According to the World-Class Instructional Design Assessment (WIDA), an organization that Minnesota is a part of, SLIFE or Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education are defined as follows:
Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE) is an umbrella term used to describe a diverse subset of the English language learner population who share several unifying characteristics. SLIFE usually are new to the U.S. school system and have had interrupted or limited schooling opportunities in their native country. They have limited backgrounds in reading and writing in their native language(s) and are below grade level in most academic skills. Students who have these characteristics could be refugees, migrant students, or any student who experienced limited or interrupted access to school for a variety of reasons, such as poverty, isolated geographic locales, limited transportation options, societal expectations for school attendance, a need to enter the workforce and contribute to the family income, natural disasters, war, or civil strife.
In addition to the above definition in Minnesota, under guidance of the Learning English for Academic Proficiency and Success Act, in order for a student to be qualified as a Student with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education they must meet three of the following five requirements as provided by the Minnesota Department of Education
Comes from a home where the language usually spoken is other than English, or who usually speaks a language other than English.
Enters the United States after grade 6
Has at least two years less schooling than the English learner’s peers.
Functions at least two years below expected grade level in reading and mathematics.
May be preliterate in the English learner’s native language.