Africans as English language learners: The dilemma

There is an ever present and growing population of continental African immigrants in the United States. The recorded numbers of legal immigrants from Africa increased 58.9 percent by 1995 (INS 1996). African immigrants bring their own languages and often must learn English as a second language. The question remains, are the English language learning needs of African students being met?; The purpose of this investigation was to determine if linguistic needs were being met for African English learners using existing resources. The researcher explored whether or not new resources were being created to target this group.; This study was an "action research" investigation. It was conducted using seven case studies. Interviews and observations were the methods used to compile the data for this study. The interviews and observations suggested that teachers in the United States should make changes in how they address the language teaming needs of African students.