Assessing English Learners

Assessing English Learners

Upon receipt of an initial referral of an English Learner, collaboration with the district’s Special Education department and the following guidance document should be used. 

Step 1: Immediately upon receipt of an initial referral of an English Learner (who has had less than five) years to acquire the English language), request a WMLS assessment be conducted. The District Bilingual/ESL Coordinator should be emailed and the request should be added to the cooresponding evaluation tracker tab.

Step 2: Once the WMLS results are received, collaborate with the SpEd department to determine the use of an interpreter or bilingual evaluator.

Data leads to bilingual evaluator:

The Director of Special Programs will put the campus diagnostician in contact with the bilingual evaluator. The campus diagnostician will then become the point of contact and will ensure the evaluator has all components of the initial referral. 

Data leads to interpreter: 

It is the responsibility of the campus diagnostician to collaborate with the interpreter to schedule the evaluation. 

Note - It will be the responsibility of the campus diagnostician to input the evaluation data into the eSpEd program. 

Language Dominance Assessment

The Woodcock-Muñoz Language Survey (WMLS III) is a norm-referenced measure of reading, writing, listening, and comprehension used to determine language dominance and proficiency. 

Further Information on the Use of Interpreters in the Assessment Process

“As practitioners we will never be perfectly in sync with the remarkably heterogeneous population that we serve. Instead, we must recognize our individual cultural and linguistic limitations and seek appropriate assistance. Both monolingual and bilingual practitioners who serve a diversity of students often require the assistance of interpreters during day-to-day activities.” (Assessing Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students: a Practical Guide Robert Rhodes-Salvador Ochoa-Samuel Ortiz - Guilford Press - 2005) 

• The interpreter should be fluent in English and the native language 

• Interpreters shall keep all assignment-related information strictly confidential

• Interpreters shall render the message faithfully, always conveying the content and spirit of the speaker; using language most readily understood by the person whom they serve

• Interpreters shall strive to further their knowledge and skills 

Further Information on Interpreting the C-LIM

The purpose of the C-LIM is to assess the impact of cultural and linguistic influences on test performance and whether the scores were primarily and comprehensively so affected. The C-LIM should be used anytime an identified student with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) is evaluated. 

• If there is an overall pattern of decline across all scores/cells AND if all scores/cells fall within or above the expected/shaded range, then the scores should be deemed invalid and no further meaning should be assigned--of course, such a pattern indicates that the individual's performance is within the "average" range as established by research on ELs who are not disabled and who are of average general ability. Thus, you can conclude, even with an "invalid" pattern, there is no basis for concluding there is anything cognitively and intrinsically wrong with the individual. They are average in all respects, regardless of the scores that were derived. Do not continue with XBASS Analysis.

• If there is no overall pattern of decline across all scores/cells (e.g., one of the scores/cells clearly doesn't follow the decline) OR if one of the scores/cells falls below the expected/shaded range, even if all others are in the range, then the scores should be deemed valid because cultural and linguistic factors cannot account or explain the overall pattern or entirety of the results obtained. In this case, you have peeled away the primary influence of culture and language (although in some cases these factors can be said to be at least "contributory" influences), but they are not sufficient to account for the pattern of results that were observed. Thus, they are valid and may be interpreted exactly as they would be for any other examinee--with the SOLE exception of Gc. Conduct XBASS Analysis for suspected SLD.

Further Information on Language Proficiency Levels

Continuing Development

• • An individual at the Continuing Development level has sufficient conversational proficiency to interact with others in day-to-day situations and is beginning to grasp academic language. Moderate instructional scaffolding in the classroom environment is needed for effective learning. In oral language, a Continuing Development level indicates that an individual's receptive and expressive skills are at a level sufficient for most context embedded conversations and discussions. The individual typically understands longer, more elaborate conversations and can initiate and sustain social conversation. His or her spoken language consists of complete, sometimes complex, sentences, although grammatical and pronunciation errors may still be evident. Language learners at this level sometimes superimpose the sound system, expressions, and language structures of their native language onto the second language. Although reading and writing skills are still below the level of average native-language age or grade peers, an individual at the Continuing Development level can comprehend and produce written language if the material has context-embedded cues and if background knowledge is provided. The individual can participate extensively in the classroom with moderate instructional scaffolding in language and academic content. Scaffolding methods at this level may include visual cues or realia; interactive grouping: graphic organizers, charts, and graphs; sentence frames stems to support writing: background knowledge to anchor the learning; content broken into manageable pieces; and instruction through different modalities.

Emerging Proficiency

• An individual at the Emerging Proficiency level demonstrates understanding of the specialized academic language required in the school setting but still requires some instructional scaffolding in the classroom environment for effective learning. In oral language, an Emerging Proficiency level indicates that an individual's receptive and expressive proficiency is near the level of average native-language peers. The individual typically understands the majority of elaborate classroom conversations. His or her spoken language consists of complete, and often complex, sentences. Grammatical and pronunciation errors are still evident, but his or her language is easily understandable. In reading and writing, an Emerging Proficiency level suggests that the individual can manage context-reduced, cognitively demanding classroom material when provided with instructional scaffolding. Scaffolding methods may include background knowledge to anchor learning, content broken into manageable pieces, and instruction through different modalities.

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