Policy number: 8.206
Title: Admission of ESL students
Effective date: June 2007
Approved date: June 2007
Supercedes: New
Dated:
The policy intends:
to make the admissions process a positive, non-threatening one for ESL parents and students alike
to offer parents advance information about the ESL programme at FIS
to offer parents information about how they can prepare their child for entry to FIS
to offer students information on how they can prepare themselves for entry
to make a reliable provisional placement recommendation
to ensure that procedures for arranging placement testing are known and followed by all concerned (admissions officer, counsellors, secretaries, ESL teachers)
to ensure that the final placement decision is as accurate as possible
to ensure that no ESL student is admitted to whom we are unable to offer a suitable program
An ESL applicant will be defined as one who, a) does not have English as one of his home languages, or, b) has not attended an English-medium school for at least four years, or, c) has not exited an ESL program at his former school.
Application and placement procedure
The documentation sent out by the admissions office will contain a request that ESL applicants submit a writing sample, when developmentally appropriate, to be done under teacher supervision.
When the documentation is returned to FIS, it is sent with the writing sample to the counsellor, flagged with the need for ESL testing. (In the ES, this will be sent directly to the ESL department.) The counsellor will alert the ESL department. A provisional placement recommendation can then be made – in advance of the formal placement testing which is carried out when the child arrives at FIS.
The formal placement testing will be developmentally appropriate. In most cases, it will determine proficiency levels in reading, writing, speaking and listening.
Admission is provisional until the ESL department, among other interested parties, confirms that a suitable programme can be offered to the child after formal testing procedures have been completed.
The ESL tester(s), in consultation with the ESL department head, will determine the proficiency level of the applicant and either recommend, or not recommend, a placement to the principal and admissions’ office.
Additional assistance to parents
After the initial application process, the school must stress the need for parents to arrange for testing before the orientation period of the new academic year. The admissions documentation will contain a reference to the FIS website so that parents can inform themselves at an early stage about the testing process etc. and know whom to contact should they have questions.
Restrictions
The school cannot guarantee admission to any ESL student if the above admissions procedures have not been carried out in a timely fashion and/or an ESL class is deemed to be full.
The optimal ESL class size will be between 7-9 students in beginners’ classes and between 11-13 students in intermediate and advanced classes.