AEM2 Task 3 - Final

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Western Governors University *

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English

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Apr 3, 2024

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1 AEM2 Task 3: EL Program Proposal Lauren Cocke Delmon Moore December 21, 2023

2 AEM2 Task 3: EL Program Proposal 1. EL Program Justification West Oak Cove High School serves a total of 1,256 students, and of those students, 752 are English learners (EL). This means that 60% of West Oak Cove are English learning students. According to Zacarian (2012), "the term 'limited English proficient', when used concerning an individual, means an individual who was not born in the United States or whose native language is a language other than English, who is Native American or Alaska Native, or a native resident of the outlying areas, who comes from an environment where a language other than English has had a significant impact on the individual's level of English language proficiency, or who is migratory and whose native language is a language other than English" (Zacarian, p. 6, 2012). With this definition, 60% of West Oak Cove's student population primarily speaks a language other than English. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) addresses federal policies that regulate the language instruction educational programs for EL students (Zacarian, 2012). "The language instruction education program must be a placement for a limited English proficient child to develop and attain English proficiency, while meeting challenging State academic content and student academic achievement standards, and may make instructional use of both English and the child's native language to enable the child to develop and attain English proficiency" (Zacarian, p. 11, 2012). This federal definition of the EL program means "that every local school district must provide its English learners with instruction in English language development while simultaneously ensuring that students are held to the same educational standards and outcomes as their English fluent peers" (Zacarian, p. 11, 2012). Additional federal regulations regarding ELs stem from several Supreme Court cases such as Keyes v. Denver, Lau v. Nichols, and Castaneda v. Pickard. "In 1973, Keyes v. Denver, the Supreme Court ruled that

3 English learners could not be segregated from their English fluent peers" (Zacarian, p. 10, 2012). An EL program at West Oak Cove will consist of ELs receiving accommodations in improving their English proficiency but will still participate in the general education classroom and be expected to also show growth and mastery in the same educational standards as their non-EL peers. In Lau v. Nichols of 1974, "the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that school districts must take the steps needed to provide ELs with an instructional program in which they can be given equal access to an education" (Zacarian, p. 10, 2012). Lastly, in Castaneda v. Pickard of 1978, the "Supreme Court ruled that districts must establish a three-prong test for ensuring that their educational program for ELs is consistent with a student's right to an education. The three prongs require the educational program to be based on sound educational research, implemented with adequate commitment and resources, and evaluated and proven to be effective" (Zacarian, p. 10, 2012). Federal regulations within the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and ESEA of 1968 are clear in that all school districts are to provide their English learners with an EL program to increase their English language proficiency in addition to incorporating the standard academic curriculum all students are provided. 2. EL Program Description The proposed EL program for West Oak Cove School will be compliant with both state and federal regulations and serve all English learner students to assist them in reaching English proficiency and will follow all guidelines for administering and reporting assessments and their results. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, no student will be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, or national origin. This means that no student will be denied access to education because of a language minority student's limited proficiency in English. Because of this, all students enrolled at West Oak Cove will have a completed Home Language Survey

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4 (HLS) in their permanent record. All students who have a language other than English on their HLS must be screened and tested to determine English proficiency. "By Subsection 3302 of The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the HLS, assessment, and parent notification of child identification as EL must be completed within the first thirty days of the start of the school year, and within two weeks for students that enroll during any other time during the school year" (Zacarian, p. 7, 2012). The World Class Instructional Design Assessment (WIDA) screener will be used to identify eligible English learners by administering an English language proficiency assessment (University of Wisconsin – Madison, 2023). The WIDA screener will also provide proficiency level scores for each student to utilize when preparing and planning differentiated accommodations. The most important component of an EL program is first hiring EL teachers. For West Oak Cove, I am recommending hiring two qualified EL teachers who will split the EL caseload in half, allowing for approximately 375 students per teacher. The EL teachers will implement the WIDA screeners and ensure all eligible students receive services and accommodations. ELs with more than one domain score or a composite score below 3.5 on the WIDA ACCESS will receive one to two hours of direct ESL service per day. The time outside of this 1-2 hour direct service the student will remain in the general education classroom. The EL teacher with support from the administration will provide classroom instructional accommodations such as assigning the EL student a willing classroom partner in each of their classes. This partner will assist the new student in learning important school locations and classroom rules and procedures. Additional classroom accommodations include modifying work and making accommodations in assessment when needed, allowing the student to use a bilingual dictionary, using visuals and demonstrations, and printing keywords or ideas on the board. This could look like allowing the

5 student to use notes, shorten spelling lists, shorten tests, or reduce the reading and writing burden. Additional guidelines for classroom teachers to assist ELs include learning about the student's background, allowing ELs with limited speaking, reading, and writing abilities to help more with classroom tasks, incorporating ELs in learning groups to assist in grasping the social and academic language and develop peer relationships, sitting these students at the front or middle of the room, use concrete objects and pictures as much as possible, and positive reinforcement to encourage confidence and motivation in the EL student's learning. In addition to collaboration with classroom teachers and stakeholders, the EL teacher will be responsible for implementing the EL program instructional services. This includes the direct time spent with ELs either in an individual or small group setting for a set amount of time per day. The proposal for West Oak Cove is to utilize WIDA's English Language Development Standards Framework, 2020 Edition: Kindergarten-Grade 12. "The mission of WIDA is to advance academic language development and academic achievement for children and youth who are culturally and linguistically diverse through high-quality standards, assessments, research, and professional learning for educators" (WIDA, 2020). The EL teachers at West Oak will utilize this framework to ensure the EL program maximizes language development by focusing on grade-specific information and standards. The skills and topics that the EL teacher is focusing on during individual or small group sessions will be communicated to classroom teachers to ensure that the student's learning is being reinforced in multiple areas. As the students master the standard, they will then move to the next, continuing until total mastery is demonstrated. The EL teachers will be responsible for progress monitoring of their EL students, and reporting of progress to the local and state agencies. "Title I and Title III of the ESSA require every English learner to participate in annual statewide assessments in English language proficiency,

6 reading/language arts, and mathematics" (Zacarian, p. 13, 2012). EL teachers will administer WIDA's ACCESS for ELLs, which "meets the U.S. federal requirements under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) for monitoring and reporting ELs' progress toward English language proficiency, and tests students' language in the four domains of listening, reading, speaking, and writing" (WIDA, 2020). This progress monitoring, according to federal law, shall continue for two years after they demonstrate proficiency in English (Zacarian, 2012). One of the most critical components of incorporating an EL program for the 60% of English learners at West Oak is the collaboration between all stakeholders. The responsibility of leading the EL students to English proficiency does not fall solely on the EL teachers. It takes consistent and open communication between teachers, administration, students, and parents or caregivers, to ensure that the student is being supported in their English language development in all areas of their life. It can be overwhelming for an EL student to immerse themselves, especially in high school, in a culture that is not their own. Our EL students must be supported and encouraged, provided a safe space to ask questions and feel included in the culture of the school. 3. EL Program Implementation The first step in implementing the new EL program is hiring two EL teachers for West Oak Cove. To provide a comprehensive EL program that is student-specific, differentiated to meet the needs of the diverse student population, and appropriately assess and monitor student progress, EL teachers are imperative. To successfully implement an EL program at West Oak Cove, human resourcing needs include the hiring of appropriate personnel, approval of the protocol for implementation of this program, and approval of any guidelines, handbooks, and monitoring the EL program for compliance with local, state, and federal laws, policies, and regulations. After hiring of the appropriate personnel, the second step is the professional

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7 development of all faculty and staff, not just EL teachers. "As educators serving this diverse population, we need to know the laws, policies, and regulations governing the education of English learners so that we understand what we are required to do. We also need to be able to explain these requirements to our students, their parents, our colleagues (both teachers and administrators), and the community in ways that are meaningful and accessible" (Zacarian, p.4, 2012). I would advocate for all faculty and staff at West Oak Cove to participate in the Scaffolding Learning through Language Webinar Series, a professional development webinar series that "provides educators with a fresh look at how to engage multilingual learners in rigorous content area learning with a balance of challenge and support" (WIDA, 2020). It is imperative to program implementation and teacher collaboration that all faculty and staff members are appropriately trained on classroom accommodations to best assist ELs in their time at school. It is unacceptable for a teacher to simply ignore an EL student and neglect their right to a free and appropriate public education due to a language barrier. Thankfully, federal laws such as "The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) support EL students in their language development as well as teachers holding EL students to the same educational standards and their English fluent peers" (Zacarian, p. 11, 2012). Professional Development provides classroom teachers the tools to help hold EL students to the same standards. After ensuring that all faculty and staff receive appropriate development in serving EL students, specifically the 752 EL students currently at West Oak Cove School, and the school board has approved the implementation of the EL program, the next step is to communicate the EL program plan to all stakeholders. This may take place at the next local board meeting, which is open to the public, and afterward allow time for parent questions or concerns to be addressed. Open communication on new policies and programs is crucial when thinking about stakeholder

8 buy-in and support. With an EL program, it is especially important to emphasize parental and family involvement in the development of their student's English proficiency. Once the school year begins, West Oak Cove will distribute to all its high school students, a Home Language Survey (HLS). This is a universal screener that is given to all students to assist in identifying who should be assessed in identifying English learners. Home Language Surveys will not be the sole means of identifying English learners, the school will also use parent and student interviews and teacher input (Zacarian, 2012). Materials and resources needed for the initial survey include a district universal HLS that is cohesive for all families, but available in a variety of languages. For West Oak Cove High School, the HLS should be made available in Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, and Mandarin to suffice all of the languages represented in the EL students. Additionally, a "referral form" should be created for teachers to easily communicate with the EL teachers if they have a concern about a student in their classroom who might qualify for EL services. This streamlined approach will help to ensure that all students are provided the resources and accommodations needed to be successful, without any students slipping under the radar. According to the ESEA, the school has thirty days to inform parents that their student has been identified as an English learner (Zacarian, 2012). A uniform district-standard letter to inform parents of the identification is another material that will be needed for this program. After students have been identified and parents informed, the WIDA Screener is the next step to be implemented in the EL program. When it comes to accessing a WIDA account, funding is imperative. According to Villegas (2023), "Funding for ELs is provided through the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965, most recently reauthorized in 2015 through the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), and by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Refugee Support Services Formula Allocation" (Villegas, 2023). This allocated

9 funding to the local education agency (LEA) of West Oak will be used to fund the professional development, curriculum, and materials used through WIDA. "Title II and Title III both provide grants to state and local education agencies to provide professional development for teachers as well as for programs to help ensure ELs attain English proficiency" (Villegas, 2023). The final and continual step in the EL program is program implementation on a day-to- day basis. This includes progress monitoring and reassessment of EL students and intervention with EL students based on their current level of English proficiency. Some students may require one to two hours of instruction with the EL teacher, while others may require a lower level of intervention that does not require any time away from the general education classroom. This differentiated approach is to provide students with the appropriate education needed in the least restrictive environment. The EL teachers will use WIDA Standards and Framework to base their curriculum around, which would also be funded by the grants provided under ESSA. WIDA is a comprehensive program that school districts can go to for any materials and resources for their EL program. Each of these steps is supported by the federal laws within ESSA and the Civil Rights Laws that require all LEAs and federal agencies to provide English learners with the tools to reach English proficiency in a non-discriminatory setting. No matter what language they speak natively, all English learners have a right to a free appropriate public education, and most importantly, to feel welcomed and encouraged in their efforts to learn the English language. The EL program is not a stagnant, one-time effort to better support EL students. This program is designed to grow and adapt as our students do. The mission of this program is to narrow the achievement gap between native English speakers and English Language Learners and to support families in their academic success and cultural integration.

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10 References University of Wisconsin - Madison. (2023). Proven tools and support to help educators and multilingual learners succeed . WIDA. https://wida.wisc.edu/ Villegas, L. (2023, March 9). English learner funding equity and adequacy in K–12 education . New America. https://www.newamerica.org/education-policy/briefs/english-learner- funding-equity-and-adequacy-in-k12-education/#:~:text=Federal%20Funding%20for %20English%20Learners,Services%20Formula%20Allocation.%5B6%5D Western Governors University. (2015). Chapter 5: Tools and Resources for Creating an Inclusive Environment for Avoiding Unnecessary Segregation of English Learners. U.S. Department of Education. https://wgu-nx.acrobatiq.com/en-us/courseware/page/wgu_D018_31Jan23_leading_inclu sive_school_v3_1/wbp_current_issues_affecting_el_students WIDA. (2020). WIDA English language development standards framework, 2020 edition: Kindergarten–grade 12 . Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System. Zacarian, D. (2012). Serving English Learners: Law, Policies, and Regulations . Colorin Colorado. https://lrps.wgu.edu/provision/172008244

AEM2 Task 3 - Final

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