States must administer an English language proficiency assessment to limited English proficient students in grades K through 12 in order to comply with the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 20 USC 6301 et seq. (2002). For the 2020-21 school year, the assessment administered for this purpose will be ACCESS for ELLs® through the WIDA Consortium. All students in grades K-12 who are determined to have limited English proficiency, based upon the completion of a Home Language Survey and the initial assessment of their English proficiency, must take ACCESS for ELLs® or Alternate ACCESS each spring. This includes those students whose parents have waived direct ESOL services. Students with limited English proficiency must continue to take ACCESS until they meet the requirements for full English proficiency as established by the Office of Federal and State Accountability.
For more information on the ACCESS for ELLs, please visit the South Carolina Department of Education website.