Exiting ELL Status / Exit Criteria:

A student may exit ELL status according to the following criteria:

• Grades K-2: Scoring at the Commanding (Proficient) Level on the NYSESLAT

• Grades 3-8: Scoring at the Expanding (Advanced) Level on the NYSESLAT, and 3 or above on the NYS English Language Arts assessment in the same school year

• Grades 9-12: Scoring at the Expanding (Advanced) Level on the NYSESLAT and 65 or above on the Regents Exam in English

Monitoring Continuous Growth

The Rochester City School District’s Department of Multilingual Education (DOME) is committed to monitoring the academic progress of ELLs who have exited its alternative language programs, by using the following methods:

• Implementing automatic indicators within the district’s student database system to identify Commanding ELLs. These indicators classify Commanding Year-One and Commanding Year-Two students, which allow schools to plan for and monitor all exited ELLs during the two-year extended service period as mandated in CR Part 154

• Providing integrated co-taught classes in all core content areas for Commanding ELLs during the two years of extended services. This includes the minimum of a .5 unit of study per week (90 minutes) in a core content area class and ensuring that all testing accommodations offered to ELLs (i.e. extended time, alternate location, and access to NYSED approved bilingual glossaries) are also available to Commanding level students.

RCSD MONITORING OF ELL COMMANDING STUDENTS YEAR 1 AND 2

• RCSD has created an additional system for monitoring the academic progress of exited ELL students consisting of an informational card to be placed in the student’s CUM (cumulative) folder to record student progress.

• When a student has achieved a Former Limited English Proficient (FLEP) date as determined by NYSED, the ENL teacher will fill out the Exited ELL Monitoring Card (EEMC) located on the Department of Multilingual Education’s website.

• When an ENL teacher receives a Commanding level student, an ELL who has successfully reached the ELL exit criteria, the ENL teacher will begin monitoring by filling out the Exited ELL Monitoring Card (EEMC) and keep track of the students throughout the year.

• The EEMC document will be updated every 5 weeks by the ENL teacher with the student’s current grades, academic achievement score, and test scores to ensure that the student is maintaining appropriate language and academic progress. If a student is not showing progress, the ENL teacher will refer the student to the school’s Problem-Solving Team (RTI or, AIS team). They will discuss and assess the individual needs of the student to plan steps for interventions or other appropriate progress monitoring processes. These may include providing more than the minimum of the .5 units of study needed to improve language and academic outcomes for the student, and may include re-entry into the alternative language program if the student demonstrates a need for additional English language instruction. Academic Intervention teams in every school are responsible for keeping documentation in the student’s cum folder regarding the type, frequency, and progress achieved by each student receiving intervention services.

• Please be advised, a Former ELL can remain in a bilingual education program and continue to receive ENL and Home Language Arts instruction if the parents and the district/school deem it is educationally appropriate. For additional guidance, please refer to the NYSED guidance for servicing Former /Commanding ELLs.