Edison is proud to offer the New Jersey State Seal of Biliteracy program. The Seal of Biliteracy certifies that the student has demonstrated proficiency in both English and another language. The Seal of Biliteracy is recognized by the NJDOE and will be noted on the student's transcript.

Class of 2024

Edison is proud to recognize 105 students who have earned the Seal of Biliteracy. These include current ELLs. Congratulations!

Class of 2023

Edison is proud to recognize 77 students who have earned the Seal of Biliteracy. Congratulations!

Class of 2022

Edison is proud to recognize 109 students who have earned the Seal of Biliteracy. These include current ELLs. Congratulations!

Class of 2021

Edison is proud to recognize 40 students who have earned the Seal of Biliteracy in French and Spanish. This includes 1 junior and 39 seniors. Congratulations!

Class of 2020

Edison is proud to recognize 85 graduating seniors who have earned the Seal of Biliteracy in 4 languages. These include 20 current/past ELLs. Congratulations!

History

The Seal of Biliteracy was an initiative started by Californians Together in 2008 to acknowledge and award hardworking bilingual and multilingual students. In 2011, it officially became legislation in California and now multiple states throughout the nation have implemented a statewide Seal of Biliteracy. On January 19, 2016, New Jersey became the 16th state to implement a legislated statewide Seal of Biliteracy. By achieving the Seal of Biliteracy, students demonstrate that they are able to speak, read, listen and write in two or more languages at a high level of proficiency.

Today, the Seal of Biliteracy is offered and recognized in 44 states and in the District of Columbia.

General Information

The State Seal of Biliteracy is a designation from the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) identifying graduating high school students who are able to demonstrate proficiency in English in addition to one or more languages.

Encourage students to study languages
Certify attainment of biliteracy
Provide employers with a method of identifying people with language and biliteracy skills
Provide universities with a method to recognize and award academic credit to applicants seeking admission
Prepare students with 21st century skills
Recognize and promote second language instruction in public schools
Strengthen intergroup relationships, affirm the value of diversity, and honor the multiple cultures and language of a community

NJ State Seal of Biliteracy

Students must meet the below two criteria in order to earn the NJ DOE Seal of Biliteracy:

Demonstrate proficiency in English by meeting English language arts graduation requirements (or attained the appropriate cut score on the ACCESS for ELLs assessment in the case of ELLs)

AND

Demonstrate a linguistic proficiency level of at least INTERMEDIATE-MID (IM) according to the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines, or demonstrated a level deemed equivalent to IM for languages such as ASL or Native American languages.

Eligibility

Seniors who have completed or who are enrolled in an an AP language class may take a proficiency assessment in that language to determine whether they are eligible to graduate with the Seal of Biliteracy.

Seniors enrolled in or exited from the ESL program may take a proficiency assessment in their home/native language to determine whether they are eligible to graduate with the Seal of Biliteracy.

FAQs

How do I know if I am eligible?
The assessment must be taken no sooner than 2nd semester of your junior year to count for the Seal of Biliteracy. Edison will also require that you are enrolled in or completed the AP course in the language you are studying. If you are a heritage speaker of a language other than those offered in the Edison schools or if you are / were in the ESL program, your ESL teacher can help you make the determination.
How much does it cost to take the test for the Seal of Biliteracy?
The Edison Board of Education has graciously covered the cost of testing for all students who elected to self-nominate in previous years and we are hopeful that will continue.
Can I take the test in more than one language?
Possibly. Please reach out to Dr. Ruggiero and/or Mr. Lad.
How long does it take to get the results?
Complete results are typically available in 1-2 weeks. You will receive notification of your scores once they are available for all test takers.
How are students recognized?
The NJDOE sends certificates in early June that are distributed at Graduation along with diplomas. In addition, the district will provide a local recognition, including a notation on student transcripts as soon as students meet the required criteria above.
How do I prepare for the assessment? Can I practice?
The AAPPL offers demo assessments in many languages and the ALIRA offers a sample test in Latin.
How do I register?
It has been decided that students will self-nominate if they meet the criteria. See below for more information

Nomination/Selection Process

Students interested in participating in the assessment to earn the Seal of Biliteracy must be able to answer "yes" to the following questions to complete the self-nomination form that follows.

Are you a senior at either Edison High School or JP Stevens High School?
Do you wish to obtain the Seal of Biliteracy in a language program offered by the Edison Public Schools (French, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, or Spanish)? [Contact your language/ESL teacher and/or Dr. Ruggiero/Mr. Lad below if interested in another language.]
Have you continued your study of the language through at least the AP level?
Have you spoken to your language/ESL teacher about self-nominating?
Are you willing to pay for the assessment (at least $20) if the district does not pay for the test?

Self Nominate Here

Test Information

The Edison Public Schools uses assessments from Language Testing International to award the Seal of Biliteracy.: The AAPPL is used to test in French, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, and Spanish; and the ALIRA is used to test in Latin.

A score of 4 or higher on the Advanced Placement (AP) World Language and Culture exam may also be submitted as evidence of language proficiency. For more information, speak with your world language teacher and/or the department supervisor.

AAPPL

Assessment of Performance Toward Proficiency in Language

4 sections spanning 3 modes of communication:
- Interpersonal Listening & Speaking
- Presentational Writing
- Interpretive Reading & Listening
Adaptive, with multiple opportunities for performance
- Floor level (what the learner can do consistently)
- Ceiling level (what the learner cannot do at the next higher level)

ALIRA

ACTFL Latin
Interpretive Reading Assessment

1 section of 50 minutes
computer-adaptive assessment of Latin students' ability to read for comprehension a variety of Latin-language texts
One or two multiple-choice questions accompany each Latin text and assess understanding of main ideas, supporting details, point-of-view, inferences, or text purpose.

For More Information...

In World Languages, contact: In ESL, contact:

Dr. Frank Ruggiero Mr. Nirav Lad
Supervisor of World Languages - Secondary Supervisor of ESL & Elementary Spanish
Frank.Ruggiero@edison.k12.nj.us Nirav.Lad@edison.k12.nj.us

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Edison is proud to offer the New Jersey State Seal of Biliteracy program. The Seal of Biliteracy certifies that the student has demonstrated proficiency in both English and another language. ​The Seal of Biliteracy is recognized by the NJDOE and will be noted on the student's transcript.