Let's Talk About... ESL

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 established the Language Minority Compliance Procedures, which require school districts, charter schools, and comprehensive career technical programs to identify ESL students. Additionally, Title III provides supplemental funds to local educational agencies to improve the education of ESL and immigrant children, assist them to learn English, and meet state academic content and achievement standards. The process for identification varies from state to state. This newsletter focuses on the Pennsylvania Department of Education's mandated process of identifying ESL students.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education most recently updated the identification procedure in 2023. The steps shown to the left must be followed with fidelity in order to meet federal compliance.

A note from the state: If a student is unable to complete the full screener (e.g. because of a disability or refusal), then the determination of EL status must be made based on the remaining available evidence gathered from the HLS, parent interview, and academic records review. If reasonable evidence of English proficiency cannot be established based on those sources along with the incomplete screener results, if any, then the student should be identified as an ESL.

https://www.education.pa.gov/Documents/Teachers-Administrators/Curriculum/ESL/ELL-Identification-Procedure%20K-12.docx

The home language survey is often the first indication that a student should be assessed for ESL services. It should be included in the enrollment packets of every student in the state of Pennsylvania. If a language other than English appears on the form, the ESL teacher for the district should be notified immediately. If only English is indicated on this form, yet it is known that the family speaks another language , school staff should contact the family in order to update the form to include all languages spoken in the home.

Home Language Survey Link:https://www.education.pa.gov/Documents/Teachers Administrators/Curriculum/ESL/Home%20Language%20Survey.docx

Although it is recommended that an ESL professional conduct the parent interview, any district-trained enrollment personnel may complete this step. A concerted effort should be made to provide an interpreter, as needed, for the interview. The language information obtained from both the Home Language Survey and Family Interview should be used to determine the need for ESL Identification assessment. The Family Interview document may be found by clicking on the following link: https://www.education.pa.gov/Documents/Teachers-Administrators/Curriculum/ESL/ELL-Identification-Procedure%20K-12.docx

If a student arrives with an IEP or is suspected of having a disability, then enrollment personnel must coordinate with Special Education staff to complete this procedure. If the student does not speak English, the district must either assess in the student's native language or provide an interpreter for the necessary assessments.

The student’s academic records from previous schooling should always be reviewed thoroughly. There must be compelling evidence that the student has sufficient English proficiency to benefit from instruction in English without ESL accommodations and services. If previous records are not available, then the ESL teacher should use WIDA data and alternative formal and informal assessments to help determine the student's language needs.

Pennsylvania uses the WIDA screener to ultimately determine if the student will qualify for ESL services. This assessment may only be administered by an ESL professional who has been trained to administer the WIDA screener. Score criteria has been established by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Please refer to the chart below.

The final step before determining placement and a plan of services is to determine if the student has been affected by interrupted education. The criteria for interrupted education is as follows:

• Enrolling after 2nd grade
• Literacy score less than 3.5 on a WIDA assessment
• 2 or fewer years of appropriate schooling or has been disenrolled in U.S. school to enroll outside of this country
• Limited encoding/decoding skills in the native language

If a student meets all of the above criteria, they should be coded as 06 in the PIMS system and a more intensive service plan should be developed.