ESL Program Manual
for School Personnel
Revised June 2016
Table of Contents
Responsibilities of the ESL Contact Person
The Role of the ESL Teacher
Background Information: Legal Decisions Impacting English Language Learners
Enrollment Procedures and Policies
Evaluating Student Progress and Promotion/Retention Guidelines
Program Goals
Program Placement
Service Delivery Model
Documentation
ESL Folder (Purple Folder)
The Personal Education Plan
Staffing
Supplemental Services
Parent Outreach
Translating/Interpreting
ESL Acronyms List with Definitions
Forms List and Links
ESL Resources: Translated Forms
Contact Information
Responsibilities of the ESL Contact Person
The ESL Contact Person’s role is to serve as a vital link between the ESL Department, ESL teachers, and regular classroom teachers. The ESL Contact Person is also vital in the identification of potential ELLs at the school. The ESL Contact Person shares information regarding a student’s English language proficiency with classroom teachers.
The ESL Contact Person has the following responsibilities:
●Ensuring that every student who reports a language other than English on his/her home language survey is referred to the ESL Department within 7 days of enrollment, using the NOMS Referral Form. A link to this form is included in the “Forms List and Links” section of this manual.
●Disseminating information (such as “Teacher Reports”) regarding a student’s language proficiency to the student’s regular classroom teachers if the student is identified as an English language learner and ensuring that the student’s purple (ESL) folder is filed in the cumulative folder.
●Disseminating information (parent letters) regarding a student’s language proficiency (test results) to the student’s family and organizing parent meetings for any parents that wish to refuse services.
●Ensuring that PEPs are signed by teachers and principals and that they are filed in the purple (ESL) folder, in a timely manner.
●Ensuring that annual ACCESS scores are placed in the student’s cumulative folder.
●Organizing meetings for the School Level Promotion/Retention Committee, completing the Promotion/Retention form, and reporting committee findings to the principal. At high schools, these meetings will need to occur near the end of each semester.
●Reporting possible retentions or high school course failures in a timely manner to the ESL Department. At high schools, these reports will need to be made at the end of each semester.
●Arranging for interpreters for parents at conferences/meetings.
●Assisting the school’s Testing Coordinator as needed during the annual ACCESS testing window.
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The Role of the ESL Teacher
Although a number of school personnel are familiar with the ESL Program, others may not be familiar with it. The primary role of the ESL teacher is, of course, to instruct the ELLs. Therefore, the ESL Department has set the following policies:
●ESL teachers are not responsible for making instructional and assessment modifications for classroom teachers.
●ESL teachers are not to read tests from other classes aloud to students during the ESL class.
●ESL teachers should not use ESL class time to allow students to do classroom assignments, such as homework, for other classes.
●ESL students cannot miss ESL pullout class unless they are involved in an approved school event.
●Classroom teachers may not decide not to send students for services, and students may not decide not to go. Only parents may refuse ESL services for their children, using a Parent Refusal of Service Form.
●ESL teachers are not to interpret at TAT or PEP meetings.
●ESL teachers may not be asked to leave class to interpret while they are holding class.
●ESL teachers are required to participate in the TAT process by observing the ESL student and by providing relevant information about the child’s culture and the language acquisition process.
School personnel can aid the ESL Program by helping classroom teachers understand these policies. Encourage classroom teachers to send their students to ESL classes and to see the ESL class as something other than a non-essential “study hall” class. Also, do not interrupt the ESL class unless an emergency requires the ESL teacher’s presence.
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Background Information: Legal Decisions Impacting English Language Learners
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
“No person in the United States shall, on the grounds of race, color or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
Implications for English Language Learners (ELLs):
●Students cannot be discriminated against due to language. ELLs cannot be denied services in school because the teacher does not speak the same language as the student.
●Students cannot be refused enrollment due to limited English proficiency. ELLs are entitled to education in a public school until age 21.
●Students cannot be retained due to limited English proficiency. Additionally, this law means that, as a practice, F’s, D’s or U’s should not be given if English language ability prevents the students from performing the same as a native speaker of English.
●Students cannot be expelled or suspended due to limited English proficiency.
The Health, Education, and Welfare Memorandum of May 25, 1970
“Where the inability to speak and understand the English language excludes national origin minority group children from effectively participating in the educational program offered by a school district, the district must take affirmative steps to rectify the language deficiency in order to open its instructional program to these students.”
Implications for English Language Learners:
●Schools must provide services aimed at teaching English to limited English proficient students.
●Classroom teachers must modify instruction for English language learners.
Lau v. Nichols (1974)
This case involved a suit by Chinese parents in San Francisco which led to a ruling that identical education does not constitute equal education under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. School districts must take the affirmative steps to overcome barriers faced by non-English speakers.
Implications for English Language Learners:
●Schools must provide services aimed at teaching English to limited English proficient students.
●Classroom teachers must modify instruction for English language learners.
The Equal Opportunity Act of 1974
This act requires a local school agency to take the appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede students’ equal participation in its instructional program. A policy must be in place.
Rios vs. Read (1978)
●States must identify LEP students through valid testing.
●Programs must be monitored.
●Students cannot exit prematurely without valid testing.
Castenada vs. Pickard (1981)
The program that is used to serve students must be based on sound theory and show reasonable success.
Plyler vs. Doe (1982)
Students cannot be refused enrollment due to a lack of legal documentation. Enrollment cannot be denied to students here on a Visitor’s Visa, as long as they are here with a parent or legal guardian. If they are not here with a parent or legal guardian, the system does not have to enroll the student, but DPI recommends erring on the side of enrollment. Students need “satisfactory proof of age.” A birth certificate is not required; requirement can be satisfied by a baptismal certificate, medical records, or an affidavit signed by parents. Students do not need a social security number. Schools are not to inquire into the legal status of students; the assumption is that children do not come here on their own.
Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1988
All federal programs are “at risk” (may risk a loss of funds) if there is a failure to comply with statutes regarding the education of English language learners.
Office of Civil Rights Enforcement Policy (1991)
●Program evaluation is required to gauge success.
●Qualified ESL personnel must be employed to implement the program.
●Specific program exit criteria must be in place.
●Systems cannot screen out LEP students for Gifted and Talented programs.
P.L. 103-302 Improving America’s Schools Act (IASA) of 1994
This act authorizes full participation of eligible students with limited English proficiency in Title I programs for economically disadvantaged children. It states, “...limited English proficient children are eligible for services on the same basis as other children selected to receive services.” It also states, “...limited English proficient students shall be assessed to the extent practicable, in the language and form most likely to yield accurate and reliable information on whatever students know and can do to determine such students’ mastery of skills in subjects other than English.”
Title III of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
This act aims to help ensure that LEP students are provided the assistance needed to attain English proficiency and to meet the level of academic achievement that all children are expected to meet. Specifically, it provides flexibility in defining LEP students as a “subgroup” and in assessing LEP students.
For synopses of legal issues affecting LEP students, go to:
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Enrollment Procedures and Policies
The first step in identifying students with limited English proficiency is to screen all students. Although many National Origin Minority Students (NOMS) have attained a high level of English proficiency and are successful in their academic classes, it is necessary for school districts to have an initial identification process that identifies all NOMS by surveying all students
The ESL Department recommends age-appropriate grade placement for ELL students. Placing a student in a grade that is not consistent with his or her age might be considered a violation of his or her civil rights.
Inappropriate grade placement may also present a serious safety issue. Discrepancy between age(s) and peer group interaction may create problems brought about because of social, emotional, and developmental issues. In addition, inappropriate placement does not allow that child equitable access to grade-level instruction, which is mandated by No Child Left Behind.
Please contact the ESL Department if you need to discuss any grade placement issues at your school.
The following guidelines will assist school personnel who make decisions about initial grade/class placement:
- The registrar cannot require students to produce immigration papers or a social security card for enrollment.
- The registrar cannot require students to produce a birth certificate for enrollment. The date of birth may be validated through passports, family Bibles, or other sources voluntarily presented during registration.
- Schools can require immunization records and health assessment information for enrollment.
- In general, ELL students should be placed at the grade level that corresponds to chronological age.
- Title VI of the Civil Rights Act guarantees all students, regardless of limited English proficiency, national origin, race or gender, equal access to all educational programs -- including academically gifted, vocational, computer, compensatory, and special education.
- At the high school level, English language learners should not be placed in “standard-level” courses solely because they have limited English proficiency.
- North Carolina law requires that all resident children between the ages of seven and 16 enroll in school during the time it is in session (NC General Statutes 115 C-378). This means that children must be enrolled whenever they present themselves for enrollment -- including the last week of school.
Refusal of Service
When a parent of an ESL student expresses a desire to refuse language support services, the ESL Department must be involved. The following procedure will be implemented to ensure the parent is aware of all the consequences of refusing services before doing so.
- The parent should notify the ESL Contact Person at the school, either by telephone, in writing, or in person through an interpreter, that he or she wishes to refuse ESL services.
- The ESL Contact Person will arrange a parent meeting between the ESL teacher (or other ESL Department Representative), the parent, and himself/herself. The meeting should be arranged within two weeks.
- The ESL Contact Person should notify the ESL Department that he/she has received such a communication from the parent. The ESL Contact Person will inform the Department of the meeting date and time and of the need for an interpreter.
- The ESL Teacher/Representative will gather information on the student -- including proficiency level and description, testing information, information on progress in ESL class, etc. -- and will prepare the Refusal of Service form. The form is in pdf format below.
- The ESL Department will arrange for an interpreter, if necessary.
- At the meeting, the ESL Teacher/Representative will review the concerns of the parent, the information on the student's proficiency level and progress, and the consequences of refusal of service (listed on the form).
If the parent decides to refuse services, he or she should sign the Refusal Form. The ESL Contact Person should file a copy of the form in the student's purple (ESL) folder.
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Evaluating Student Progress and Promotion/Retention Guidelines
English Language Learners are to be assessed on their progress in meeting content objectives, their knowledge of English and their progress in learning English. Even though ELLs at the early stages of English language acquisition may not be able to perform at grade level in English, they should participate in classroom activities and be evaluated in terms of their effort and progress.
Because ELLs are learning both the English language and academic content simultaneously, they need instructional modifications to facilitate learning in the regular classroom. “There is no equality of treatment merely by providing students with the same facilities, textbooks, teachers and curriculum. Students who do not understand English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education” (Lau v. Nichols, 414 U.S. 563, 94 S.Ct. 786, 1974). Information about the appropriate modifications will be provided to classroom teachers on the student’s Personal Education Plan. Classroom teachers have the responsibility of documenting when and how they use the modifications.
ELLs should not receive failing grades due to lack of English ability as they progress in learning English. ELLs “must be taught English before they can be held to the same standards at their English-speaking peers” (Lau v. Nichols, 414 U.S. 563, 94 S.Ct. 786, 1974). This Supreme Court ruling means that failing grades should not be given if English language ability prevents the student from performing the same as a native speaker of English.
Furthermore, “in accord with federal law, it is a violation of the Regulation Implementing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 if limited English proficient students are retained in a grade for failure to demonstrate basic skills in English.”
The final decision concerning promotion/retention ultimately rests with the principal; however the Pitt County Schools ESL Department, as well as system guidelines for promotion/retention, recommend basing that decision on findings from a School Level Promotion/Retention Committee, including input from the ESL teacher. The ESL Promotion/Retention Form will guide school personnel in collecting information, analyzing the student’s performance, and documenting the School Level Promotion/Retention Committee’s findings for the principal. A link to this form is included in the “Forms List and Links” section of this manual.
When considering an ELL student for retention, classroom teachers must have documentation to demonstrate that lack of English is in no way related to lack of academic success in the grade/course. Teachers should have Personal Education Plans that indicate the instructional and assessment modifications they need to use regularly in the classroom. Teachers will need to provide samples of student work, that reflect how the student performed on the modified classroom activities and assessments, to the School Level Promotion/Retention Committee.
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Program Goals
The goal of the English as a Second Language (ESL) Program is to increase the acquisition of academic English and English literacy in students who have been identified as English Language Learners (ELLs) in grades K-12. The program provides ESL services to ELLs and monitors the progress of students who have obtained “Fully English Proficient” (FEP) status for two years.
It is our goal to promote the development of academic skills for ELLs with instruction that will improve their proficiency level. The ESL Program is designed to meet both federal and state guidelines and to maximize each student’s potential for success.
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Program Placement
On the day of enrollment, the parents of all new students complete a Home Language Survey as part of the official registration process.
The Home Language survey should be reviewed to determine if the students is a National Origin Minority Student (NOMS) -- a student whose Home Language Survey indicates he/she did not acquire English as a first language or does not use English most often at home. All NOMS must be referred to the ESL Department within 7 days of enrollment. Failure to refer a NOMS to the ESL Department within this timeframe may violate testing guidelines.
Within 14 days of enrollment, ESL Department Personnel will administer the WIDA-ACCESS Placement Test (W-APT). The ESL Program uses the W-APT to assess a student’s English proficiency upon enrollment and to place the student into ESL services as needed. Failure to administer the W-APT within 14 days of enrollment may violate testing guidelines.
The ESL Department will send testing results to the ESL Contact Person at the school to disseminate to parents. Parents who indicate they wish to refuse ESL services for their children who qualify will need to meet with the ESL teacher and ESL Contact Person at the school and sign a Parent Refusal of Service form in their presence. The ESL Contact Person will be responsible for organizing this meeting. A link to the refusal form is included in the “Forms List and Links” section of this manual.