classes include students with a variety of native languages. A student with a grade of 75 or higher in all areas of a level may advance to the next level. Students who complete Level 6 take an exit exam to graduate from IELI.

An IELI diploma satisfies the English language requirement for admission to UNT in place of a score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language. The institute also offers a Graduate Preparatory Course, which can be used as a substitute for the verbal portion of the Graduate Record Examination and is accepted by many of UNT's graduate programs.

For more information about IELI, call Smith-Murdock at 565-2003, or visit the program's website at www.unt.edu/isp.