Of the 100+ languages offered in Transparent Language Online, English is our most requested. For good reason!

Linguistic diversity is on the rise in the United States, bringing with it a number of opportunities, but also some challenges. According to the 2012 Census data, half of the foreign-born population self-reported that they speak English less than “very well” (including 19% who responded “not well” and 10% who claim not to speak English “at all”.)

During that same year, there were nearly 8 million English Language Learners (ELLs) enrolled in U.S. schools—nearly 10% of all students. That number is on the rise; the ELL population has grown 60% in the last decade. School districts that have not previously served ELLs in the past find themselves facing a rising ELL population. While most concentrated in urban areas and border states like California, Arizona, and Texas, suburban and rural communities around the country are increasingly facing the challenge of providing for ELL students and their parents.

Fortunately many public and private organizations are rising to meet this challenge. We work with educators, librarians, and parents to bring language-learning opportunities to their communities. As their communities become increasingly diverse, we’ve worked hard to provide a greater breadth and depth of English as a Second Language (ESL) materials on our platform. All of our ESL courses can be used independently through self-guided learning, in a school or library computer lab, or with an instructor.

ESL teachers, public libraries, and individuals who subscribe to Transparent Language Online can look forward to learning with the following:

Beginner Materials

The Essentials Series

30+ hours of English learning organized into 33 engaging lessons that revolve around common situations including getting around a new city, dealing with emergencies, or going out to eat. Best for beginner or low-intermediate learners, English Essentials is available as a paired language course with 10 foreign languages.

Vocabulary Lessons

Available for speakers of 25+ other languages, these paired language vocabulary lessons introduce more than 2,000 words and phrases covering a range of thematic topics from adjectives and verbs to animals and weather terms.

Elementary Conversations in English 

This 3-level, 30-unit course is designed specifically for elementary students in grades 3-5. Each unit contains 2 lessons: one grammar-focused and one conversation- and culture-focused. The course includes 30 original conversations and 30 sets of relevant, kid-appropriate grammar activities. It also includes 18 culture topics and 1600 lexical items. A paired Spanish version is also available, which includes an additional 5-6 lessons per unit focusing on basic English vocabulary.

Intermediate Materials

Intermediate Conversations in English

For intermediate-level English learners, this course leverages a series of authentic dialogues that will prepare learners for life in an English-speaking country. 39 skill-building, conversational lessons focus on 10 themes, including landing a job and finding a home. This is an immersion style course, available only in English (with no paired languages).

English in Context

There will always be something fresh to learn thanks to these new monthly lessons covering a variety of topics, from science and technology to current events and American culture. These lessons are made for intermediate and advanced learners, as they draw upon existing English knowledge and the use of contextual clues to learn new vocab and grammar concepts.

Low-Intermediate Conversations in English

Another dialogue-based course for intermediate, this extensive 27 unit course challenges learners to a higher level of reading comprehension and speaking abilities. The units are organized around 15 day-to-day themes such as going to the gym or shopping at the grocery store and include a dialogue, grammar topic, and vocabulary selection. This course is a full-immersion English course with no paired languages.

Advanced Materials

Advanced Conversations in English

The Advanced Conversations in English courses are the most advanced materials among our English offerings. They were created for advanced English learners, from high school to professionals, who are interested in business and medical topics and want to work with more complex texts, speech patterns, and cultural nuances. Learners will be exposed to and asked to interact with business language in the form of reports, presentations, negotiations, telephone conversations, emails, blogs, websites, and more within three main topics: Medical, Finance, and Sales & Marketing.

Business English

100+ lessons covering practical business topics will get English learners off on the right foot in their new career. Business English is available as a paired language course for speakers of Spanish, Mandarin, and Turkish.

American Citizenship Test Prep Course

Created with the input of ESL professionals and public librarians, our American Citizenship Test prep course is designed with the goal of preparing test takers to comfortably answer all 100 civics questions. More than that, the course is intended to truly teach learners about the American government, history, and culture, including key vocabulary words.

Find a library near you that offers Transparent Language Online. None close by? Print this info card and bring it to your local librarians to let them know you’re interested, or sign up for the free trial!

Want to offer Transparent Language Online in your library? Learn more here!