Educating Students with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) and English Language Learners (ELL) Leonard Shurin, Curriculum and Staff Developer for IU8

ESL Statues and Regulations 22 Pa Code Chapter 4§4.26 Basic Education Circular (BEC)—July 1, 2001 Civil Rights Acts of 1964

ESL Statues and Regulations Improving America’s Schools Act (IASA) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Equal Education Opportunity Act of 1974

ESL Statues and Regulations Supreme Court Cases – Plyler v. Doe 1982 – Castañeda v. Pickard 1981 – Lau v. Nichols 1974

Plyer v. Doe The 14 th Amendment prohibits states from denying a free public education to undocumented immigrant children regardless of their immigrant status.

Castañeda v. Pickard The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals formulated a test to determine school district compliance with the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of The three-part test includes theory, practice and results.

Lau v. Nichols 1974 Equality of educational opportunity is not achieved by merely providing all students with “the same facilities, textbooks, teachers and curriculum; for students who do not understand English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education.” A school district cannot be allowed to compromise a student’s right to meaningful education before proficiency in English is obtained.

Out of Compliance? Office of Civil Rights Education Law Center – 11 PA school districts sued in court – All eleven lost – Administrators/teachers loss of credentials – Monetary damages ranging up to millions of dollars – 3 year daily monitoring by OCR

ESL Terms LEP ESL/ESOL ELL Bilingual Education

School District/Charter School Responsibilities School Board Policy Statement Revision of Strategic Plan ESL Professional Education Plan Home Language Survey

Components of an ESL Program Compliant with Castañeda Test Based on sound educational and language learning theory Appropriately prepared personnel and sufficient resources Periodic evaluations

Program Planning Written procedures Assessment procedures Equal access

ESL Written Procedures Enrollment requirements Home Language Survey (HLS)—OCR LEP definition – Every Child – PHLOTE Program goals

ESL Curriculum and Instruction Required program for eligible students Scheduled daily instructional time Language Arts replacement Placement in content areas Accommodations/grading options Collaboration time between ESL and classroom teachers Graduation requirements

Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills are language skills needed in social situations. – Day-to-day language needed to interact socially – ELLS employ BIC skills on playground, in lunch room, on school bus, on phone – Not demanding cognitively – Language is not specialized – Skills develop within six months

Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP) Academic language acquisition used in listening, speaking, reading, and writing about subject area content material. – Essential for success in school – Usually takes from five to seven years to become proficient – Context reduced – Includes skills such as comparing, classifying, synthesizing, evaluating, and inferring – New ideas, concepts and language are presented at the same time

Types of Instruction that DO NOT Replace Basic ESL Instruction Tutoring Speech Therapy Reading Specialist Content Area Instruction by ESL teacher

ESL Teacher’s Responsibility The ESL teacher’s responsibility is to teach English, reading, writing, speaking, and listening to students who are not English proficient. ESL is a core subject, the same as English, science, math, etc. It is not the job of the ESL teacher to tutor ESL students in other core subject areas.

Classroom Teachers MUST Adapt Instruction to Meet Student Needs Content rich instruction Rephrasing Simplified language load Illustrations/pictures Intense vocabulary development Group work Collaboration with ESL teacher

Professional Development/Staffing Instructional I or II certificate Appropriate training to teach ESL Appropriate training for content area teachers

ESL Program Specialist The ESL program specialist is a highly skilled and highly trained teacher. By September 1, 2004, every school district in Pennsylvania must have an ESL program specialist on staff. The above requirement must be met whether the district has ELLs or not. Experience as an English or foreign language teacher DOES NOT meet the requirements.

“I Can’t Speak a Foreign Language” ESL teachers and content area teachers do not need to speak any foreign languages to teach ESL. ESL is designed to be taught to any student who is not proficient in English without resorting to the native language.

Assessment Procedures ENTRY – Home Language Survey – English language proficiency (Woodcock Munoz, IDEA Proficiency test) – Prior academic achievement – Appropriate instructional placement

Assessment Procedures ACHIEVEMENT – Multiple measures—formative assessments – Standardized testing—participation and accommodation – PSSA

Assessment Procedures EXIT – English language proficiency (reading, writing, speaking, listening) – Academic achievement – Appropriate instructional placement

Culture Shock Students will go through four distinct phases of culture shock. – Phase two: Silent period/distress – Phase one: Euphoria – Phase three: Recovery – Phase four: Total acculturation

Phase Two Culture Shock Most important phase to teachers – May last one year – Student reactions – Silent period – Physical ailments – Mental distress – Possible acting out in class

Equal Access Academic Opportunities

Equal Access Extra-curricular activities

Other Student Needs Migrant Education Special Education Career and Technical Education Federal and other programs Limited Formal Schooling (LFS)

Parent Communication Requirements Translation/interpretation services – Preferred language of parent Required Annual Orientation to the Program (OCR) Frequency equal to regular education communications

Parent Communication Requirements MUST provide information about: – Basic school information – Related issues – Program description – Content area classes – Attendance and homework policies

Parent Communication Requirements MUST provide information about: – Assessment – Academic Achievement – Special programs

Funding Local funds for basic ESL instruction Supplemental funding in addition to basic program: – Title I – Title VII – Other federal categorical grants RECOMMENDATION: Districts must budget annually for ESL services whether they have ESL students or not.