THE CALIFORNIA ENGLISH LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT TEST (CELDT) Poway Unified School District

WHAT IS THE CELDT? The CELDT is a test of English language proficiency (Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing). It does NOT test a student’s knowledge of other content areas (math, science, etc.). It is a placement test to help us decide what instruction is best for the student.

WHO TAKES THE CELDT TEST? Federal and State laws require us to give the CELDT to all new students who have a language other than English in their home, based on their Home Language Survey.

WHAT ARE THE PURPOSES OF THE CELDT? The CELDT has three purposes: ◦ to let us know if a new student has enough social and academic English skills to be successful in our regular program without any extra help. This includes grade-level reading and writing skills. ◦ to let us know if a student is making enough progress in learning English each year ◦ to help us know when a student has learned enough social and academic English to be successful in our regular program without any extra help (reclassification)

HOW OFTEN DOES A STUDENT TAKE THE CELDT? We are required to give the CELDT to students when they first come to any public school in California. We are also required to give the CELDT once each year to all English learners. English learners continue to take the CELDT each year until they meet the state’s criteria for “proficient” in English.

HOW IS THE CELDT ADMINISTERED? Some parts of the test are given to one student at a time. Some parts are given to small groups of students. At grades K-1, all parts of the test are given to only one student at a time. All testers are trained each year to give and score the test. The K-1 test takes about minutes; the tests at grades 2-12 take a total of about 2 to 2½ hours.

WHAT IS TESTED IN THE LISTENING AND SPEAKING SECTIONS OF CELDT? Listening ◦ Following oral directions ◦ Extended listening comprehension (passage) ◦ Rhyming (grades K-2) ◦ Listening comprehension (short, school situation) Speaking ◦ Oral vocabulary ◦ Speech functions ◦ Choosing and giving reasons ◦ Four-picture narrative

WHAT IS TESTED IN THE READING AND WRITING SECTIONS OF CELDT? Reading ◦ Alphabet recognition (grades K-1) ◦ Word analysis ◦ Fluency and systematic vocabulary development ◦ Reading comprehension ◦ Literary analysis (grades 2-12) Writing ◦ Writing words (grades K-1) ◦ Grammar and structure (grades 2-12) ◦ Writing sentences (grades 2-12) ◦ Writing a short composition (grades 2-12)

HOW IS THE CELDT SCORED? Students receive a separate score for each part of the test (Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing), as well as an Overall (average) score. At grades K-1, the Overall score depends mostly on the Listening and Speaking scores. At grades 2-12, the Overall score is the average of the four separate scores.

WHAT ARE THE CELDT SCORE LEVELS? For each section of the CELDT and for the Overall score, students receive a scale score which is converted to a proficiency level. The five proficiency levels are: ◦ Advanced (level 5) ◦ Early Advanced (level 4) ◦ Intermediate (level 3) ◦ Early Intermediate (level 2) ◦ Beginning (level 1)

WHAT DO THE PROFICIENCY LEVELS MEAN? Based on State criteria: ◦ Students at grades 2-12 who score at Level 4 or 5 (Early Advanced or Advanced) on ALL parts of the CELDT are fluent enough in English to participate in the regular school program without extra services. ◦ Students who score at the Beginning, Early Intermediate, or Intermediate level on ANY part of CELDT would benefit from extra services through the English Learner Program and are identified as English Language Learners. ◦ For grades K-1, only the Listening, Speaking, and Overall scores are used for evaluating student performance.

HOW DO PARENTS RECEIVE THE CELDT SCORES? Students new to California: The school is required to hand-score the test for all new students and mail the results home to the parents. The tests are then sent to the testing company for “official” scoring. Parents will receive the scores from the testing company in about 8 weeks. Continuing English learners: The tests are sent to the testing company for scoring. Parents will receive their students’ scores through the mail about 8 weeks after testing.

HOW LONG WILL MY STUDENT CONTINUE TO TAKE THE ANNUAL CELDT TEST? According to State law, English learners must continue to take the CELDT until they reach an adequate level of English proficiency. These criteria include CELDT scores, CST state test scores, and teacher evaluation. Parents also have input on this “reclassification” process. Reclassified students and students initially identified as Fluent English Proficient do not take the CELDT again.

CAN PARENTS CHOOSE TO HAVE THEIR CHILD NOT TAKE THE CELDT TEST? No – Federal and State laws do not allow for “opt outs” from CELDT testing. However, parents may request that their child receive no “extra” services, outside of the regular classroom program.

ANY QUESTIONS?