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The objective for
our ELL students is that they will develop proficiency in English rapidly and
effectively as possible and they will keep up academically with their English
Only peers. We provide English Language Development (Language Acquisition)
instruction and access to the District's challenging core curriculum to all
English Language Learners
SPUSD has a dual obligation to our ELL
students. First, to provide meaningful access to grade-level academic content via
appropriate instruction and second, to develop academic English language
proficiency.
What services are available to help students learning
English as a Second language?
English Language Development (ELD) is a specific method of teaching in
English to build vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency in the English
language. Classroom teachers work with groups of students who have limited
English language proficiency as appropriate to each child’s level of
proficiency.
Specially Designed Academic Instruction
in English (SDAIE) is a specific method of teaching grade-level content (i.e.
social studies, science, math, etc.) that helps English as second language
learners to master the California
content Standards.
All classroom teachers in SPUSD are required to have special training and to
practice SDAIE teaching strategies with English learners in their regular
education classes. This training
includes research-based information about the needs of their students
learning English as a second language, as well as strategies to assist
students in understand the content they are learning in academic coursework.
How are results from the CELDT reported and used?
One of five levels of English proficiency is reported from the results of the
California English Language Development Test (CELDT) in the areas of
listening/speaking, reading, and writing:
- Beginning
- Early Intermediate
- Intermediate
- Early Advanced, and
- Advanced
Children are tested on the CELDT upon entering SPUSD and
then annually thereafter to assess English language proficiency and
individual progress over the years. Parents are given the results of these
tests within 30 days of their receipt from the scoring service.
The CELDT as well as other measures (grades observations, classroom work
samples, and standardized tests, etc.) are used to determine the child’s
class placement. Teachers, parents, and administrators work together in
making important educational program decisions.
English Language Advisory Committee
All parents of English learners are welcome to participate in their school
site and District level English Language Advisory Councils. These groups
provide valuable input for ongoing program improvement. They additionally
receive information about curriculum, instruction, program evaluation, and
budget. For more information contact your school site.
How schools decide eligibility for services?
California
requires all parents to complete a Home Language Survey when registering
children for school. The survey asks:
- What language did this
student learn when first beginning to talk?
- What language do you use most
frequently to speak to this student?
- What language does this
student most frequently use at home?
- What language do adults speak
at home most often?
If the answer to the first three questions on the survey
is a language other than English, the child must take the California English
Language Development Test (CELDT) as well as other measures to determine the
child’s English proficiency level. By law, a parent cannot opt their child
out of this testing.
What does the CELDT Measure?
Only trained examiners administer the CELDT to test listening and speaking in
grades K-1. In grades 2 through 12, the test additionally evaluates reading
and writing. The CELDT measures mastery of the California English Language
Development standards that may be found at this website:
http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/pn/
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