District Overview
Mission Statement
Every child regardless of where they were born, their socioeconomic status, race, or gender, deserves access to quality education. As educators, it is our responsibility to equip students with the tools necessary to be successful in their attainment of that education.
The purpose of the Greenwood School District 50 is to ensure learning for all members of the school community. The Greenwood School District 50 seeks to provide every child, regardless of national origin or native language, quality and meaningful educational instruction. Consequently, students who are English Learners (ELs), or Multilingual Learners (ML), are provided additional instructional services through the English Language Development Program (or ESOL) designed to meet their unique needs.
This website was created with guidance from South Carolina Department of Education, Office of State and Federal Accountability, Multilingual Education, and is based on “English to Speakers of Other Languages Guiding Principles 2021–22” from the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE).
Definition of English Learners (ELs) and Multilingual Learner Distinction
ESSA defines an “English learner” as an individual who, among other things, has difficulties in speaking, reading, writing or understanding English language that may be sufficient enough to deny him or her the ability to meet challenging state academic standards. The federal government classifications are listed below.
An EL is a student age 3-21, who is enrolled (or is about to enroll) in a U.S. elementary or secondary school and meets these two requirements:
A. Belongs to one of the following categories:
1. Was not born in the United States or whose native language is a language other than English and who comes from an environment where a language other than English is dominant;
2. Is a Native American, Alaska Native, or native resident of outlying areas and comes from an environment where language other than English has had a significant impact on the individual’s level of English language proficiency;
3. Is migratory, speaks a native language other than English, and comes from an environment where language other than English is dominant.
B. May be unable, because of difficulties in speaking, reading, writing, or understanding the English language, to:
1. Score at the proficient level on state assessments of academic achievement; or
2. Learn successfully in classrooms that have language of instruction in English;
3. Participate fully in society.
As part of the WIDA Consortium which is dedicated to the research, design and implementation of a high-quality, culturally and linguistically appropriate system to support English language learners in K-12 contexts, Greenwood 50 embraces WIDA’s Can Do Philosophy which highlights the assets that your students have developed in their homes and communities, including their languages, cultures, experiences, and social-emotional resources. WIDA 2020 Guiding Principles
Linguistically and culturally diverse learners, in particular, bring a unique set of assets that have the potential to enrich the experiences of all learners and educators. As these young children and students learn additional languages, educators can draw on these assets for the benefit of both the learners themselves and for everyone in the community.
By focusing on what language learners can do, we send a powerful message that students from diverse linguistic, cultural, and experiential backgrounds contribute to the vibrancy of our early childhood programs and K–12 schools. Thus, we will often refer to our students as multilingual learners (MLs). The term ML embodies the shared core values of diversity and inclusion, which are integral parts of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate.
English_ML Terminology Document.docxSpanish_ML Terminology Document.docx