People who have had formal education in their first language learn a second language faster than those without. This can result in differentiation among students in their speed and rates of success in remedial English programs. This is evident between students with interrupted formal education in their home countries and those who had the resources to attend quality schools1 but also between international students and resident immigrant students2 (and what is sometimes described as “eye learners” and “ear learners”3). It is one of several forms of social capital that help students navigate higher education. Within remedial English for Academic Purposes classrooms, students with weaker educational backgrounds may be simultaneously trying to learn assumed academic skills in addition to the explicitly taught language skills.